Our
House
If
AJB
6th
Grade
Were
a
Village
By
Briana,
Garrett,
John
J.,
Christian,
&
John
C.
Table
of
Contents
Introduction
1
By
Christian
Soefje
Stewardship
2
By
John
Jones
Movement
4
By
John
Castro
Languages
6
By
Garrett
Howton
Traditions
8
By
Briana
Rodriguez
About
the
Authors
10
Introduction to Community
Our community of 6th graders was mainly born in Seguin,
TX. The next largest group of students was born in either another
town in Texas or elsewhere in the United States. Very few
students were born out of the country.
Our community of 6th graders is a small amount of the
total residents of Seguin. Seguin is a community because we all
work together as one. We became a community when Texas
won its independence from Mexico. Our hometown got its
name from one of the first true Texans, Juan Seguin.
AJB is a community because we all work together as a
family, and we don't let other people down. We help others up,
and we stand up together for what is right.
Stewardship
We take care of the environment by recycling, not
wasting food, not polluting, by helping others, and by picking
up after ourselves. In Seguin, recycling helps because other
great products can be made from things that other people
don’t use anymore. Polluting is bad for us; it can kill plants,
animals, and humans! Helping others makes our community a
better place to live.
In Seguin, citizens are great recyclers of paper. There are
Champion recycling bins at most of our schools and at other
locations around the city. Some trash companies offer curbside
recycling, so some citizens recycle paper, aluminum, and glass
from their homes. At AJB, we also recycle paper. We have
recycling bins in each room.
I go to church where we sometimes make food to feed
the hungry and homeless. At AJB, we can take care of our
school environment by showing respect for others,
volunteering, and having a positive attitude. These positive
actions help make AJB the place to be!
Stewardship Data
Having
a
positive
attitude
Showing
Respect
Conserving
resources
Gardening
or
farming
Recycling
paper,
plastic,
or
aluminum
Volunteering
At AJB, we have many ways of taking care of our environment. As
many as 57% of students improve our environment by having a positive
attitude and showing respect to others. 17% of students try to conserve
resources. For instance, we don’t leave the water running while brushing
our teeth. 12% of us grow some of our own food by gardening or farming.
7% recycle paper or aluminum, and 6% actively volunteer their time to
worthy causes in our community.
Movement
In the past 100-200 years, movement has changed
tremendously. A long time ago there were no cars. There were no
radios. In the 1800s, we had wagons and messenger pigeons. It was
hard to move people and goods. If we wanted to share ideas, we had
to go see whomever we wanted to talk to in person. But now, we
have cars and planes and radios and phones and computers, and it is
easier to transfer people and goods and ideas. Sharing ideas has
changed. We do not talk as much in person, but we talk more on the
phone or through text messaging. We can also see who we we are
talking to through Skype or FaceTime. Today, movement within our
community is a lot different than 100 years ago.
Movement Data
Seguin
Another
town
in
Texas
Somewhere
else
in
the
United
States
Mexico/Central/South
America
Other
Languages
Communicating has been important as long as humans
can remember. There are many languages spoken in the
world. There are also different accents or dialects. Knowing
how to communicate is one of the key essentials in life. Without
communication, it would be impossible to understand anyone
else.
The first question I was asked to research was, “What
languages are represented in Seguin?” Well, the two main
languages are Spanish and English. The same result is true for
my school, A.J. Briesemeister.
I don’t know any other language besides English. I have
spoken English all my life, and I only know a little bit of
Japanese. I do not intend to learn many other languages.
Languages
Data
English
only
English
and
Spanish
English
and
other
Spanish
only
Seventy
percent
of
the
sixth
graders
at
AJB
speak
only
English.
Twenty
six
percent
of
the
sixth
graders
are
bilingual
and
speak
both
English
and
Spanish.
Three
percent
of
our
sixth
graders
speak
English
and
another
language,
while
two
percent
of
students
speak
only
Spanish
and
are
just
learning
English
for
the
first
time.
Traditions
My favorite tradition is Christmas Eve because I get to
spend time with my family. On Christmas Eve, I always pray to
baby Jesus. My family eats together, and there are always
candy bags that get passed out to the kids. I get to play and
hang out with my friends that come over. We always mess
around and go to the swings and listen to music. At midnight,
which is Christmas Day, we open our presents.
Some students at AJB love Christmas, too. Some others
here like other holidays such as Thanksgiving or their birthdays.
They like birthdays because they get cake and presents, and
it’s their time to shine.
Favorite Holidays or Traditions Data
47% Christmas
21% Birthday
9% New Years
7% Halloween
5% Major Sporting Event (Final Four, Superbowl, World Cup)
4% Dia de los Muertos
2% Family
1% Thanksgiving
1% Food/Travel
1% Easter
1% Eid
About the Authors
Keep
going,
and
never
look
back.
I
don't
mean
never
look
back
with
your
eyes.
I
mean
what
happened
in
the
past
does
not
matter.
Set
goals
for
yourself.
What
you
have
done
is
nothing
compared
to
what
you
CAN
do!
No
matter
where
you
are
or
what
you
are
doing,
you
can
do
something
to
make
a
difference.
I
know
I
can
do
anything
I
want
to
if
I
just
believe
in
myself.
All
I
have
to
do
is
keep
going,
and
never
look
back.
Christian
Soefje
Never
give
up
on
your
goals.
This
motivates
me
in
many
ways
because
my
favorite
sport
is
basketball,
and
there
have
been
so
many
times
that
I
just
wanted
to
give
up
and
start
something
else.
But
then
I
remember,
I
cannot
give
up
because
I
have
already
come
far,
and
this
is
my
future.
My
goal
is
to
play
in
the
NBA.
John
Jones
To
have
a
fun
time,
be
young
at
heart.
John
Castro
This
motto
applies
to
my
life
by
the
way
I
act.
It’s
good
to
take
things
seriously
sometimes,
but
it’s
also
good
to
take
breaks
from
being
serious
and
to
have
fun.
If
you
want
to
have
fun,
you
have
to
take
your
mind
off
being
serious
and
just
have
fun.
The
key
to
having
fun
is
to
be
young
at
heart.
No
matter
what
age
I
am,
when
I
am
having
fun,
I
am
young
at
heart.
You
should
be,
too.
Always
love
and
always
live
because
you
can
live
the
happiest
life
you
can
live.
If
you
love
someone
and
live
life
to
the
fullest,
you
will
find
true
happiness-‐-‐YOUR
true
happiness
and
what
YOU
desire.
But
if
you
choose
not
to
live
and/or
love,
then
you
will
be
isolated
forever
in
your
own
shadow.
Garrett
Howton
I
love
to
say,
“Hi”
all
the
time.
Everyone
likes
someone
to
tell
them
“hi.”
Being
told
“hi”
could
make
you
happy,
but
only
if
you’re
not
grouchy.
I
try
to
ignore
those
people.
I
am
always
kind
to
others,
so
people
will
like
me
and
know
that
I
am
nice.
I
think
other
people
should
do
the
same
thing
to
make
the
world
a
better
place.
Briana
Rodriguez