The 6th Grade Writers Room

by Kristian

That was the sound of my broken leg, a fast move that caused a lot of pain. I was screaming and crying, wondering what just happened. I was taken out to the sideline; my mom was calling my dad to tell him that he would have to take me to the emergency room. It took my dad about 20 minutes to drive over to the soccer field, but it felt like hours to me. The pain was killing me.

When I got to the emergency room it took a while before I got helped. They took x-rays with a big steel board on the side of my leg. They had troubles finding balance for the board and it kept on falling on my hurting leg. It turned out that I had a spiral fracture, which is really bad and for the following three hours: the doctors tried to decide whether I needed a surgery or just a cast.

Fortunately, I didn’t need surgery and they started to wrap my leg with fiberglass. When I came out into the hallway, I had a big, full leg cast on. Surprisingly the cast was very light, but clumsy. Going from being a very active kid, I could now for the first time experience the life of a lazy, American kid. I got a new computer, which was pretty awesome, and for the next two weeks I was spending all my waking time playing on the computer. Those two weeks were the best ever and I wished the whole rehab time could have been like that. But unfortunately, I had to start to do real rehab in the beginning of the third week.

This meant physical therapist appointments twice a week and rehab exercises in the gym every day. The rehab was boring and I had to do it for two months. But after those two months, I got my cast of. That was a big relief. After two months in a cast, my leg was as small as a twig; but at least I got the cast off. Even if I got my cast off, I had a lot of rehab and physical therapist appointments left.

One day, my physical therapist told me that I could start to do Nordic skiing for rehab. I was sad that I couldn’t alpine ski, but happy that I at least could do some kind of skiing. I realized pretty soon that I would not be able to compete with the alpine team this winter, but that didn’t bother me too much; I joined the Nordic team instead. After a couple of weeks of Nordic skiing, I had become a solid Nordic skier and on the Sun Valley Nordic Team award in the end of the season I got the award for being the most outstanding boy on the prep team. All the rehab training helped my leg heal fast and I have already started to play soccer again.

by Parker

I woke up at six o’clock, rubbed my eyes and got out of bed, got dressed and went downstairs. As I walked down the stairs and walked into the kitchen, I said hi to my Dad and fixed myself a bowl of cereal, sat down and started eating.A few seconds later, my Dad said, “Are you excited?”

“Oh yeah, I can’t wait,” I said in response. After that the kitchen was silent. When I hopped in the car my Dad and I didn’t talk until we got to Bellevue then we started talking like crazy.We were talking about basketball, and baseball, listening to the radio, and arguing about who would win the playoffs.After all, we were headed to the Final Four!

When we got to Boise and checked in, we got on the plane and our road to the Final Four began. We had to land in Cincinnati because the flight to Indianapolis was too expensive. So when we landed we got a rental car and started to drive to Indy.It started to turn towards evening as we cruised towards the city.As we drove up the driveway of our friend’s house, we were very tired and wanted to get to sleep so went straight to bed.

The next morning we woke up, got dressed and went to Lucas Oil stadium (where the Final Four was held). When we got to the stadium there were a ton of West Virginia fans, Michigan State fans, Butler fans and Duke fans.I was rooting for Duke, of course.

Then we went to the ticket counter and got our tickets. As I opened the tickets, there were two tickets. One was a blue long ticket that said Semifinals on it. The second ticket was gold, even longer, and said Finals on it. I thought these were the coolest tickets I have ever seen.

After we picked up our tickets, we went to a place called Bracket Town. Bracket Town was awesome; there was a ton of little gift shops, people were handing out free Coke Zeros and Vitamin Waters. Also, there were small three-on-three games, hoops that you could shoot on, video games and hoops that you could lower and dunk on.

After a couple hours the doors to the stadium finally opened. As we walked in there was a big area with food stands; it was crowded and loud.Already, fans were streaming in wearing navy, yellow, green and blue.As I sat in my seat and looked at the large stadium, I said to myself “This is going to be awesome.”

Our Honda rolled slowly up the steep pass, sending small pebbles rolling off the edge of the cliff, skittering through the railing and falling down into the canyon. Clouds of dust obscured our view, and the Honda kept climbing up the winding road. Inside the car, I was bouncing excitedly around in my car seat. My brothers were sitting in the back, just as excited, horsing around with pent-up anticipation. My whole family was still arguing about names.

“C’mon, Hannah, give in,” said Alexander impatiently. “We all want the name Phoebe, you know we do, so give in!” He was right, but I didn’t like the name Phoebe at the time. It reminded me of the girl in the show The Magic School Bus, who was a total scaredy-cat and never wanted to go on adventures. She was called Phoebe. Whenever I thought that name, I thought coward. I loved the name Poppy, and I still preferred that. Any name was better than Phoebe. I looked back at my brother and scowled.

“No. I don’t like the name Phoebe. I don’t want our dog to be a scaredy-dog,” I reminded him. My mom turned around and frowned at us.

“Kids, stop fighting. Just hold tight, we’re almost there.”

And so we were. My dad was pulling into a long gravel driveway, steering us to the front of a big house. My parents got out and helped me unbuckle. As soon as I was out of the way, my brothers pushed the seat down and clambered out. I was so excited, it seemed like forever before we finally went up the path and knocked on the door. When it opened, a woman with brown hair pulled up in a ponytail and small rectangular glasses answered.

“Well well well, you must be the Conns! We’ve been expecting you. Come in, come in. The puppies will love to meet you!” she said as she led us into the living room.

“The puppies and their mother are outside on the patio. Come on out.” She showed us out onto the deck, and suddenly we were surrounded by a mass of small, warm bodies. The puppies were the cutest, sweetest things I had ever seen. They were a rust-brown color with soft little ears and huge, milky eyes. Each puppy had a piece of rickrack tied around its neck: yellow, pink, green, blue, a bunch of different colors to tell which puppy was which. All the puppies looked the same. I didn’t know which one was ours but I couldn’t care less. They were so cute, roughhousing with each other and fighting to get a drink of milk from their mother, Brandy. They were all falling over each other with little yips and cries, a mix of ears and wagging tails and fur. My brothers were down on the deck, playing with all the puppies swarming around them. I was still a little hesitant.

“Yours has purple rickrack,” said the lady, breaking the trance I had been in watching the puppies. I looked around for the telltale sign of wavy purple ribbon. And then, I saw it. The puppy. Our puppy, tousling with a different little dog with yellow rickrack. I just looked at her and felt an extreme love for her.

“See her, Hannah?” asked my dad, drawing my attention away from our puppy. I could only nod at him and turn my attention back to the dogs. Suddenly, my dad had gently picked her up and was holding her like a baby. That broke the spell. I ran over to my dad with my brothers close on my heels. The puppy looked a little bewildered, lying in strange arms. I reached my arm out to pet her. She was soft and warm, her big eyes looking up at me, confused. I traced the outline of her soft brown ears with a little fringe of fur on the edges. My brothers were excited too. They were all over her, asking to hold her and trying to pet her. My dad set her down again so she could play a little longer before saying goodbye to her mother and all her siblings forever. She ran over to Brandy and pushed the puppy with green rickrack over to have a last go at a drink. The yellow rickrack puppy trotted over and pushed our puppy out of the way. The breeder wove through all the little dogs to ours and picked her up again.

“I think it might be time soon to take her home, don’t you think?” I was fine with this. I was eager to get back to my house and show our puppy her new home. We had it all set up for her. We all went back through the living room and to the front door.

“Thank you so much for coming. I’m sure your puppy will have a great home.” She bid us goodbye and closed the door. We piled back into the car and got the puppy settled in the back with my brothers. I couldn’t help looking back and watching her every few seconds. When everyone was all buckled, my dad started up the car and turned out of the driveway, spraying up gravel, pulling back onto the long road, this time with a puppy in the back seat. Something came to me suddenly.

“Hey guys, I’ve changed my mind. Let’s call her Phoebe.”

by Evan

Snap! The camera flashes as my legs are shaking. We are about to go ride on The Roller Coaster (that is actually the name of the ride) and I am really nervous. My mom tries to reassure me, “Okay. That’s a good shot. Go ahead.” Then she leaves the line with my younger sister leaving only me with my older sister. We climb up the stairs and see the station, and now I’m really nervous. Unfortunately for me, this ride has a fast loading process, so before I know it, I am pulling the lap bar down and getting ready to scream.

For most of my life, I’ve been afraid of rollercoasters.I don’t know if it’s the speed or the sound, but the drops always make my stomach queasy.Up until now, I had only been on a simple, twenty-foot drop ride and Splash Mountain in Disneyland.And believe me, riding this rollercoaster was not my choice.My mom made me because she told me that if I did it ONCE I wouldn’t have to do it again.

Back to the rollercoaster.The ride begins with a curve around the station. When you reach the end of the curve, you can see a fabulous view below you. Although the view at the top is prettier, I take a good look around because I know my eyes will be closed at the top. The ride then begins the accent up.

Now before I continue, I would like to let you know. I sat at the 2nd to last row, and if you are sitting near where I am, when you are climbing up the lift hill you will not be able to see the top, which for me, was pretty freaky.My sister was smart, and figured out that you could look at the reflection, but I was too scared and didn’t know this.

Soon, I was 200 feet up in the air and slowly I moved to the drop, then, I was gone.

The ride begins with a 75 foot drop. If you’re scared right now, you will be freaking out on the 150 foot hill—straight down it felt. After that, you go upside down and on the second time, you hang there, suspended. Hanging upside down is one of the reasons I will go on this ride again.

Once you curve around to a set of brakes, the hardest part is over. By this point I was catching my breath and feeling proud of myself. You then do a bunch of tiny hills and get your picture taken. Then you slow down and the 2-minute ride is over.

Overall, the ride isn’t that bad. You have some fun jumps and bumps that might make you want to ride it again. The line moves fast and the ride itself is too. I think I had a fun time and can’t wait to do it again.I guess my mom was right.

By Blair Baker

I was not looking forward to the 13-hour flight ahead of me.I was in Hong Kong, and it was 6:00 in the morning.Soon, the plane would depart to take me and my family back to our home in Sun Valley.I had just finished an fun and adventurous trip to China and Thailand, and it was time to go home.In a way, I was looking forward to it, and in a way, I wanted to stay.

TWO WEEKS EARLIER

It started in San Francisco with dinner with my family. Everyone was there: My 2 aunts, my 2 uncles, both of their kids, my grandma, my grandpa, my god mother, her boyfriend and my whole family. The next morning we left for China. The flight was a never ending 13 hours. When we landed in Beijing it was snowing. I was furious and tired. We drove to the hotel and had dinner then went to sleep.

The next morning we woke up, had breakfast and went to the Forbidden City.The time change was 13 hours in Beijing, so, basically, I was exhausted at 5:00 in the morning. We had lunch at our first Chinese restaurant and it was really good. After lunch we went to a silk factory and learned how they make silk. Then we bought a ton of stuff made out of silk. The next day we went to the temple of heaven and it was really cool. It is a temple where only the Emperor could go. The temple had three stories.The first story represented normal people.The second story represented the Emperor, and the third story represented God.

After that, we went on rickshaw rides to see a house where a retired Chinese worker lived.I don’t remember his name but he told us about his life; it was very interesting.He lived in a small courtyard along with seven people: his three sons, his daughter, his wife, and his two granddaughters.

After that, we took a taxi to a teahouse. We sat and had a tea ceremony; the tea was very good. It was amazing!I had never tasted real Chinese tea before.

They next morning we drove to a different hotel.When we got there, it was amazing! The hotel was part of the summer palace. The summer palace is where the Emperor goes in the summer. It was bought by a guy named Aman and turned into a hotel. The hotel had an underground section that had a swimming pool, a huge movie theater and a juice bar. We spent our day touring the hotel.

The next day we went to the great wall. The view was breathtaking. We walked for about an hour and a half. To go down we went on these little sleds down a track.The view from the great wall was incredible—there was snow on both sides of us, and before us a great, gray trail of wall-ness went on as far as we could see.

The next day we went to the airport for yet another flight, this time to Shanghai. When we checked in to get my plane ticket, it was not available so we had to wait 30 min. Then we finally found it. Thank god! When we went on the plane it was super nice. When we got there it was around 8 at night and my Dad’s friend Beau was still there to take us to the hotel. We got there and my parents went to a party at a new opening of a hotel with Beau and his wife Cooksey.

The next day we went to a Chinese dumpling place.It didn’t look good but it was delicious.There was a line, hours long, to get dumplings!

The next day, we went over to Beau’s house I met (kind of the last time I saw them was 8 years ago) there were Chase (15) Collin (14) Isa (12) and Anna (10). It was Anna’s birthday party. It was first a game of cricket then to the spa. I got my nails done and my toes; I got my hair sprayed with blue and green hairspray and I got a hot rock massage. It was so much fun!

The next day we went to brunch at the Hyatt. It was really big. But that was not the best part. It had COTTON CANDY! It was the best buffet I had ever been to. After that I went to a “black market.” It is a market were they sell fake everything from Chanel to Abercrombie. The sold purses, glasses, even furniture! It was so fun. The stuff I got was cheap and it looked real. After I went shopping I went to this massage place with Beau's family. We all got foot massages.

Then, we said goodbye to the family and went to our hotel. The next morning we left for the airport. We took a train that went 187 mph. Then went on a plane up to South Korea then down to Phuket, Thailand. We landed at 1 in the morning. The next morning we walked down the beach to a different hotel that had a water slide; we did that for 2 hours. Then we went to a different hotel that had elephants that would come and you could go and pet them. There names were Lucky and Lilly. After that we swam in the water but later came out to find the water had a million mini jellyfish. Then we went back to the hotel and ate dinner.

The next day we rode elephants.My mom was so scared that her hands turned blue because she was holding the rail so tight. I just laughed. Then we walked around the little town and bought little elephant sculptures. The next day we went zip lining. It was a long car ride followed by a long hike up this mountain to go zip lining. But in the end it payed off--the ride down was incredible.

The next day we took the long flight back home. It was an amazing trip and I am so glad that I had that experience!

By Lukas



My favorite sport is windsurfing. I started windsurfing when I was six years old in a place called Hood River, Oregon. I spend every summer in Hood River. Hood River is the windsurfing capital of the world. The wind blows there from thirty knots to 40 knots, and people travel from all over the world to windsurf on the Columbia River. My family and I have a house there. The very few days when it is not windy we go out on our boat and water ski and wake board. Sometimes we also go skiing on Mt Hood, which is only 45 minutes away.

I learned how to sail at a kids camp that took place in the Hook. It is an enclosed area except for one part that is open to the Columbia River. There is not that much wind in the Hook because it is sheltered but it is an excellent place to windsurf when you are just starting. At kids camp you start in the morning and the people who work there rig all the sails up. They teach you how to sail and turn. When you do that for a few years you move on to advanced camp. In advanced camp you learn how to jibe and to do a planing jibes which are two different kinds of turns. One is going slow and turning and the other is going fast and turning. I have been in advanced camp for 3 years now and I am working on my planing jibes, water starting and jumping. I sail in the Columbia River now.

The equipment you need for windsurfing are a boom, mast, sail, board, wet suit, fin, life jacket and a helmet. My favorite places to sail is on the Columbia River and in Maui. But there are other places to windsurf too! There is a thing called indoor windsurfing and the wind power comes from big fans and there are a least 100 fans that are blowing 20 to 40 knots. When you are starting you start off a big ramp and slide down it in to the water. They put big jumps in the water that are at least nine feet tall and they have a space in the middle that is at least five inches for the fin on the board.



I like windsurfing because you can go as fast and as slow as you want. I like when I am sailing because it feels really good when you are out on the water and it is fun to find ramps (waves) to jump off and catch air. I encourage more people to windsurf because it is a really fun sport.

By Jay and Griffin

Once we landed in Vancouver we made our way to the hotel. We were surprised to see the USA men’s hockey team staying in our hotel too! We walked into our room, got all unpacked, and got psyched for our first event at the 2010 Vancouver games the next morning.

19,950 people wearing nothing but red and white, 50 people wearing only red, white and blue and chanting “GO U-S-A!” Yes, you might have guessed we are at the Canada vs. USA hockey game, the game when we won. From our hotel we could see the entrance to the hockey rink; minute by minute the line up outside of the rink was getting longer and longer. When we were finally inside making our way to our seats there were venders trying to sell us hot dogs, burgers, candy, hockey pucks, jerseys, and hockey sticks. When we finally got to our seats we were just in time for the opening face off. We were high in the bleachers next to the US net. Whenever the Canadian team took a shot and our goalie saved it the few Americans yelled and cheered, and then we were echoed by boos from the rest of the crowd. In the third period of the game we were on the jumbo-tron two times, (the jumbo-tron is the huge screen suspended over center ice) probably because we were some of the lone Americans. When we were walking back to our hotel we were on TV four times! TV guys reporting live kept stopping us and asking us questions about the game. We were interviewed three times, by one American channel and three Canadian channels. It was the match of a lifetime.

The most exciting part of skier cross is when two guys collide in mid-air coming into the finish. We went to the first men's skier cross in Olympic history at Cypress Mountain.Out of 2,000 people from all over the world we were on the jumbotron twice. The skier cross course started out with two tabletop knolls then another set of rollers. Also three bank turns and after that was two gap jumps, then another bank turn coming to the end of the course. Also last but not least the forty-foot kicker coming to the finish.

The first event was the independent time trials and only two guys would not make it, so the two guys who didn’t make it were a French guy and a Swiss guy; they both crashed. The two Americans, Daron Rahlves and Casey Pucket, both made it to the quarterfinals then they took out each other and didn’t make it to the finals. Also the Canadians did not finish on the podium either so the streets of Vancouver were filled with anger that neither Canada nor U.S.A. got atop the podium.

It was an experience of a lifetime being at the first skier cross in the Winter Olympic games.As we were on the bus going up to Whistler Blackcomb we waved and made faces at the cars that were passing us just to entertain us on the two hour and forty-five minute bus ride. We were headed to the women’s super-G. When we got to the mountain we had to take a chair lift up to the grand stands were our seats were located. Unlike at the hockey game there were people from all over the world sitting by us. It was packed! Julia Mancuso was the very first woman to cross the finish line; we were cheering and ringing our cowbells louder and harder than any body at that event. When this event was over and we were walking back down to the chair Lily (Jays little sister) got a fewpictures with some of the racers. She even got a picture with a Slovenian racer.

You might think the only thing we did was got to the events and watch. But we also we walked around the city and say the Olympic torch. We also took a big boardwalk that took us to an aquarium. At the aquarium we say three bologna whales. Later that afternoon we were able to sit on a Vancouver police officers motorcycle. The policeman was very nice he even had a 1980’s look going big huge handle bar mustache and a pair of aviators. But one of the coolest things about the trip was getting ton hold the Olympic torch. The Olympic experience is one of the experiences we will never forget.

By Ryan Netter

I was not looking forward to moving to the small town of Ketchum, Idaho. I didn’t want to go to a new school, I didn’t want to leave my old friends, I didn’t want to move somewhere where the closest mall was two hours away, and I definitely didn’t want to move somewhere where there are more cows than people.

After nine hours in the car, we finally rolled into town. I let out a sigh. I looked on the bright side. At least there were no cows in sight. I looked to my left, expecting to see the Hollywood sign, or more cars, but the only thing I saw were trees covering the many mountains that surrounded the town. I longed for something more interesting to see, but there weren’t even enough cars to play sweet and sour with. I let out another deep sigh.

We finally pulled into the driveway of my new home. I had been there many times before because it was our vacation house, but I never expected I would one day live there.I grabbed all of my bags and stepped out of the car. I took a deep breath of the fresh air. There was a slight breeze that blew against my back. I knew this year would be interesting for the city girl.

Just two weeks later, I started school. What I thought would be the beginning of my sadness turned out to be the beginning of my happiness. I bonded with everyone really quickly; making new friends was easier than I had expected. But the one thing I was worried about was fall campout. I absolutely hated the idea of hiking and camping. It just seemed so unlike the city girl to be out in the woods, camping. I tried many things to get out of it, but my mom wasn’t going to fall for it. I was going to have to go on that trip.

Fall campout is what led me to love the outdoor trips. I was so happy that I finished it, and it made me believe I could do anything. Because of that trip, I have been able to conquer rock climbing and skate skiing. I still have more rock climbing to go, but I am totally ready for it.

Since moving to Idaho, I have been missing the city less and less everyday. It has been such a great experience for me, and although the mountain life has started sticking to me, there will always be the city part of me. What I thought was going to be an interesting year has turned out to be just that, but not in the way I thought it would be.

By Jackie

When I was four or five I went to Costa Rica for 8 days with my family, and Maddie and her family. The plane ride was long and upsetting for me because my brother broke my Nintendo and I cried for a long time. After the depressing plane ride we had to drive to our hotel. The drive was long and very boring because I didn’t have anything to do but I stared outside the window the whole time.

Once we got to our hotel Maddie, my mom, and I all went swimming in our pool. The pool had a water slide and a hot tub, and at night we watched the active volcano that was right above our hotel. The Arenal Volcano had little rivers of lava flowing down from it, and at night they were like red icicles. During the day we heard the large boulders of lava bouncing down the sides of the volcano, and saw clouds of steam coming from the top.We swam in the many hot pools that were heated by the volcano, and some were super hot and others just hot.

It was very green in Costa Rica, and there were very big storms that had lightning and thunder and Maddie and I would sit on the hammocks to watch the storms. The country has a lot of jungles, due to the rainfalls.

We went hiking around the volcano and there was big grey rocks covering the whole mountain. After the hike we had to walk back to the hotel and on our way we saw a lot of iguanas, which were small and a greenish grayish color. We also saw monkeys, colorful plants, and a lot of other green plants.

A few days later we went to a different hotel which had a jungle around it, a pool with a waterslide, and was on a steep hillside above the Pacific Ocean. The jungle had a lot of monkeys and Maddie and I would play with the monkeys and feed them even though we weren’t supposed to. The beach was really hot and Maddie and I swam in the water.

Back at the hotel, Maddie and I went down the waterslide together. She was in front of me and I was behind her. When we got to the bottom of the waterslide I accidently somehow gave Maddie a huge black eye!

After dinners we would go out on our deck and sit in thehammock and talk. One day we rode horses in the mountains. It was a very long ride and very exciting. The horses kept trying to pass each other and we ended up running through the jungle most of the time. We stopped at this place and it had a super beautiful waterfall that we swam in. I was really scared that something was either going to eat, bite, or attack me, so I didn’t swim. At lunch we were able to hold huge and colorful parrots on our heads and arms.

After the long, bumpy horseback ride we went to a restaurant that looked like a old plane that crashed. On the other side of the plane there was this restaurant with monkeys everywhere. Later that day we went to a butterfly farm and saw how butterflies grow.

Finally the day came that we had to leave and I was very sad, but happy that I was going home. When I finally got home I was really happy because I got a new Nintendo.

By Keegan

When I’m coming across the bridge, from the main land to the island, you feel like you’re on top of the world.The view is breathtaking and it shows all of the island and the beach.You can see all the boats fishing and all people relaxing.On the island there are only beach houses, no hotels or high-rises. When you step on the beach the sand soothes your feet and you just want to relax.The sand is smooth and fine and the Atlantic Ocean is warm and relaxing.The waves are perfect for body surfing and boogie boarding.

Every summer I go to Holden Beach, North Carolina. We rendezvous with my mother’s side of the family (my grandparents, cousins and my aunts and uncles.)We have been going to the North Carolina beaches ever since I was one year old.The reason we go there is because it is a tradition in my mother’s family. Her family has been going to the beach since she was a little girl.

Holden Beach, is a barrier island off the coast of North Carolina, and is relatively close to South Carolina. It is also a turtle sanctuary.Volunteers mark where turtles have laid their eggs, which are guarded by fences.Around the whole beach, turtle patrol people with red t-shirts monitor the turtle’s habitat.Every Wednesday night, the turtle patrol hosts an educational program for the public about saving the Sea turtles and their environment.One year there was a turtle nesting in front of our rental beach house.It was so amazing, and we stayed up late at night to see if they would hatch.But sadly, the eggs didn’t hatch.

Here is a typical day.You wake up in the midmorning and go build sandcastles, then you would swim until lunch.At lunch, we usually have sandwiches and Yoo-hoos out on the deck, but not on the sandy beach.Yoo-hoos are a sweet chocolate milk drink that is really good!After lunch we hit the waves again, build sand castles, body surf and relax.Once we take showers after we are done with the beach, we eat dinner and go to the main land to have fun!We usually play putt-putt golf; eat ice cream and race go-carts.It’s a blast and my mom always wins at putt-putt golf.After all the fun, we go to back to the beach house, watch movies, play games, stay up late and go crab hunting on the beach. It is so fun!One of my favorite things is when my cousins and I walk to the pier and eat ice cream or smoothies.After we are done eating our ice cream, we have competitions seeing who can run back to the house the fastest.My cousin Clark, who is three years older than me, always beats us back.It is super fun and every so often we trip in sand castle holes and fall to the ground.It is really funny to see it happen, but it hurts when you fall!

The one thing I hate about North Carolina is leaving.I hate saying goodbye to my cousins, and being left with my parents for an extra day all by my lonesome self.I hate leaving the coast, the beach, all of the fun games, the warm weather, the smooth sand and most importantly the Ocean.I love swimming in the Atlantic and playing in the sand.My sadness goes away when I get home and see my friends.When my friends ask me how I was, I get sad that I’m not there, but I always think “This time next year, I’ll be at the beach relaxing.”

by Eliza

Four years ago my grandparents sold my favorite house. It was called Sugar Field farm. Sugar field farm was an hour away from a grocery store and a half an hour away from anybody. No matter how far away it was from anything I could always find something to do. On weekends or in the summer my family and I would drive the hour-long drive to sugar field farm. Sometimes my thirteen cousins would join us. There was a pool, a barn and huge huge fields. It was always beautiful and fresh there. Every time I went to Sugar Field Farm I felt like a whole new person. I could just forget about the awful and think about the great.

One summer all of my cousins and I went up there for the week. The older ones that could climb built an enormous tree fort. And the little ones just sat there watching us. There were blankets hanging from all the branches and pillows resting against the trunk. We made a clothes line out of string that held our coats and shoes. I remember all of us sitting in one strait long line on a branch at the top of the tree drinking lemonade for hours and talking about everything.

To the left of the tree was a garden no one took care of it because there were others gardens to take care of. All my cousins decided to fix it up and plant fresh new vegetables and fruit in it. We went in the garage and look for seeds and shovels after a half an hour we were ready to plant. Days later the garden was done. It was so green and fresh. It was called the kids garden because only the kids could go in it.

Unfortunately it was too much work for my grandparents. So we had to sell it. When we sold it I felt like there was a hole in my heart I knew that the only way to fill it was to get the house back. I figured that if I could keep the memories of the house then maybe the hole would fill. But for the first year it was really hard not having that place. Now a family owns it and they are destroying the barn and the pool. The tree that we built all our forts in was cut down and the garden is gone. Even when nothing is left I will always remember that peaceful place and all the memories of playing with my cousins and swimming in the pool.

Hey, I am so nervous right now I am about to explode; I am so nervous.”

It was my first race ever—the big classic race. Western States is the biggest cross country race of the year. Before I started racing, my coach, Dave, said it is going to be okay.' I could only shake my head. My friend Maddy had said that it was going to be fun. Tessa coached us on some technique and Cheyenne was about to faint and all the prep team was laughing at us and Dave was saying something but I didn’t listen to him because I am so nervous about the race.

Back to the race, I’m about halfway through the 1 km course, and I feel like I am about to faint. Now I am trying to remember what Dave said.Soon everyone is shouting my name and I still don't feel that good.I see Maddy up ahead. Then I calmed down.

Soon I saw the T-bar up ahead, which marked the beginning of the downhill course.I tucked in the curves with the grooves, looked ahead, and saw the finish line. I was so relieved to see it, the end of the line of my first race as I tried my hardest.I knew that I didn’t have the guts to go on much longer.

Right when I was about to cross the finish line, a rock hit me I fell flat on my face. I was at the finish line, snot all over me, sweat dripping off me, huffing and puffing out of my wits. I felt like I was going to die. I couldn’t speak normally, then Dave came up to me and said I did very well for my first race. After that, I I started to laugh like a hyena. Every one stared at me; I felt like I was helpless.

At the ceremony. I thought I was not going to podium so I did not have my hopes up. I was sitting next to Maddy. She said she was going to get first and I believed her so I congratulated her for getting first, When they started to call our age group, Maddy started to get antsy. First they announced third, then second and then said, “Emily Siegel, come up!” and I started to scream. I was so happy. Maddy was about to kill me. I saw that it was a cross-country skier on the top of the trophy and it said second place. I was so thrilled.

As I rafted down the Salmon River, I thought about how fun the five day river trip would be. I was with my good friends, it was summer, and it was really warm. I had been rafting before, and this would be the longest river trip that I'd ever been on.

Even guides were really nice, except for one. He was a little freaky. He only had one eye. He was really mean and clumsy. Once he was steering one of the rafts and since he had one eye, he couldn’t see very well, so he flipped the raft into a giant hole. Everyone fell out. At the time, he was also leading all of the kayaks, so they all followed him right into the hole, and ended up swimming. Another time, after I fell out of the kayak, he told me that if I swallowed any water, I could die. He said that there was something called “dry drowning” where the water gets in your lungs and can kill you. When I fell in the water, I got a huge gulp of water, and got very nervous. He made it sound like "dry drowning" was something common.

Right after the trip, he got fired.

Despite the guides, everyday brought new adventures. One day, when we got to the camp spot, we made a waterslide out of one of the rafts. Someone would run to the raft, and, right as the person was jumping to the raft, another person would pour a bucket of water on the raft. Some of the days we just rafted, but others, we would go to museums along the river.

One day, we found a rattlesnake. It was right on our camp site, so the guides caught the snake and put it into the river. Another time on the second or third day, we were going to go on a tiny three foot waterfall and we were in the raft with two guides. One of the guides was the kid guide who everyone hated. He was paddling the raft and just as we got to the waterfall, he flipped out of the boat and I was laughing so hard!

To end the trip, the plane ride back was terrible. It was in a tiny propeller plane that had about three rows of seats. The pilot gave us all earplugs because the plane was so noisy. Also, the plane was not pressurized, so I had a horrible headache, and I felt that my head was going to blow up. The ride was about 45 minutes but the whole time the plane was going up and down. Then, my sister tapped my shoulder and pointed to a sticker next to me, it said:

WARNING: Maximum Weight 400 LBS

That freaked me out because there were at least 6 people on the plane, then there was all of the luggage, which was at least 400 pounds by itself. Once the plane landed, I was relieved, but I still had another 2 hours of driving to get back to Sun Valley. The drive was agonizing; I was in a tiny volvo Squished into the middle back seat for two hours. When I got to my house, I felt dizzy and sick. I was sad that the river trip was over, but happy to be done with the traveling.

I went to the restaurant kicking my soccer ball in the street when some guys say “Hey pass it over here.” So I do.

They pass it back to me. What followed was one of the best pick up games of my life. We played for three hours in the streets of Lido, Italy at 10 at night.

The air was a refreshing cool breeze.The guys that we’re playing with are all about 30, but it doesn’t matter. As we are playing, we asked them were they were from and they told us that they were Portuguese and that they were here fixing up a hotel.

As I go to shoot I feel like I am on top of the world and it is slowed down just for me. I realize once I hear the clock tower ring midnight my mom and I must get home.

Before we leave, since this was such a small island, they asked us if we wanted to play again tomorrow at the beach. My mom and I said to them, "Of course.”

The next morning, though, my mom was doubtful that they would show up. So she said that maybe we should not go to meet them. I said, “No way.” I was sure that they were going to come.She kept trying to convince me that we shouldn’t go. I didn’t budge. So we went. We got there and they were right there with a soccer ball in their hands. We started to play. And we played for a long time just kicking it around. I could feel the my feet digging in to the deep golden sand.My tread as it feels like one step forward and one and a half steps back, but still I'm having a great time.

We then started to go swimming in the Adriatic Sea. It was very refreshing after a long day of soccer .We swam in the sea for about 2 hours in the nicest place I've ever been.They were really nice people; they were older and had work to do, but still took the time to play soccer with my mom and me.

Finally, my Mom joined in and we played a game. It was the end of the day we had to go home. I was sad because we were going to Florence the next day. It was the highlight of our whole trip and it proves that sport really brings people together.

I awoke to the sound of the intercom saying that we would be landing in 2 hours at Sydney International Airport. After being on the plane for 12 hours, I was more than ready to arrive, even though our plane was the nicest I have ever seen.The seats could fold back automatically. On the seat ahead of us was a T.V that on it you could play games, watch T.V. shows, and movies.The company was called Quantas and on the back of the plane was a kangaroo.It was a jumbo jet. When I boarded the plan in San Francisco, by the time I got to my seat I was ready for bed. So I had ripped out a blanket from the plastic bag and quickly fallen asleep.

The plane finally coasted to a smooth stop in Sydney. When I got out of the airplane I had to follow my mom into the customs line and wait for an hour until we finally got through the customs. My mom said we have to wait for another plane to take us to the Whitsunday Islands.“The Whitsunday Islands are right by the Great Barrier Reef,” my mom said to me as we boarded the plane. This plane was way smaller, with propellers. We saw water and yellow land as the plane carried us from Sydney out to Northeastern Australia.

When we landed, the flight attendants opened the door and humidity filled the plane.When we got out of the airport, we saw a man holding a sign that had our last name on it so we went over to him.He introduced himself to us and led us out to the docks and onto a small speedboat.Soon we where speeding across the water heading for a large sailboat, which belonged to one of our friends.

We spent the next few days snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef, fishing off the back of the boat, tubing on the back of the speedboats that are more like rafts with engines than speedboats and on one day we even got to go to the pure white beaches where we made sand sculptures and buried ourselves in the sand. The sun beat down on us all day, and at night it was cool and good for sleeping.

One of the best parts of my trip was a game of pickup football on the white sand beach. It was a close game but my team won by one touchdown.After the game we went and body surfed the waves.That day was my favorite among all the days I spent in Australia. A few nights later, we looked over the edge and saw a school of squids swimming around our boat. The squids looked like a gigantic school of fish, but with tentacles, squirming around each other. In the water, it looked like there were hundreds of them.

Of all the parts of my trip to the islands, I won't forget the beaches, the squid, or how much fun I had with my family and friends.

By Pierson

“What? Huh?” I said sleepily as my excited little brother woke me. I wiped the drool off my face and looked out the widow. Instantly I was awake as I gazed out of the plexi glass window at tiny green spots that were dotted along the famous Nha Trang Bay.

Until this moment I thought that it was too good to be true: to be going to Vietnam. I mean, we had been planning this trip for almost a year but until now it was like a distant fairy tale land. As I looked out the window of the 737, I realized that so many kids in this amazing country would not be visiting a different city, let alone a different country, this spring. The thought was unsettling and I wiped it from my mind.

The plane started its slow descent into Nha Trang airport. Even the tiny airport that we have in Sun Valley was bigger than this one.

At this time we were taxiing to the…wait there is no gate! I was puzzled. My puzzlement was soon gone as we stopped in the middle of the tarmac and the stewardesses started speaking at what seemed like 100 miles an hour and the doors opened slowly. I got out of my seat with the Vietnamese women that sat next to me and started down the aisle.

As we exited the plane a tsunami of heat, humidity and…a touch of sea breeze hit me. I saw a bus in front of us. We walked down the steps of the plane and boarded the bus.

When we got to the crowded baggage claim I noticed a person holding a little white piece of construction paper that said our names and the name of the resort we were staying at in bold letters. I went over to my mom excitedly and told her. We got our baggage and went outside where a bus was waiting in a dirt parking lot. We got in and were greeted by to women that gave us little hot damp rags that smelled of lemon.

We drove for about a half an hour on this steep mountain side. I was filled with expectation when we entered the first town on the way to our resort. It was a very sad scene; there were kids playing in the street. Their houses were nothing more than a little room that they slept in.

In a few minutes we entered the town that we were going to we saw a different scene, a scene with a hotel lined street and taxi cabs and motorcycles everywhere. Beyond them, the beautiful sun-glazed ocean was not more than a stone’s throw away from the four-lane highway that we were driving on.

Suddenly we turned into a gate and two chauffeurs opened the door of the van.

Suddenly I was in a different world. The four star resort that surrounded me was complete with a little pool that had exotic fish swimming in it, an open air lobby with a breath-taking view on to the sandy beach.

This was going to be a crazy trip.

By Lexi

From under the cold, life makes haste. The earth is reborn, beginning to thaw from the cold presence of winter.A single seed bursts in it resting spot, allowing its roots to spread and embroider the bland dirt around it.The parched roots stretch and wind through the endless passageways of the earth, and soon, through the last remaining patch of snow, sprouts a single green shoot. The tiny green thing would seem completely helpless, yet is a sign of hope and life after the unforgiving winter.But it is not the first of its kind.All around the now-muddy earth are little green shoots, glimmering in the long-gone sun.

Days come and go, and the thin, weak sprouts now sway beautifully in long, seed topped blades by a swift creek.The grass bows and stands under the breeze, turning the multiple strands into a sea of grass and crashing waves. A crisp feeling settles by the creek, the air, and even the earth.A Kingfisher sits poised upon a high branch, waiting silently for a small fish to swim by, while to its left chimes a song bird, calling out into the clear day.

The lush, young grass has turned a bright gold, stiff and no longer able to swing as gracefully as it once had. Though it still stands out beautifully, it is nothing in comparison to the jewels upon the trees.Leaves the color of rubies, gold, emerald and orange agate dance gently in the cool, harsher breeze of autumn.The animals prepare themselves for the long cold winter, storing up as much as they can.The ground is frozen with the branching hands on the flakes of frost.

The gems of the trees have long since fallen, leaving branches spindly and finger like.Thick quilts of snow lies over the land making everything look barren, but surprisingly gorgeous.There is a deadly quiet about the place.Even the creek is still with ice.The season is harsh and unforgiving, but soon its time was up for the year.Storms have come and gone as they will, though slowly dissolving with the season.Under the melting patches of snow on the surface, and a single seed bursts in its resting spot…

All too much are we caught up in our own lives, forgetting the miracles right in front of us.Try to remember the earth around you; it is too precious to waste.

by Garrett

When I was four, my parents were thinking about moving from Los Angeles, California to Sun Valley, Idaho. I was curious to know why someone would move. At that time I wasn’t very used to nature. My thought of it was a park with walkways and benches. Then they made it final. I was going to miss my neighbor’s tractor.

After we were settled in my dad and I would wake up an hour before school, pack the car with blankets, get a thermos filled with oatmeal and drive to the Big Wood River. At first I got bored easily; of course there was no tractor and I got cold easily. But after a while I came to love it. We would have stick races; my dad always let me win. He also showed me how to make a wooden boat with a twig mast and a leaf sail. I used to love making them so much because when I was little I liked sailing. I look a big piece of bark and turned it into a boat. It had a rag sail you could roll up. A headless nail and a keychain ring held up the sail. We bent a cotter pin around to make an anchor and shoe laces to tie it up. I was so proud of it so much I wouldn’t let my dad sail it.

Also I liked to collect rocks and bones and put them in a box. I thought they were so cool because they held the body together. Sometimes we would cross the river and explore in the woods. At first I was scared because the trees were so tall. I tried to find bones and rocks. My dad bought a book called Animals of the Rocky Mountains. It was green with black tracks a top. With it we would try to find out what animal walked there and how long ago it came. I also wanted to know everything about the leaves and trees. One time we followed beaver track--the tracks look like a hand with webbing. We followed it to a dam and found the beaver. The beaver was fatter than I expected and I thought the tail was funny. Sometimes for the whole time we would try to find wild life. I would even fall asleep in the car sometimes. Then we would drive to Big Wood Bread and get coffee cake. The whole time, I would be in my airplane pajamas. After breakfast, we would drive to my preschool and at share time I would tell about what I did and found that day. I learned a lot from that year. Now I love to go into the outdoors. I love to go camping and now I know a lot more about animals.Thanks, Dad.

By Olivia

My car pulled into a gravel driveway, with a metal basin in the middle that was surrounded with overgrown weeds. I stared up at the two-story house, with its brown and tan walls. It looked nothing like the house I had left behind. I wondered how it would look covered with a blanket of snow. It only made me miss my home more.

The car rolled to a stop and I grabbed my backpack and stepped out onto the gravel. I stared up at the house, wondering how in the world I would ever settle there; I wasn’t even sure I liked it. But I was too tired to think about these things. I walked up to the back door, trailing behind my mom. She opened the door and I stepped inside.

My siblings immediately jumped on me, giving me hugs and chattering excitedly. I barely had time to pull off my shoes before they pulled me along into a tour of the house. They first showed me the kitchen, which had hardly anything in it. They had only moved in yesterday, after all. It looked bare, and I couldn’t help the wave of homesickness that swept over me. Next, they showed me where my parents were sleeping, and the laundry room. None of it looked familiar and I couldn’t help but wish we were in Florida, where we belonged.

Several months ago, my parents decided to move our family of five from Naples, Florida, to Sun Valley, Idaho. When I first heard the new it wasn’t a big surprise. We had been talking for months about moving to Idaho. I just didn’t think it would ever happen. I don’t think I realized at the time just how hard it would be.I had just spent the past week in Minneapolis, Minnesota with my grandma, while my parents drove out our dogs and my siblings. While in Minneapolis, I was able to keep the daunting prospect of Idaho out of my mind.But now I was finally here.

After we finished going through the first floor, we went upstairs. They showed me the office, and the living area. Finally it was time to see the room that would be my bedroom. I walked slowly down the hall, looking around and thinking about my room in Florida. My room in Florida had been a light pink, with a little nook for my bed. I had had a white desk and a green bookshelf. The new room was pink, with two twin beds and an ugly chandelier that looked like surgical lights. It was bare except for the beds and a suitcase lying open on the floor. I stood in the middle of the room, looking around. I didn’t know about sharing with my sister, or if I really liked the room. It was different, as was everything in the house. But there wasn’t anything I could do about it. No amount of wishing would get me back to Florida that night.

That night I lay in my bed, thinking about moving, and the things I had left behind. I knew it would take time to stop longing for Florida, but for now the homesickness was fresh and immediate. Memories flooded through my head, of the friends I had left behind, and the waves of the beach. There was so many things to worry about, but for now I was too tired to do anything but sleep. As I drifted off I thought, Will I ever stop missing them?

This blog serves as a place to showcase 6th grade writing and photography. It grows out of much of the work that we do in our writers notebooks in class, and exists because of the fabulous talent of this sixth grade class. Each week, two sixth grade students will share their writing on our blog, and many more will read and comment on it. Students have wide latitude in what they can write; the only requirement is that it must be true. Expect to see stories that are funny, insightful, sad or strange (perhaps all of these!). Know that the writers have all worked hard on these, so if you see something you like, PLEASE comment so that the writer gets your response.
During school breaks, we'll be posting pieces that we worked on as a class, or that a group of students prepared for the blog.
In the end, whether or not we are "bloggers," I think that it will become apparent that this class is absolutely full of writers.
Enjoy!

Elliot