Morley Muse Spring Edition 2016

By the Morley Students K-5

Table of Contents Page #

Foreword 3 Grade K

Mrs. Abraham My Visitor Cat Elias H. 4 Babysitting Kittens Julia W. 4 Dinosaur Building James J. 4 How to be a Principal Ann­Yee L. 5

Mrs. Monroe How to Take a Bath Cora C. 5 Grandma’s House Zoe D. 5 How to get Ready for Bed Will M. 6

Grade 1 Mrs. Ashworth

Emily’s Birthday Addie Y. 6

Mrs. Flores The Trip to Boston Gigi C. 6

Mrs. Laforte Art Supplies Ben P. 7 Once I had a Playdate with Morgan Isabelle M. 8

Grade 2 Mrs. O’Connor

The Missing City of Boston Ora R­F. 8 The Old Snowflake Ariel G. 11 Blob goes to the Farm Katherine H. 12 Flower Ora R­F. 14 A Great Reunion Ora R­F. 14 Monkey Bars Trick Parami S. 14 Horse Summer Caeli S. 15

Mrs. Staffaroni Sweet Frog Taylor B. 15 Camy 2 Amelia S. 16 The Talking Robot Caitlin G. 17 The Airport Rocco C. 18

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Mrs. Vannie

Meet the Fairies Gweneth M. 19 Stay True to Yourself Kate D­W. 20 Surgery Hadley E. 21 Boulder Dash Madelyn F. 21 Amazing Art Madelyn F. 22

Grade 3 Mrs. Antoinetti

The Egg Jackson B. 22 S’mores and Our Imagination Ella P. 24 Soccer Cale Q. 25 How the Lion Lost Her Mane Yimin W. 26 The Night of the Living Gummy Bear Julie W. 27

Mr. Barrieau The Big Game Sean F. 29 The Snow Cats Lilliana G. 29

Ms. Wallack The Play Sophie M. 30 The Show Must Go On! Sarah G. 31 Lucy Whipple and the Play Bessie N. 32

Grade 4

Mrs. Hall Grimloom Bentley B. 32 Recess Ruth H. 34

Mrs. Perry Fog Zoeya A. 35 Hockey Girl Shannon A. 35

Grade 5 Mrs. Alerte

Quite Enough Caribou ` Kate C. 37

Mrs. Kluskiewicz Puzzle Pieces & Paris Sarah C. 40

Mrs. Swain Snow Shannon D. 46

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Foreword We would like to thank all of the students on the staff of the Morley Muse for all of their hard work this year! Every Monday morning our staff arrived bright and early and eager to comb through all of the submissions from our talented Morley students. Our Spring Edition reflects their superb effort and dedication! We hope you enjoy reading the short stories, poems and artwork from our Kindergarten­5th grade students. Don’t forget to check out our “Writing around Morley” pages with photos that feature some of the writing that is going on in every classroom at Morley School! Finally, we would like to thank the creative authors for all of the outstanding pieces that we have read this year! Happy Reading and Keep Writing! ­Debbie Antoinetti and Kelly Brouse­Directors

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­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Kindergarten­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

My Visitor Cat Elias H.

Mrs. Abraham’s class My visitor cat. I like him a lot. He visits me almost every day. I like him a lot. I love him. He’s a black cat. He likes to jump on me and he likes to scratch my shirt. I like to feed him a piece of pepperoni. He loves it. He likes to cuddle with me. Visitor cat is my friend.

Babysitting Kittens By: Julia W.

Mrs. Abraham’s Class

My mom was bringing home kittens. I was babysitting them for a week. The kittens got tired. We got them a fluffy

place to sleep. In the morning we fed the kittens special food to eat. Then in the evening we took the kittens for a walk. After the walk we turned off the lights. The kittens were curled up with their mom. I was sad when the kittens went home but it was fun.

Dinosaur Building

By James J. Mrs. Abraham’s class

I saw dinosaurs. The dinosaur had a weird thing on his head. I saw a stegosaurus, he had a spine on his back. I saw pachycephalosaurus. Pachycephalosaurus had a thick domed head.I saw velociraptors. Velociraptors have circle shaped claws. I saw T­rex. T­rex had a tooth that is shaped like a banana. I saw giganotosaurus. Giganotosaurus is big.

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How to be a Principal By Ann­yee

Mrs. Abraham’s class A principal has to be nice to the children. And if he isn’t then he will be going home and he will be staying home for a time out. If he is nice he will go to work. At Morley school, he has to be nice to the teachers, he has to be nice to his family, and he has to be nice to the school. A principal has to be helpful to the children. If the children don’t have anyone to play with or a friend, a principal should play with them. A principal has to be smart. He can help the children if they don’t know the answer. And he can solve outside problems. A principal should be like Mr. Cleary. THE END.

How To Take a Bath

By Cora C. Mrs. Monroe’s Class

Get your toys to play in the bath and get yourself in the tub. Get soap for your body and soap for your hair. Rub the soap all around. Get your towel for the wet. Then put on your pajamas and go to bed.

Grandma’s House By Zoe D.

Mrs. Monroe’s class I am going to the car with my mom to go to Grandma's house . You go straight then you go left. Then you go straight then you go right. Then you get to Grandma’s house. I love Grandma’s house. Me and grandma are playing Go Fish. I won Go Fish, then we played again.

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How to Get Ready for Bed By Will M.

Mrs. Monroe’s class

First you put on your pajamas. Next you brush your teeth. Then you get into bed. Last your Mom sings

you a song. Finally you fall asleep.

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­First Grade­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

Emily’s Birthday

By Addie Y. Mrs. Ashworth’s class

One afternoon I went to Emily's Birthday. I scrambled out the door. I thought, “What will we do?” My sister Ruby was snoring. My mom said, “Ay­yi­yi!” Then I got to Emily’s birthday. There was face paint, and there were musical chairs. It was The Peanuts Movie birthday !!! There was pin the tail on Snoopy. My favorite!! I picked out my face paint. It looked like a skeleton. We played hide and go seek. Two people were the counters. The first round I was it with Katia. I found Stella. Later I fell down the stairs. Then Molly helped me up. She found a spot for me. It made me feel grateful.

The Trip to Boston by Virginia “Gigi” C. Mrs. Flores’ class

I am packing for Boston right now to see my grandma because her store is setting up for Halloween, and they are going to have a party on Friday. I am going to be there and it is going to be fun. I am going to be there for one night.

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We are on the road in two cars. Gabby goes in Dad’s car and Leo goes in my mom’s car. Me and my brother Charlie played my game all the way to the store. When I turned off my game I went to sleep. Surprise! We are here at the city now. We just have to go to the store and help. There are going to be a lot of people there. Some are going to be our cousins. When we walked into the store there were a lot of people there and one of the people wanted Sour Patch Kids, Jellybeans, and a Tootsie Roll. Then Lennie got pizza and then we had nowhere to put it so we had to put it in the bathroom. The bathroom was small and we called it bathroom pizza. Then my aunt took the boxes off the table and the pizza was big, big enough that you could put it whole in your mouth. Then my mom changed plans that we are going to stay for no nights. Leo and Charlie have soccer tomorrow. Now we are on the road heading back to West Hartford and I am going to fall asleep because I am so tired and now we are at West Hartford and picking up wings for dinner. I got a boneless chicken burger to go home. Then we went home and had dinner and watched Scooby Doo and had ice cream. I went to bed because I was tired then I woke up and I was still tired. Then I had breakfast and played outside. It was fun.

Art Supplies By Ben P.

Mrs. LaForte’s class Art supplies are what you need to color with. You need a paint brush to paint. And crayons to color and more. There are colored pencils and oil pastels. You need paper to color. If you don’t like regular paper you’re in luck. There’s color, long, fat, skinny, short and white paper.You can make pumpkins, scarecrows, gingerbreadmen, butterflies, people, snowmen, and bats on the one page. You cut out the paper and make a design. Now do want to do art? So sign up! Do it today.

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Once I had a Playdate with Morgan By Isabelle M.

Mrs. LaForte’s class

Once I had a play date with Morgan.When we got home,we played a game called England. I was an owner of a shop. Morgan came in and got a parasol and a bed. I asked Morgan if she wanted to be my helper. She said yes. The next day in the game, my sister’s friend Abby, came to the store. She got a doll and a pin. Abby had to go home first. Morgan loved it all but she had to leave next. I loved having my best friend over. It was exciting.

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Second Grade­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

The Missing City of Boston

By Ora R­F.

Mrs. O’Connor

I am a Bostonian. I was born here and my name is Bob. My parents say I cried a lot when I was a baby. Now I am ten or eleven. I don’t keep track of how old I am. Well, let’s get to the story!!! One day I was sitting on my couch playing video games while the milkman was in his milk truck and the mayor was at town hall when all of a sudden the TV remote disappeared and the TV and the city disappeared!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The next time I looked around me I was falling down a big orange hole. I looked around, and I saw all the people of where I live, Boston, and they were all falling down the hole with me!!! Including my family.

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It seemed like we were falling for hours but it was only fifteen seconds! Finally, we landed with a big thump! I looked around and it was pitch black so of course, I couldn’t see anything. But soon the sun shone and I saw a wizard walk over to where I was. He started talking very slowly, and he said, “Welcome to Eker, I see that your city has disappeared. You will have to go to the palace of Lord Kan. He is very rude. Remember, the gate to his palace is seen where it is not.”

“Is that a riddle I asked?”

“Yes”, he said. I don’t know what you have to do. Go.”

So we started walking, until we walked right into a rock! We went right through the rock as if it wasn’t there!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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After we passed through the rock, we were walking for hours, until finally we reached an oasis. We ran over to where there was water and literally dipped our heads in. Then we started eating dates and apricots that grew on the trees. Then we just rested in the shade. After a while my father said, “It’s time we should go.” Everybody started screaming rude answers like, “You’re not right”, except for me.

Finally, I said, “We were on a mission and we need to finish it.”

My uncle stood up and shouted, “Yeah!!”

Then everybody got up and started walking. Soon we found another oasis. We walked over to it, but we didn’t eat or drink we just rested in the shade. I went over to a tree to rest at but before I sat down I noticed that there was a drawing of a gate. “Guys look at this!” I yelled.

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The mayor looked at it. “Hmm,” the mayor said,” Maybe this is a reflection of something.” He kept on talking, “Maybe if we threw some sand in the direction it is facing, a gate will appear.”

So we started throwing sand, and different parts of a gate started to appear. Soon there was a gate. We walked through it. It felt like it was another world. The place was all misty. We looked carefully and we found a castle in the distance. We kept

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on walking for about an hour. Finally, we arrived at the castle. We went through the gates. The gates were open. Probably Lord Kan was expecting us.

“Now what do we do?” I asked.

“Let’s go find out,” said my mother.

So we started walking. I guess we walked into the wrong room because somebody said, “Eh, your city is missing right? Eh, Eh”.

It must be Lord Kan!

“Well, he said, “There is only one way you can get your city back.”

“What is that way?” I asked. I guess I was being wrong by saying that because he said that’s none of your beeswax and handed me a one hundred pound book and walked away.

“Ugh!” I said. The book was really heavy! One of the strongest ladies in the city picked the book up from my hands.

“Phew!” I said, while wiping the sweat off myself.

The milkman said that they heard Lord Kan mutter that we would find all we needed to know on page 1,999. So we opened the book onto page 1,999 and we read it. It said that if we wanted our city back we had to get the Glove of Rubies. So we started searching the castle for it. It took a long time and our hard work did not pay off. So we decided that it must be hidden. We looked around again but more carefully. We found the sign for the Room of Fire we saw a little finger stuck between two boxes that looked like it was attached to a glove.

“The Glove of Rubies!” I yelled.

And sure enough there was a ruby attached to that finger! The librarian pulled it out and put it on his hand. Everybody started grabbing the glove and saying, “Let me wear it!” I was the only one who was quiet. A man noticed me and said, “Let this boy wear it. He’s not talking.”

So I put it on. We decided, after all that, that we should go back to where we saw the wizard.

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It was super hot in the desert! But luckily I saw the rock! Yay! I yelled, in my head. We kept on trudging and finally we passed through the rock! “Yay!” I yelled again, not in my head this time. We kept on walking for an hour, I have a wristwatch and we finally saw the wizard.

“We got what we needed,” I told him.

“Okay,” he said, “I will do the rest.”

He pulled the glove off my hand and put it on his. He then pressed the ruby and a staircase appeared out of nowhere.

“Climb up the staircase and it will bring you to your city which has reappeared.”

So we said goodbye and when we got to the top there was a hole as big as a couch we had to climb through. Our beloved city, Boston, was there.

“Yay!” I yelled, not in my head. And everybody went to where they were before the city disappeared. The milkman went back to his milk truck and the mayor went back to town hall.

When my family went back to our house my mother said,” Happy 16th birthday!”

“Wait, I’m 16?”

The Old Snowflake

By Ariel G.

Mrs. O’Connor’s class

There was an old snowflake that fell from the sky

He hurt his bottom every time

He decided he was too old to fall from the sky.

He said, “I’m going to stay here until the snow passes by.

Tell them all I’m ill,

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I promise I’ll sit here very still

Polar Bear, call my friends to help me get around

So I can stay here on the ground.”

My friend, Snowflake, would you like to see your friend, Fox?

Fox said, “I know you are not ill.

You are lying here taking a chill.

You didn’t want to return to the sky.

You wanted us to pass on by.

Come on, guys! GOOD­BYE!”

“Darn!” said Snowflake, “I thought they would never know.

I guess I have to go back to the sky, so

Polar Bear, my friend, good bye!

Up to clouds I’ll fly.”

Blob Goes to the Farm

By: Katherine H. Mrs. O’Connor’s Class

Chapter 1 Meeting Me Hello, my name is Blob. I am a Goomerygoo. We are like blobs of glue. I am blue, but we can be: blue, black, or sometimes green. We have blue eyes, no noses, and no hair. We eat by using our tiny arms. We eat everything but not humans. But our

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favorite food is bacon. Plus we have these things that are ½ pretzel and ½ apple. We love the apple ones. Chapter 2 The Farm One day, I decided I would go to the farm. The farm was just like a regular farm with a red barn, a white fence and chickens running around. Pigs were running around and lots of animals were running around. So I walked to the farm and I walked to the cafe but I got mixed up on the map and thought the pigpen was a sandwich and ate it. Farmer Brown came over and said, “Try to be more careful,” and walked away. He had brown eyes and brown hair. I started to eat the pigs and Farmer Brown came over and said, “What are you doing?!” I said, “I thought the pigs were bacon?” Farmer Brown said, “Get out of the farm.” I just sat there until… Chapter 3 Stuck in Blob Farmer Brown kicked Blob and got his leg stuck in Blob. Then he tried to pull it out and got his hand stuck in Blob. He punched Blob and got his other hand stuck in Blob. He got so angry he just dove into Blob and jumped out of Blob’s mouth!!!!!! Chapter 4 Home again When I got home, I was sad. Then I saw a plate of toenail shavings that my brother left for me and they were delicious!!!!! Chapter 5 Home My home is super cool there are lots of tunnels. We have really nice furniture but we put plastic wrap on the furniture so we don’t stick. My brother blames the plastic for the noises that he makes.

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Flower By Ora. R­F.

Mrs. O’Connor’s class

The soft and good smelling little clusters Where bees think it’s heaven

Born from seeds but grow up to be a coral reef on land.

A Great Reunion By Ora R­F.

Mrs. O’Connor’s class

A great reunion All of the animals come

In a dark forest

Monkey Bars Trick

By Parami S.

Mrs. O’Connor’s class

Have you ever thought about doing a trick on the monkey bars? Well, I did. I was eating lunch one summer day, and thinking about a trick on the monkey bars like skipping a bar as I’m moving across them. My monkey bars are connected to a tree house play scape so I can land on it. With that thought, I quickly ate my lunch and ran to my backyard. I climbed my ladder and stared at my monkey bars for a minute. I tried to swing and reach the third bar, but no luck. I just swung to the second bar because I couldn’t reach. ‘’Come on!‘’ I said. Furiously, I tried again, but no luck. I said to myself, “If I fail again, I will try again tomorrow.” So I stretched my hand as far as I could and… I skipped a bar! I tried again and I did it again! I was so proud of myself! I ran back inside so I could tell my mom everything that happened outside.

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Horse Summer By Caeli S.

Mrs. O’Connor’s Class

One sunny Friday morning right before summer, my mom told me I was going to horseback riding camp. I was so excited for the first day of camp that when I jumped up and down my sister could hear me from upstairs. And what I loved the best was that it was in Newport, RI. (P.S. We go there every year for summer vacation). I was so over­dramatic, my brother and sister told me. I really like horses. In fact, I love them. I couldn’t wait to see all the adorable horses. When the first day of camp came, my mom drove me. I did a lot of fun things like brushing my horse and tacking it up to walk down to the stable. But I loved to ride my horse, Scout, the best. He had a black mane and dark brown fur. At first, I was sort of scared to be up so high on Scout riding, but then I got used to the feel. I felt bouncy on Scout. My hair fell out of its ponytail, but I was too happy to put it back and scared I would fall off if I let go of the reins. Then Scout and I started to trot. It was awesome! I looked over at my friends and they were cheering me on. On the last day of camp I was so sad. I would really miss Scout. I waited in the car so I could get home and cry in my pillow for an hour or two. But that is another story….

Sweet Frog By: Taylor B.

Mrs. Staffaroni’s Class Dear Mason, I think you would like Sweet Frog. One reason is because I like the frozen yogurt. I like Sweet Frog’s flavor watermelon. I like cupcake batter because it tastes like cupcakes. I like caramel because it tastes like real caramel but it’s frozen yogurt. Another reason is because how it serves the yogurt. The line goes fast almost as fast as a plane. Once I was at Sweet Frog and there were people in a line. I thought that it was going to take a long time but I looked at the people who were

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getting frozen yogurt. Then I looked back at the line and there was no one there. I was at the counter already. I think you should try Sweet Frog. Your sister, Taylor

Camy 2 By Amelia S.

Mrs. Staffaroni’s Class

You all know Camy. He’s a very friendly guy. My sister and I made him. I’m so happy you all know Camy. Wait you don’t know Camy? I can tell you one thing. He is awesome. Camy is a candy machine. He can make any type of candy there is except swirly beans. I also leave my window open to give Camy some fresh air. In my last story he came only at night but now he’s alive all the time. This story begins in early September on a Monday morning right before school. My dad wanted a bowl of chocolate chips because he likes three every day. So I went up the stairs to get him some. Camy gave me a nice big bowl and I brought them down to dad. Now, I’m in the bathroom brushing my teeth. Mom is downstairs in the kitchen cleaning up from breakfast. Harper is playing in her room and my dad is doing his morning business in the bathroom. We all suspect nothing. All of a sudden I heard a crash coming from my room which is where I keep Camy. I ran down the hall. When I got to my room I was there just in time to see a black figure disappear out the window. What could he have done? I had never seen a black figure before. I didn’t know if I should call 911 or tell my dad. But in the end I decided to let him be. I still needed to be sure even though. My room was completely regular so I asked, “Hey Camy, anything going on?” “Not much. I just went black out for a minute”. So I went to school but in the middle of the day we got a call from the office that said, “Amelia’s dad is here to pick her up”. I didn’t know what they were talking about. So I went down to the office and sure enough my dad was waiting for me. As soon as we left the building dad told me everything. “So Amelia, I wanted some chocolate chips. So I went to Camy and he…”

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“Wait. You mean to tell me that the candy that came out was swirly beans!! The one candy we don’t like?”. “Yes, Amelia”. “Please fix it, Amelia, you know how I love chocolate chips”, said dad. I was astonished. I ran the rest of the way home. As I ran by I noticed my neighbor Addy, a three year old boy who was playing in his yard dressed in all black. Then I turned up my driveway. When we got home the first thing I did was run to my room and fix Camy. I figured out the black figure must have taken the chocolate chip piece out and put in the swirly bean piece. I have one hundred chocolate chip pieces so all I did was take out the swirly bean piece and put in a chocolate chip piece. Then I noticed a Paw Patrol character on the ground. Addy loves Paw Patrol. Then it made sense, Addy was the black figure. That cheesy Addy. Harper watched intensely until I finished. Then I made sure it worked and went back to school and… Everyone lived happily ever after and my dad kept having three bowls of chocolate chips every day!

The Talking Robot

By Caitlin G. Mrs. Staffaroni’s class

Once my friend Lila and I wanted to build

something. We didn’t know what we wanted to build. We started building. We took what we could find. We found gum, metal pieces, goggles and candy. At the end it kind of looked like a robot. There was pink metal. The eyes were lit up with lights. All it needed was a speaker. Then it could talk I think? My Mom couldn’t see it, I thought. If they realized I used their goggles they would ground me for life. My Mom pulled into the driveway. She got out of the car and her mouth dropped open. But no words came out of her mouth. Lila broke the silence. She said it was my idea! Then guess what, I was grounded for eight weeks. Goody

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for me. We went inside. My Mom said I could keep the robot in the kitchen overnight.

In the middle of the night there was crashing coming from the kitchen. I knew it was my robot so I went down stairs. I put my robot in a box so my dog wouldn’t eat her. My Mom heard it, too. She said if I didn’t control my robot it would go in the trash. So every night I put her in her box. The crashing happened every night. Even when it was in it’s box. I said it was the last straw. I’m going to tape you in the box I said to the robot. Then guess what, my robot spoke! She copied what I said! Just then all our mouths fell open, I said, “She spoke?!” I said, “Are you hearing what I’m hearing?” No one replied. Then my robot came over and poked me in the stomach. It said, “ All I wanted was a glass of milk.”

The Airport By Rocco C.

Mrs. Staffaroni’s Class

“Hey mom is it time to go to the airport to pick up our cousins, Susana, Lucy, Kate, Evelyn, and Uncle Louie?” “Yes,” said my mom. “Woohoo!” I said, “So let's go!” We drove to the airport. It was my first time so I was really excited. I felt really happy. When we got there our car went in circles. It was really boring. If we stopped in a certain parking spot without paying we will get tickets.

So that’s why we were going in circles. After a hundred million hours we finally saw our cousins. I was really happy when I saw them. We almost missed them but my parents saw them waving. It was actually my mom who saw them. I was happy plus I was excited to see them. When we got into the car and right when we started the engine baby Evelyn started to cry.She cried the whole way home.We tried to stop her from crying by watching a movie called Goofy. Her parents also tried reaching over to stop her from crying.I tried rocking the car seat but it still didn’t work. Susana, Evelyn's

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sister didn’t even bother helping because she was too busy watching the movie Goofy. (The crying got annoying after awhile). When we got to our house Evelyn finally stopped crying which was perfect because we were home. Then we got everything peaceful again.

Meet the Fairies! By Gwyneth M.

Mrs. Vannie’s class Once upon a time there was a house that looked like a castle. The people in the house had 9000 dollars,so they were rich. In the house there was a Mom, Dad, Mia, Gwen and Carys. A fairy lived in the house,too, but no one knew that yet. The fairy’s name was Ella, the Sun Fairy. Her charms were a sun, a yellow flower, and a yellow flame. The sun stood for the sun shining. The yellow flower stood for the sun being yellow. The yellow flame stood for the yellow flames on the sun. Ella the Sun Fairy lived in their big tree, but she had five babies to take care of. One day Ella the Sun Fairy lost her charms! The sun was purple. The sun was not shining. The sun didn’t have the little flames on the sun. Ella the Sun Fairy called someone to babysit her five babies. Ella the Sun Fairy went into the human house. Dunt dunt dunnnnn! But one of the kids saw Ella the Sun Fairy. The kid asked, “What are you?” Ella the Sun Fairy said, “I am a fairy.” Then the kid asked, “What is your name?” “My name is Ella the Sun Fairy.” The kid asked, “Why are you here?” Ella the Sun Fairy said, “I am looking for my charms.” “Wait. What are charms?” said the kid. “Oh,” said Ella, “a charm is something that keeps the world right.” The next day it was Monday. Ella had told Carys that she could tell Elana and Riley, who are her best friends, that they needed to find the yellow flower first. At recess Carys told Elana and Riley that fairies were real. Elana and Riley said, “We saw it go down your chimney, Carys.” After school they went to Carys’s house to find the yellow flower. Carys had eight bins of yellow flowers. Ella said, “Everyone look in two bins.” But they noticed that goblins were in the attic, so

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they caught the goblins and Ella turned them into toys. At the end of the play date Riley found the yellow flower. On Tuesday morning the goblins hid in Riley’s flower garden. After school they had a play date at Riley’s house. Today they would find the yellow flame. After school they met at Riley’s house. Riley said,“There are 100 flowers, so everyone gets 25 of them, and look at them.” Riley, Elana, Carys, and Ella found one goblin, so Ella turned the goblin into the yellow flame. On Wednesday, the goblins hid under their science project. After school they had a play date at Elana’s house. Today they needed to find the yellow sun. At the play date they tried to make earth but then they saw goblins. They called Ella and then she turned the goblins into the sun. But under their science project they found Ella’s yellow sun. When Ella the sun fairy returned the yellow sun, all her charms turned into a ring! On Thursday, there was no school, so they met at the park. Ella the Sun Fairy knew that Elana, Riley, and Carys were going to meet at the park. Ella knew there was a surprise party in the hill. Ella’s job was to get Elana, Riley, and Carys to the hill. Ella asked them, “Do you want me to make a hole in the hill?” “Yea!” said the kids. Ella the Sun Fairy turned the kids into fairies and they flew to the hill. Ella did the spell to unlock the hill. Then they flew inside. When they got inside everyone yelled, “Surprise!” At the party they had cakes, cupcakes, cookies, and chocolate. They could drink chocolate milk, soda, and lemonade. Elana, Riley, and Carys had to go to the King and Queen to get a key that led to Fairy Land. But where was the door? You can find out in Where is the Door? (Upcoming sequel).

Stay True to Yourself

Kate D.­W. Mrs. Vannie’s Class

If someone tells you to change you don’t have to. You don’t have to change

the person you are. Just because they don’t like the way you look or how you do things. Your inside is more important than your outside. If you change for people who think you are weird then you are changing your real self. Who you are inside

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is still there but you won’t know it because you’re not being yourself. Instead of changing who you are you could say, “ No I like who I am and and you are not going to change that !” You could also just turn your back and walk away. If it keeps happening tell your parents or teacher or if your friend is the person stand up for your friend. Remember there is only one you and the world will never get to have the real you if you are not yourself.

Surgery By Hadley E.

Mrs. Vannie’s class

One Friday I was going to the doctor. I was getting raised blood vessels removed from my shoulder. When we got there I had to get checked in a room. After I got checked, I had to go to a different room. I was scared to have surgery. Then I had to go to the operation room to get my surgery done. The operating room was white. There were a lot of lights and a bed for me to lay on. I also had a soft blanket that made me feel warm. Finally, I was finished with my surgery. Guess what? I got a popsicle for breakfast and a slushy for lunch. After my slushy we went home and watched tv until my shows were almost over.I was brave. I felt ok after it was over. We watched cooking shows and Oliver came home and watched cooking shows, too. If this happens again, I wouldn’t cry, I’d be fine.

Boulder Dash

By Madelyn F. Mrs. Vannie’s Class

Crash!! I zoom down the track.

I feel like I’m melting. We rip past the trees. I feel like I’m on the back of a Peregrine falcon.

I’m never going on that again.

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Amazing Art By Madelyn F.

Mrs. Vannie’s Class

Art is the best Paint splatters on me

Melted wax drips off my hand We frame it

It looks like I’m in the scene. I admire them.

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Third Grade­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

The Egg

By Jackson B. Mrs. Antoinetti’s class

My brother and I were in the forest. The forest was a swampy forest. It looked like witches could live there and slimes from minecraft could live there, too. The water was black and there was mud everywhere!

Then Anderson said, “Hey! Jackson, look at this!” I wondered what it could be? I went over to see what Anderson was seeing. When I got over there my eyes were wide open.The trees I saw were cracked. I looked in the back of a bush. Then I said, “Hey Anderson! Come here!” Anderson came and found a black egg with knife marks behind the bush. The egg was small but it looked like it weighed 500,000 pounds. It smelled like blood. Then we heard a roar!!The egg started to crack! Two legs came out and two arms came out. Then 4 spikes. All of a sudden a laser shot out at me. “Oh dang!”.

Then the creature came out. A small cyclops walked out and looked at the ground for a minute. He had a very big eye. The Cyclops looked like eye­brawl from Skylanders. It had a black suit of armor. It also had something like jail bars instead of a mouth. He uses it to talk but he did not talk much. Anderson and I

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were not scared. We actually thought he was kind of cute. We named him Eyesmall. Anderson and I thought he was ver,y very cool.

Then Eye Small shot a laser at Anderson and I! It was weird because it did not hurt. My eyes were wide open and then zap! A laser shot from my eyes! Wait, that was a power ray! Now we have Eyesmall’s power! We saw a laser shoot out of the sky. Then all of us knew that was no laser, it was Ultron!He was destroying Boston!

We could never get there in time because we were at the end of the forest and Boston was at the beginning of the forest. But Eyesmall had wings! We flew to Boston. It felt like a ray of sunshine that lead to a path of heroic coolness. When we got there Ultron shot a laser at us! Eyesmall shot a laser at that laser and then it blew it up! Ultron shot a laser at us again! But then Anderson, me, and Eyesmall all shot a laser at Ultron and that blew him up! “Yaaaaa! We did it!” Then we looked at the city news.

We saw an evil alien was going to destroy the world! “Ahh, an alien is going to destroy the world!!”.

“What? An alien is going to destroy the WORLD?” “Oh man we have to go and fight again,” we all yelled. Then we all opened

our wings and “Ouch! What is that?” Anderson looked down and found a gray egg. Then it cracked automatically. It was a small phoenix that came out of the egg. “Looks like the gods chose a creature for me. I will name you Flinx”, said Anderson.

“Ok, now we can go up to space”. “Wings,” we all said. Then we all flew up to space. When we got there the

alien king said, “Ahh, I want you. Destroy you I will. I will fight you ,Now I will. Ahhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!”he said as he charged at us!!!

“Come on guys let’s do this! Eyesmall laser eye!” “Flinx fire breath!” “Super creature robot!” “Phoenix wings!” “Cyclops arms and legs!” “Phoenix head!” “Creature Robot Assemble!”

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“I no scared by you!” said the alien king. “Creature sword!” we said, “Moon Gun”. The alien king said, “Ahhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!”we all yelled(including the alien king)................................

Look for the sequel of The Egg and join Jackson, Anderson, Eyesmall and Flinx on another adventure called…………THE EGG 2!

S'mores and Our Imagination By Ella P.

Mrs. Antoinetti’s class

We have to get away from the lava! My next door neighbor Elsa and I were pretending that the ground was lava. Her whole family was here for s'mores around the fire.Elsa’s younger brother and my younger sister were the lava monsters.The vine was my rope swing. I jumped on the vine. The vine was hard.The leaves got in my face but I couldn't let go now! I would fall in the lava. I jumped off and landed on a rock. Then I looked back.Elsa was on the vine.I looked at the rock that I was standing on. It was sinking!! I jumped onto the other rock.Elsa was right behind me. It was my last jump. I jumped on the last rock .Then I jumped on a bird. Elsa was on the last rock then she jumped on another bird.The birds were the swings.The birds had yellow feathers. The birds were getting ready to fly. The lava started to bubble. Suddenly the birds started to fly. Elsa and I started to pump on the swings.Elsa and I were almost going to fall off because the birds took off so fast. When the bird was in the right spot the sun would shine on the birds. It would make the feathers look like gold that just got polished. We flew higher and higher. Then we stopped imagining.It was time for s’mores!!! Elsa and I ran as fast as we could. My little sister and Elsa’s younger brother were already roasting our marshmallows. Elsa and I got two sticks; then we started roasting our marshmallows.We put the marshmallows above the fire. Then we spun the marshmallow until it got golden brown. Then we took the marshmallow off of the stick. We got two graham crackers. The marshmallow slid right off the stick and on to the graham crackers. Then we took a piece of chocolate.

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It melted when we slid it on because the marshmallow was so hot, gooey and sticky. Elsa and I took a bite! The marshmallow gushed out! It was the best thing ever. The graham crackers made it crunchy. The marshmallow was hot and gooey and the chocolate melted in my mouth. After we ate the delicious s'mores, Elsa had to leave. We gave each other a big hug. I watched her walk up the driveway. Then watched her walk on the sidewalk. I couldn't wait for the next day!

Soccer by Cale Q.

Mrs. Antoinetti’s class

I was running down the field as I played soccer with my cousins: Martin, Aoife and Danielle.I was running and I passed to Martin and he passed back to me.I ran up the field.Martin passed back to me again. I shot and I scored! Martin and I celebrated. “Good goal!” said Danielle. My Mom shouted, “Come eat!” Martin said, “It's half time.” We had bacon and sausage. The bacon was so juicy and had a sweet aftertaste.The sausage was a bit burned. “Sorry about the sausage,” said my Mom. “It's fine,” we said. We played the second half of the game. Martin started. He passed to me again. I ran and ran. I could feel the wind in my hair. All of a sudden my Mom called us in for dinner. “We win!” said Martin. For dinner we had tacos with cheese and chicken. The cheese melted down my face and the chicken was so hot. “I love food” I said. “Me, too!” said Martin. “Me, three!” said Danielle. “Me four,” said Aoife. “What's better, food or soccer”? I asked. “Food!” we said. We laughed. “Let's play soccer again,” said Martin. “I can't, I'm eating food,” I said. “Ok, eat while you play,”said Martin”. “No I’ll drop it!” I said. “Ok, wait here while we go play,”said Martin. “Fine, I'll eat while I play,” I said. I heard the wind; it was like a tornado.The game started. I ran and ran, Martin passed to me. Aoife and Danielle stole the ball and scored! I dropped my taco.

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“Are you crying, or laughing?” they asked. “Both,” I said. Then we laughed. “We won a soccer game.” said Danielle. “Yeah,” said Aoife. “I love soccer!” said Martin. “Me, too,” I said. “Me, three,” said Danielle. “Me, four,” said Aoife. “Let's play again!” I said. “NO!” they all shouted. Then we all laughed. Martin, Aoife, and Danielle went home.

How Lion Lost Her Mane A Fable by Yimin W. Mrs. Antoinetti’s class

In the forest, long ago, there was a time when female lions had a

mane, too. There was one female lion who loved her mane more than anything else. Her mane was long and groomed. “Hey, Snake! Do you think my mane is fancy?” asked Lion. “I’ll say, okay”, answered Snake disgustedly before he slithered away. “Hi, Giraffe! Your dots are nice , but my mane is 100% better!”, said Lion. “Thanks, but no thanks,” thought Giraffe fearful for her safety. “Hi, Monkey! You look almost human, but it’s nothing compared to having

a beautiful mane like mine”. Monkey felt sad about Lion’s insult but continued to swing high and above in the trees as far away from Lion as possible.

“Hi, Tiger! Your stripes are nice and straight, but your stripes are really dull and boring compared to my beautiful mane”, bragged Lion.

“How dare you!”, yelled Tiger angrily. “Oh, are you angry? It’s just how you look!”, laughed Lion. Tiger was now

bursting with anger and he was about to explode. One day, the animals had had enough...especially Tiger who came up with a

brilliant idea. The next day, tall Giraffe was the lookout while Monkey tied a hairbrush to

a rope hanging from a branch of a tree. The other animals made a comfortable cushion of soft grass below the hairbrush, and Tiger made a sign saying, “This hairbrush is for Lion’s beautiful mane”. When the trap was set, all the animals hid in the bushes except for Snake.

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After a while, they saw Lion reading the sign. Everyone stayed quiet. When Lion grabbed the hairbrush, she began grooming her tail first. Suddenly out of nowhere, Snake appeared in front of Lion, opened his cobra hood and swayed left and right over and over again until Lion fell into a deep sleep. While Lion was sleeping, the animals came out of hiding and cut off her mane! Then they all tiptoed away.

The next morning, while Lion was drinking from the watering hole, she realized that her mane was gone! Her anger made her roar! Then, she saw that she was not as beautiful as she thought.

A year later, her baby cubs were all female and came into the world with no manes.

Moral: Don’t brag or think you are better than others.

The Night of the Living Gummy Bear By Julie W.

Mrs. Antoinetti’s class

One day, five year old Marissa decided she was old enough to sleep without a nightlight, so she threw away her red gummy bear nightlight that her mother had given to her. Two years later… Marissa had a strange feeling that something was going to happen, but she didn't know what it could be. That night as she turned off her bedroom light and crawled into bed, she saw a dim red light coming from under her closed door. She cracked open her door and saw her old gummy bear night light in the hallway, but it wasn't attached to a light socket. It was just glowing by itself. Marissa was really confused because she thought that she had thrown it away. All of a sudden the gummy bear came to life and started wobbling toward her. Marissa got scared and yelled for help. Her Mom came running towards her and asked her, “What is wrong?” “Look behind you!” screamed Marissa.

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Her Mom looked around and with a calm voice said, “Nothing here.” “What?”said Marissa. “Go to bed now!”Her Mom said sternly. Marissa walked back into her bedroom. As she climbed into her bed, she found a note on her pillow. She quickly turned on her light to see what the note said. It said, hi I am g.bear. I will give you two more days... until then... bye, G.bear. “Omg, I can't believe this,” thought Marissa. The next night she saw no red light, nothing, but she was so scared that she taped her entire door shut. The next day, Marissa decided to work on her science project, a shrinking machine. She worked on her shrinking machine into the night. She finally decided to go to bed. After she got into bed, she saw a red, a yellow, and a purple gummy bear nightlight walking toward her in her bedroom. The shrinking machine that was sitting on her desk fell onto the floor, and the gummy bears walked into the machine. The machine shrunk the three gummy bears to the size of gummy bear candy. Marissa thought the only way to get rid of them was to eat them. Plus, she was also a bit hungry. It must have worked because she slept peacefully for the rest of her life.

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The Big Game Mr. Barrieau

By Sean F.

On November 15, 2015 at Giants stadium the NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS

played the NEW YORK GIANTS. It is the 4th quarter and the Pats are down by 7. The giants just got a touchdown. The Giants are up by 7. The Giants are kicking off! Amendola makes a 90 yard run and they are at the 10 yard line! The Pats got a touchdown! The score is 27 to 26. The Pats are kicking off. The Giants are at the 10 yard line. Finally, it is 4th down. The Giants are punting off. Amendola got a 15 yard run. The Patriots were at the 20 yard line. Brady hands off to White who has a 10 yard run. Then Brady throws the ball to Gronk. It was a 5 yard pass. It is now second down. The referee tossed the yellow flag and said, “ Defense­holding­ number 90, Jason Pierre­Paul”. It was a 5 yard penalty. The Patriots were at the 30 yard line. It is third down. The Pats are handing off to White. Brady throws the ball to Amendola at the 54 yard line. It is 4th down! Gostkowski comes on the field to kick and he makes the the 54 yard field goal!! The Patriots WIN THE GAME! The score is... 27 to 26!The final!!!!!

The Snow Cats By Lilliana G.

Mr. Barrieau’s class

One cold winter day, two cats named Lizzy and Daisy were drinking hot cocoa. Lizzy loved to play in the snow. She was so excited that it was winter. But Daisy was not happy about winter. Daisy liked to go swimming in the summer and run around in the flowers. “Want to go play in the snow and build a snow kitty?” asked, Lizzy. “No! I don’t want to. I wish it was summer and I could go swimming and run in the flowers,” said Daisy.

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“Come on, let’s go. It will be fun!” said Lizzy. “Fine,” moaned Daisy. So they went and got their mittens, scarves and snow boots and went outside. Lizzy started making the body. “Are we done yet?” moaned Daisy. “No. We are not done. How about you go find a big rock for the nose,” said Lizzy. “Ok fine,” Daisy moaned. So she went on a snow mountain looking for a rock when suddenly a big gust of wind blew and Daisy fell off the snow mountain and started rolling around in the snow. Then she got an idea. She sneaked up the hill very quietly and made sure Lizzy wasn’t looking and made a snowball in her paws and threw it at Lizzy and the snowball hit Lizzy. “ Hey, what was that?” said Lizzy. “Ha ha ha ha he he he he!!!” laughed Daisy. But while Daisy was laughing Lizzy threw a snowball at Daisy and scored perfectly. “Oh, it is on,” said Daisy. Daisy and Lizzy had a half hour snowball fight but then it started getting dark so they went inside to have dinner. “ Did you have a fun time after all?” asked Lizzy. “I guess so,” said Daisy. “What was that?” asked Lizzy. “I learned that I can’t say something isn’t fun until I try it,” answered Daisy. “That is a valuable lesson to know,” said Lizzy. “Well, then I am glad I know it then,” said Daisy. “I am, too,” said Lizzy.

The Play

By Sophie M. Ms. Wallack’s class

“Who's auditioning next?” asked the director of the West Community Theater. I was next. I was so excited. “I’m next,” Mary said .”My name is Miss Klorfer.” She told me, “What is your name?” “My name is Mary”, I said as I walked on to the stage. My body was shaking and sweating. I was auditioning for the part of Molly from my favorite movie in the world, Molly’s Story. I told Miss Klorfer that I had practiced and practiced for the role ever since I heard the West Hartford

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Community Theater was doing a play about it. The next day I got my letter. I hoped I was going to get Molly’s role so badly that I thought I would explode. I opened up the letter. I got the part of Molly! I was elated. On the day of the play, my heart was beating as a drum. I did my part as if I was really Molly. After the play was over the director gave us a hundred and ten. Everyone screamed like crazy. I was bursting with happiness.

The Show Must Go On! by Sarah G.

Ms. Wallack’s class “Who’s auditioning next?” asked the director of the West Hartford Community Theater. I stepped up the stairs of the stage, my hands sweaty and shaking.This is my moment, I thought. I was auditioning for the lead role in a play that was taking place during the Great Depression. The character I was auditioning for was called Mary Jane. I stood up straight and said the lines perfectly. The day the cast list came out I ran up to it and looked at the name for Mary Jane. The name was not mine. I looked all over for my name and finally found it. I was going to be Mary Jane’s understudy. I was disappointed but knew that one day I would have my moment. A few rehearsals later I was watching the girl playing Mary Jane. Suddenly the girl screamed. AAAH! I looked up to see her sprawled on the stage clutching her leg. She was not faking it. The director ran on stage and called for an ambulance. When the ambulance got there the director asked, “Who’s the understudy?” “I am!” I said. “Then get on stage! You are going to play Mary Jane,” said the director. The night of the play had finally come. I was in a blue dress with a filigree apron. When the director introduced the play I stepped on stage and smiled broadly at the audience. Afterward, people congratulated me. This

is the moment I’ve been waiting for, I thought.

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Lucy Whipple and the play By Bessie N.

Mrs.Wallack’s class “Who’s auditioning next?”asked the director of the West Hartford community theater. “I am,” said 8 year old Lucy Whipple. Lucy had been rehearsing the part of Cameron In her favorite movie Spy Kids. It was time. She walked up on stage, took a breath, and did the whole part perfectly.The next day she got got a letter in the mail. It said she was going to be Cameron in the play. Lucy started jumping up and down and grinning from ear to ear. The big day had finally came. Lucy was so excited , she felt like her heart would explode.The butterflies in her stomach just wouldn't stop fluttering. She walked up on stage. It felt like the water she drank earlier had frozen into ice.Three hours later her mom and dad were congratulating her. In Lucy’s mind she was saying, Lucy you did it and you feel like you are a star.

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Fourth Grade­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

Grimloom By: Bentley B. Mrs. Hall’s class

This story is about a boy named Grimloom. He’s wearing a blue and orange t­shirt, jeans, and a red vest. His hair is brown, and his eyes are blue. He’s eight years old, he loves his stuffed animal lion, he loves to eat (he reads a lot of Garfield), and doesn’t do well in school. He doesn’t have any friends because nobody likes him. But there is a new kid this year….

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Grimloom walked through his school’s doors a little sad. Summer vacation was horrible for him. Nobody played with him except his parents. The only time he got to go to an amusement park was the last day of summer. That was really fun, but he lost his parents and had to call 911.

When he got to his classroom, he noticed there was a new kid this year. He has brown hair, jeans, sparkling green eyes, and a purple shirt.

Grimloom walked over to him and asked, “What is your name?” He answered, “Ben,” not looking up. His teacher, Mrs. Dane, flicked a bell and said, “Quiet down please!” They

all sat down at their desks and stopped talking. Later, at snack, Grimloom was eating his snack quietly. He had an orange

and goldfish. Ben came up to him and asked, “Do you want to play at recess?” “ Yeah,” said Grimloom excitedly. He never had anybody ask him to play. At recess, Grimloom was going toward Ben happy. He walked up to him and

said, “Ready to play?” “Nah!” said Ben. He laughed a cackle. “Didn’t you see it coming? It’s a

trick! I never wanted to play with you!” Grimloom started to cry. His face was red. Tears poured down his cheeks. He couldn’t believe it. It was a trick! When he got home, he told his mom all about it.

The next day he told his teacher, Mrs. Dane, all about what happened the day before. Mrs. Dane didn’t believe him. Nobody ever did. Mrs. Dane didn’t do anything. He couldn’t get friends. He gave up on his goal. Nobody liked him. His mind was about to have a little talk with him right now.

The whole room in his head was red. “Grimloom, don’t give up. I know how you can get friends.”

“How?” said Grimloom. “By doing better in school,” said his head. “I don’t know how!” “Just pay attention.” Grimloom started paying attention in class. By the next month, he was the smartest kid in our class! Ben was furious. Nobody wanted to be friends with him. Grimloom walked over to Ben. “I’m so sorry,” wept Ben.

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“I forgive you,” said Grimloom. “As long as you don’t play a trick on me again.”

“Sure,” he said. “ And believe me, I won’t.” said Ben. Ben felt better. A month later

They got in line together every day. They played together four times a week. They were friends.

Recess By: Ruth H.

Mrs. Hall’s class

If you want to participate in fourth grade recess, there are a few things you need to know. Take it from me: I do it every day. I’m in fourth grade.

There are a LOT of things you can do, like soccer, basketball and the cootie game. You can play imaginary games, too. For example, my friends and I pretend we’re God­like heroes. You can run around, swing, or hang on the monkey bars. I like to play basketball and the game with Char and Rowan.

So many things to do. So many people to talk to, laugh with, and play with. You’ll find your game, your group. One problem! The whistle. Once it releases its shrill cry, you naturally feel your sneakers pounding the ground. Racing to the line. The scene of paradise over.

Your classroom awaits!

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Fog by Zoeya A.

Mrs. Perry’s class

There once was a dog named Fog, who didn’t know what to write about,

Frogs? Logs? Fogs? Dogs? Or a crumpled o’very long snout?

He smelled his daisies,

he thought hard, he still didn’t know what to write about!!!

He looked at himself, he thought very hard,

A crumpled o’very long snout! Now he knew what to write about!!!

Hockey Girl By Shannon A. Mrs. Perry’s class

We were in the 3rd period with 3 minutes and 20 seconds left on the clock.

This day was the most important day to Kathryn because she did something so crazy you can’t believe it. It was January, she is in the middle of a game against the Windsors. Kathryn just got a goal but she only helped a little. They were down by 2 and she got another goal. When Kathryn sat on the bench, this mysterious man in a black draped coat, with a black mask came out of nowhere and said, ¨You are going to lose,’’ in this deep voice.

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Kathryn turned as fast as she could, but he was gone. Kathryn stopped

listening she got back on the ice. Kathryn almost tied the game, but she kept hearing that person saying you are going to lose again, again and again. Kathryn messed up and got tripped by another player and fell and missed the goal. The final buzz echoed loudly. She lost the game. Kathryn was determined to find whoever messed her up.

One game later, she made 2 goals again just like the last game. The mysterious man came back. Kathryn heard him and tried again, but he was gone. Kathryn tried for 3 more games. It was January 10th, 2018 and the mysterious man showed up and was able to only say half of his sentence when Kathryn turned and caught his coat and he fell. Once he hit the ground, his mask slipped off!

Kathryn gasped! She found out that it was her dad! Kathryn´s dad cut her

off and said, “I did this to make you a better hockey player.” Kathryn understood and she said, “ I expect you to be at my next game”.

Kathryn was on the ice. There were 2 periods left .Her dad was still not there but when she got on the ice, he showed up. Kathryn was soooo happy! Also, her dad was cheering for her. Kathryn scored 8 times! She won the game plus she owned her team. At the end her dad took Kathryn for ice cream. Kathryn´s dad was never mean again because he felt bad for his daughter. Also, he knows that being bad is bad.

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­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Fifth Grade­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

Quite Enough Caribou

By Kate C. Mrs. Alerte’s class

This summer I went to Alaska. When I was there I went to Denali National Park. There is only one road through that park, and only buses are allowed to drive on it. It was taking an aggravatingly long, 4 hour bus ride to the (hopefully) magnificent center of the tranquil park. The bus drivers were amazingly nice. They had microphones and narrated the ride. We saw foolhardy caribou who ran into waiting bears. We also saw gigantic moose that can disappear in a twinkling. Despite all this, the bus was hot and the seats were small. Luckily, the bus drivers had a solution for this: Every unbearably long 30 minutes we would get off at a rest stop. For 5 minutes we could use the rotten, trash smelling vault toilets, or we could wander around. The air was so crisp, clean, and clear. It was delicious. We wandered around a lot. There were many different, beautiful varieties of flowers. There was even a type of flower that predicted when winter would come by blooming. Alas, after the 5 minutes were up we all marched back onto the way too hot bus. I fell asleep listening to the bus driver talking on and on because there was nothing else to do. When we were 3 hours into the ride I woke up. We were teetering on the edge of a cliff. It was called Polychrome Pass or Poison Point because one drop could kill you. Just to make us feel better, the bus driver tried some humor. “You know,” boomed the bus driver, “If you are scared of heights, just do what I always do: close your eyes as we go around the corners.” That got a big laugh, but

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the bus driver continued. “ Most people think it would take 12 rolls for a bus like this to get to the bottom of the cliff, but I bet you I could do it in 8!” That produced another big laugh, but it was slightly more nervous. Soon we stopped at a scenic viewpoint (screaming point) and we all got off. Uncle Alex and my brother Nick went off hiking in the tundra. I wanted to peer over the edge, so I dragged my mom (who is unluckily afraid of heights) with me to the edge. Meanwhile, Alex and Nick were climbing a great mountain (sort of a hill actually), then, just as they reached the top, we heard screams from around the corner. Alex did the only natural thing possible … He whipped out his phone and put it in film mode. A caribou came charging around the corner full speed. Its hooves kicked up clouds of dust that billowed and swelled as if they were alive. Time seemed to slow down. There was ominous music in the air. Oh wait, that was just people screaming. They scattered like a herd of caribou in front of a bear (which was extremely ironic). I did not move. I did not scream. I was most DEFINITELY not scared. Actually I was contemplating the cliff behind me and estimating how many people would fall off in their panic. The caribou was coming ever closer, so it is time for some disturbing caribou trivia. Caribou are the wild version of reindeer. All the caribou except the pregnant females shed their horns before Christmas. That means that Rudolph is really pregnant Rudolpha. Did you know that there is a type of fly that lives in caribou’s nostrils and ears? These flies drive the caribou INSANE. They often hang out in the road because there are less flies. Anyway, let's get back to the action. I stood calmly looking at the people flee in terror. The caribou appeared to be passing down the road at a breakneck speed. But then, suddenly, the caribou swerved toward me.

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It came hurtling at me. I didn’t move. I didn’t breathe. Several people screamed for me. I mentally thanked them. I thought about how scared the caribou must have been. For some reason, it didn’t occur to me to be scared. Suddenly, I was very aware of the cliff behind me. I slowly slid to one side. The caribou had an attack of common sense, turned and ran down the road. My mom said “ Why don’t we go up to Alex and Nick?” So we crossed the road as people cheered. I even heard someone mutter, ”The park service should put cowbells on those things.” We climbed the small mountain to Nick and Alex where we watched the video they had captured from the perfect angle. They had caught all the crazy details from the caribou attack. That was the longest 5 minutes so far in my life, but even it must come to an end. So we climbed aboard the bus. Everyone wanted to see the video. It became the talk of the bus. But the most exciting part of the whole adventure for me was staring into the caribou’s wide eyes that were staring right back.

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Puzzle Pieces & Paris

By Sarah C. Mrs. Kluskiewicz’s class

Brecca wrapped her scarf tighter around her and adjusted her beret. Even a Patagonia down coat can’t keep out the early winter in Paris. Her leather boots clicked and clacked on the oval­shaped cobblestones as she briskly passed tourist after tourist, person after person. Finally, reaching her apartment, she unlocked the door and pushed it open. Without a word to her step­mother, she walked to her room, threw open her window, and climbed onto her roof. Her window was at the exact angle for a 12 and 1/2 year old girl to climb up onto, and the half­moon roof tiles acted like foot and hand­holds as she climbed to the top. A sigh of relief slipped from her mouth as she looked out into Paris, the setting sun highlighting the Eiffel Tower. This was her spot. No one else knew about it but her, and she loved it, no matter the cold.

****** Knock, knock, KNOCK! A loud, annoying trio of knocks woke her up from her luxurious den of pillows and blankets. Pumpkin Spice, her orange kitten looked up once, then fell back to sleep. She put her horn­rimmed red glasses on, straightened her burnt sienna hair, and looked out the window. Her best friend, Symone was there, quirky as always. She wore her sparkly purple trench coat extra long, so it waved in the slight breeze as Brecca donned her black down coat and climbed out to join her. “Hey!” “Hi.” “Wanna go for crepes?” “You know it!” Brecca grinned and they leapt down to the fire escape, careful not to wake any of the other neighbors. When they reached the second to last step, they skipped one set of stairs and jumped to the ground. That floor was home to Ms. Fitzenn, the old widow. No one ever saw her. Brecca’s step­mother said that she never left her apartment. Only

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glimpses of her were seen through her window, and that was on the rare occasion that her heavy blinds were open. Setting out into the streets, Brecca and Symone watched the sun slowly begin its daily climb over the Eiffel Tower that towered over the city. (No pun intended) As they went closer and closer to the heart of the city, the rumbling in Brecca’s stomach got louder and louder as the smell of crepes got stronger and stronger. “‘Ey! Well ain’t it my two favorite girlies! Wanna crepe?” Brecca turned, relieved to see it was only Robinn, the man at the crepe stand. She smiled at him. “Sure. The usual for me, please.” “You sure? We just got up a new flavor, Cinnamon Strawberry!” “Yes, I’m sure, thank you.” “And for you, Symone?” “I’ll take a Cinnamon Strawberry and a grande Cacao Mint latte.” “That’s my girl! Coming right up!” As they waited, the sounds of the oven and delicious smells wafting around, Symone asked: “Why do you always get the same old thing?” Brecca looked offended. “Am I not allowed to like what I like?” “Yes, you are, it’s just that you’re always like, ‘Oh, I’ll have the same old thing again, please,’ every time!” “Hey! Well at least I know what I like! You get a new thing every day, you’re like: “I’ll have whatever catches my eye, oh!” “Hey! Not true, I thoroughly think about it first!” “Girls! Girls!” Robinn’s rich baritone voice interrupted their argument. “Arguing is never the answer! Plus, I have one Cinnamon Strawberry and Vanilla Bean crepe and the coffee's getting cold over here!They turned, embarrassed. “Sorry.” Brecca paid, and thanked Robinn as they walked away. Brecca took a sip of her medium chocolate frappuccino as they walked away from the crepe stand. “You didn’t have to make fun of my choices, Symone,” said Brecca as they walked toward the apartment building. “I know. I’m sorry Brecs.” “It’s fine. Don’t worry about it.”

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“Thanks. Bye for now,” said Symone as she disappeared into her loft, closing the door behind her. After one more sip from her frappuccino, and Brecca was off towards her loft. But she was wasn’t the only one there. Just as she arrived, a middle­aged woman, looking angry, walked out of Brecca’s loft. Holding her head high, she said, “Well it’s not good for the child!” And slammed the door behind her, not even aware of Brecca standing next to her as she marched off down the hall. Odd, thought Brecca, but she shrugged it off and entered her apartment. “Priscilla! You get out of here! I mean now! Leave!” Her step­mom yelled as Brecca entered. When she saw it was only Brecca, she blushed furiously, and leaned against the counter exhaustedly, even though it was only 9:00 am. “Um, hi. It’s me, Brecca. Who’s Priscilla?” “Oh pumpkin! Where on earth were you?” She said, ignoring Brecca’s question as she pulled her into a tight hug.Brecca stiffened. “I was just getting crepes with Symone, Jennifer. And I’d wish you’d stop calling me pumpkin!” “Call me Mom. Please, honey.” “No.” “I made you breakfast!” “I just ate.” She threw her cup away and stalked off to her room. Flopping on her bed, she watched Pumpkin Spice chase a ferocious moth flitting across the room, she suddenly felt exhausted, like her step­mother. Who was Priscilla? Who was the “child” they were talking about? Did they mean her?

***** That night, Brecca couldn’t sleep. After hours upon hours upon hours of tossing and turning, she finally relented and turned on her light. It illuminated her cozy room, showing the corners and shadows, and revealing everything. Brecca wished she could be like that. Someone could just turn on a switch and everything would

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just light up, nothing hidden, every corner visible. She sighed, and climbed out onto her spot. A breeze whistled through her hair as she gazed out at the night scene of Paris. The Eiffel Tower lay dark now, no tourists climbing on its edges, wildly snapping photos, jumping around and chirping like a flock of doves with fleas. Everything was quiet. No birds on the powerlines. No street vendors selling aromatic foods and goods of all shapes, sizes, and colors. Paris was deserted. Even the usual doves that flocked on the rooftop were gone, probably gone to a cozy nest somewhere. She began to wonder. Who I am? Why should I belong here? A single tear fell from her cheek, followed by a hurricane of others until Brecca was sobbing uncontrollably. Her step­mother, Jennifer, was a native Hawaiian, and had moved to Paris for a rare art scholarship at one of Paris’ many art schools. She had gotten lonely, and blah, blah, blah, opened up her heart and home, blah, to adopt Brecca from Ms. Flatt's Home For Girls in London. What Jennifer saw in her, Brecca didn´t know. Ms. Flatt had been a stout, cross woman who did not like children at all, so Brecca didn’t have exactly fond memories of that place. So naturally, Jennifer being Hawaiian and outgoing, lugging shy French little Brecca around was quite a sight. A sharp knock freed her of her thoughts. Jennifer, her step­mom was sticking her head out the window. When she saw Brecca her face morphed from fright, to anger, to relief. ¨What on Earth are you doing up here, on the rickety old roof at 3 am in the morning?!?¨ Her face softened when she saw the streaks on Brecca´s face, signs that she had been crying. ¨Oh pumpkin, are you worrying about that Priscilla woman?¨ She climbed up onto the roof and sat next to Brecca. ¨I never noticed how beautiful it is up here. A great painting you could make, right Brecca?¨ ¨Yea.¨ Jennifer pulled her into a hug, and Brecca, for the first time, didn't protest. They stayed like that until the sun came up.

*****

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The next morning was like any other. Brecca got crepes with Symone, but today was Monday, and she had to go to school. After school, she hesitated at her doorstep. What about the Priscilla incident? Well, if anyone knew about the history of her family, she might as well go to the lady that had lived in the building since, what, the pilgrims? She pondered all this as she knocked on Ms. Fitzenn´s door. She knocked once. No answer. Twice. No answer. Brecca sighed and was turning to go when a sharp cough resounded through the cramped hallway, cutting through the silence like a knife through butter. Brecca turned. A tall thin lady with the same red hair as Brecca was standing in the door. She had a few gray streaks in her hair, even though she looked as though she was in her mid­thirties. “Hello? I don't want to buy girl scout cookies, child. What is it?” She had a light voice, like spun sugar, airy and sweet. It was the Priscilla­lady! “Um, hi. I'm Brecca de Amali, from the fifth floor. I was hoping to ask you a few questions about my heritage.” (When Brecca had been adopted, she had chosen to keep her original last name instead of changing it to Konerko.) “Brecca de Amali, you say?” “Yes ma´am.” Her eyes widened visibly, and she pulled Brecca into a hug. “It's you! It´s really you!” There were tears in the corners of her eyes. “I must call Jennifer! Oh wow, I can't believe it!” Still holding Brecca, she pulled her into the loft. Paintings hung from every available space and hanger in the room. Only then did Brecca notice her paint splattered jeans and shirt. Brecca couldn't process this. Who was this lady? Should I run and get someone? She tried yelling for her step­mom, but her voice had deserted her so she could only squeak. “Excuse me, but who are you? What´s going on here?” she said, alarmed. “Oh, dear, I'll explain once we get your stepmother down here. OK?” ¨Oh.¨ For the first time in her entire existence, she longed for her stepmother. At least she´s coming, then she can get this crazy lady off and away from me.

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Jennifer ran into the loft. “Priscilla! Where´s Brecca? What's going on!?” Her black hair had frizzed up all around her face, so she looked like a ferocious hairball as she talked.Brecca had never been so relieved in her whole life. She struggled from Priscilla´s grasp and ran into Jennifer´s arms. “Mom! What's going on!?!” Jennifer shot a hard look at Priscilla. “Shhh, honey. I think it’s time,” she said. Priscilla nodded in approval. They sat down on a pair of large yellow overstuffed couches in front of the window. Jennifer sighed heavily. “Why don’t you start? she said pointedly at Priscilla. She took a deep breath. “Alright, Brecca. I am Priscilla Longoria Fitzenn. When you were born, I was young. I was too young. I had just met your father, and I was only 19 when I had you. I was in love with your father. Ahh, he was a wonderful man. Funny and sweet, oh how I miss him.” Priscilla paused and gazed dreamily into space. “Priscilla. Back to the story,” said Jennifer in a hard tone. “Right, right. Anyway, when I had you I was too young to take care of a child! I was still living in my parent’s apartment and my only job was at a patisserie downtown sweeping the floors. Your father and I put you up for adoption. It was a hard decision, but your father convinced me to. A couple months later, he had a stroke and died. I was all alone. I made some bad choices in that time. But most of all, I regretted putting you up for adoption. It was the worst decision I had ever made and I regret it to this day. I’m your birth mother Brecca.” Brecca was stunned. It took her a moment to process it. Finally, she walked up to Priscilla and hugged her tight. Jennifer sat by herself across from them, tears in her eyes. When Brecca released, she saw Jennifer. “Love,” said Jennifer, “I believe it's time to make your decision.” “My what?” asked Brecca. “Your decision. You know, who you’re going to live with from now on.” Priscilla nodded. Brecca glanced from Jennifer to Priscilla, back and forth like she was watching a ping­pong game. After a few long awkward moments she sat down. “I’ve made my decision. Priscilla, it's wonderful to have met you. It was

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like discovering the last puzzle piece to myself. But I’ve decided to live with Jennifer. You’re welcome to visit anytime.” Brecca looked over at Jennifer. Her teary eyes were shining. Then she looked at Priscilla. Her eyes were shining too. She hugged them both. Then as Jennifer and Brecca went to leave, Brecca turned around one last time and saw Priscilla tearing up. “Au Revoir, my love. ‘Till next time.”

Snow

By: Shannon D. Mrs. Swain’s class

The little ballerinas, dancing in the air, Dancing all around me, dancing everywhere They are doing swirls and whirls and twirls and even grand Jetes I somehow see the Nutcracker, almost every other day. Then when the ballet is over they all take a bow, Then they all fall and land neatly all placed on the ground. Snowing. The ballerinas are in pure white tutus, While getting from small children, many Ahhs and oohs.

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Writing around Morley! <5th grade Roanoke colony postcards>

^Kate C. comic strip ^2nd grade ^Parth comic Haikus strip ^Riley’s 2nd grade haiku

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2nd Grade Haiku>

^Van Gogh's pond and Japanese Bridge

^5th grade Super reviews (comic book reviews) ^2nd grade

^Kindergarten Japanese fish winter project

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^Kindergarten ^2nd grade Pizza how­to Japan quotes Books <2nd grade Smith museum memories

^1st grade ^Smith museum Hand art Quotes

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Morley Muse 2015-16 Staff List Directors Assistant Directors Debbie Antoinetti, Grade 3 teacher Kate H. (5) Kelly Brouse, Curriculum Specialist Kate C. (5) Editors Photographers 5th grade chairperson: Kate H. 5th grade chairperson: Alexia D. Ellie P. (2) Parami S. (2) Maeghan P. (3) Lukas S. (3) Sophie C. (3) Hannah J. (3) Lilliana G. (3) Bentley B. (4) Will R. (3) Charlotte R. (4) Sarah G. (3) Typists Layout Design 5th grade chairperson: Sadie R. 5th grade chairperson: Kate C. Caitlin G. (2) Nick C. (2) Ilana K. (2) Bessie N. (3) Madelyn F. (2) Allie A. (4) Ariel G. (2) Ella P. (3) Mark K. (4) Elizabeth H. (4) Jillian P. (4) Orian G. (4) Writers 5th grade chairperson: Shannon D. Katherine H. (2) Caeli S. (2) Hadley E. (2) Amelia S. (2) Matthew P. (2) Kate D.-W. (2) Ora R.-F. (2) Yimin W. (3) Josh M. (3) Zoeya A. (4) Ruth H. (4)

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