Favourite Subjects

In school you have to take many subjects such as Math, Social, Science, Health, Language Arts, Phys. Ed., French, Music and Art.  Even though this a lot of subjects it is perfect for elementary students because that’s how much they usually have to do.

My favourite subject is Math because you add random numbers together.  If you gave me a math problem like 456+325, the answer would be 731. I do like Math or Science and also Social because it is good for your brain.

My least favourite subject is Language Arts because you have to write and I don’t like to write.

What is your favourite subject and why? What is your least favourite subject and why?

~sour green apple

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Animals

Pets are when you have an animal to take care of forever. Some examples of pets are birds, cats, dogs, fish, turtle, snake, and a hamster. I think people have pets because they probably don’t want kids. A pet like a dog or a cat does not judge people.  They love you no matter what.

If you own a pet it comes with a lot of responsibility.  You have to feed them every morning and give them a bath.  If you have a dog you have to take them for walks at least once a day.

You can get a pet by going to the pet shelter or the pet store. I don’t have a pet but I had one before in the Philippines. Some of my friends have a pet. Mostly all my friends have a dog and a cat.  I wish I had a dog. But my most hated animals are cats because they scratch more than dogs.

Some dogs and cats in my country are always in the street wandering around.  I think they are stray animals. Some I see by my house in my country.

But I used to have a pet in my country. I think I had a chihuahua and his name is Sweetie.

What kind of pet do you have?

~dark

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Advent Calendars

Every year our teacher buys a Lego themed advent calendar for the class to open. An advent calendar counts down the days until Christmas. There are 24 doors to open. She chooses a random stick and that person gets to open up one door.  This year she bought a City Lego one.

There are many different kinds of advent calendars.  A lot of them started out as one candy each day and now they have so many of them.  They have toys, cosmetics, teas and coffees in addition to a whole bunch of other goodies.

At the end of the month, she chooses one student who receives the entire display and the extra pieces.  Luckily for me, I won it last year and I still have it somewhere in my house. At my house, I also have an advent calendar.  I have a Spiderman one but I haven’t started opening it yet.  I got it for my birthday which was a few weeks ago.

What day do you think you are going to open?  What do you think about advent calendars. If you could have any type of advent calendar you wanted, what kind would it be?

~doggywarrior

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Planes

Planes are rumbly flying things. There are different types of planes, Same as people. About a year and three quarters ago I went on vacation to Ireland, as you know. And we went on two flights there, and two flights back. I had so much fun on my vacation. Flights can be so long sometimes. That’s why they have TVs in them. But some planes DON'T have TVs so you might have to look out the windows. Luckily I got the ones with the TV’s. The plane company I went on was Icelandair.

When the plane takes off do you ever notice that it gets up above the clouds in about five seconds? The reason planes go about 300 miles per hour (AKA 300 miles you go per hour) a normal plane's maximum speed is surprisingly 600  miles per hour! THAT'S AMAZING, RIGHT! I have heard the shortest flight in the world is 59 seconds, about a minute. Are you shocked? It still costs a fortune, about $700 per person. Do you think it’s a waste of money? I do.

Do you notice that planes have oval windows like cleaning detergent holders. It's because a long time ago, planes had rectangular windows,but what do you think happened? Three to five planes crashed. So they changed the rule so I guess that is that.

Would you agree that planes have evolved. But what about three or four engined planes?  The reason they have more engines is because the planes are bigger. And if you have a two floored plane with two engines I think that's not going to lift any time soon.  Jets can go about 1000 miles per hour so they do have good engines. By the way, they do hold up to two people.

One more part:when you go to the washroom do you ever notice a smoking bin. That's because people sneak to the washroom to smoke off their lungs, and when they’re done they put it in there. I don't know why but that is that.

Did you ever go on a plane? Did you hate the ride? Did you enjoy it? Will you ever go on a plane again?

~Sillyslogan

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Dumplings

My favourite food is dumplings.  These are a thin dough that can contain any meats or vegetables.  Dumplings can be vegetarian (no meat) or non vegetarian (can contain meat).

I like them because it tastes yummy.  I like chicken dumplings the most. The things that you put inside the dumplings are called “kima” in my culture.  My mom makes kima herself and wraps the dumplings with a wrapper. Then she puts them in the container and steams them.  We can fry dumplings too. My favourite is when she steams them. I dip them in a sauce which my dad from scratch. It is a spicy sauce. 

Unfortunately, we don’t get to eat them everyday because my mother does not have the time to make. I am very pleased when she makes them though. 

Have you ever had any experience with dumplings, like perogies? What did you think of them? What is your favourite food and why do you like it? What makes it taste so good?

~mnopelsid

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Video Games

William Higinbotham created the first video game in 1958.  It was a tennis game, kind of like Pong. Now obviously the games now aren’t the same as the games in the 1950s. The games nowadays are way more advanced.

For example, I went to the Rec Room today with my dad and I played a bunch of games.  The Rec Room is an arcade where they have many old-school video games. One of the games I played was giant Pac Man.  This is a game where a giant yellow mouth eats power pellets to get rid of ghosts who are chasing it. The ghosts keep re-spawning or coming back to life.  It was awesome because of the huge screen. It had great graphics. I also liked it because of the cool music. I would highly recommend this game.

Another game I highly recommend is Typhoon.  This is a virtual roller coaster game. It scared me because I felt like I was on an actual roller coaster.  My dad and I laughed a lot at this game. It was amazing.

I’m glad that video games are way cooler and advanced now than in the past.  I recommend making a trip to the Rec Room for a great experience.

What do you think about video games?  What games do you play? Describe one of them.  If you had the chance, would you go visit the Rec Room

~bigquitbarker

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Why Do We Have To Know How To Keyboard?

My students participate in a program called Typing.com where they are put through various exercises which teach them how to type properly.  These tasks include knowing how to sit correctly, learning and memorizing where the keyboard is and developing speed and accuracy.  Keyboarding is a skill that will be necessary for students well into the future of their schooling and adult life.

Many students continue to struggle with the QWERTY keyboard as they do not know where each letter is.  Did you know that the letters are always in the same place, no matter what keyboard you use?  It's fascinating to watch when students continually search for a letter even though they may have pushed the same letter many times in the past.  Another pet peeve that I've noticed is when kids type with one finger of one hand while using their other hand to rest their head.  Did you know that if you type with at least two fingers, you'll be twice as fast?

Experts keep telling kids that they were born with a phone in their hand.  This sentiment seems true only in that they know how to press buttons, but not necessarily type.

What do you think about learning how to keyboard?  What difference will being an efficient typist make in your life?  Do you like learning how to keyboard?  Why or why not?

~The Big Ham
BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Lizards

Lizards are very interesting creatures in the world because they have different adaptations to their different habitats with different climates.  Some lizards climb up trees and walls, while others can camouflage. Others can do both but all lizards have a few similarities that not many people would think of.  Some of them can be compared with a venomous snake or other reptiles. For example, a gila monster lives in the desert and has a very strong bite, like a crocodile and some are venomous like a black mama. But all the lizards have very cool adaptations and ways to survive in their own ways, in the rain forest or any other place in the entire world. 

Have you ever wondered about lizards in any way? What did you wonder? Did you know that lizards are evolving from global warming and learn to dance because of it? Have you ever wanted a pet lizard?  If you have, what type of lizard did you want to get?

~toxic miner

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Last Day of School

There are just two weeks until the last day of school comes and I am happy and sad at the same time, why?  I am sad because I really loved this year especially when we got to go to Hardisty for swimming lessons and because, probably that some of my classmate friends are going to change out of our school.

Also, once the school year ends, I realize that I do not want to change the teacher because it is very special for me, but once the new school year starts and I have the opportunity to meet a new teacher, I realize that it will also be a special thing for me.

And now, why am I happy? Because maybe next year I might be with the same teacher as this year. But I am also happy because I am going to be a year older than was I before. Another thing I am happy about is that maybe next year I might be with the same classmates next year.

Are you excited about the end of the school year? Are you happy that you are going to change teacher?s What are some things you like about the school year? What are some of the things that you did not like about the school year?

-camila2008

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Candy

Do you like candy?  I LOVE candy! My three favourite candies are Sour Patch Kids, KitKat and Smarties. For Eid I got a gigantic box of 200 pieces of candy and I get to eat two pieces of candy everyday.

Have you ever wondered why you can’t eat candy all the time?  Well there are lots of reasons why you can’t have sugar all the time.

For example, you possibly can get cavities and trust me you don’t want cavities at all.  I don’t want cavities at all. I mean who wants cavities? Nobody. People who eat lots of candy sometimes don’t brush their teeth so they end up with a lot of cavities.  But if you brush your teeth three times a day your teeth will stay strong.

Another reason why you can’t eat too much candy is that it is not healthy for you at all.  You want to be strong like a tree, not weak as a skinny stick so you should only eat two pieces of candy a day.  If you do you will be healthy but if you eat more than two pieces of candy, that is wrong. Some people think it’s okay to have more than two pieces of candy but are they right?

Children also get fillings in their mouths to fix the cavity.  If you get fillings, people know very quickly that you got them because you eat too much sugar or don’t brush your teeth very well.

What do you think about eating candy all the time?  What amounts are you allowed to eat? What are your favourite candies?  Describe a time you went to the dentist.

~FortniteDude123

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Your Talents & The Talent Show

The talent show for our school is scheduled for Tuesday, June 25, 2019.  This show is an opportunity for students to perform in front of the entire school.  In the past, students have sung, danced, performed magic tricks, stand-up comedy, or played musical instruments.

Performing in front of the entire school can sometimes be nerve-wracking and can experience stage fright.  Not only are all your friends and classmates watching you, but there are usually parents watching and also your teachers.  Some students have really surprised others during the talent show because it showcases a completely different side that we do not really get to see in class.  Other students have gone up on stage and failed miserably.  Regardless, each child was brave enough to perform in front of so many people.

What would be your performance in the talent show if you were asked to perform and why would you choose that talent?  How afraid would you be performing in front of everybody?  If our entire class had to perform something, what would you choose for us?

~The BIG HAM
SUBSTITUTE BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

My Previous Class

In my old school we had 30 kids in my class.  My teacher's name is Miss E. She lets us call her this because her real name is hard to pronounce.

We had something called Miss E bucks which were paper tickets that we could earn for good behaviour. Every time we had D.E.A.R she would put an app up on the Smartboard that had all our names on it.  Every time we behaved she would give us a point that would stay there until Friday. These points would go into our Miss E bucks account.

On Fridays, she would add all the points together and she would even count how much home reading we did.  Some people would get 130 Miss E bucks a week! The most I got was 130 also.

With these Miss E bucks, we can buy stuff from her store in the classroom.  We can buy gum, we can swap desks, there were free coupons from actual stores, stickers, books and toys.  The best item that you could buy in the store was the actual coupons.

At our park we had no tire swings.  Instead, we had round swings, and my brother and his friend Ethan would push really high.  This school has tire swings and I really enjoy playing on them.

Would you like the idea of The Big Ham Bucks?  Have you ever been to a different school and what was your experience like?  Do you like the idea of round swings on the playground?

~thing1

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Dance Is Our New Phys. Ed. Unit!

Our current Phys. Ed. unit is dance.  The Alberta curriculum has a component where students need to apply basic skills in dance.  These skills include basic dance steps and patterns including creative, folk, line, sequence and novelty.  Students need to perform these movements alone and with others.  Because there are so many other skills to work through in the curriculum, many teachers do not include a dance unit.

Our class is focusing on line dances and novelty dances to popular music.  We have learned three dances so far:  the Electric Slide, the Pata Pata and a choreographed dance to the song Roar by Katy Perry.  The first two dances had simple, repetitive steps with a turn to every wall.  Roar is a much more difficult dance which involves multiple dance steps to a very fast pace. 

At first many of the students were reluctant to move their bodies to the beat for a number of reasons.  As we got further into the unit, almost everybody has figured out that it doesn't matter if anybody is looking, it's about moving to the beat and having fun.  This enthusiasm was especially present during the Roar dance.

What are your thoughts about the dance unit?  How useful is knowing how to dance going to be in your future?  What other dances would you like to learn?

~The Big Ham
SUBSTITUTE BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Las Vegas

I went to Las Vegas on February 14, 2019 on a Thursday for a cheer competition.  Me and my mom stayed there for a week. When we were going we ran into my friend because she was going on the same plane as us. We went on the first plane there. It took about two hours to get to Seattle from here. We stopped to eat something in Seattle.  There was a McDonalds. It was also raining when we got there. Before we were going on the last plane ride we were about to go on they delayed the plane like seven times in seven hours. I know it's crazy. The last plane ride took about two and a half hours from Seattle to Las Vegas.  

Whenever I go on a plane ride I need to chew gum because then my ears don’t pop and make me not hear.

When we got in Las Vegas it was night time but it also took about 10 minutes for the taxi to come.  We still were with my friend at that time. When we got to the hotel it was 1 am in the morning, my mom and I slept in. We only got to sleep for eight hours.

The next day on a Friday we went all over Las Vegas walking for five hours.  My feet started hurting. At night time, my friend and her mom and me and my mom went Ziplining. The one you sit down on you have to be 79 pounds or lower. The one you get to go on your stomach you have to be 80 pounds or higher.  I wanted to go on my stomach. I was 10 pounds too light. My friend’s mom was really scared because she wears glasses and she can’t see without them so it looked like blobs to her. The one you go on your stomach it is about 114 feet tall and the one you sit on your butt it is about 77 feet high in the air.  We had to climb up the stairs and that was about six sets of stairs. That was very painful going up, but It was very fun doing the zipline.

Then I did the competition on Sunday and Monday.  We came fifth out of six teams. That was also fun to do because I had a blast of time.

Me and my mom went to a store called Morphe.  That is where you can get your makeup. I got a James Charles palette.  It was 39 American dollars. That is lots of money.

James Charles is a famous Youtuber but he is so good at makeup. That is who I started getting my makeup ideas from four years ago.  I have been watching him for a very long time now. I really wanted to get the Blood Sugar or Blue Blood palettes too made by Jeffree Star. He is also a famous Youtuber and he inspired me to also do makeup three years ago. But I also have been watching him for a very long time too. They are both very good at doing makeup.  My friends got a palette too. It was also a James Charles palette as well.

Also when we were still in Las Vegas we had to walk for a very long time for my team bonding on Tuesday. We went into the MM store and I went with my friend. We had so much money because I had around 30 dollars and she had around 50 dollars. We also went to the Hersheys store.  We had around 35 dollars. Then we went down the strip which is all around Las Vegas.

My team went on a limo bus and we listened to music while we were in the strip bus. It was very fun. We went until night time. My friends brother and I had a race at the end of it. I was so tired after that race.

The hotel we stayed in - I don’t remember the name of it but it was very smoky and my friend’s dad is a little bit allergie to smoke and he had to stay inside his hotel room.   Then on Wednesday we came back home but we had no delays and I was so tired because me and my mom came home at 11 at night. My dad had to pick us up. All we could hear was music from the car.

We had a blast on the plane.  They also gave us free pop and free water and they also give us a choice of cookies or snack mix.  That was awesome. I had pop on all of the plane rides there and back and I also took the snack mix on one plane and took the cookies on one plane too. Then I went to sleep and woke up feeling like a new me because I had a great dream from when I was still in Las Vegas and I was living there. But I have lots of pictures on my phone and my mom’s phone as well. I wish I brought one of you guys with me.  Plus I would bring my teacher to Las Vegas.

Have you flown somewhere?  If yes where did you go and who did you go with. What was the reason for going to that place?  What is your dream place or vacation you want to go and why? How many times have you been on a plane and if you liked it. Give me two reasons why you liked it.

~silly19

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

West Edmonton Mall Waterpark

I really like the West Edmonton Mall Waterpark. It really has a good touch to it. Every time when I’m at the Mall, I always love the fresh smell of chlorine. I really like that the West Edmonton Mall Waterpark was built in 1986, because it has been around for a long time.

My favourite water slide is the green one, because it’s twisty and you can also scream really loud in the water slide. My other favourite thing is in the changing rooms that have fish all around them when you go in one and look at them. I really enjoy how it’s themed and heated like a beach. It’s basically like you’re at a Hawaiian beach, because it’s actually 31 C (81 F).

The Dolphin Kiddie Pool is what I also love. My big brother also likes playing in that area too. I like to swim underneath the kiddie slides because I can rest on the little block. I like to swim in the Kiddie Pool and the wave pool because I get some good exercise. I always wanted to go on the FlowRider. Have you ever gone on the FlowRider?

Have you ever thought of going to the Waterpark again? Have you ever gone to the World Waterpark? If you have what is it like for you? If you haven’t do you think that sounds fun and why?

-disneyfan25

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Holidays & Special Occasions

I enjoy holidays.  It is on these occasions that I get to spend time with my family.

My favourite holiday is Christmas because I get to spend time with my family and open presents with them.  I like to eat Christmas dinners and enjoy the two weeks of no school. Also, I like playing with my toys that I receive over Christmas.

I also like the Easter holidays because you get to go on Easter egg hunts.  My family hides the eggs all over the house and whoever finds the most eggs at the end wins everybody else’s eggs.

A holiday I don’t celebrate is Labour Day.  All I know is that you’re not supposed to wear white clothes after Labour Day.  I find that this is a silly rule because I should be able to wear white clothing whenever I want.

What is your favourite special occasion and why?  What holiday or occasion do you not celebrate and why?  If you could make up a holiday, what would you call it and what would people have to do on this day?

~crystal

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

1881 Schoolhouse

Last week the Grade 4 students went to visit the 1881 Schoolhouse where they got to role play students from the 19th century.  The schoolhouse is located behind McKay Avenue School and it is small, grey one-room schoolhouse that has been restored. 

From singing God Save the Queen to patriotic and arithmetic lessons and health inspection, the students experienced a mixture of classes that would have been conducted back then.

One of the biggest differences that the students noticed was the discipline expected from their teacher, Mr. Harris.  They were told to sit up straight and fill their minds with knowledge.  Students in those days did not ask questions and only spoke when asked to.

What was your favourite part of attending the 1881 Schoolhouse and why?  If you actually had to be a student in that setting for the entire year, how would you react and why?  What is the difference in expectations between students in the 21st century (today) versus the 19th century (students from 1881)? 

~The Big Ham
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ICE School - What an Experience!

During the week before Spring Break, our class finally got to spend a week at Rogers Place for ICE School.  This is the home building of our local hockey team, the Edmonton Oilers.

It was a full week and the students got to spend time doing many activities and meeting a number of different people and guest speakers.

The highlight for me was getting to sit outside the Oilers dressing room before practice and waiting for them to start their morning practice.  We saw all of them as they came out of the dressing room and almost all of them acknowledged us by saying hello or asking us how we were.

Throughout the week the students had to record their thoughts and sketches inside their ICE School journals.  This was to help them remember their experience and also use it as a reference to write thank-you letters.

This is an experience that I really enjoyed and I will remember it for a long time.

Describe your experience at ICE School.  What were your favourite activities and why? 

~The Big Ham
BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Tests

Tests are something that you take in writing to see what you know about the topic.  I get tests in all subjects except Phys. Ed, Music and Language Arts. In Grade 4, I think we get a lot of tests.  I think that we even get too many tests.

As I get into higher grades, there are going to be even more tests.  I have to study a lot but I only like to study sometimes.

If I had to choose tests that I sort of like, it would be math tests because some of them are pretty easy for me.

I do not like taking tests because some tests are hard.  Sometimes, we don’t have enough time to finish a test and other times, I didn’t remember to study so that makes it even harder.  

I sometimes do well on tests when I study but when I don’t study, I fail.  I tell my parents when I fail a test and they get a little bit mad. If that happens, they don’t let me watch television and they take away my electronics.

How do you feel about tests?  What do your parents do when you don’t do very well on a test?  What are some other ways besides tests that teachers can use to see if you know how to do something?

~shadowleo

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Internet Safety

Phones, iPads, computers, they're all useful for communication, games, alarms and reminders. But when they are used for the wrong reasons, they can cause life and death matters.

It’s important to know how to use your electronics. Right and wrong, good and bad, safe and unsafe. No matter what type of electronic you have, it’s important.

For example, let’s say you had been secretly texting with a “so-called little girl” whose avatar is named Tricky Tiger. One day she says to meet her by the front entrance of your school. She knows where you go to school because you told her all your personal information.

When you show up this ‘Tricky Tiger’ also shows up, and she isn’t so girly! In fact, it could be a grown adult who may cause harm to you.

What we learned from this story is that people may say that they are friendly and aren’t scary, which can be true, but you should NEVER trust a “friend” unless you can see their face.

There's other ways in which the internet is unsafe. Some people will make up lies about something or someone to get people to click on it. The more people click, the more money the liars make. And the more money they get, the richer they become.

How is this dangerous you ask? Well, sometimes the liars will say their “information” is about one thing when really it is about another. Sometimes that other thing can be hurtful, inappropriate or just plain wrong! An example would be “Come see what Taylor Swift said about Beyonce at the Hilltop Bar last night!” If you click on this link, it won't take you to an article about Taylor Swift. Instead, it will redirect you to a shopping site or one that asks for your personal information. Even though it isn't true, bad people will do anything for lots and lots of money.

What are the restrictions on your internet access at home? Describe a situation where you have provided personal information on the internet. Why do children need to learn about internet safety?

~KittyKittyPineappleHat

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Coding

Do you remember the blog about video games?  Have you ever thought about how they are made? Or how you make animations like walking, shooting and very bizarre dances like the Floss? Well, there’s a simple answer, coding. 

Coding can be done in different forms. It can be what you might think it is, dragging and placing tiles to create a sequence of actions to do a simple task. It can also be software like Excel which looks like a grid with rows and columns. You can also use something like Python. Python is a computer language in which you type lines of code and then can be executed by using the Fn (function) key and the F5 key on your keyboard.

Computer languages that use dragging and placing blocks have limitations though.  There are some advanced movements that require writing out lines of code.

All of these examples are types of coding and all of them can be used to make games. But did you know that there are computer languages specifically for making games?  One of the most popular ones is called Unity and C#.

In the future I would like to learn Unity and C# but right now I’m still learning Python with my dad. Every Wednesday my dad and me do a coding lesson. When I finally learn Unity and C#, I’m going to make Age of War 3! 

Do you remember doing Hour of Code in December?  That program allowed to just drag and place tiles in certain, just like I said above.  Did you enjoy doing that?  Did it feel like playing a game?  This program is a lot simpler than what my Dad and I do.  It's just another way to program.   

If you have requests for games, please let me know your ideas. If you could design your very own game what would it be like? How long do you think it takes to create a good game? If I made a game would you play it?

~something3000

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Indoor Recesses

At our school we have indoor recesses when the temperature gets below -23 Celsius or when it's pouring rain.  This policy is to help make sure that children stay safe.

This week is going to be extremely cold and I think we will be staying inside for every recess. 

I think indoor recesses are awesome and cool.  Even though I like going outside, I enjoy staying inside also.  I play all sorts of games with my friends such as building gear trains, reading and watching movies.

At lunch time our class gets to watch a movie.  Today we are watching Incredibles 2 on Netflix. It looks we will be watching a movie for the rest of the week.

The bad thing about indoor recesses is that kids do not get enough fresh air and we won’t get our sixty minutes of physical activity.  

Tell me your opinion about indoor recesses.  If you had a choice to go outside when it’s super cold, would you go outside?  What are some alternatives that schools could do instead of indoor recess?

~thing1
BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Cats

Cats are amazing! I have two cats and they're both orange. One is a fat cat and the other is skinny, though his tail doesn’t work because my family did not have enough money for the veterinarian to fix it fully. Their names are Ozzy and Dave, Ozzy’s the fat one and Dave’s the skinny one, he's also very feisty which means he will claw or bite you. 

The other day my cat Ozzy bit my lip and I had to put raw meat on it because it started to swell. He usually doesn't bite me. 

Cats are very independent and if you stop feeding them they can find food like mice or fish. Unlike dogs. They’ll just die on their own.. I know it's sad. But at least you don’t have too walk them, hear barking all night, let them outside to do their business and they really don’t knock over things like they do in movies. They sometimes hate people. Like my fat cat hates my friend or just my other cat because when he met my friend my other cat was out there. 

You really need to be responsible when you own a cat. Some things you have to do every week is fill the food and water bowls, clean the kitty litter and cuddle them, they need love.

Sometimes I feel bad going to school because I always cuddle my cats before I have to leave. It hurts my heart when I leave them for a while. One time I was on the bus to camp and I was crying because I was leaving my cat for a week!

What do you think about a cat? Describe your pets: their names, what they look like. If you could have any animal as a pet, what would it be and why?

~xxwolfy101

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Cheer Leading

Cheer leading is a sport where people (both girls and boys) perform a lot of flips, stunts and dancing. It is a team sport which can be made up of up to 24 people. We practice twice a week for two hours at a time. My team’s name is Thrill and there are 19 girls on my team and we have three coaches. This is a very popular sport. There are two other girls in my class that are also cheerleaders. My team does not use pompoms, but some teams do.

On the weekend, we had a competition called Cold Snap. It is a cheer leading competition that a lot of cheer clubs compete. Some of the clubs are Alberta Cheer Empire (the one I belong to), Calgary Star, 306 Elite, Perfect Storm and some other ones. The competition was held at the Expo Centre and there were a lot of people watching and competing.

My team placed 4th place out of six teams. We hit zero both days. Hitting zero means that you get no deductions, such as falling. My team’s routine is 2:30 long. I am a back spot and a base. This means that I have to hold ankles to make sure that they don’t fall back backwards. A base means that I do a lot of lifting for my other teammates.

There are teams that are really high level and they can go to something called Worlds. Two of my club’s teams got bids or invitations and one of them is called Synergy and the other one is Insurgence. World’s is being held in Florida this year. 

What are your thoughts on cheer leading? Would it be something that you would participate in? Describe a time you played for a team.

~blueberry

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Taekwondo

Taekwondo is a martial art where we learn self-defence techniques.  They teach us how to jump, kick and even spin-kick.

I really like this sport.  Both my brother and I take lessons.  I enjoy doing taekwondo but sometimes my brother is lazy and he doesn’t want to go to his lesson.  My mom does not like when my brother is lazy.

In the Philippines, I started to practice more after school.  I was 7 years old when I started. I started taekwondo when I was in grade 1 and my brother started in grade one too when I was not born yet.  My brother is a higher black belt than me but my goal is to get a black belt. I’m still at a black strip. I practice this sport five time in a week for one or two hours.

It started as my passion or my hobby and immediately me and my family found a taekwondo center.  Every Wednesday I help teach little kids like 3 to 6 years of age.

In our class and other classes we do 60 minutes on the weekend,  Sometimes we do not have a taekwondo but I do exercise and my brother is too lazy to exercise.

What do you think about taekwondo?  Why would it be important to learn self-defence?  What extracurricular activities do you do after school?

~the book

BLOGGER OF THE WEEK

Winter Break and a New Year

This is our first day back from two weeks of Winter Break.  It seems like Christmas was such a long time ago (last year, really) but it was just 13 days ago.  Although I enjoyed my vacation I am glad to be back at school, believe it or not.

My time off this year was pretty relaxing and quiet.  My husband and I were determined to spend Christmas by ourselves this year, choosing not to join in either of our family's celebrations.  Usually we would have to attend two different houses on the same night and eat two separate dinners.  But over the years, we've found that it just gets too much and too overwhelming.

Instead, we wanted to spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day watching The Lord of the Rings trilogy.  This series is one of my favourites and I will never get tired of watching it.  At first we were going to watch the Harry Potter series but there are eight of those and we didn't think that we would be able to watch them all.  Besides, I think the books are way better.

On Christmas Eve we watched the first installment of the trilogy called Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.  Then on Christmas Day, we made a tasty breakfast of French Toast and bacon.  We then watched the other two movies in the trilogy.  Six hours later, we ate a dinner of chicken caesar salad.  I think this was the first year in a long time where I did not eat turkey on Christmas.

The new year always brings with it new expectations and resolutions.  This is a time where many people decide that they are going to change or improve their lives and make a declaration that they will stop or begin a certain activity.  Studies have shown that many people end up failing their challenges by the end of January.  I still want to challenge myself to drink more water and increase my nutrition but instead of making them resolutions where I will likely end up failing, I will just try to live a healthier lifestyle. 

How was your Winter Break?  What are some things that you will challenge yourself to accomplish this 2019?

~The Big Ham
BLOGGER OF THE WEEK