OTHER WRITINGS
"Assignment" Assignment
In the novel "The Giver" children are given their "assignments" by elders, based upon their skills, interests, and aptitudes. To discover my “assignment” I interviewed my mom, my dad, and my babysitter Piper. My parents have always been very involved in my life, in my academics as well as my athletics. Piper has been my babysitter for about six and a half years and is an older sister figure to me. She is also involved with my life and is our family’s “adopted daughter”.
My mom, dad and Piper all suggested a career in dance. My parents both said that I could own my own dance studio and teach there. Their reasoning was that I am passionate about dance and I like working with kids, but I also have the intellect to run my own business and make a better profit. Piper said that I could also join a dance company or teach dance because I have sacrificed a lot to be where I am in dance today and I enjoy dancing a lot.
Piper went on to suggest a possible career in writing, because of my skills and interest. Specifically a journalism career because of how much I enjoy writing articles for the school newspaper. She also mentioned that I could tie writing and dance together by becoming a writer for a dance magazine. Piper also suggested that I could become a teacher because of my love for kids and my good grades in school.
I would agree with all the careers my elders suggested for me. I believe that by owning my own dance studio I would be able to make a decent profit, while still teaching dance classes and doing what I love. I also really enjoy writing and would one day like to have a career in that field. I really liked Piper’s idea of combining dance and journalism into one, by becoming a writer for a dance magazine. I enjoyed hearing all the possible careers that were suggested for me, based on my interests, aptitude, and skills.
At this point in my life, I would like to either be a writer or have a dance career. What my elders suggested would probably be what I would have chosen for myself. Whether or not I would choose to stay in that position, I would also like to have the opportunity to change jobs, if I so desired. When I’m older I might want to become a sports journalist, and interview players on the field as a sportscaster. I would really enjoy being an ESPN sportscaster for college football and/or professional hockey, since I would enjoy getting to go to all the games and meeting the teams. I believe that any career I put my mind to, I will work hard, persevere, and come out successful.
My mom, dad and Piper all suggested a career in dance. My parents both said that I could own my own dance studio and teach there. Their reasoning was that I am passionate about dance and I like working with kids, but I also have the intellect to run my own business and make a better profit. Piper said that I could also join a dance company or teach dance because I have sacrificed a lot to be where I am in dance today and I enjoy dancing a lot.
Piper went on to suggest a possible career in writing, because of my skills and interest. Specifically a journalism career because of how much I enjoy writing articles for the school newspaper. She also mentioned that I could tie writing and dance together by becoming a writer for a dance magazine. Piper also suggested that I could become a teacher because of my love for kids and my good grades in school.
I would agree with all the careers my elders suggested for me. I believe that by owning my own dance studio I would be able to make a decent profit, while still teaching dance classes and doing what I love. I also really enjoy writing and would one day like to have a career in that field. I really liked Piper’s idea of combining dance and journalism into one, by becoming a writer for a dance magazine. I enjoyed hearing all the possible careers that were suggested for me, based on my interests, aptitude, and skills.
At this point in my life, I would like to either be a writer or have a dance career. What my elders suggested would probably be what I would have chosen for myself. Whether or not I would choose to stay in that position, I would also like to have the opportunity to change jobs, if I so desired. When I’m older I might want to become a sports journalist, and interview players on the field as a sportscaster. I would really enjoy being an ESPN sportscaster for college football and/or professional hockey, since I would enjoy getting to go to all the games and meeting the teams. I believe that any career I put my mind to, I will work hard, persevere, and come out successful.
Persuasive Letter To Becker's Bakery
Hello Becker's Bakery!
My name is Madeline Kelley and I am a seventh grade student from Manhattan Beach Middle School and a frequent Becker's Bakery customer. Becker's makes the best cakes and cookies I have ever tasted!
I am writing to you to suggest the creation of a childhood cancer cookie, and have half of the proceeds donated to Millers Children Hospital. Lots of families in Manhattan Beach have recently been impacted by the effects of childhood cancer. I believe that this would benefit not only the hospital and their patients, but also the bakery. The cookie would not only be for a good cause that many families are familiar with, but it would also raise awareness on the subject.
My family and I have been going to Becker's for the past ten years, thanks to the great service and great treats. Every year, for all the birthdays in our family we turn to Becker's for delicious, well-made, kid friendly cakes! Becker's has been a family owned bakery since 1942 and has been a great caterer to all ages.
I believe that a childhood cancer cookie would be a good idea since there are many families in our community that have been affected by the effects of childhood cancer. Having half of the proceeds go to Becker's would benefit the bakery and having the other half go to Millers Children's Hospital would benefit all the kids there. Millers Children's Hospital is a good organization to donate to because they are dedicated to the care of children. The hospital is also one of the 5% of hospitals in the United States that are children's hospitals. Some of the Manhattan Beach families that have been directly impacted by childhood cancer have been to Millers Children's Hospital. I believe this cookie would bring in a lot of sales, seeing as how important cancer is to our society.
Recently, a family friend of ours, an eight year old boy, was diagnosed with kidney cancer that eventually spread to his lungs. He was in the hospital on and off for a year, completing chemotherapy, radiation, and major surgery. During that same year, his mother was diagnosed with breast cancer that required chemotherapy and a mastectomy. Today, they are improving and their family has never been stronger and more unified. Even more recently, a family at Pacific Elementary School had a little boy who, at age two was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma and at age four passed away one and a half months ago.
Having a childhood cancer cookie would not only raise awareness, but it would raise money for the Children's Hospital and the bakery. Thank you so much for your time and consideration. I really appreciate you taking time out of your day to consider my idea. Thank you Becker's for making some of the best cakes and cookies and for supporting the community as well.
Sincerely,
Madeline Kelley
3108 Maple Avenue, Manhattan Beach, California
My name is Madeline Kelley and I am a seventh grade student from Manhattan Beach Middle School and a frequent Becker's Bakery customer. Becker's makes the best cakes and cookies I have ever tasted!
I am writing to you to suggest the creation of a childhood cancer cookie, and have half of the proceeds donated to Millers Children Hospital. Lots of families in Manhattan Beach have recently been impacted by the effects of childhood cancer. I believe that this would benefit not only the hospital and their patients, but also the bakery. The cookie would not only be for a good cause that many families are familiar with, but it would also raise awareness on the subject.
My family and I have been going to Becker's for the past ten years, thanks to the great service and great treats. Every year, for all the birthdays in our family we turn to Becker's for delicious, well-made, kid friendly cakes! Becker's has been a family owned bakery since 1942 and has been a great caterer to all ages.
I believe that a childhood cancer cookie would be a good idea since there are many families in our community that have been affected by the effects of childhood cancer. Having half of the proceeds go to Becker's would benefit the bakery and having the other half go to Millers Children's Hospital would benefit all the kids there. Millers Children's Hospital is a good organization to donate to because they are dedicated to the care of children. The hospital is also one of the 5% of hospitals in the United States that are children's hospitals. Some of the Manhattan Beach families that have been directly impacted by childhood cancer have been to Millers Children's Hospital. I believe this cookie would bring in a lot of sales, seeing as how important cancer is to our society.
Recently, a family friend of ours, an eight year old boy, was diagnosed with kidney cancer that eventually spread to his lungs. He was in the hospital on and off for a year, completing chemotherapy, radiation, and major surgery. During that same year, his mother was diagnosed with breast cancer that required chemotherapy and a mastectomy. Today, they are improving and their family has never been stronger and more unified. Even more recently, a family at Pacific Elementary School had a little boy who, at age two was diagnosed with Neuroblastoma and at age four passed away one and a half months ago.
Having a childhood cancer cookie would not only raise awareness, but it would raise money for the Children's Hospital and the bakery. Thank you so much for your time and consideration. I really appreciate you taking time out of your day to consider my idea. Thank you Becker's for making some of the best cakes and cookies and for supporting the community as well.
Sincerely,
Madeline Kelley
3108 Maple Avenue, Manhattan Beach, California
Knowledge Is Power
Throughout my life, I have found that the less ignorant I am and the more knowledge I gain, the better off I am. In The Giver, Jonas discovers many things that have great effects on him, encouraging him to make changes to the society. In her speech, Lois Lowry talked about going outside her comfort zone and experiencing something new. In Divergent, Tris and others discover potential threats to life as they know it and vow to stop them. While being ignorant, or not knowing something bad, can spare feelings, which can be blissful, knowledge helps people live better lives. Innocence is similar to bliss in the sense that knowing about certain things, like war, can dampen moods or thoughts, but if there is no knowledge of war, life would be happier and perhaps more carefree. Ignorance is not bliss since it is better to know and be aware then to be clueless and oblivious.
In The Giver, Jonas discovers that ignorance is not bliss and uses knowledge to initiate a change. When Jonas finds out that release means death and sees his father perform the "ceremony of release" he is extremely distraught and refuses to go back home. "'I won't! I won't go home! You can't make me!' Jonas sobbed and shouted and pounded the bed with his fists" (143). After getting over the initial shock, Jonas decides he wants to change the society. Finding out what release means and seeing it gives Jonas the extra push to change the community's way of life.
In her speech Lois Lowry revealed that by going out of her comfort zone, she was able to experience something new and was able to learn about new things. When she rides her bike into Tokyo, without her parents knowledge, she is able to experience the culture and diversity of the city. She becomes aware of a new place, filled with new people and new adventures, that is outside her comfort zone. "I love the feel of it, the vigor and the garish brightness and the noise: all of such a contrast to my own life" (172). If she hadn't taken her bike into the city she wouldn't have experienced such a different, diverse way of life. In my response to the speech, I said that it is important to remember and understand history, good and bad, since it gives us a sense of what will be successful and what will possibly fail. As humans, we are able to learn from our mistakes and being conscious of our failures and successes helps us learn.
In Divergent, the Dauntless are brainwashed, by the Erudite, and manipulated into fighting and killing the Abnegation. If they had been aware of what they were doing, and they hadn't been controlled, they would have been able to save the lives of lots of Abnegation. Also in Divergent, Tris discovers dangerous plans from the society outside of the fence that she is eventually able to stop. With her knowledge of the plan to wipe everyone's memories, Tris is able to stop the plan from being carried out, thus preventing hundreds of people from loosing their memories. If she had been unaware of the plan, she wouldn't have been able to stop David and the Bureau of Genetic Welfare from removing the memories of many.
All in all, ignorance is not bliss, in fact quite the opposite. Being ignorant can hurt you, and keep you from learning and experiencing different things. Most successful people would probably agree that it is better to know lots then to not know anything at all.
In The Giver, Jonas discovers that ignorance is not bliss and uses knowledge to initiate a change. When Jonas finds out that release means death and sees his father perform the "ceremony of release" he is extremely distraught and refuses to go back home. "'I won't! I won't go home! You can't make me!' Jonas sobbed and shouted and pounded the bed with his fists" (143). After getting over the initial shock, Jonas decides he wants to change the society. Finding out what release means and seeing it gives Jonas the extra push to change the community's way of life.
In her speech Lois Lowry revealed that by going out of her comfort zone, she was able to experience something new and was able to learn about new things. When she rides her bike into Tokyo, without her parents knowledge, she is able to experience the culture and diversity of the city. She becomes aware of a new place, filled with new people and new adventures, that is outside her comfort zone. "I love the feel of it, the vigor and the garish brightness and the noise: all of such a contrast to my own life" (172). If she hadn't taken her bike into the city she wouldn't have experienced such a different, diverse way of life. In my response to the speech, I said that it is important to remember and understand history, good and bad, since it gives us a sense of what will be successful and what will possibly fail. As humans, we are able to learn from our mistakes and being conscious of our failures and successes helps us learn.
In Divergent, the Dauntless are brainwashed, by the Erudite, and manipulated into fighting and killing the Abnegation. If they had been aware of what they were doing, and they hadn't been controlled, they would have been able to save the lives of lots of Abnegation. Also in Divergent, Tris discovers dangerous plans from the society outside of the fence that she is eventually able to stop. With her knowledge of the plan to wipe everyone's memories, Tris is able to stop the plan from being carried out, thus preventing hundreds of people from loosing their memories. If she had been unaware of the plan, she wouldn't have been able to stop David and the Bureau of Genetic Welfare from removing the memories of many.
All in all, ignorance is not bliss, in fact quite the opposite. Being ignorant can hurt you, and keep you from learning and experiencing different things. Most successful people would probably agree that it is better to know lots then to not know anything at all.
Why I Dance
I dance to express
I dance when I'm in pain
It's the friend that never leaves my side
When I have a bad day
I go to the dance studio
If there is good news
I go to the dance studio
Dance expresses emotions that words can't
I dance to be free
I dance to remember
I'm imperfect
But when I dance
I feel perfect
I'm not judged there
I'm not told what clothes to wear
What to say
What to do
It's a safe haven
There is no fighting
No arguing
I feel isolated from the badness in the world
As I improve my dancing
I improve myself
My personality
I strengthen my body
My mind
My soul
I dance to love
I dance when I'm in pain
It's the friend that never leaves my side
When I have a bad day
I go to the dance studio
If there is good news
I go to the dance studio
Dance expresses emotions that words can't
I dance to be free
I dance to remember
I'm imperfect
But when I dance
I feel perfect
I'm not judged there
I'm not told what clothes to wear
What to say
What to do
It's a safe haven
There is no fighting
No arguing
I feel isolated from the badness in the world
As I improve my dancing
I improve myself
My personality
I strengthen my body
My mind
My soul
I dance to love
In My Dreams
In my dreams
I dance across the stage of Moscow's Bolshoi Academy
With a cupcake tutu all decorated with gems
And a little dainty crown pinned on top of my head
I hear the crowd roaring
I hear the curtain closing,
All in my dreams
Then I see the smile that makes it all worth it
The tears
The sweat
And the blood
For one little smile
People might think I'm crazy
But when I see the little smile
Even just a smirk
As if to say my work here's is done
Just to see the accomplishment
Not in mine but in hers
The eyes that portray a lot more then you'd think
In my dreams
Then come the nightmares
She is packing up her bags
She is getting on the plane
My mentor
My teacher
My friend
No longer 5 minutes away
I wake up crying, knowing it wasn't just a nightmare
It was reality
It wasn't just
In my dreams
I dance across the stage of Moscow's Bolshoi Academy
With a cupcake tutu all decorated with gems
And a little dainty crown pinned on top of my head
I hear the crowd roaring
I hear the curtain closing,
All in my dreams
Then I see the smile that makes it all worth it
The tears
The sweat
And the blood
For one little smile
People might think I'm crazy
But when I see the little smile
Even just a smirk
As if to say my work here's is done
Just to see the accomplishment
Not in mine but in hers
The eyes that portray a lot more then you'd think
In my dreams
Then come the nightmares
She is packing up her bags
She is getting on the plane
My mentor
My teacher
My friend
No longer 5 minutes away
I wake up crying, knowing it wasn't just a nightmare
It was reality
It wasn't just
In my dreams
Literary Magazine Submission
In my dreams I am a principle dancer at New York City Ballet
In my dreams I curtsy as the curtain closes
In my dream I am the perfect dancer, perfect body, perfect technique, perfect everything
Then I am transported to another world
In my dream I stand on the edge of a crystal clear lake
In my dream I smell the fresh pine tree scent linger in the air
In my dream I am at peace and it is quiet
Then I am transported to another world
In my dream the words on the page consume me and I become dauntless
In my dream I jump off trains, I protect the people I love, I fight to succeed
In my dream, I am brave
Then I am transported to another world
In my dream I travel to Africa on a mission trip
In my dream I build a school and a house
In my dream I meet kids that inspire me to get up and make a change in the world
Then I am transported to another world
In my dream everyone is healthy
In my dream there is no cancer or disease
In my dream Noni and Papa are still here
But then I wake up
Back to reality
All the dreams fade away until the darkness closes in
And then I dream again
In my dreams I curtsy as the curtain closes
In my dream I am the perfect dancer, perfect body, perfect technique, perfect everything
Then I am transported to another world
In my dream I stand on the edge of a crystal clear lake
In my dream I smell the fresh pine tree scent linger in the air
In my dream I am at peace and it is quiet
Then I am transported to another world
In my dream the words on the page consume me and I become dauntless
In my dream I jump off trains, I protect the people I love, I fight to succeed
In my dream, I am brave
Then I am transported to another world
In my dream I travel to Africa on a mission trip
In my dream I build a school and a house
In my dream I meet kids that inspire me to get up and make a change in the world
Then I am transported to another world
In my dream everyone is healthy
In my dream there is no cancer or disease
In my dream Noni and Papa are still here
But then I wake up
Back to reality
All the dreams fade away until the darkness closes in
And then I dream again