If I Were You by Students in Ms. Reynolds's Fourth Grade Class at YIES

If I Were You

Advice from Students for Students

826 National’s Commitment to Inclusion

As an organization committed to encouraging youth in their creative expression, personal growth, and academic success, 826 National and its chapters recognize the importance of diversity at all levels and in all aspects of our work. In order to build and maintain the safe, supportive 826 environment in which great leaps of learning occur, we commit to inclusion: We will not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, ethnicity, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, nationality, marital status, English fluency, parental status, immigration status, military service, or disability.

826michigan Staff

Megan Shuchman, Executive Director

Catherine Calabro Cavin, Education Director

Frances Martin, Operations Director

Megan Gilson, Program Manager

Denise Ervin, Program Manager

Caitlin Koska, Volunteer Manager

Kinyel Friday, Operations Manager

Paige Bennett, Detroit Teaching Artist

Maya Jain, Virtual Teaching Artist

Copyright © 2022 by 826michigan and Blotch Books.

All rights reserved by 826michigan, the many whims of Drs. T & G Blotch, and the authors.

The views expressed in this book are the authors’ and do not necessarily reflect those of 826michigan. We believe in the power of youth voice and are thrilled that you picked up this book. No part of this book may be reproduced without express written permission from the publisher, except for small excerpts for the purposes of review or scholarly study. Many thanks to Ypsilanti International Elementary and our volunteers for their participation in this field trip.

By purchasing this book, you are helping 826michigan continue to offer free student programs. For more information, please visit: 826michigan.org

Advice from Ms. Reynolds’s Class

Dear 826, A magical portal has suddenly appeared in my house! Where should I travel to? What should I see? Is there anything I should be concerned about?

Sincerely, Henry C. Quantumship

DEAR HENRY C. QUANTUMSHIP,

First, make sure the portal is safe and that it won’t close. You don’t want to be stuck in the past. After you know it’s safe, you can do all the fun stuff.

Then, you should go to the big bang to see how the world started–but be careful ! You can see the galaxy and then watch extinct animals evolve. Bring a bag of meat to protect against dinosaurs.

Next, you could take the portal inside Lego Star Wars. But don’t get stuck in the video game. Or you could go inside the movie Aladdin to find the genie’s lamp.

Last, you can come back to the present and go anywhere on your bucket list, like Japan to practice Japanese, or to New York City to go to the Nintendo store. With a portal you can go anywhere! Have fun, but don’t get lost.

Sincerely, MS. REYNOLDS’S FOURTH GRADE CLASS

Inklings from the most spectacular Squids in Class |

Dear 826,

Everything I touch turns instantly into cheese. At first it was great, but now I miss my books and games, and also, I’m getting sick of the smell of cheddar. What should I do?

Sincerely, Cheezed Out

DEAR CHEEZED OUT,

First, you should go to the hospital to get help. You can ask the hospital for prosthetic hands.

Then, if they can’t help you at the hospital, you should call the FBI. If you touch your phone, it will turn to cheese. You can use Siri or voice text.

Next, you should make a sandwich and when you are done, hire mice and they can eat the rest.

Last, you should wear long metal gloves to never turn anything into cheese again. Hire guards to make sure you don’t touch anything. They should be buff. Tell them, “don’t let me touch anything and don’t let me into my room, so I don’t turn anything into cheese until I have my metal gloves.” They can feed you.

Sincerely, MS. REYNOLDS’S

FOURTH GRADE CLASS

Ms. Reynolds’s Class

Dear 826, I’ve recently discovered a secret room in my house and it’s completely empty. What should I do with it?

Sincerely, Quintin Q. Quackenbush

DEAR QUINTIN Q. QUACKENBUSH,

First, you should investigate the house. Then, you should look in the closet to find a big empty hole in the floor. We recommend that you go down into the hole. You should bring a flashlight, a med kit, and family and friends to look at it together. Everyone should have their own flashlights. Everyone should investigate together to not get lost.

Next, you should collect the objects you find in the basement like old lamps and furniture. You should put the objects you find in a backpack, like an old frying pan, bowl and spoon. Last, you should take the objects back home, wash them, and then investigate who they belong to. You should pack up the stuff and give it back to the owners and everything will be fine. If you can’t find out who the owner is, you should ask the police for help. Use their investigation scanner to find the owner.

Sincerely, MS. REYNOLDS’S

FOURTH GRADE CLASS

Inklings from the most spectacular Squids in Class |

Dear 826, Everything I touch turns instantly into cheese. At first it was great, but now I miss my books and games, and also, I’m getting sick of the smell of cheddar. What should I do?

Sincerely, Cheezed Out

DEAR CHEEZED OUT,

First, you should go to a scientist and ask for help. You can find him in his secret lab. The scientist will wear a cheeseproof hazmat suit.

Then, you should stay there for a few days, so the scientist can run some tests. You can bring your parents but make sure not to hug your mom. Also, don’t touch the baby.

Next, you should touch a bunch of things to get some food. Ask the scientist to make cheese-proof water.

Last, you should let the scientist give you the magical shot to see if it works. If it doesn’t work, you can just turn yourself into cheese to make a cheese statue of yourself.

Sincerely,

MS. REYNOLDS’S FOURTH GRADE CLASS

| Ms. Reynolds’s Class

Dear 826, My house is definitely haunted, but no one in my family believes me. What should I do?

Sincerely, Buster Ghosts

DEAR BUSTER GHOSTS,

First, get evidence by calling a friend, a camera or ghost detector.

Then, buy sage and burn it because it clears bad energy. Next, try to befriend the ghost in case they are friendly. Last, call the ghostbusters because they can speak to ghosts and they can exterminate the ghosts.

Sincerely, MS. REYNOLDS’S FOURTH GRADE CLASS

Inklings from the most spectacular Squids in Class

Inklings from the most spectacular Squids in Class

Illustrate your good advice

Inklings

Author Name:

If I Were You:

First, Then,

And then,

Inklings from the most spectacular Squids in Class

About the Author

Inklings from the most spectacular Squids in Class

Illustrate your good advice

inspires school-aged students to write with skill and confidence in collaboration with adult volunteers in their communities.

Our writing and tutoring programs uphold a culture of creativity and imagination and support students in establishing strong habits of mind. Through publication and community engagement, we provide students with an authentic and enthusiastic audience for their writing. Our programs provide an energizing creative outlet for students and meaningful volunteer opportunities for community members.

AFTER-SCHOOL TUTORING

We organize trained volunteer tutors to work with students one-on-one with their homework after school. Homework support is available for all subjects, for students ages 7–18.

WORKSHOPS

We offer a number of free workshops taught by professional artists, writers, and our talented volunteers. From comic books to screenplays, bookmaking to radio, our wide variety of workshops are perfect for writers of all ages and interests. One of the most popular workshops we offer is our weekly Wee-bots program for elementary-aged writers.

IN-SCHOOL PROJECTS

Our trained volunteers go into local public schools to support teachers with their classroom writing assignments. Based on the teacher’s curriculum, assignments range from writing tales to crafting college essays to exploring poetry.

FIELD TRIPS

Students come as a class to our writing lab to join a group of volunteers, interns, and staff in order to help solve a problem through writing—whether that is our editor Dr. Blotch’s insomnia, our looming story deadline, a mystery in need of solving, or one of the many others we encounter. Our field trips always end in a finished publication of original writing that students take home.

OUR STORES

Our Robot Supply Co. stores are one-stop shops for robots, robot owners, and enthusiasts alike. They are designed to inspire creativity and bring awareness of our programs to the community. In addition, our online store is always open; visit the Robot Supply Co. at onwardrobots.com. All proceeds from our stores directly fund our free student programming. Onward robots!

WRITING IS

A way to figure things out by ourselves

A way to help us connect to our world

A way to help us learn who we are and who we will become

A way for us to use our power to make changes and build a better world

We create a safe place to be ourselves and try new things

We support the ways that writers work (like thinking, sketching, talking)

We study the writing we want to do so we can try it

We learn how to change our writing for genre, audience, and purpose

We work with a group of writers who help and support each other www.826michigan.org

826 National was inspired to take a stand on issues of inclusion and diversity in light of the many events that spotlighted social and racial injustices throughout the country. We as educators, volunteers, and caring adults need to be aware of the wide range of issues our students face on a day-to-day basis. We need to support these young people as they navigate through and try to make sense of the world and their own identities.

We need the support and the feedback from our community to ensure 826 is living up to these standards. Through our inclusion statement, our internal diversity and inclusion group, cultural competency resources provided to staff and volunteers, and partnerships with other organizations, we are always working towards being a more inclusive and supportive organization.

We at 826 have the privilege of working with the next generation of scholars, teachers, doctors, artists, lawyers, and writers. It's our job to make sure they are able to take their own stands.

As an organization committed to encouraging youth in their creative expression, personal growth, and academic success, 826 National and its chapters recognize the importance of diversity at all levels and in all aspects of our work. In order to build and maintain the safe, supportive 826 environment in which great leaps in learning happen, we commit ourselves to inclusion: we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, ethnicity, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, nationality, marital status, English fluency, parental status, military service, or disability.

The 826 National network is committed to encouraging youth to express themselves and to use the written word to effectively do so. We encourage our students to write, take chances, make decisions, and finish what they start. And 826 strives to do this in an environment free from discrimination and exclusion.

by Gerald Richards, CEO

826michigan inspires school-aged students to write with skill and confidence in collaboration with adult volunteers in their communities.

Find out more at 826michigan.org!