Gilman Gazette

Running For The Scoop

Gilman Lower School

Volume 4, Issue 3

Friday, February 11, 2010

Read-A-Thon for Autism

Time in the Tundra

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

By Mekhi Johnson and Taylor Classen

By Sam Bloomberg

By Mekhi Johnson and Taylor Classen

The annual Lower School Read-A-Thon started with an assembly in the Stevens Room on Friday, January 7th. Miss Alpert ran the assembly, like she does every year, and there were some guest speakers. This year, the Lower School is sponsoring the Kennedy Krieger ROAR and the Rose of Sharon Equestrian School. Both organizations help people with autism. Autism is a spectrum disorder. It affects people differently, and some people are greatly affected and some aren‟t. Usually if you have autism you have difficulty communicating and relating to others. It affects your ability to socialize and relate to other kids and people, and sometimes because of that you have behavior issues. When you have autism, your brain just doesn‟t react to normal, everyday things the way most people do. At the Rose of Sharon Equestrian School, kids with autism learn to work with horses, feed them, and ride them. The horses help kids with disabilities, because it is almost like the horses understand them. The money we raise will help the Rose of Sharon Equestrian School build an indoor rink for the horses so that kids with disabilities can go there year round. At this writing, 249 boys in the Lower School have signed up to participate in the Read-AThon – that is 90%! Wow! That means they have promised to read a lot and then record what they read by coloring in 15 minutes blocks on the Read-A-Thon envelope. The last day to read was Friday, January 28th, and now everyone has to collect the money for autism that friends and relatives have pledged. We hope to raise a lot of money this year for autism, and we know the ReadA-Thon will be a big success. Stay tuned to the next issue of the Gazette to find out how much money we actually raised!

On Saturday, January 29th Gilman fourth grader Grant Emry took part in the cold and icy Polar Bear Plunge!

Grant “polar bear plunged” for his four year old brother Tucker, who has Down Syndrome. Grant stated, “I love Tucker so much that I will keep plunging.” Grant also went on to describe his experience, “It felt so cold it hurt to walk, and I didn‟t have any connection to my body.” Grant‟s heart was racing the whole day. He was actually in the water for about five minutes in the 18 degree water. 18 degrees!

He only wore a bathing suit, which is the reason he had to use a blanket instead of a towel. Way to go, Grant!

The Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Convocation was held in the Finney Athletic Center on Thursday, January 14, 2011. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day celebrates the life and the birthday of the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We celebrate this holiday because Dr. King fought for civil rights for African-Americans in the 1960s. At the Gilman Convocation this year, there was a lot of singing and speeches about Dr. King‟s work.

The Traveling Men sang. “Lift Every Voice and Sing” was sung, and Dr. Powell (the Assistant Head of the Lower School) and other teachers recited the poem “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings”. There was also a video about Martin Luther King, Jr. Then the Middlemen (the singing group from the Middle School) sang, and the Upper School string ensemble played, too. Everyone had a great Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

First Grade Mitten Stories The Flip Flop

By Sam Winick Once upon a time there was a boy named Jack. He lived with his dad. He lived in Ocean City Beach. His dad gave him flip flops because he liked to play at the beach. He went to explore the beach. He lost his flip flop when he tripped in a sand pit. Along came a sand crab. He went digging into the flip flop because he was tired. Next came a Maryland crab. He went swimming into the flip flop because he was in pain. When the sand crab saw the Maryland crab‟s sharp claws, he moved over. After that along came a lobster. When the sand crab and Maryland crab saw the lobster‟s big tail, they moved over. After that an eel came slithering by. When the sand crab, the (Continued on page 2)

Masthead illustrated by Conner Savitz. Slogan created by Andrew Poverman.

Inside this issue: Homeroom Happenings

2-6

Critics’ Corner

7

Creative Writing

8-17

Sports

18

Comics

19-20

HOMEROOM HAPPENINGS: FIRST GRADE MITTEN STORIES (continued from page 1)

Maryland crab, and the lobster saw the eel‟s electric tail, they moved over. Then a minnow came jumping into the flip flop.

When the sand crab, the Maryland crab, the lobster, and the eel saw the minnow‟s hard shell, they moved over. The minnow bounced on the eel‟s back. Then the eel yelled “Ouch!” very loudly. Then the flip flop broke into five pieces! Then all of the animals ran away. When Jack got home his dad asked him, “Where is your flip flop?” “I lost it,” said Jack. “Go to your room,” said Jack‟s dad.

The Cowboy Boot

By Miles Claybour Once upon a time a boy named Miles lived in a log cabin in the west. He lived with his Nana. He wanted a new pair of boots because his old ones did not fit him anymore. His Nana came home with a surprise – a new pair of cowboy boots!

They had stars on them. She had ordered them special – just for Miles. Miles asked if he could go play, and she said yes. So Miles ran outside to play. It wasn‟t long before Miles lost one of the boots. Then a tarantula said, “I am so hot.” So he crawled into the boot to cool off. Then a rattlesnake slithered in, and the tarantula said to himself, “I should let him in because he is poisonous.” Then a Coyote came, and he said, “I‟m tired!”

The other animals saw the coyote‟s sharp teeth, so they made room. Then a panther sprung over and said, “That looks comfy” and he crawled into the boot.

Then a horse galloped along and saw the boot and said, “I‟m too hot,” and the other animals whispered. One said, “Look at those huge hooves!” Then a scorpion scurried over and said, “I‟m tired.” There was no more room left, but they saw his stinger and let him in anyway. By accident the scorpion stung the horse. Boom! All the animals scattered into the air. They ran to their homes. Miles saw his new cowboy boot hanging on a cactus! He ran to get the bot. I wonder how it got there, Miles thought. He ran home. His Nana said, “How did it get so big?” Miles said, “I don‟t know.” “Well, I guess I‟ll just have to order some new ones,” she said, and they lived happily ever after.

Page 2

The Slipper Adventure

By Cal Tortolani Once upon a time there was a boy named Cal. He lived in a small house with his Grandma. His Grandma was nice. One day his Grandma gave him a pair of slippers. Cal needed to get something in his room upstairs. Soon he reached the stairs, but it wasn‟t long until one of his slippers came off. It wasn‟t long until a mouse scampered along. Once the mouse spied the slipper, a red lizard spotted him. The lizard started to run to catch the mouse and that did it!

The mouse looked behind and started to run, but finally the mouse got in the slipper.

The lizard wanted to get into the slipper, too. Along came a frog hopping along, and once he saw the slipper he hopped right over. Since it looked cold they gave him the thumb. Soon they hear footsteps, but then BOOM!! A cat came jumping in. Then they saw why the cat was running. It was a big dog, and the last thing to come. A small little housefly flew onto the last spot on the dog‟s nose. The dog started to itch, and that did it! The dog sneezed. And then Cal saw the pop. Once he got home he and his grandmother noticed that one slipper was bigger than the other.

The Hiking Trip

By Jalen I. Marshall Once upon a time there was a boy named Joshua. He lived in a house with his three brothers Jalen, Tyler, and Christian.

Joshua liked going hiking with his dad. They got to the mountains. Joshua tripped on a rock and lost one of his shoes and didn‟t realize it. Along came a red-tailed hawk. He flew into the boot because it was cold. An eagle glided by. When the hawk saw his long sharp beak, Hawk said, “Come on in.” Next came a coyote. Once he heard the birds talking he went to investigate and once they saw his teeth they came him the thumb. A little while later a bongo came running along. Once they saw his big hooves all three said, “We‟ll try to make lots of room. After a long time we saw that Josh lost his boot. Next came a squirrel. He carried a flower, and the bongo was allergic to flowers. “Aah, aah, aah, choo!” Josh realized he lost one of his boots, so he ran back to the mountains and searched on every cliff and tree. The last tree he checked

was an oak tree and he found it! Joshua called Derek and said we should cancel the next hike because Josh needed another pair of boots.

Danny and the Sneaker

By Martin Daniel Menton, IV Once upon a time, there was a little boy named Danny. His Grandma gave him shoes. He loved the shoes. They were some sneakers, and they were red and blue. He got them for Christmas. He got a lot of other toys, but this one was his favorite.

His Grandma said, ”Be careful. You don‟t want to lose them in the Outback.” Danny loved to go into the Outback. A few month later (when it was winter, July 21st), Danny forgot to tie his shoe!!! He went into the Outback. He ran really, really fast and the shoe fell off!!!!! Danny kept running!! Meanwhile, a hungry sugar glider dashed into the sneaker. Shortly, Danny realized that his shoe fell off. He looked and looked, but he couldn‟t find the shoe. He ran to tell his Grandma. Next came a Tasmanian devil that was very, very sore, and he darted into the shoe. Next came a thirsty vulture who flew into the shoe. It stretched and stretched.

Meanwhile, Danny was telling his Grandma all about how he forgot to tie his shoe, and when he ran really, really fast and when he kept running and running. Meanwhile, a tired coyote hurried in. Next, a large kangaroo bounced in. The sneaker stretched and stretched and stretched!!! Meanwhile, Grandma said to Danny, “I will go with you to find it!!” and they went into the Outback.

Meanwhile, a rat scurried in. Suddenly …

POP!!!! The shoe exploded!!! Then, Danny saw the shoe and picked it up. He ran and ran to Grandma. Danny said, “My shoe exploded!” and they ran home.

Illustration by Armaan Uppal

Gilman Gazette

HOMEROOM HAPPENINGS: SECOND GRADE JOURNAL ENTRIES Planet Hopov 2

Robo Dog

By Sam McLucas Hopov burst, there were flames everywhere, They covered the sky! There was nothing left of poor Planet Hopov but a small rock made of crystals. It flew from system to system and finally landed on Planet Hopov 2. And out of the rock came a fish! It swam and swam and grew legs and arms and a mouth. It came on land and grew spikes and poison glands. It grew a larger mouth like razor blades. It evolved into a tribe that invented spears, horns, maracas, stone axes, and fire. And soon the tribe became a city with stores and soon became an empire that dominated the galaxy which traveled to another galaxy and the next galaxy. And there our creature stood just the same as he did before.

By Charlie Nueremberger My mom and I went to the Pet Shelter this weekend. I got a cool Doberman named Killer. Hi‟s amazing at fetch, tricks, and he chewed up his bone in five seconds flat. He hates sweaters. One night I heard something strange Bttzzzz! I went downstairs to check on Killer. Then I saw it out of his eye came a laser Btzzz!! It went again. “Huh?” I said (you might think I was crazy). “Target found,” he said.

He lunged at me. I was lucky I had my Boy Scout knife. I slashed at him… He Wasn‟t A Dog!! He Was A Robot!!!! I cut one of his wires. “Mwooo,” he said. The End?

Power Man Guide Book

By Mahnav Petersen Hit! My name is Power Man. I am a super hero. My secret identity is Jack Kille. My powers could be almost anything you could imagine. Air is what makes my powers work. The villains I hate the most are Destroyer, Sucker, and Space Sopron. My partner is Duplicator. Duplicator can shoot lasers and duplicate. I have other villains. They are Bong Borang, Poplanda, Light Lanitic, Electrisitizer, and Matter Maker. Duplicator‟s secret identity is Dollen Coll. So it there is trouble, Duplicator and I are on the case!

Treat Galaxy

By Max Ranney I went to see a lot of different worlds. I went to a galaxy called Treat Galaxy. In treat Galaxy there was this world called Cake World. When I went in I saw the world was made out of cake. I saw a cake 50 miles tall! All of the people were cake! I saw a double fudge cake. I ate it. I went to the next world. It was called Toy World. It was all toys! I got some silly bands. The swimming pool had a lot of water toys. I played wii. I saw a statue of toys. I got one hundred Pokémon cards! Then I went back to Earth.

French Fry

By Peter McGill Once upon a time there was a potato whose name was French Fry. He lived in a bouquet and worked at McDonald‟s.

One day when he was going to work he got run over by a truck. French Fry was a potato pancake now. At work nobody recognized him because he was flat. But he still could do his work. When he was going home he got run over by the same truck. He was French Fry again!

Volume 4, Issue 3

The Dog’s Frisbee

By Beck Witstadt Once a long time ago … there was a dog without a Frisbee! All the dog did was eat and sleep. One day the dog got bored. So he went to do (or get) something new. He went to the boy next door‟s house. “A wolf! A wolf!” cried the boy.

So the dog left that place. He went to the old man next door‟s house. “Ba humbug,” went the man. So he left THAT place. Then he went to the girl next door‟s house. “Grandma, what a big nose you have,” said the girl. So he left that place. Finally, he went to a house that had the words PET STORE, whatever that meant. So he went inside. He saw a flying disc, and he wanted it. He got it and ran out. “Hey, Grandma what a big nose you have, Ba humbug, A wolf! A wolf”! The dog was happy (for now).

Married or Single

By Maxx Bunce I would like to be married when I grow up. I want to be married because I want to have kids. I think having kids would be fun because I think it would be great to take care of them. The hard thing about kids is sending them to good school. I would love to have two kids. I would like two boys.

It would probably be hard to take care of all of them. If I am lucky my wife will take care of them for one day.

Married or Single By: Cole Frank I would like to get married when I grow up. I want to play Monopoly with my children. I would go out on their birthday. I would go to the beach with them. They would go to school. We would get them toys and build some fires.

Then they would go to bed. I would also give them an allowance.

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HOMEROOM HAPPENINGS: 3RD & 4TH GRADE Third Grade Rocks

By Adam Masom and Harry Hinkle In third grade life is awesome. In math we‟re learning about graphs, and we are starting our multiplication unit with timed tests. On Monday we read a story. On Friday we play games.

In language arts we‟re reading The Sign of the Beaver. It is a book about a boy who gets left at a cabin so his dad can go get the rest of the family. And the boy, whose name is Matt, then meets some Native Americans. We also watched a movie called Keeping the Promise. It was very similar to the book.

In homeroom we had a Native American Test. First, we get assigned a Native American tribe. We take books and fill out a gathering grid. We do an artifact that would come from that tribe like a mask, sculpture, flag, or basket. We also fill out a book and draw a picture about transportation, homes, food, and clothes.

In D&W, we are finishing our wooden fish. We make this by cutting wood in the fish shape regularly. In music, we‟re learning new songs about countries and also a new note – low “La”. Guest musician Tim Gregory is teaching us Native American dancing, too. In science we‟re learning about magnetism and magnets. We are also learning about static electricity and lightning. In Spanish, we‟re learning about foods and silverware. Sometimes we watch a movie or play a game. In computer, we‟re learning typing, websites, and account names. The websites are “Type to Learn” and a shape game. In P.E. we‟re climbing rocks, doing track, hoops, dodge ball, kickball, and balance stand and boundary ball.

In art we are making clay pots. To make the pots, you put water on the clay and shape it into a pot. Then after that we are doing weaving. To weave you have to take string and put through the ropes. Third grade rocks!

Fourth Grade

By Charles Tini and Zion Cole The fourth grade is a fun place to be. We learn a lot. Fourth graders have great teachers. Their names are Mr. Merrick, Mr. Herb, and Mrs. Iglehart.

There are a lot of nice people in fourth grade. The homework in fourth grade helps us learn about math, science, social studies, and grammar. The grammar work helps us to know where commas are supposed to go. In language arts, the fourth grade is reading a book called Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIHM. It‟s a story about four rats. They have a sick brother who needs medicine.

Then the adventure starts. When you get to the fourth grade, you will know the rest. You will want to hurry and get to fourth grade – it‟s a good book!

We have P.E. four times a week, and each day we have one recess. P.E. helps us get healthy. We have a lot of fun in P.E., and it is right before lunch. My favorite subject is art. In art, fourth graders are working on landscapes.

Everyone likes to draw in art. In science we just finished the invertebrates test. We are working on multiplication and on adding, subtracting, multiplying, and dividing fractions in math. It is very fun.

Each homeroom performs a play. The 4A play helped the younger kids learn about the Gilman Five. Everyone in fourth grade enjoys doing the plays. 4C and 4B have their plays coming up in the spring. Fourth grade makes the day go by quickly!

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The 4A Play Rocks the Stevens Room

By Jack Howard 4A performed their play on Thursday, January 13th in the Stevens Room for the Lower School students and teachers. We all know that 4A is Mr. Merrick‟s homeroom. In the beginning of the play, there were three students talking about how they actually had been kicked out of the play because they didn‟t follow the Gilman dress code! After that, all the characters were introduced.

There were three sheep, one big bad wolf, and one shepherd named Peter. And that‟s where the bulk of our play begins. The main story starts out with the kid named Peter who is the shepherd. He is beginning to get bored with going out and tending to the sheep all day. And he wanted action. So (through a lot of one- sided thinking) he decided to pull off a series of false alarms that there was a wolf. The townspeople listened for the first couple times, and they believed there was a wolf and they took action. But soon they realized it was just Peter talking.

Soon after that a wolf actually came! However, he tricked Peter into thinking he was a GOOD wolf. But one of the sheep alerted Peter that he was actually a wolf (and a bad wolf) instead of just a strange looking sheep.

But again the wolf tricked Peter into thinking he was just lonely because nobody liked wolves. And then, of course the wolf did what wolves do: he chased the sheep, as Peter called for the townspeople. But the townspeople had heard Peter calling wolf before, so they didn‟t believe him. After that, the sheep decided to go back to Little Bo Peep and Peter had to go back to town empty handed, with no sheep. And then the wolf came back and chased Peter, too! And that was the end of this great play. Personally, my favorite part was the part where the townspeople were running back and forth and back and forth to see if there really was a wolf.

Mr. Merrick has done it again, folks, he has created a great and entertaining play that also teaches us a lesson about how to behave in school!

Gilman Gazette

HOMEROOM HAPPENINGS: 4TH GRADE POETRY Where I’m From

A Creation Poem

By Lucas Yim I am from a back porch, from metal chairs to a grill, silver, grey and tastes like salt. I am from a hilly area, from pan handles and pine trees. I am from an adjustable basketball hoop and humungous bikes.

By Luke Morrill Snow! Snow! Cold and icy In the quiet of the night What immortal hand or eye Made you so unique?

I am from spaghetti and meatballs and white rice, from Gnocchi to kim-chi. I‟m from sweet corn, kimbop, and mandu-guk. I‟m from eye glasses and hot sauce, from Melissa and Charles.

Did she use hand or tool To make your crystal gems?

In what mountain or forge Did she aspire to make snow with no fire?

I‟m from Baltimore and Mayfair field, from sour tea and strong coffee. I‟m from contact lens to a walking cane.

How did she make Every snowflake different from others?

In what forge did she Chisel the icicle?

In my closet there are many boxes full of memories, a lost face and one friend that has moved. I am from those people that I have lost and those I still have.

The Lyon

By Alex Lawson Lyon! Lyon! jungle king Around the face a hairy ring Was it animal, man, or god That made the land that thou trod?

In what distant deeps or skies Burnt the fire of thine eyes?

In what fires did he mold the claws?

And when did he put them on thy paws?

And what shoulder, and what art Could twist the sinews of thy heart?

And when they feet first touched the sand Was it mountain? Or was it sand?

What the hammer? What the chain?

In what furnace was thy brain?

Why do you sleep for twenty-two hours?

Why because of thee, zebras are devoured?

When the stars three down their spears And water‟d heaven with their tears Did he smile on that equinox?

Did he who made thee make the arctic fox?

Lyon! Lyon! jungle king Around thy face a hairy ring Was it animal, man, or god That made the land that thou trod?

Volume 4, Issue 3

When all of her work was finished Did she smile her work to see Did she who made glaciers create thee?

Snow! Snow! Cold and icy In the quiet of the night What immortal hand or eye Made you so unique?

Broccoli

By Hank Bethel A tree in the African safari the mushroom cloud from the bombing in Hiroshima the toilet brush in the bathroom a blowdart gun ready to be fired that kid‟s nightmare across the street the future‟s makeup applier for girls barnacles on the bottom of an ocean liner a missile in area 51 the controller for a jet my neighbor with an afro

Banana

By Finn Arthur A phone I call my friends with.

Swing sets holding on by a rusty chain.

The cowboy pulls out his gun, and shoots.

Beautifully shining in the light is a crescent moon.

An arch painted in a vibrant yellow.

Rainbows spreading across the sky after a storm look beautiful.

Wonderful explosions bringing light during a supernova.

A toy sword I played with in my childhood.

Streaking across the sky is a lightning bolt, it crashes with a kaboom!

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HOMEROOM HAPPENINGS: 4TH & 5TH GRADE SCIENCE 4th Grade Invertebrate Projects

The Fifth Grade Bridge Project

By Cooper and Parker Shawver

Evan Gilbert’s Hermit Crag

One of the biggest science projects in 5th grade is the 5th Grade Bridge Project. First, we learn about the different kinds of bridges from Mrs. Rizzuto in science class. There are all sorts of bridges: beam, arch, cable, and suspension bridges, just to name a few! Then, with all of our instructions, we went home to build the bridges. The bridge has to span more than 10 inches but less than two feet. When you bring your bridge to school, you have to give a short speech to your class explaining the details of your bridge and present it to the class. In your speech, you have to use at least ten vocabulary words from the back of the book. If there are any questions about your bridge, you answer them. And guess what, the bridges are on display RIGHT NOW in the library! Go check them out!

Tentee Montgomery’s Tick

Wade Perry’s Yellow Jacket

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Gilman Gazette

CRITICS’ CORNER Chili’s

Razorbacks

By Nick Auen and Michael Melvin

By Hank Bethel

Chili‟s is an awesome restaurant with amazing food. Even though you have to wait extremely long for your food sometimes, it‟s worth the wait. A funny thing is that the restaurant is named after a very hot food, even though it‟s very cold inside. And since Chili‟s is so popular, you sometimes have to wait for a table which takes about 20 minutes. Also, for some reason, it has an odd smell. Chili‟s is not cheap, so make sure you have a lot of money in your wallet. Enough of the bad stuff, there‟s lots of good stuff too. Chili‟s now has free Wi-Fi, so you can go on the internet. We also know of a Chili‟s that is connected to a hotel, and you can order room service with Chili‟s food. Chili‟s always has good lighting and service; they even sing their own version of “happy birthday” to you if it‟s your birthday. There is a variety of things to eat and drink. They have drinks from water to root beer, and foods from ribs to salads. They have really good fries too. You can order your food to go so you don‟t have to stay in the cold. Another thing is that the bathrooms are very clean, so you don‟t have to hold “it” „till you get home. We think Chili‟s is the best family restaurant so far. So we encourage you to…

EAT THERE NOW!

Razorbacks Raw Bar and Grill serves everything a typical restaurant would have. They serve brunch, lunch, dinner. Personally, I like dinner best. First I usually get an appetizer, like onion rings.

At Razorbacks the onion rings are beer battered onions, and they are fried golden brown. Then I have my entrée - a burger. Their burgers are seasoned then char broiled and served on a Kaiser roll with added cheese. You can put on lots of other toppings for 50¢ each.

Movie Review: Gandhi

Razorbacks Raw Bar and Grill 826 Dulaney Valley RD Towson, MD 21204 410-821-9550

By Auden Alsop Rating: **** Recently I watched a movie called Gandhi. It‟s a very, very, very, very, very, very (well, you get the point) long movie … but on to the story. There is a young Indian man named Gandhi riding on a train into Englishcontrolled South Africa. After a little while he gets into an argument with the English conductor. Now, Gandhi is sitting in first class seating, and these are troubled times when Indian people can walk on the streets, but they always have to keep in mind the fact that they could still get hit by clubwielding English police. Now, in the argument with the conductor, the conductor threatens to push Gandhi out, luggage and all, if he did not get off at the next stop.

Unfortunately he does get pushed out, with his luggage coming after him. The next day, Gandhi goes to a meeting with another Indian man who has somehow managed to find an easy life. After the meeting, Mr. Gandhi goes to burn some official papers in an act of peaceful protest. A crowd of Indian men and women has gathered. Unfortunately, a troop of police has gathered also. As the crowd, including Gandhi surges forward, the lead officer of the police stops them. “Anyone who tries to burn a paper will be severely punished” is the warning. Gandhi bravely steps forward and burns four of the papers.

Each time he receives a blow to the head. I think Gandhi is a hero because he freed his country without violence. As I said before it is a very, very long movie, and there are some thoroughly violent parts. I would recommend the movie Gandhi to third grade and up.

Volume 4, Issue 3

Urgent Greenhound Announcement!

By Ben Levinson Do you remember last year when Mrs. O took a sabbatical and went to visit the Gambia in Africa? Well while she was there, she visited Bakau (Bu-Cow) Lower Basic School. It was not a very wealthy school and they need lots of basic supplies, so Gilman gave them a loan. Now it is time for us to pay back the loan. To help do that, the Lower School Greyhounds are sponsoring an aluminum can drive. To participate, all you have to do is bring in cans to your classroom between February 711th. The homeroom that brings in the most cans will get a free Slurpee because of the dates (get it: 7-11???J) So remember, the 711th of February, and drink your soda on Super Bowl Sunday!

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CREATIVE WRITING The Awakened Beast Chapter 3: DownPour

By David Gushue The snowman king Eloth studied his staff. “ATTACK!” the king yelled. Sarkan‟s troops have no chance, the king thought. ********* “This is crazy. We are running from demon snowmen from … well, no one knows. If anyone is listening to this recording, help us. Find us. We are here. We are waiting.”

Sarkan turned off the tape recorder.

“All right, “7”, what is your real name?”

“DownPour, sir. New recruit. Recruited last month, sir!” the soldier said.

“DownPour, eh?” Sarkan said. “Pretty intense fighting for a new recruit.”

The lights suddenly extinguished. Sarkan threw the useless torch out of the small cavern.

“Let‟s go. We can‟t risk staying in the same place for long.”

Sarkan began to walk outside. DownPour ran to catch up.

“Watch out for the 70 foot cliff!” Sarkan yelled as DownPour fell. DownPour grabbed onto a branch four feet from the ground.

DownPour landed light on his feet.

“Hey, Sarkan! Come check this out!”

Sarkan quickly rocket-booted down. His jaw dropped. There was an entire rain forest right next to a frozen tundra. “This is great! We have cover from the snowmen!” Sarkan yelled in joy, “Quickly let‟s get into the deadly forest!”

“Righhht …” DownPour said as he jogged after Sarkan.

Chapter Four: Achilles “So, I thought rainforests were supposed to have metal jaguars in them?” DownPour asked.

“I don‟t know. I‟ve never been in one before,” Sarkan replied.

“RLAHH!!!” a beast yelled/growled as it tore through the underbrush. DownPour pulled out his sword and swung at the metal jaguar. The beast dodged and mashed his metal teeth. It began to foam at the mouth. The monster‟s red, digital eyes bore into DownPour‟s. The beast was about seven feet long and it looked like it weighed 200 pounds. The metal jaguar pounced again. The bionic body had speed and agility. DownPour pulled out a pistol as Sarkan assaulted the jaguar with his sword. The jaguar bit his sword in half, and Sarkan retreated slightly farther back. DownPour shot at the jaguar and the bullet rebounded off his skin. The bullet hit Sarkan, and he fell. The jaguar jumped on Sarkan and started to claw at him. DownPour tackled the beast off of Sarkan. He struggled to fight, but the jaguar came up on top. Just before the jaguar was about to bite into DownPour‟s skin, a spear lodged into the jaguar. The jaguar‟s eyes dimmed as it fell off of DownPour.

“Looks like there are metal jaguars in the forest, “ a deep voice said.

“W-W-Who are y-you?” DownPour shuddered.

“Achilles.”

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The Maze Wanderer

By Connor Mitchell “My name is Thomas, that‟s all I remember.” That‟s what I said when I woke up in “The Box”. I couldn‟t see anything except darkness. I went to what I thought was the corner and tried to remember something from my past, but all I could remember was that my name was Thomas. Then the top of “The Box” opened up, and boys were staring down at me.

Then one boy pushes himself through the crowd and puts his hand out, so I climb up and he says, “I‟m Alby. Welcome to the Glade.”

Then I did the smartest thing I could think of, I fell backwards and fainted. ***** I woke up in a bed. It was calm, except then I heard a scream that sounded like a monkey in a blender. I ran down the hall, and I saw a boy screaming. I won‟t describe what I saw except that the kid looked insane. I ran outside and saw four doorways surrounded by walls. Outside it looked like a maze, when suddenly I remembered what Alby told me before I passed out: “Only one rule, don‟t die in the maze, kid.”

In the next few days I found out that I was in the middle of a maze. I also made friends with two boys named Chuck Norris and Fig Newton. Alby was the one in command.

One day, I was in a miniature forest when suddenly I heard movement in the trees. “What was that?” I asked myself.

Then the kid who was screaming in bed three days ago jumps out with a spear and hurls it at me. I barely dodge it and I ran. Then Alby comes out with a tranquilizer gun and shoots at the kid. He falls to the ground, asleep.

That night, they tied him to a pole and put him outside the maze. I had no idea what that would do to help until the doors starting closing outside, and then I realized they would trap him outside. The boy was screaming and pleading, and then all of his words were drowned out once the doors closed. ***** The next morning, when the doors opened we saw the pole still there, but not the boy. I wondered what happened to the boy when I saw people running into the maze. I went to ask Alby about it. He told me that every day the “Wanderers” go into the maze looking for a way out, and then they would come back in right before the doors closed.

I thought it was a super cool idea, and that night I told myself I wanted to be a “Wanderer”.

The next morning went by in a flash, and then at the end of the day I saw all of the runners come back, or at least that‟s what I thought. That meant it was two minutes before the doors would close. After one minute and thirty seconds the doors started to close, and then I saw someone Gilman Gazette

CREATIVE WRITING come around the corner. It was, as I later learned, Minho. I realized he was limping and he wouldn‟t make it. So I ran in to help him and realized how stupid I was, but I kept on running. Minho was so close, and then I ran through the door but I ran into him. Then the doors closed, and I realized something. I was trapped in the maze.

To Be Continued

Epic Escape

By Eugene Cho and Carter Feiss “Amanda, where are you? I found something over here!”

Amanda came swooping in from above. Three month had passed since the monster attacked Jamie and life had changed. The siblings had found out that they had powers.

Jamie had super-strength and lightning speed, and Amanda had invisibility and giant eagle‟s wings she uses to swoop into flight with. Now it was early winter, but there was four feet of snow already! The world seemed to be changing into a time where there‟s more night than day. Maybe because Jamie and Amanda‟s mom had been taken by the monsters. Jamie and Amanda had been running for all three months and getting barely any sleep or any time to eat.

They came out of the hastily made safe house. They couldn‟t believe how many monsters the King of Masters had sent after them.

Amanda said, “We better run … NOW!!!!” Amanda went flying into the air and went invisible. Jamie started to punch the nearest monsters with his extreme sped and his super strength. But there was just too many.

“Amanda, I need help!” exclaimed Jamie. He looked back to see her visible and plummeting to the earth. Jamie rushed to her and caught her just in time.

“Are you okay?” asked Jamie.

Amanda replied, “Zzzzzzzzzzzzz.” Jamie looked back and saw the monsters gaining on them. Jamie picked her up and ran, dodging trees as he went. Then all of a sudden Jamie tripped. Oh, no, thought Jamie as he blacked out.

When he woke up, he saw an eerie green light. He thought, where am I …

To be continued

Just A Kid

By Alex DeVito Phillip was a regular kid. The only things that were irregular were that he was in Year One, his village was in a cardboard box, and he changed ages at random times. So, pretty regular, right?

Well, anyway… Phillip wanted adventure. He had dreams about it, he sang in the shower- “Adventure, Adventure!,” He even wished for it! One day, he got his wish. His dream, instead of adventure, was a dream that he was in a deep, damp cavern. It was dark, and the only visible things were two blood red eyes and sharp teeth that were gnashing and glinting in some unseen light. And there was a stink. A nasty Volume 4, Issue 3

stink, like armpits …

He woke up. Abruptly he sat up. Cold sweat was drenching his face. He was the only one who knew about this mysterious beast!

He had to go to the horrible, the stinky, the scary, the forbidden … DAD‟S SHIRT!! Phillip knew he had to go. He collected supplies and started his journey, knowing there would be a hassle the next day. With him gone and supplies gone everyone would be baffled. He knew nothing of the journey ahead, but the climb up the edge of the giant cardboard box and the Wise Woman‟s hut at the top. He didn‟t know much about her, but when he had asked villagers about her, they would shout, “Sheka!” and all the town would hide for exactly five minutes. Phillip knew because he counted exactly five minutes before everyone came out. He wished he knew of more civilizations and why he was in this giant‟s world. He was regular size …. or so he thought. He felt bad about taking too much, so he just had a rope, food, a Swiss army knife, and a toolbox. He also had his favorite toys, a stage and finger puppets. He thought about crying, but he couldn‟t start his trip weakly! He waved sadly to the sleeping village as he walked away.

Coming Soon: Chapter Two: The Journey

The Adventures of Bob: The Musician

By Eric Gibson Bob came home from his job as a policeman with his dog Scuffy one night. It was two o‟clock in the morning. He couldn‟t go to sleep. He had a bad day that day because he was slapped by a runaway villain, and he had let him get away. So Bob started to sing. He loved to sing, but he was horrible at it. His dream, besides being a policeman, was to be a professional singer. So he took singing lessons. On his first day, be has horribly off pitch.

So he took a day off from being a policeman, and he practiced his singing. He tried to make his own song that he could sing. It took him forty eight hours, but he finally came up with a good song: the ABC‟s. He was walking towards the radio station, but when they heard his song, they told him that song already existed. So Bob carried on, and he took singing lessons for the next five years. With all that practice, he actually became fairly good. So he decided to go to a singing competition with more than 3,000 people in it. He sang “Ode to Joy”. There were hundreds of judges, and 2,000 singers were eliminated first. But Bob was still in! With 1,000 people remaining, he sang “Ode to Joy” again. Then five hundred people were eliminated, but Bob was amazingly still in the game. He took a ten minute break; then he came back to the stage. This time he sang “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”. Soon four hundred people were eliminated by the judges. Bob remained! He stayed in after that, and after that, and after that. Then there were two finalists remaining: Bob and Joe. Bob sang the “ABC‟s”, and Joe sand the song, “Mary Had a Little Lamb”. The announcer spoke to the thousands of people waiting expectantly in the audience. He announced, “The winner of this singing competition is …(drumbeat) BOB!!!” From then on, Bob never stopped singing his favorite songs again!

Page 9

CREATIVE WRITING Vineyard

The Rookie of the Year: Part I

By Seth Hardy and Saad Jalisi Previously: On another planet, Seth saved an alien named Bealtus from kamikaze drones.

Seth was in his deep, dark imagination. “Are we there yet?” Bealtus groaned. Seth was still in his imagination. He was thinking about what his family looked like. “Uhh, yeah, we‟re here.” Seth, Quip, and Kiwi got off the ship. The smell of energy roamed the air. “What‟s that noise?” Bealtus asked. Kiwi turned into a giant, long armed alien T-Rex! “Get on!” he yelled.

Seth was listening to his iPhone when Quip came on the screen. “Seth, I stayed at the ship. Anyway, come back now. Predator‟s death rays are coming from the east. The Spitterians have solidified the ray with their goop, so grab one and run. If you see a walking rhino, do not make contact, they will destroy you.”

“Okay. Kiwi, turn around,” he groaned.

After a while, Seth found a Spitterian. He hopped off Kiwi. The creature turned around. “Don‟t hurt me,” it said.

“Don‟t worry, we come in peace,” said Seth. He picked up the goopy alien. Whhrshh!

“What was that?” Kiwi asked.

“The Exohorns!” the alien yelled.

“Kiwi, get Bealtus and Spittz here back to the ship!” yelled Seth. Kiwi galloped off. “Wrong way!”

Kiwi turned around grumpily.

The Exohorns looked like an armadillo and a rhino were crossbred. They were huge, too. Predators‟ laser was only one mile away. So Seth had no choice. He pulled the knob on his pants. DNA flowed through his body. His bones changed. He had become a twelve foot armed alien with large hammers on his elbows and a Roman helmet-like head. The Exohorns ran. The laser was four feet away. Seth grabbed the laser‟s core and tore it out. But it was far from done. The Exohorns had come back. But an army of Spitterians came from the east.

“We‟ll take it from here,” they said.

When Seth returned to the ship, Quip did not seem happy. “Why is your gecko two stories high?”

“I guess we‟ll never know,” said Seth. “Kiwi!

Down!” he hollered.

Kiwi went back down to average size. “C‟mon,” said Spitz, “I wanna see the other planets.”

“Here we go again,” Bealtus said.

“Then let‟s go!” yelled Seth. And we were off to: Raylance.

To Be Continued

By Ethan Hoskins and John McGowan Bobby Flynn got a call from the Orlando Magic GM while he was eating at Papa John‟s one night. Flynn, a 7‟1” rookie center out of Michigan State, would play for any team. That night, he drove to Orlando a day before the Magic‟s first game. When he got there he found out that he would start most of the season because of a foot injury to Dwight Howard! Time went by very quickly, and soon it was the night of the game against the T-Wolves. On the tipoff, Flynn went against Kevin Love. He then jumped high enough that he could reach a 13-foot rim.

He easily won, and he tipped the ball to PG Jameer Nelson. Nelson was stuck. He accidentally picked up his dribble. He looked and looked for someone to pass to. Then, he chucked the ball to Flynn who did a windmill dunk. The crowd was yelling their heads off. After the game Flynn won MVP of the game. He had scored 42 points, and he had 17 rebounds and 10 assists. When he went into the locker room, he hit his head on the top of the hallway and he yelled, “What hallway is so small?! Oh yeah, everyone!”

Time went by super fast, and the Magic were the NBA‟s best team with a record of 39-2. Flynn was averaging 31.5 points per game, 14 rebounds a game, and 5 assists a game. Obviously, he made the All Star Team … but that‟s next issue‟s story!

To Be Continued

Page 10

Cow, The Amazing Flying Pig: Chad’s Ending

By Wade Perry When we last left off, Santa had squished Chad, and Cow and Pig threw him. However, Chad was smart. He turned himself into a boomerang and flew back. He landed perfectly. He was furious! All he wanted to do was to get Pig and Cow. At the moment, they were playing with the toys they got from Christmas. They were so happy that they forgot all about Chad. Then Pig said, “Do you remember when we flung Chad in the air?” Cow wasn‟t happy at all. He knew that Chad was the last villain, and so that meant no more Cow, The Amazing Flying Pig! “Hey, what‟s wrong?” asked Pig. “I don‟t want to talk about it, Pig.” “Why?” “Because I just don‟t, Pig! You know I don‟t need you anymore.”

“But?...”

“NO, Pig – leave, and don‟t come back!”

Ok, let‟s switch scenes and get back to Chad. Chat was walking all around. He was looking and looking and finally he saw the wooden sign.

The sign he had been searching for. It read, ”Cow and Pig.” “Yes, Yes!” Chad ran into the house! He heard Cow telling Pig to leave. Then they broke into a fight, a long fight. Wait - it could be won once Cow and Pig found out Chad‟s secret! Chat was afraid of Jack-In-The-Boxes! That secret was revealed when Pig tripped on the Jack-in-the-Box on the floor. That started it. Chad went crazy. He was turning back into a pig, a normal pig. “Look, he‟s changing back into a pig!” Pig said. Cow was still down, but a few minutes later Chad was just a normal pig. And Cow and Pig brought him back to his farm. They left the farm and lived happily ever after.

The End Gilman Gazette

CREATIVE WRITING The Time Makers

Time Travel

By Will Davis, Alex Pickett, and Henry Rosenburg Once upon a time there were three boys named Mike, Paco, and Archer.

They were smart, so they built a time machine. When they were done, they traveled back to the dinosaur times. They traveled to a cave, and they were knocked out by mini cavemen. The cavemen were so small that Mike, Paco, and Archer didn‟t even see it coming. When they woke up, they were in the middle of the forest. Only Archer remembered what happened, but when he tried to tell his friends they freaked out. Archer finally calmed his friends down and told them about the time machine and that they had traveled back in time and about the mini cavemen. So that‟s where the voyage begins … the search for the time machine! They decided to split up and regroup in thirty minute periods. As they were exploring they picked up artifacts, not time machines, but they kept on searching.

After six hours of searching they still could not find it. It was almost dark, so they decided to camp out for the night and continue the search.

They found some big leaves to keep warm and flint for fire. The next day they ate fruit for breakfast. They kept searching and searching, but then they realized that to find the time machine they must make peace with the cavemen. However, to find the cavemen you have to enter the deepest and darkest “forest of them all”. As they entered the forest, they heard creepy noises. They heard “Tick, Tick, Tick” and a rustle here and there.

Finally they reached the end of the creepy forest. They saw a guard who was probably the biggest man to live on earth. So Mike asked, “May we enter?” and the guard said, “Ugga, wugga, gugga!”

“What?” Archer asked. The guard obviously got angry and started chasing the boys. Luckily, he got trapped in a giant fly trap. After finally catching their breath the boys went into the cave. It was the darkest of the darkest cave ever. They saw light far into the cave, which was coming closer. It was the cavemen. They were very nice and surprisingly, they spoke English. They showed Mike, Paco, and Archer where the time machine was, and soon they were on their way home. Paco, however, was very disappointed that the three of them did not get to see any dinosaurs while they were there!

To Be Continued

By Ryan Choi and Zak Tini Once there was a kid named Jack, and he was ten years old and lived in South America. One day he was bored and had nothing to do, so he went into an abandoned warehouse near his house. After a while he found a crazy looking machine inside. But then Jack slipped on something wet on the floor, and he accidentally hit a lever. After that he was really dizzy, and he fell into a hole.

Then he saw a big purple spiral … and he ended up in the future! When he stood up he saw all sorts of weird shaped buildings and flying solar powered cars. Then he saw lots of robots. At first he didn‟t know where he was, but soon he found two kids. “Where am I?” asked Jack.

“You‟re in South America,” answered Zak and Ryan.

“What!?” said Jack.

“Couldn‟t you hear us the first time we said …”

“Yes, I heard you.”

“Okay, you don‟t have to be so cranky, Mr. Cranky!”

“First of all, my name is Jack and second of all, what year is this?”

“Wait, don‟t you know what year it is?”

“Ummm… 3222 A.D.?”

“Oh, so you do know what time it is!”

“Huh!!!!!”

“C‟mon, you just said what time it is.”

“Mommy!”

Then they started walking and talking. But soon they saw a U.F.O., and an alien came out and it was pink! But then Jack tried to jump on it, but before he could the alien grew to be giant!!! And he grew scales and horns! After that everyone was jumping on the alien, but sadly it didn‟t work.

Then Jack stole the red baron from Snoopy, and he tried to aim at the alien but the plane malfunctioned. It did hit the alien, and it changed into a hedgehog! Then Jack saw the time machine, and he said goodbye to his new friends and traveled back to his home time.

To Be Continued…

The Quest

By Alex Cheng and Wyatt Hales Chapter 1 “Wait!” hollered 14-year old Sam, running to catch the bus. The thick underbrush covering the path slowed Sam down. “Ouch!” he cried as he tripped over a tree root. “Now I‟ll never catch the bus,” Sam mumbled to himself. A soft blue glow appeared in front of him.

“What the --,” whispered Sam. He crawled to the light source and gasped.

“What… is this?” asked Sam. “Hmm …. maybe I should take this stone home…” He reached for the rock, and a blinding red light flashed before him.

Chapter Two “Ughh… what happened?” moaned Sam, “And where am I?” He looked around, and he saw an endless passage. He looked up, and he saw a note. Suddenly the walls started to move inward…

To Be Continued Volume 4, Issue 3

Page 11

CREATIVE WRITING Gifted

By Ben Levinson Emma woke up in a helicopter with a black interior.

She looked around and screamed. All around her were five other children wearing chains. She looked and saw that she was wearing them, too. A boy who looked about ten with brown eyes and hair took her hand and said, “It‟s all right. All of us are already friends.

We‟re special. That‟s why they‟re taking us to a school for special kids.”

“Wha-what do y-you m-mean?”

“Well,” the boy with brown hair explained.” My name is John, and I can control weather. Jake and Julie over there split the four elements, Grace is a full-sized fairy, and Max is a vampire. That‟s what I mean by special!”

Emma looked around in amazement. So what can I do?” she asked, regaining her confidence.

“By the look of you, I would say you‟re an unlimited sorceress. By the way, what‟s your name?”

“Emma.”

Just then the helicopter landed. “We‟re here,” the pilot announced. The chains that kept them locked against their will unlocked, and they got off. Right in front of them in the middle of the forest was a small dilapidated hut. The six of them walked towards the black windowed, mice-inhabited shack. Then they all stepped inside and gasped. Inside the shack was a white washed, sparkling clean elevator. The pilot pushed the button with 300 marks on it. They were dropping. Then they all stepped out to … a HUGE building with sparkling walls. The special school.

A boy with shabby clothes, dark hair that was in his face, and a permanent scowl greeted them. “Hey, I‟m Rissle,” he said.

“Emma.”

“Jake.”

“Julie.”

“John.”

“Grace.”

“Captain Diddles, at your service,” mocked the ever sarcastic Max without looking up. Then Max looked up and gasped, just as Rissle did the same thing.

“You!” they said to each other. They both gasped.

All the others looked back and forth in bewilderment. “Okay, break it up!” the teachers shouted. “To the dorms!”

The next few days of lessons past fleetingly, but excitingly with learning a LOT of magic, getting a powerful amulet to keep, and Grace sprouting wings.

One night when the full moon hung in the sky Rissle Page 12

took them to the lake.

“This is weird. I don‟t trust him,” Grace whispered.

“You shouldn‟t,” whispered Max. They were at the lake. All of a sudden with an unearthly howl that caught the children‟s attention, Rissle started growing fur. His ears and nose grew hound like as he transformed into a werewolf. Once he was done transforming, he bolted.

Soon they knew why. From the trees and lake, silently, Githrow and his minions, who Emma and others learned about at school, emerged.

Githrow was an evil sorcerer overlord. As a matter of fact, he was the most infamous evil sorcerer overlord of the time! He despised every weak soul in the world. Before they could do anything, Githrow transported them to a valley. Jake and Julie started the battle by sending a fire tornado. Max bit and flung people to the ground. Emma was magicking it up. John was gesturing wildly as thunder boomed and lightning struck as sparks of fairy magic rained down from Grace, who was flying. Then Githrow screamed, “Alethka –Ameno!” A ball of energy hit Emma and flung her over the mountain.

The End of Chapter One. To Be Continued…

The Impossible Team: The First Meeting

By John Moore and Andrew Bolin As you know, Jeff and Mary‟s stories have been told. Yet you have not met three people in the story – you shall meet them now.

“Let‟s go. Come on, we have to move. We have got to save those people, yet not let them know who we are,” said Jason.

“Stop talking and start running,” said Luke.

“Those people are stuck in that building, and not to mention it‟s on fire,” replied Jason. When they got there, they found people screaming.

“Help!” yelled someone in the building.

“Let‟s go,” said Jason.

“I‟m not going in there, all I can do is shape shift,” answered Luke.

“What the heck? We are here now and you are going to bail out?

This is our first time trying out the powers we got last week,” urged Jason. “Well, I‟m going in.”

As soon as he got there, he heard someone pleading for help.

“Where are you? I‟ll help (cough, cough),” said Jason. Then he followed the voice and found her and dragged her to safety. “Is there anyone else in there?” he asked.

“No, just me,” said the girl.

“Are you okay?” Jason asked her.

“Yes.” “What‟s your name, so we can get you some help?”

“My name is Angelica.”

“Did you create that fire?”

“Yes,” answered Angelica.

When they got to the hospital, Jason and Luke checked on Angelica daily. “Doctor, is she okay?” asked Jason.

“No, she‟s not,” stated the doctor.

“What is it?” asked Luke.

“She has a fever of 212 degrees F. She should not be alive,” said Gilman Gazette

CREATIVE WRITING the doctor.

“Why is that?” asked Luke.

“We don‟t know, but all we do know is that if you can survive a 212 degree fever you must be a living furnace!”

After the doctor left, something amazing happened. “She‟s on fire! Help! Help!” screamed Jason.

When the doctor saw this, he immediately fainted. “We have to get some water on her.” They did, but it didn‟t work.

“How is she still alive?”

Suddenly the fire stopped. “Who was on fire?” asked Angelica.

“You were,” answered Jason.

“Can you keep a secret?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“Well … how can I put this,” Angelica began. “I can manipulate fire.”

“Wow! Finally, someone like us!”

“You guys can do fire, too?” Angelica asked in surprise.

“No, no, I can shape shift,” said Luke.

“Wow, awesome!” said Angelica.

“And I can absorb solids and use it to my advantage,” Jason told her.

“Cool!” replied Angelica. “I also know someone else like us. Her name is Mary Ann Spicer.

“Where do you know her from?” asked Luke.

“She‟s my cousin,” said Angelica. “I think she can fly.”

“Good, we need someone like that on “The Impossible Team”,” said Jason.

“The Impossible Team?” asked Angelica. “That name needs a little work.”

“Yeah, we know, but we need to contact your cousin very soon,” said Luke.

“That‟s easy, because she happens to be staying with us for dinner tonight.”

“Good, because we need to speak to her about her joining forces with us,” Jason added.

“Speaking about joining, would you like to?” asked Luke.

“Yes! That would be great!” smiled Angelica. “Now let‟s get moving so we can talk to Mary Anne.”

“Let‟s go!”

To Be Continued…

intrigued by his own sport. He will make complex obstacle courses and then time himself. Right now he is on a cruise to a remote resort about six hundred miles due east of Japan.

“He‟s regaining consciousness. Get ready!” said someone.

It‟s true: I was regaining consciousness … finally. Then, I saw a man with a scar on his face.

“Who are you? Where am I” I exclaimed. “I know you‟re probably really freaked out now. Just give me five minutes to explain,” the man said calmly. I‟m surprised he could stay calm!

I mean, I certainly couldn‟t. Trust me, if I could resist this man I would. But he didn‟t seem to be doing any harm. Plus he looked beefier than a Big Mac. “This is a Samurai academy dedicated to the defense man from the destructive forces of the Shadow Wolf Ninja Clan.

We use a secret Japanese martial art called Nitenjitsu,” he explained.

I slept for a while, and then they brought me to my room. I thought it would be like a jail cell, but it was amazing. It was nicer than the first class compartment. It had beautiful walls that I later learned were called Shoji. It had bamboo furniture and orchids growing out of the fire place. There was what I called a “God-sized Bed”. It must have been ten feet tall. It had a desk that curved around the whole room.

All of my immediate family was gone, and the door to the room was locked, so I decided not to try to get out. Plus, it had a hot tub! I got a laptop with a schedule on it: Breakfast, Training, Training, Training, Lunch, Academic Class, Academic Class, Dinner, Battle, Sleep. At first it looked pretty boring, but then I learned that meals were whatever you want, training was in the Samurai arts, and academics was the physics of sword fighting: it sounded better. When I went to bed that night, I was thinking I could stay here forever. then for the second time today my door creaked open. No, it couldn‟t be!

The security wall was unbreachable! I put on my battle gear.

Time for payback. Then the door opened: to reveal none other than…

To Be Continued

Samurai Academy

By Teddy David and Jack Howard Light floods into my first class compartment. But wait, how can that be? My parents are asleep and the maid had already been here earlier. I cower under my covers. I feel a sharp pain in my leg. Then … “Ohhh….”

You should know James‟ story before you keep reading.

James is a privileged boy who goes to a very expensive school. He usually gets straight A‟s, but he tries to pursue athletics. He is the school football star, but he is especially Volume 4, Issue 3

Page 13

CREATIVE WRITING Snowball

Never Again

By Lucas Yim Once there was an evil scientist named Joe Bob, Jr. He loved the cold, so he always kept the window open when he worked in his laboratory. He was working on a potion to make himself evil minions. Right when he had finished, he realized that he had forgotten to add the evil part which makes the minions evil! He went to get it, when suddenly a snowball flew through the window. It hit the potion. The snowball grew eyes, a nose, and a mouth. Then it flew back out the window.

That very night, Joe Bob, Jr. bumped his head on his bed. As a result, he lost all memory about the snowball.

But he had an idea how to take over the world! He also got a large bump on his head. The bump was actually about a foot high. In the morning Joe Bob, Jr. went to work on his evil scheme. It took him weeks to finish his project. When he was finally finished, he went to the city to use it at last! When he arrived at the city, a flying snowball with eyes, a nose, and a mouth flew up to him. He was surprised and he asked the snowball, “Who are you?”

“I am a superhero snowball,” answered the flying snowball. Who are you?”

“I am a villain,” replied Joe Bob, Jr. The faceoff between the snowball and the evil scientist quickly became like a cowboy showdown. Everyone in the streets ran away into their homes and peered out their windows to see the action. Joe Bob, Jr. reached for his evil machine, but Super Snowball reached for his snow ring lighting fast and threw it at Joe Bob, Jr. But Joe Bob, Jr. pulled out his evil machine almost as fast and he made the machine spew fire and melt the snow ring. Then Joe Bob, Jr. used the evil machine on the Super Snowball himself. The Super Snowball tried to dodge it but half of him got hit and melted, and everything seemed lost. But then he snowball made a gurgling sound and he regenerated – he regrew the other half of his body!

To Be Continued

By Luke Daly and Luke Sabracos I was in my room playing on my Xbox waiting for my friend Bret to come over. An hour later he finally came, and he brought an Xbox game that he had never played before. He said he found it in his mailbox that morning. We decided to stay up all night and play it at exactly 12:00 midnight. When the clock struck midnight, we got up and started playing the new game. We fell asleep with the Xbox up and connected. We woke up, and we were inside the Xbox! It was like a whole different world. We were surprised to see that there were other people there too, except they were Avatars! Now don‟t mistake these for the blue Avatars or the one with the arrow on the head. We decided to climb through a window thinking that it would lead back to the house, but it really led to Halo Reach. We dodged all the lasers and energy swords that tried to hit us. We finally found the window that led out of that game, but that game led to Need For Speed Undercover. We drove to our street and managed to climb through the windows.

We were not that surprised when we saw our Sim parents. We were in Sim 3! We found our Xbox in the Sims world, and accidently got trapped in that Xbox! We ended up back in Sims. We decided to stop fighting it and to just live in the Xbox World!

Super Snowman 2

By Finn Arthur Little Billy was very confused. Thoughts were swirling in his head and he was feeling frigid. When Billy was walking home everyone looked at him as if he was a mutant.

When he passed his neighbor John‟s house he looked down, and to his amazement he was floating! Billy was flabbergasted, lost his balance, and almost crashed to the ground, but he saved himself by freezing the ground beneath him. Billy kept walking home but almost fainted when he saw who was standing in front of him, Bob Bobson!

To Be Continued

Page 14

Little Timmy

By Cooper Shawver “Timmy!” screamed Mom. “What!” yelled Timmy.

“I‟m hungry. Let‟s go get McDonald‟s.”

“What if I want to get Burger King?”

“Burger King doesn‟t give me my change back!”

“Probably because you use a credit card!” said Timmy.

“I don‟t have a credit card!” said Mom. “Timmy!” yelled Mom. “What!” yelled Timmy.

“Go get me a credit card at the bank!” yelled Mom. Timmy walked out the door. He fell off his bike on the way to the bank. He stopped at the hardware story and got a band-aid.

At the bank he said, “Can I have a credit card?”

The banker said, “You need to open a savings account.”

“Can I open a savings account?” asked Timmy.

“You need a parent for that,” said the banker. Timmy walked out the door and brought in a cardboard cutout of his dad.

“Now can I have one?” asked Timmy.

“Since you have an adult, then yes,” answered the banker.

“Who should the name be?”

“Gabriel,” said Timmy.

“Your name is Gabriel?” asked the banker.

“It‟s my mom‟s name,” said Timmy. Timmy grabbed the credit card and ran home.

“Thank you,” said Mom (Gabriel).

“You‟re welcome,” said Timmy.

Gilman Gazette

CREATIVE WRITING Eagles in Dallas

By William Bolin and Alex Lawson “Jackson it was a curl route, not a corner route!” Coach yelled at me. “Do that again and you‟ll be warming the bench!”

I sprinted back to the huddle where Michael Vick explained, “Listen, even though Coach Reid picked you off the practice team, you still have to run the designated route, Rashard! Now we‟re running the same play. Ready, Break!”

We ran into the formation, trips right, but the defense was ready for the play. Vick called an audible for the WR option. The option was for me! I was nervous because it was my first time running the play.. Vick called Hike and I was off! I decided to run a deep route. I sped past the coverage.

Vick saw me wide open in the end-zone. Michael hurled the ball towards me. I jumped and caught it off a tip. TOUCHDOWN. I scored the game-winning touchdown. We beat Green Bay 28-21.

In the other games the Seahawks beat the Saints 41-36, the Ravens whipped the Chiefs, 30-7, and Nick Folk and the Jets slipped by the Colts 17-16. Our next game was against the Bears. It was a shootout! Finally with 1:07 left, the Bears had to settle for a field goal. I was the kick returner.

Robbie Gould kicked it wide left. It almost went out of bounds but I fielded it at the 2 yard line. I started to bolt down the sideline. I broke five tackles and was pushed out of bounds at the 50 by the kicker. There were 52 seconds on the clock. Andy Reid called a running play but McCoy lost 2 yards with 48 seconds left in the game. Reid called a running play; we got 5 yards which set up a 3rd and 7 with 39 seconds left. Coach Reid called a QB option. Vick kept it and ran for 10 yards and out of bounds. With 29 seconds left my heart was beating hard. Vick called a pass, and it went for 14 yards and out of bounds with 17 seconds left. Then he threw an incomplete with 13 seconds left. Vick threw a 9 yard pass next and then called a time-out with 7 seconds and 2 time-outs left. Vick called another pass play, but he was sacked for a loss of 7 yards. Reid almost called another timeout but he didn‟t because Vick was hurt. He was carried off the field with 3 seconds left on a 4thand 8.

Reid called a fake field goal pass and I was the tight end.

My heart felt like nails under a hammer. The long snapper snapped it to Kolb, and Kolb looked for an open receiver. I was wide-open so he bombed it to me. I caught it easily and ran it in. TOUCH DOWN! The clock said 0 seconds. We were on our way to the NFC Championship!

In the other games the Ravens sadly lost to the Steelers, 31-24, the Patriots obliterated the Jets, 45-3, and the Falcons slipped by the Seahawks 44-41. We were playing the Falcons in the NFC Championship. When there were 50 seconds left the score was 10-6, Falcons. We had the ball on the 50. Vick was questionable, so Reid kept him Volume 4, Issue 3

on the bench. Vick would sit unless Kolb got hurt. We had no time-outs left, so Kolb threw a bomb to McCoy who caught it and ran out of bounds for a 20 yard gain. 37 seconds left. Kolb threw a 6 yard pass to DeSean Jackson who couldn‟t get out of bounds so Kolb had to spike it to stop the clock. It was 3 rd and 4 with 27 seconds left. Kolb threw a 2 yard pass but Jackson couldn‟t get out of bounds. It was 4th and 2 with the clock ticking. We ran up to the line for the last play, a variation of the reverse. McCoy would run ahead of the line of scrimmage and then he would bomb it to the other sideline where I would be waiting. It worked! I was wide open and I ran for 22 yards.

TOUCH DOWN. Here we go!

In the AFC Championship the Patriots beat the Steelers, 28-14. We were playing the Pats in the Super Bowl. Vick was healthy but the crowd was loud. They booed us so much I wished I‟d had some Bose sound resistant headphones. During the game, the noise died away. It was a defensive showdown.

The score was 6-3 in the Pats‟ favor with 20 seconds left in the game. We had a first down on our 20. Vick was sacked on that play for a loss of 9 with 15 seconds left. That caused an uproar! Vick was sacked for a loss of 10 yards next. The uproar only got louder. There were 5 seconds left and we were on our 1 yard line. Vick dove for a half a yard and called a time -out. The crowd went berserk. There was 1 second left. Vick called a Hail Mary. As the clock dwindled down, Vick bombed it to me. I was waiting in the back of the end zone with 2 other defenders, a safety and a cornerback. The ball bounced off the out-stretched hands of the safety and fell into mine! I grasped the ball and put 2 feet in bounds. The ref‟s whistle blew. The crowd was silent. It was over. All over.

Alien Linebacker

By Cameron Ward Once upon a time there was an alien named Ted. He always wanted to be an NBA All-Star player, except he was no good at basketball. Every time he tried something new, he messed up and lost the game for his team. One season he didn‟t play until the playoffs, and then he came in and lost the game for his team. So after years and years of trying the play basketball, Ted quit. The next sport he tried to play was football. He wasn‟t good at quarterback, so he tried wide receiver. He wasn‟t much good at that, either. So he tried running back – no luck there either. After a while he tried defense. First, he tried safety, then he tried left and right tackle. After he did that with no success, he went to try the line backer position, and surprisingly he was really good! So he practiced, and soon he was on a little league team, then high school, then college, and then he was drafted to the Ravens. He even got Ray Lewis‟ number. And when the Ravens played the Steelers, he sacked Big Ben.

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CREATIVE WRITING Trapped

By Patrick Atwood, Grant Carey, Andy Cheng, Paul Stoller, and Connor Vogel Army Captain Troy could tell it was going to be an unusual day under the depths of the great Atlantic because the water was violet. He just turned the …boom! The entire submarine shook. “Oh, no! The engine is down!” the captain shouted. He ordered his first mate to check the engine. Suddenly the sub was being pulled into a black light. “Thanks!” Troy thanked the mate. Everything went black. Troy woke up in a stony room. A dungeon, Troy thought. Troy looked around and saw fish swimming outside of a thick 5-inch glass window. All of a sudden footsteps came to the barbed wire door. Then Troy heard a peculiar voice saying, “Ha, ha, ha”. Then he l=glared at the mysterious black caped man walking down the stairs of the castle. Then he could barely see the creepy man‟s face through the barbed wired door.

The strange voice said, “I am a wizard.”

Then the wizard said to Troy, “If you don‟t find golden brain coral outside my castle, I will keep you locked up here forever. You have only one week to do this. If you find the golden brain coral, I will set you free. If you want to search, I will let you out, but I will have a microscopic tracking device hooked to you, so if you try to escape, I will use my powers to bring you back.”

Troy was startled. “How can I find golden brain coral?

It‟s nowhere near here.”

The wizard said, “You will have to search everywhere else in the Atlantic Ocean.”

“But the Atlantic Ocean is so big and wide,” said Troy.

“You will search everywhere in one week,” said the wizard as he walked away.

Just then Troy saw a mermaid that looked magical swim up to the five inch glass window. The mermaid said very faintly, “If you find regular brain coral, I will use my powers to turn regular brain coral into golden brain coral so you are not locked up here by that dreaded wizard.” (Golden brain coral has the power to make what anyone wants come true.)

“The wizard wants golden brain coral because he will have the power to make stuff he wants come true, but I will use my powers to make fake golden brain coral to fool that frightening wizard,” said the mermaid.

“I will try to get out from this dungeon telling the wizard I will search for the brain coral, but I will really meet with you,” said Troy to the mermaid.

Later that night, Troy and the mermaid found some regular brain coral.

“Here it goes,” said the mermaid. Whiz. “It worked, “Troy and the mermaid said together.

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Early in the morning Troy went back to talk to the wizard. “So you found it, “said the wizard in a creepy tone.

“Yup,” said Troy.

“I want it immediately,” said he wizard.

“All right, here it is,” said Troy.

“Ha, ha, ha, you foolish mortal,” laughed the wizard. “Do you know what this brain coral can do?” questioned the wizard.

“No,” Troy answered.

“Well, now, you and all the other people in the world will feel my wrath. This piece of golden brain coral can make me so powerful.

Ha, ha, ha, you aren‟t going to be free. I‟ll keep you here forever, so you can‟t be saving people‟s lives from me,” said the wizard.

The wizard left the castle, and Troy was trapped in the locked dungeon.

Later on, the mermaid was locked up with Troy, too. “I have no powers. The wizard took them from me,” she said.

And so they lived in the dungeon for the rest of their lives.

The Adventures of the Magical Eagle and Wolf

By Carter Spahn Once upon a time Eagle (the magical eagle‟s nickname) and I were flying through the woods when the earth shook. Now every human would know that this was an earthquake but animals, no they did not have the slightest idea what was going on. Now this was also not a regular earthquake. It was a portal to another world. Eagle and I rushed down through the earthquake and into the portal. The next minute, and we were in a universe that you could never picture. It was like everything was on everything! But the strange thing was that nobody was there. We walked around for a while but saw nothing move.

When it was dawn the Eagle and I found a soft spot on the ground. Eagle fell asleep easily but I didn‟t. I was wondering what was so familiar about this strange universe. Suddenly I stopped. I remembered what was so familiar, this was my home Universe! But the reason why I hated this Universe was because you can‟t get out, plus you can‟t eat because there‟s nothing to eat! The minute I noticed we were in my home Universe I woke Eagle up immediately and told him all about it. Eagle was stunned, thrilled, and terrified about what I told him. He even shrieked when I told him another living thing had to come before we can leave. Let me say that after I finished talking Eagle was running around like crazy and screaming like a maniac. But when I told him how we get out he froze and stared at me. “WE HAVE TO CAUSE AN EARTHQUAKE!!!!!” Eagle screamed.

“It‟s not going to hurt anybody,” I said.

“Okay, it you‟re so smart, how do we cause this “earthquake” of yours?”

“Jump up and down three times,” I said.

“Okay, let‟s find out. One, two, three…” Nothing happened.

“See, I told you!” Eagle screamed.

“You cannot feel it, see it, or hear it in here, but outside a big disaster is going on. Just wait, we‟ll be out of here in no time. “ Gilman Gazette

CREATIVE WRITING We waited and waited and waited. By this time we already fell asleep. CRUNCH!!! An enormous tree fell on top of us.

And believe me, it was not pretty.

“We‟re home,” Eagle shouted out with glee.

That, my friend, is the end of the story of the magical eagle and wolf.

The Missing Christmas Tree

By Benson Harlan People were going crazy for Christmas! There were so in a rush. People kept bumping into us. They didn‟t even say sorry. We were getting our Christmas tree. Oh heaven! I forgot to introduce myself! My name is Jack. I should tell you my family too. My annoying sister Rosamond! She is always so mean to me! Don‟t ask why, I don‟t know. I love my loving parents/Mom and Dad! They‟re so nice! By the way, I am not going to tell what their real names are. It would be too embarrassing to them. On to the story now!

So, we were picking out our Christmas tree when we found the perfect Christmas tree! I quickly ran toward it. It was a beauty! Mom said she will buy it. So we went to the person who sells the Christmas trees. He said it was $9.99.

So my mom paid for it. We tied it to our car and drove home. Our dad untied the rope and got it into the house. We got this green thing to hold it up. We tried to bend it at the right angle. Then we finally got it right. We decorated it with tons of ornaments – Santa ones, reindeer ones, cookie ones, lots! We finally decorated it all. Then it was time for bed. I brushed my teeth and went in to bed. I had an awesome dream that it was Christmas morning and there were one million presents under the tree. It was a Christmas miracle!

Then my sister Rosamond said, “Jake, wake up!”

I said, “You – you ruined my dream!

“I don‟t care!” Rosamond said, “Go look downstairs!”

So I got up and went downstairs. You will never believe what happened. The Christmas tree was gone. Ahhhhhhhhhh!

I could barely feel my feet on the ground. I wanted to scream, I wanted to shout. But I didn‟t because I didn‟t want to wake up Mom and Dad. Why do parents like to sleep in so much? Back to the story again!! I was feeling dizzy and light headed. Then I saw in the corner of my eye a car with a tree tied to it. Then I didn‟t care about my mom and dad wanting to sleep in.

I yelled with all my might, “MOM!!! DAD!!!”

They immediately woke up. “Just what is going on?” my mom asked.

“Our Christmas tree is being taken away!!!” My mom‟s eyes went wide.

My dad‟s face turned red. “We have got to do something now!”

So I got a phone and called 9-1-1. No answer. We tried it Volume 4, Issue 3

again. Still no answer.

“Can we try to catch it?” I asked.

“Can we use our car?” Rosamond said.

My dad said, “I never thought I would say this, but… let‟s get that no good…

“Um, Dad.” “What?”

“I think you made your point,” I said.

“Get in the car, then,” my dad said.

We got in the car feeling a little tired. “Everyone buckled?”

“Yes,” Rosamond and I said.

“Great,” Dad said. “Hold on to your…”

Dad didn‟t get to finish his sentence because we were already off. We were going at very high speed. I looked at how fast we were going. It was 80 miles per hour. Then I couldn‟t think of that anymore because we caught up with the car. Ornaments were breaking. Even the Santa ones, the reindeer one, and even the cookie ones. We finally got side-to-side with it. The driver had a bat right beside him. I was scared. My face turned pale. I felt like a bomb was going to blow up in my stomach. Rosamond started to scream, “Ahhhh!!!” She almost fainted. Then out of nowhere a police car came. I was screaming for joy! The policeman told the car to pull over. Then the person threw the bat at the car. The policeman‟s face turned crisp. There were crashing into each other a lot. I was thinking in my mind: when is the policeman gonna get that guy arrested? Then finally, somehow, the car ran out of gas. The policeman cuffed the man. Guess what? You‟ll never believe it.

The bad guy was the one who sold the Christmas tree! I couldn‟t believe my eyes. Anyway, that guy went to jail. He should have an evil name like Black Jack or something. But I think there is gonna be a better adventure in any day… somehow.

Illustration by Ethan Hoskins

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SPORTS The Best Squash Team Ever

X-cellence in Wrestling

Sam Bloomberg, Quinn Armstrong, John Hay Matthai

Will Gildea, Patrick Linehan

Coach Boo Smith is the head coach of the Gilman varsity squash team. Coach Smith has been at Gilman for 14 years and is the Dean of Students. He was the assistant squash coach for six years, and he has been the head coach for six years. He also coached wrestling for two years here at Gilman.

Mr. John Xanders is the Junior Varsity Wrestling Coach. He came to Gilman when he was in fourth grade, and he has been teaching here for 29 years. He currently teaches fifth grade.

Mr. X is very busy as a teacher AND a coach. He has been coaching varsity wrestling for 22 years. He also coaches varsity baseball in the spring.

Mr. Smith was born in Baltimore and went to Gilman as a student. In Upper School, he was a wrestler and played football in lacrosse. He also played lacrosse at the University of Virginia. Coach Smith has two daughters who played squash at Princeton, and they were both team captains.

Here is something you may not know: for the past four years, the squash team at Gilman has been undefeated!

This season in squash, Coach Smith is very proud of the senior class. In particular, his two shining players are seniors Taylor Tutrone and David Hoffman. Next season, Coach Smith knows that the underclassmen will have a tough job stepping in to fill five out of seven spots left by the seniors.

Mr. X. was born in Baltimore and attended Gilman. When he was a student, he wrestled and played football and baseball. He was inspired by his father, an athlete and two-time wrestling champion at Gilman. While Mr. X. was playing football in high school, he broke his leg and he still has problems with his leg even today.

Coach X.‟s favorite part of coaching is the mental part. He told us, “You have to be mentally strong and never let your spirits down.” His goal in wrestling is for his players to cut down on mistakes and improve their techniques.

One of his favorite players is Ryan Rizzuto, our Science teacher‟s son.

Mr. X. feels like he needs more fans, so why not walk down and watch Coach X.‟s wrestling team this winter! You‟ll be glad you did!

Congratulations to Coach Smith for leading the team to an undefeated four years!

Coach of the Year Brooks Lebow, Essex Thayer Meet Jon Seal, the Head Coach of the Varsity Soccer Team. Jon Seal has been coaching the Gilman Soccer team for seven years. This year Coach Seal and junior Andrew Harris led the team to their first championship in 15 years. You would think it was all Andrew Harris, but it was also Jon Seal who took the Hounds all the way! “The success of this year‟s team was a result of hard work and unselfish attitudes,” said Seal in a quote to the Baltimore Sun. Seal led the team to a (17-2-3) record! Overall, Jon Seal deserved The Coach of The Year Award and a led the Greyhounds to a great season!

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Gilman Gazette

COMICS

Volume 4, Issue 3

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COMICS

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Gilman Gazette