"So you will walk in the way of the good and keep to the paths of the righteous. For the upright will inhabit the land, and those with integrity will remain in it." - Proverbs 2:20-21
The pieces below are students' final compositions of the year. They had free choice of what they wanted to write.
Phil's Mission to the Bahamas by: Lorelai Dunn
Phil is a fish who is very bored with his fish tank. He swims this way, then that way, and OOH this way again. He has been wanting to escape from boring prison and finally had his moment. His family was going to the Bahamas! He would just create a super secret, dummy proof plan to soar him to the Bahamas.
"Calibre, you're tall, can you take me to the top of the tank please?... I need some fresh air."
So Calibre swooped him up on his back and raced to the top of the tank. "You can go back down now buddy, thanks." And with that the first part of his plan was complete.
Phil wiggled to the edge of the tank and tossed himself up onto it. He flopped all the way down until he hit the ground, "Wow this room looks a lot bigger from down here!"
Next, he had to think of his next plan but before he could, he realized he was running out of water breath! So he dug through the fish cabinet and found a water oxygen pack that would last him at least a week. Strapping it on his back, off he went.
His family had just finished all their packing, and he hopped in Lorelai's suitcase right before she closed it. He was in! Strapped and ready to go he braced himself for impact. Then, he fell asleep.
Although he stopped moving when he fell asleep, the suitcase didn’t. It went straight to the airport, and it was secured on the plane.
When he woke up he was in the Bahamas! he jumped out of the suitcase and looked round. "Beautiful!", he said, "What to do first."
He met some friends along the way: two other fish, a beagle, and a snail. They explored the area together and had a great time. But finally, the time came for Phil to travel home, he didn’t want to leave his friends! "We can all go guys!" he said, "My family has been wanting more pets. You can stay with us!"
They all loved that idea and hopped in the suitcase. But before they new it they were back home with the Dunn's and lived happily ever after.
P.S. Phil now takes trips all around the world with his friends, and sends postcards to all his other fishy friends. AND THE OTHER ANIMALS IN THE STORY LIVE AT THE DUNN'S HOUSE ALSO!
"Calibre, you're tall, can you take me to the top of the tank please?... I need some fresh air."
So Calibre swooped him up on his back and raced to the top of the tank. "You can go back down now buddy, thanks." And with that the first part of his plan was complete.
Phil wiggled to the edge of the tank and tossed himself up onto it. He flopped all the way down until he hit the ground, "Wow this room looks a lot bigger from down here!"
Next, he had to think of his next plan but before he could, he realized he was running out of water breath! So he dug through the fish cabinet and found a water oxygen pack that would last him at least a week. Strapping it on his back, off he went.
His family had just finished all their packing, and he hopped in Lorelai's suitcase right before she closed it. He was in! Strapped and ready to go he braced himself for impact. Then, he fell asleep.
Although he stopped moving when he fell asleep, the suitcase didn’t. It went straight to the airport, and it was secured on the plane.
When he woke up he was in the Bahamas! he jumped out of the suitcase and looked round. "Beautiful!", he said, "What to do first."
He met some friends along the way: two other fish, a beagle, and a snail. They explored the area together and had a great time. But finally, the time came for Phil to travel home, he didn’t want to leave his friends! "We can all go guys!" he said, "My family has been wanting more pets. You can stay with us!"
They all loved that idea and hopped in the suitcase. But before they new it they were back home with the Dunn's and lived happily ever after.
P.S. Phil now takes trips all around the world with his friends, and sends postcards to all his other fishy friends. AND THE OTHER ANIMALS IN THE STORY LIVE AT THE DUNN'S HOUSE ALSO!
Exploding Cucumber Plant by: Evan Lam
Have you ever wondered how exploding cucumbers, or the ecballium elaterium came into existence? Those weird plants with what looks like a peeled kiwi at the end? Well, after years of hard work, I’ve finally uncovered the history behind the mysterious plants.
One day, there was a garden snake. The problem with the garden snake is that it was SUPER greedy. I mean like, not just “I want that”, but he was like “I want that NOW!” The green garden snake would do and eat whatever he wanted. But, unfortunately, the thing he had his eye on was a pufferfish. The second he saw the pufferfish, he could never think of anything else. Every day, he just thought, “I want that pufferfish NOW, NOW, NOW, NOW!!!!!!!” And to his dismay, he was never able to eat the pufferfish, because he had never learned to swim. Although he knew that it would take time, he started training to swim. Day after day, he would train. After a year of training, he could swim with ease.
Then, he thought to himself, “Finally, I will be able to eat this pufferfish!” He quickly ate a piece of pumpkin, and slithered to the river’s edge, and he waited. After 3 hours of waiting, he finally saw a flash of yellow. “YAY!” he thought to himself as he swiftly dove into the water. And sure enough, he had the pufferfish in his mouth in no time. “I’m going to swallow this pufferfish in one big gulp!” The snake then, with one big breath, swallowed the pufferfish. Actually, tried to swallow the pufferfish. The pufferfish slowly slid down his throat, but all of a sudden stopped. Then, the snake heard a small voice say “NEVER! YOU WILL DIE WITH ME!”
“My goodness, what a terrible temper he has!” The snake thought to himself. (Because of course his mouth was full, and it would be impolite to talk with a mouth that’s full of “food”.) All at once, the snake felt a pang of pain, and a few dozen spikes shot out from the bulge in his throat. As the spikes shot out, the snake fell dead onto the grass. Ew…
After 36 years of laying in dirt, (for some reason, that was the exact amount of spikes the pufferfish had), they (the snake and the pufferfish as one) sprung from the dirt. Not alive of course, but as a plant. See, the pufferfish had become the cucumber of the “plant”. The pufferfish’s spikes had become the thorny part of the cucumber, and the snake became the “stem”. Because the snake had eaten pumpkin, which had seeds, right before he had eaten the pufferfish, the plant that they transformed into had taken the seeds from the snake’s stomach, and turned it into a seedy cucumber/pufferfish. And because of the pufferfish’s terrible temper, whenever he is touched, it will would explode with seeds flying everywhere. Now I beg you,
whenever you’re passing one of those plants, please don’t disturb the pufferfish (or the spiky bulge of the plant), or else, he will explode in your face.
One day, there was a garden snake. The problem with the garden snake is that it was SUPER greedy. I mean like, not just “I want that”, but he was like “I want that NOW!” The green garden snake would do and eat whatever he wanted. But, unfortunately, the thing he had his eye on was a pufferfish. The second he saw the pufferfish, he could never think of anything else. Every day, he just thought, “I want that pufferfish NOW, NOW, NOW, NOW!!!!!!!” And to his dismay, he was never able to eat the pufferfish, because he had never learned to swim. Although he knew that it would take time, he started training to swim. Day after day, he would train. After a year of training, he could swim with ease.
Then, he thought to himself, “Finally, I will be able to eat this pufferfish!” He quickly ate a piece of pumpkin, and slithered to the river’s edge, and he waited. After 3 hours of waiting, he finally saw a flash of yellow. “YAY!” he thought to himself as he swiftly dove into the water. And sure enough, he had the pufferfish in his mouth in no time. “I’m going to swallow this pufferfish in one big gulp!” The snake then, with one big breath, swallowed the pufferfish. Actually, tried to swallow the pufferfish. The pufferfish slowly slid down his throat, but all of a sudden stopped. Then, the snake heard a small voice say “NEVER! YOU WILL DIE WITH ME!”
“My goodness, what a terrible temper he has!” The snake thought to himself. (Because of course his mouth was full, and it would be impolite to talk with a mouth that’s full of “food”.) All at once, the snake felt a pang of pain, and a few dozen spikes shot out from the bulge in his throat. As the spikes shot out, the snake fell dead onto the grass. Ew…
After 36 years of laying in dirt, (for some reason, that was the exact amount of spikes the pufferfish had), they (the snake and the pufferfish as one) sprung from the dirt. Not alive of course, but as a plant. See, the pufferfish had become the cucumber of the “plant”. The pufferfish’s spikes had become the thorny part of the cucumber, and the snake became the “stem”. Because the snake had eaten pumpkin, which had seeds, right before he had eaten the pufferfish, the plant that they transformed into had taken the seeds from the snake’s stomach, and turned it into a seedy cucumber/pufferfish. And because of the pufferfish’s terrible temper, whenever he is touched, it will would explode with seeds flying everywhere. Now I beg you,
whenever you’re passing one of those plants, please don’t disturb the pufferfish (or the spiky bulge of the plant), or else, he will explode in your face.
The Girl with the Blue Hair by: Madison Laurie
One day there was a girl named Skyler who woke up on a beautiful Saturday morning and when she looked in the mirror her hair was turning blue! How odd, she thought this is. She was laying on her bed for a couple of minutes thinking about how this could have happened. She was thinking,” Its ok, but it isn’t.” Her mom called for her to come downstairs and have some breakfast. As she tiptoed down she was looking at the new freshly painted walls and the shiny flooring that was redone. Skyler went downstairs calmly hoping that her mom wouldn’t react.
When she tiptoed downstairs Skyler could hear the sizzling bacon on the stove and the eggs boiling. When her Mom turned around and saw her, she dropped her perfectly crafted tea cup of glass on the floor and she had her mouth wide open.
“Skyler, what in the world did you do to your hair?” said Skyler’s mom.
“I don’t know. Stop asking question about my hair. I just woke up this morning and looked in my new mirror and I saw this glowing blue hair.”
“Skyler, why don’t you go up to your bedroom and do you like your new house?”
“I do like my new house, but maybe I got my blue hair from this new house.”
“Ok, maybe this house is a little strange.” Two days later…
The next thing you know Skyler was on the bus to school and trying to fix her hair. Everyone was looking at Skyler in the hallway in a “this person is cool” way. After school was over Skyler found a note at her door. It said: “Come to my house today and I will tell you about how your hair changed.” There was an address written on it and it was just down the street. When Skyler arrived at the house she had many questions. Skyler didn’t see anyone except a tiny red gnome in the backyard. Skyler was staring at the gnome for a while and it started talking by saying, “Hello, how are you doing today?”
“Who said that? I know karate.”
“Remember me? By the way my name is Ruby. Please forgive my manners. Hello Magical Skyler Elizabeth Morgan.”
Just as he was about to finish his sentence Skyler interrupted him shouting,
“YOU ARE INSANE WHAT ARE YOU DOING ON EARTH?”
“Well, first calm down. Second stop yelling. Lots of gnomes talk. I’m the only one that is in a garden. It all started back when I was just a baby gnome. My mom placed me in her pocket and I fell out. We were in a super market and my family was almost caught. When I fell out of my mom’s pocket I was immediately on sale for $1.75. The next day when the super market opened, a little girl thought I was a toy and she took me home. The little girl was only 10 years old and was so cute that I couldn’t let her down. If I could’ve I would have left earlier, but I didn’t want the little girl to grow up having a bad experience like me. When the girl was 18 I didn’t want to see her go off to college, but she moved on and I was moved onto the front of this house. After she went off to college I was forgotten. Stories were told to me about the magic keepers and I was amazed. She was meant to have blue hair that would symbolize that she would keep all of the blue magic in her blue hair. There are millions of magical times that are stored in your hair, Skyler. One day the gnomes came together to talk about who would be the next keeper of magic. Everyone decided that you should be the keeper of magic, except one gnome La Cru Viv Wiggleworm. He wanted to rule the world and control everybody. Only one person can stop him, and that’s you. Legend has it that whoever has blue hair and just moved into a specific house is the new magic keeper. If La Cru Viv Wiggleworm finds out that you are the keeper of magic he will get his revenge. Hold on pause the story. Did I mention that surprisingly out of nowhere La Cru Viv Wiggleworm fell off a cliff in Candyland?”
“No.”
“Aww. Sorry now back to the story… So after La Cru Viv Wiggleworm fell of that cliff, life was the best. Now that La Cru Viv Wiggleworm is gone you will have more power than anyone I think that soon you’ll grow wings. La Cru Viv Wiggleworm put a spell on whoever is special can’t have wings. Now that La Cru Viv Wiggleworm is gone the curse is broken! Well any questions?”
“ Yes. If I grow wings I’m going to have to run away from my parents and my whole life. I’m only just about to finish high school tomorrow! How am I supposed to be a mythical creature if I’m in this world? I have to go to college soon.”
“ Well, we kind of take special people like you away to another world. You could call this world Mythlandia- a magical place where everything is possible. You can fly a unicorn in Mythlandia or you could become a mermaid or learn how to fly. Mythlandia is a place where everyone is welcome and when you’re gone nobody will know that you ever existed. You will be living in Mythlandia for the rest of your life and you can have anything you could ever want. Doesn’t that sound great?”
“ I don’t know if great is the right word to describe living in Mythlandia for the rest of my life. I’m going home now.”
Right when Skyler arrived home, she felt like something was wrong. She walked upstairs to her bathroom, looked in the mirror and saw two wings that looked as if they were made out of silk. When she touched the wings they felt very soft and didn’t move. After an hour, Skyler was taken to Mythlandia by a fairy. Skyler stared at the silky, soft clouds and all of the mythical creatures around her. She saw everyone being happy as if this was a fairytale. All of a sudden a fairy walked up to her. It was the same fairy that had taken her to Mythlandia. Skyler told her all of her feelings about what the gnome had told her.
“You must be the new keeper of magic. I’m Kelly by the way. It’s so nice to meet you. So this is going to be where you are going to live. Welcome to Fairy Ville.”
“Wow! This is amazing! I guess the talking gnome was right. I should probably get to work.”
“Right this way.”
Kelly shows Skyler this mansion where all of the fairies work and one special room full of trinkets including a map of Mythlandia, a guidebook on how to be a great fairy and many more trinkets. Skyler loved living in Mythlandia and no one knew she was gone. Skyler was great at her job and she lived in Mythlandia for many amazing years. No one can die in Mythlandia and Skyler is still great at her job!
When she tiptoed downstairs Skyler could hear the sizzling bacon on the stove and the eggs boiling. When her Mom turned around and saw her, she dropped her perfectly crafted tea cup of glass on the floor and she had her mouth wide open.
“Skyler, what in the world did you do to your hair?” said Skyler’s mom.
“I don’t know. Stop asking question about my hair. I just woke up this morning and looked in my new mirror and I saw this glowing blue hair.”
“Skyler, why don’t you go up to your bedroom and do you like your new house?”
“I do like my new house, but maybe I got my blue hair from this new house.”
“Ok, maybe this house is a little strange.” Two days later…
The next thing you know Skyler was on the bus to school and trying to fix her hair. Everyone was looking at Skyler in the hallway in a “this person is cool” way. After school was over Skyler found a note at her door. It said: “Come to my house today and I will tell you about how your hair changed.” There was an address written on it and it was just down the street. When Skyler arrived at the house she had many questions. Skyler didn’t see anyone except a tiny red gnome in the backyard. Skyler was staring at the gnome for a while and it started talking by saying, “Hello, how are you doing today?”
“Who said that? I know karate.”
“Remember me? By the way my name is Ruby. Please forgive my manners. Hello Magical Skyler Elizabeth Morgan.”
Just as he was about to finish his sentence Skyler interrupted him shouting,
“YOU ARE INSANE WHAT ARE YOU DOING ON EARTH?”
“Well, first calm down. Second stop yelling. Lots of gnomes talk. I’m the only one that is in a garden. It all started back when I was just a baby gnome. My mom placed me in her pocket and I fell out. We were in a super market and my family was almost caught. When I fell out of my mom’s pocket I was immediately on sale for $1.75. The next day when the super market opened, a little girl thought I was a toy and she took me home. The little girl was only 10 years old and was so cute that I couldn’t let her down. If I could’ve I would have left earlier, but I didn’t want the little girl to grow up having a bad experience like me. When the girl was 18 I didn’t want to see her go off to college, but she moved on and I was moved onto the front of this house. After she went off to college I was forgotten. Stories were told to me about the magic keepers and I was amazed. She was meant to have blue hair that would symbolize that she would keep all of the blue magic in her blue hair. There are millions of magical times that are stored in your hair, Skyler. One day the gnomes came together to talk about who would be the next keeper of magic. Everyone decided that you should be the keeper of magic, except one gnome La Cru Viv Wiggleworm. He wanted to rule the world and control everybody. Only one person can stop him, and that’s you. Legend has it that whoever has blue hair and just moved into a specific house is the new magic keeper. If La Cru Viv Wiggleworm finds out that you are the keeper of magic he will get his revenge. Hold on pause the story. Did I mention that surprisingly out of nowhere La Cru Viv Wiggleworm fell off a cliff in Candyland?”
“No.”
“Aww. Sorry now back to the story… So after La Cru Viv Wiggleworm fell of that cliff, life was the best. Now that La Cru Viv Wiggleworm is gone you will have more power than anyone I think that soon you’ll grow wings. La Cru Viv Wiggleworm put a spell on whoever is special can’t have wings. Now that La Cru Viv Wiggleworm is gone the curse is broken! Well any questions?”
“ Yes. If I grow wings I’m going to have to run away from my parents and my whole life. I’m only just about to finish high school tomorrow! How am I supposed to be a mythical creature if I’m in this world? I have to go to college soon.”
“ Well, we kind of take special people like you away to another world. You could call this world Mythlandia- a magical place where everything is possible. You can fly a unicorn in Mythlandia or you could become a mermaid or learn how to fly. Mythlandia is a place where everyone is welcome and when you’re gone nobody will know that you ever existed. You will be living in Mythlandia for the rest of your life and you can have anything you could ever want. Doesn’t that sound great?”
“ I don’t know if great is the right word to describe living in Mythlandia for the rest of my life. I’m going home now.”
Right when Skyler arrived home, she felt like something was wrong. She walked upstairs to her bathroom, looked in the mirror and saw two wings that looked as if they were made out of silk. When she touched the wings they felt very soft and didn’t move. After an hour, Skyler was taken to Mythlandia by a fairy. Skyler stared at the silky, soft clouds and all of the mythical creatures around her. She saw everyone being happy as if this was a fairytale. All of a sudden a fairy walked up to her. It was the same fairy that had taken her to Mythlandia. Skyler told her all of her feelings about what the gnome had told her.
“You must be the new keeper of magic. I’m Kelly by the way. It’s so nice to meet you. So this is going to be where you are going to live. Welcome to Fairy Ville.”
“Wow! This is amazing! I guess the talking gnome was right. I should probably get to work.”
“Right this way.”
Kelly shows Skyler this mansion where all of the fairies work and one special room full of trinkets including a map of Mythlandia, a guidebook on how to be a great fairy and many more trinkets. Skyler loved living in Mythlandia and no one knew she was gone. Skyler was great at her job and she lived in Mythlandia for many amazing years. No one can die in Mythlandia and Skyler is still great at her job!
GusGus and the Cheese by: Tara Liu
It started as any normal day where little Gus Gus woke up and headed to the kitchen to consume some cheese. Hoping he could avoid Lucifer, the monstrous cat, he skedaddled as quickly as he could into the kitchen. As soon as Gus started running, so did Lucifer!
“Oh no!” Gus thought.
He would never reach the cheese if this happened every day! Quickly, Gus ran back to his little hole in the wall and contrived a plan to retrieve the cheese. Luckily, everyday Cinderella is assigned long hard chores. Maybe she could help Gus Gus attain some cheese!
“That’s a great plan!” Gus said to himself.
Excitedly, Gus poked his head out of the little hole and checked the time. It was twelve o’clock, and Cinderella should be coming to wash the floors anytime now! When Gus saw Cinderella coming down the stairs, he scurried to her as fast as his little legs could carry him.
“Woah, slow down.” Cinderella said.
Gus tried to tell her that he wanted cheese, but of course she couldn’t understand him. Eventually, he gave up and told himself it was useless and she wouldn’t ever understand him. As time passed, Cinderella was still working on the floors when all of a sudden, a ginormous orca whale, monkey, baby tiger, and map came flopping into the house.
“What are these ginormous animals doing in my house? They scared poor Lucifer!” Cinderella’s step mother said.
“Yes! Lucifer’s gone? Now would be the perfect time to drop in for cheese!” Gus planned.
Sure enough, when Gus scooted into the kitchen, Lucifer was nowhere to be found. Gus hopped onto the counter, but wait! Where is the cheese?
“Uh oh. All that work for nothing? All I want is a little cheese!” Gus whined to himself.
“Gus, do you want some cheese?” Cinderella asked him as she handed him a big piece of cheese.
Happily, Gus Gus hustled and bustled back to his little hole, but this time, with cheese! Once he was inside, he enjoyed his cheese and didn’t waste a crumb!
“Oh no!” Gus thought.
He would never reach the cheese if this happened every day! Quickly, Gus ran back to his little hole in the wall and contrived a plan to retrieve the cheese. Luckily, everyday Cinderella is assigned long hard chores. Maybe she could help Gus Gus attain some cheese!
“That’s a great plan!” Gus said to himself.
Excitedly, Gus poked his head out of the little hole and checked the time. It was twelve o’clock, and Cinderella should be coming to wash the floors anytime now! When Gus saw Cinderella coming down the stairs, he scurried to her as fast as his little legs could carry him.
“Woah, slow down.” Cinderella said.
Gus tried to tell her that he wanted cheese, but of course she couldn’t understand him. Eventually, he gave up and told himself it was useless and she wouldn’t ever understand him. As time passed, Cinderella was still working on the floors when all of a sudden, a ginormous orca whale, monkey, baby tiger, and map came flopping into the house.
“What are these ginormous animals doing in my house? They scared poor Lucifer!” Cinderella’s step mother said.
“Yes! Lucifer’s gone? Now would be the perfect time to drop in for cheese!” Gus planned.
Sure enough, when Gus scooted into the kitchen, Lucifer was nowhere to be found. Gus hopped onto the counter, but wait! Where is the cheese?
“Uh oh. All that work for nothing? All I want is a little cheese!” Gus whined to himself.
“Gus, do you want some cheese?” Cinderella asked him as she handed him a big piece of cheese.
Happily, Gus Gus hustled and bustled back to his little hole, but this time, with cheese! Once he was inside, he enjoyed his cheese and didn’t waste a crumb!
Journey into a Pineapple by: Brooke Reynolds
Have you ever wondered what is inside of a juicy, plump pineapple? Well today’s your lucky day because this is a story about the inside and outside of a pineapple. First, you have the outside, the spiny mountain of little spears that are sure to snag your shirt. Second, since you have to find a way inside, you can use a normal kitchen knife to cut a small opening to see the vast expanse of yellow. What you will see first is the juicy river, which flows into the holding bubble. This bubble holds all of the juice in the fruit until it is cut, then the bubble beaks, and all of the sweet juice flows everywhere!
Next you will see the forest of pulp and strings, which when the fruit is ripe, the strings contract to create the pulpy flesh of the fruit. Because of the strings coming together, it helps the juice to flow smoothly. When you reach the end of the forest, you will come across the little village of seeds. These seeds are actually inhabitants of the pineapple that make sure the holding bubble is working, the strings aren’t to tangled, and that their home is a perfect shade of yellow. Finally, you will reach a small hatch at the top that brings you to Leafy-Point Ridge. This is where the huge, green leaves puncture the pineapple. You can also use this bit as a viewing port. You might say “Hey, look over here. I can see my house!”
This is the end of the tour, I hope you enjoyed experiencing all of the wonders of a pineapple, and had a good laugh during it too!
Next you will see the forest of pulp and strings, which when the fruit is ripe, the strings contract to create the pulpy flesh of the fruit. Because of the strings coming together, it helps the juice to flow smoothly. When you reach the end of the forest, you will come across the little village of seeds. These seeds are actually inhabitants of the pineapple that make sure the holding bubble is working, the strings aren’t to tangled, and that their home is a perfect shade of yellow. Finally, you will reach a small hatch at the top that brings you to Leafy-Point Ridge. This is where the huge, green leaves puncture the pineapple. You can also use this bit as a viewing port. You might say “Hey, look over here. I can see my house!”
This is the end of the tour, I hope you enjoyed experiencing all of the wonders of a pineapple, and had a good laugh during it too!