This is a really good book by Erin Hunter about wild cats that live in groups called clans. The four clans are Thunderclan, Riverclan, Windclan, and Shadowclan. Each clan raises their kits to become warriors who fight and hunt for the clan. A kittypet named Rusty tries to hunt in Thunderclan territory. Then one Warrior apprentice named Graypaw finds Rusty and explains about the clans. Rusty joins Thunderclan and his name is changed to Firepaw. He waits for when he is done with his warrior training and can become a full warrior. All the clans struggle with the wrath of the Shadowclan leader, Brokenstar. Brokenstar trains Shadowclan kits into apprentices when they are too young to do so, he drives Windclan out of their territory. This book is very good and is the first book of the Warrior series which has a few series connected to it. For more info on book 1, visit:
Book review (by Summer): Snakehead April 17, 2008
I wanted to let y’all know about this book I read a few days ago. The name of the book was Snakehead by Anthony Horowitz. It is the latest book in the Alex Rider series. If you have never read an Alex Rider book before I suggest that you start with the first book in the series. One of the things I liked about this book was that the author put a page in the front that catches the reader up on what happened in the last book. When we last left Alex he was falling to the earth in a capsule. Boy that line right there caught my attention. I wasn’t for sure if the author could pull off another great story. I was also afraid the story was going to get slow but I don’t think it did. It is a great story for younger and older boys both. As for the girls I think they would enjoy it just as much as the boys. After all, who doesn’t like to read about a teenager who is a British spy and kicks the bad guys butt. I found that the more pages I read the more I got into the story. I think you’ll find that you are right there with Alex no matter if he is in the jungle or in outerspace. (You will have to read the book to find out what I mean.) When I was finished the book I wanted to see what happens next with Alex. I hope that you read the book and enjoy it as much as I did.
Fayetteville High School: renovate or relocate? April 7, 2008
WOWbloggers – One of the hottest topics in Fayetteville right now is whether to keep the high school at its current site and build it up to par, or to build a new facility out on Deane Solomon Road. Parents and other concerned citizens have been very vocal on the matter, and quite understandably so; a lot is at stake. But what say you about it? You are, after all, at the very heart of the matter, whether you are a student there now or will be someday soon. Would you prefer FHS to stay or to go, and why?
Wanderer Illustration Contest March 13, 2008
Submit between March 1 and March 31
Artists in Grades 3-12 are invited to submit original work for consideration as illustrations in The Wanderer, an annual publication of the Fayetteville Public Library. All entries will be displayed in an exhibit in the young adult library. Selected entries will be published in The Wanderer. Color or black-and-white pen-and-ink drawings, pencil drawings, prints, and paintings are welcome. Contact Caitlyn Spaulding at cspaulding@faylib.org for more information.
Ultimate Juvenile/YA Collection February 29, 2008
Okay, 3rd-12th graders (real ones and those who wish they still were) for whom the WOWblog was enthusiastically established: What book(s) would you include in your ultimate juvenile/YA collection – fiction and nonfiction?
Blog Monitoring by Schools? February 26, 2008
Check this out! Any thoughts?
“The AP [reported] that the Illinois School District [planned] to monitor the blogs and MySpace profiles of some of their students.
The board of Community High School District 128 voted unanimously… to require that all students participating in extracurricular activities sign a pledge agreeing that evidence of ‘illegal or inappropriate’ behavior posted on the Internet could be grounds for disciplinary action. District officials [weren't going] to regularly search students’ sites, but [would] monitor them if they [got] a worrisome tip from another student, a parent or a community member.
At least one parent was unhappy with the decision. Mary Greenberg of Lake Bluff, who has a son at Libertyville High School, argued the district [was] overstepping its bounds.
‘I don’t think they need to police what students are doing online,’ she said. ‘That’s my job.’
That comment was criticized by the associate superintendent.
‘The concept that searching a blog site is an invasion of privacy is almost an oxymoron,’ he said. ‘It is called the World Wide Web.’
Technically the parent talked about policing and not about privacy, but the associate superintendent is correct about the lack of privacy on the Web. Any blog or social networking profile can be seen by just about anyone using the Internet unless the blog or profile is passworded or is set up so that it can only be seen by preselected people.”
Courtesy of http://www.bloggersblog.com/teens/
MySpace controversy February 19, 2008
Hey, people, read and discuss!
“The Detroit News [reported] that a Michigan Catholic school called St. Hugo of the Hills Catholic School would no longer allow students that have MySpace profile to attend the school.
Students at a suburban Catholic school are being ordered to take down their photos, snappy comments, or anything else they may have posted on MySpace.com.
Friday is the deadline for students at St. Hugo of the Hills Catholic School to follow orders or risk suspension. School Principal Sister Margaret Van Velzen sent letters home to parents this week saying, in part, that if families allow children to continue their MySpace.com sites, they will not be allowed to return to school. The school plans to use its computer-savvy staff members to monitor the site for student activity.The principal declined comment, but St. Hugo office manager Judy Martinek said the principal just wants to keep the students safe.
‘We’ve stated our position and we hope all students are in the process of taking down their sites by tomorrow,’ said Martinek.
It may sound like a big overreaction to deny students access to the school just because they have a MySpace profile but this is what is happening. The article cites a county sheriff and a local parent who both agree with the school’s decision. MySpace is not the only social network on the Internet so the ban won’t even necessarily prevent the kids from using social networks. Still the ban may prevent naive high school students from posting stuff on a MySpace profile they may regret later when applying to college or trying to get a job.”
(courtesy of BloggersBlog.com — Teens and Blogging)
If? by Anonymous February 5, 2008
If people were to smile
And whisper sweet things,
Would this world be as troubled
Or in such need?
If people were to laugh and hug one another,
Would people not hate,
But love each other?
Super Tuesday February 4, 2008
Tomorrow is a huge day in American politics! If you are old enough to vote, be sure to exercise that amazing right! If you are not quite voting age, you can still do your part by reading up on the history and make-up of the U.S. voting process and by studying the candidates and talking about them with family and friends. Knowledge is power! What are the thoughts out there about this campaign season starting so early? And do you believe the American voting protocol (delegates, Electoral College, etc.) is still effective, or is it time to overhaul the system? Here’s a quick 411 on delegates:Both major political parties (Democratic and Republican) officially nominate their candidate for President at their respective national conventions, usually held during the summer before the election. Depending on state law and state party rules, when voters cast ballots for a candidate in a presidential caucus or primary, they may actually be voting to award delegates “bound” to vote for a candidate at the state or national convention, or they may simply be expressing an opinion that the state party is not bound to follow in selecting delegates to the national convention. In addition to delegates chosen during primaries and caucuses, state delegations to both the (Democratic and Republican) conventions also include “unpledged” delegates. For Republicans, these include top party officials. Democrats have a more expansive group of unpledged delegates called “superdelegates“, who are party leaders and elected officials.
In recent elections, the eventual nominees were known well before the actual conventions took place. The last time a major party’s nominee was not clear before the convention was in 1976, when incumbent president Gerald Ford narrowly defeated Ronald Reagan.
Picture by Flannery Quinn January 25, 2008
It captures time
And puts it in a frame
Smiles, frowns, tears and laughter
Of people in the past.
A snippet of a story,
A taste of a tale,
Like a crumb of a cake.
Pictures percieve people,
Posing or playing,
They are memories,
Showing stories
Seen and unseen.
