We have reports on books our writor's read, essays for all you nonfiction people, and articles we wrote about the world around us.
FRONT DESK AND HOME OF THE BRAVE COMPARISON
By: Wendy Zorn
I have recently read Home of the Brave By: Katherine Applegate and Front Desk By: Kelly Yang. I really liked both of these books because they show what working hard can do for you and other people. These books are very inspiring to me, and showed me what I can do in my in my life that helps other people, and myself.
In Home of the Brave, main character, Kek, is from war torn Sudan and was very new to the American ways and customs of living in Minnesota. Kek faced many problems because of this. His cousin, Ganwar, his aunt Nyatal, and friend/helper/advisor Dave all said his mother wouldn't emerge alive from Sudan. All of his other family members died, but Kek's mother was the only who had the slightest chance of surviving. Kek still kept hope when times got tough, and because of that, he helped himself, and the people around him. I can learn from Kek even when I have smaller problems than he does.
In Front Desk, the main character Mia, is a Chinese immigrant who came to California with her parents. Her parents could barely afford one burger, let alone a medical bill. Mia's mother got a job as the manager at the Calivista Motel in Anaheim. Her parents did the work of two managers for the price of one. They got paid low wages and had an unfair working environment. The manager of the Calivista was Mr. Yao and his son Jason Yao were often mean cruel unfair and racist. Mia finds out that even though she doesn't have the best English, she can use her ability to write to change peoples lives.
Both books have a few things in common. Each protagonist in these stories work hard to achieve what is important to them. Mia wanted to work hard, and get better at speaking English. Her mother put a LOT of pressure on her to get better at math, because that was the only thing she could help Mia with. Mia's mother had worked hard at math as a kid, so naturallly she thought Mia could be just like her. Kek worked hard to learn more about American ways. He got detention because of a misunderstanding with Sudanese customs, and American customs. In the end Kek made America his new home and got used to this place he thought was "strange and cold" at first. Both Kek and Mia are fifth graders with odd jobs for kids their age. Mia works at the Front Desk at the Calivista Motel, and Kek works at a farm. The owner of the farm's name is Lou, and she owns a cow named Gol. Mia found a best friend in California, like Kek did in Minnesota. Mia's was Lupe, and Kek's was Hannah.
` Although both protagonists have many similarities, they have many differences too. Kek got used to working at Lou's farm quicker than Mia did with the Front Desk because he was a farmer since he was a baby in Sudan. Kek worker more in Sudan than he did in America. American life is a "piece of cake" compared to what Kek did and experienced in Sudan. In China, the two most important values were family and education. Mia said that "there were literally two minutes in the day dedicated for play, 5:00-5:02. In Sudan, education was not a priority like it was in China. Kek is not as good at writing or saying English like Mia is, because she was in America two years longer than him.
Mia and Kek are great people who have inspired me in many ways. They're role models even if they don't know it. I really liked these books and hope I will continue reading books like those two.
Farmers, Miners, & Shopkeepers of 1850's
When people think of the California Gold Rush, or the Great Plains, they think of gold diggers and farmers. These gold diggers and farmers faced many challenges in the fields. Gold diggers rarely made a salary, let alone enough to live on, and worked tirelessly in dangerous conditions. Some gold diggers made a fortune because they got lucky by mining/digging in the right area. Farmers could make a decent salary if their area's weather met the right conditions, and the supply and demand of what they were growing was a decent price. A farmer could make $16.00 a week, on average, mainly making it with a crop of wheat. In most cases, a shopkeeper would make more than a farmer and miner combined. They had power over the consumer because they had the necessary supplies that were crucial to survive. Therefore, they could overprice their googs, however they wanted, and get away with it 100%.
The White House
The White House is where the president of the United States of America lives. He runs the country, meets foreign leaders, and passes laws. He does all of this in the White House. In the book you will learn about the history of the White House, events that go on in the White House, the buildings and rooms, the daily life at the White House, and some fun facts about the White House. Continue reading, and you’ll find out a lot of facts about the White House.
1792-1814
In 1790, congress voted to fund the building for the president to live in. Thomas Jefferson held a contest of who could build a model of what is now the White House. An Irish born architect won the contest. His name was Henry Hoban. He thought that the building should be painted entirely white. The construction of the White House began in 1792. The U.S had just finished the Revolutionary War. The war was fought between the thirteen colonies (U.S) and Great Britain. The first president to live in the White House was John Adams, he moved in the year of 1800. Years later, in 1814 the United States fought against Great Britain again for control over the seas. The British set the White House on fire. Current president James Madison had already fled to Camp David. (Camp David is a place where presidents go for vacation or a retreat from their job) James Madison sent a warning message to his wife, Dolley Madison, who was still in the White House. She managed to flee just in time. With her, she brought some silverware from the white house, her caged parrot, and a now famous full length picture of George Washington.
1863-2000
Later during the Lincoln period, the American Civil War was going on. Abraham Lincoln was president during that time. He was in his room for weeks trying to find a way to end the war. Then he thought of something. He would write a paper that could give all the slaves in the south their freedom. It would be called the Emancipation Proclamation. Lincoln wrote it in the Lincoln bedroom. The Lincoln Bedroom was really his personal office where he wrote important papers and made big decisions. Later in time when Harry Truman was president, World War 2 just ended. He was going to make an announcement on the radio to the public. He planned to do this right in the Oval Office. In the year of 1961 President John F. Kennedy greeted the millionth visitor in the White House. Bill Clinton met president J.F.K when he was only 16 years old, after that day, he became interested in politics. In 1969 Richard M. Nixon made the most famous call in American History. He called the astronauts that were on the moon. Later in time, President Ronald Regan appointed Sandra Day O’Connor as the first woman on the Supreme Court. Then in 2000 all Americans celebrated the 200th anniversary of the first person to live in the white house.
EVENTS IN THE WHITE HOUSE
One event in the White House is the Easter Egg Roll. For the Roll, all of the chefs have to cook and dye 14,500 eggs the night before. 35,000 kids and their parents come to the White House lawn to participate in the Easter Egg Roll. For the event 1,500 volunteers are needed to set up the Roll each year. There are other things that people can do, go to the zoo, the circus, or get a giant balloon. Every four years in the month of March, the president has his Inauguration Ball. If the same president was elected again there wouldn’t be one. Another thing that happens at the White house are State Dinners. A state dinner honors a head of state, that's how they got their names. Great Britain has been awarded with most state dinners. The average state dinner costs about $500,000. The White House Calligraphers make dinner menus that the guests at the party get to take home.When there is a State Dinner the guests, or heads of state arrive from the entrance of the East Room.
A few other traditional events are the presidential Christmas Tree Lighting. The tradition started when Calvin Coolidge lit the first National Christmas Tree from the White House Lawn. Every president after him kept the tradition going each year on Christmas. And around 70,000 people visit the Christmas tree each year. Whether it is lit or not. One other thing that the president does, is congratulating the winners of the Super Bowl every February. Here are a few more facts about events in the White House. The President lights a candle celebrating Diwali, pardons a turkey instead of eating it for Thanksgiving, and when a president is about to leave office, he writes a farewell address. That tradition started when Alexander Hamilton secretly wrote George Washington's letter. (Because George Washington was too tired to write it himself)
Buildings And Rooms
The White House used to be the biggest house in the United States of America. Now it is one of the most visited houses in the United States Of America. The White House has 132 rooms, 99 rooms are in the basement, 147 windows, 32 bathrooms, 7 staircases, 28 fireplaces, and 40 hallways. In the basement there is a doctors office, dentists office and a bomb shelter. In all the 16 acres of land that the White House owns there are 4 buildings, 2 parks/plaza’s, and 1 Christmas tree. The map room was used during World War 2. All the maps in the room were produced by National Geographics. Also in 1962 Jacqueline Kennedy redecorated almost all of the rooms in the White House. (Jacqueline Kennedy was often known for her smarts and style)
All of the rooms in the White House for example (Red Room, Green Room, and Blue room) were named after their wall colors and carpet colors. And the blue room was not always blue, it was red until 1837 when Martin Van Buren changed it to blue wallpaper. Another room is the China Room. The room was created in 1917. It holds dishes that were used by almost all of the past presidents and some of the dishes were given by heads of states when they came to the White House. The White House Theater can seat 42 people. There are chairs with armrests that are made from red velvet cloth. Amy Carter, Jimmy Carter's daughter, decided to decorate her room with Victorian Furniture from the White House Collection of Historical Objects.
Life in the White House
The White House has a group of calligraphers that write letters and dinner menus for state dinners. The guests that go to state dinners get to take home the menus as a souvenir. The calligraphers have to write around 10,000 letters during the holiday season. There are also other jobs in the White House, like ushers, florists, curators, housekeepers, chefs, plumbers, carpenters, police officers, and window washers. The team of housekeepers have only 95 hours to clean up after the old first family and put all the photos and furniture of the new first family in. Also the secret service now operates full time. The secret service was founded after president William Mckinley's assasination. There are also groundskeepers that take care of the dogs for the presidential family. Some presidents go to the kitchen to grab a quick bite before going back to work. That's what George Bush did when Babara Bush wasn’t looking.
Fun Facts
One man in Texas spent $250,000 to build a replica of the Oval Office in his house.
A Wealthy Businessman spent $20,000,000 to build a replica of the White House in Iraq.
the president receives an average of 65,000 letters every week, only 25%-50% of the letters get answered.
All of the cooking done in the White was done over open flames till 1850.
A few more facts are that Abraham Lincoln was a cat lover.
Charles Dickens dined with John Tyler
Bill Clinton hosted 938 overnight guests and 821 stayed in the Lincoln Bedroom.
CONCLUSION
In conclusion, in this book you learned about the history of the White House, the events that happen at the White House, the buildings and rooms in the White House, the daily life at the White House, and fun facts about the White House. If you liked this book, read more about the White House.
Bibliography
. National Geographics: White House
. Wackiest White House Pets Written by: Gibbs Davis, Illustrated by: David A. Johnson.
Fibonacci Sequence
Wendy Zorn
The Fibonacci Sequence is a mathematical term created by "Leonardo of Pisa", or more commonly Fibonacci. Putting it in simplest terms, you add the two numbers before and you get your number. This sequence not only applies to math, but nature, art, technology, and so much more. For example, if a person is born, they are equal to their two parents. The genetic pattern would be 50/100. Say a plant was growing in dry barren land. It suddenly rained, and the plant grew. That would not be the only factor, but the rain previously enriched in the flower's ground. The flower not only needed the rain, but the nutrients in the soil they were in. The Fibonacci Sequence shows how someone or something can have many factors to itself.
Fibonacci Sequence: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89, 144, 233, 377, 610, 987, 1597, 2584, 4181, etc.
Also, this sequence shows that someone or something can have an unlimited amount of factors to it. The possibilities are endless (or really big), like the founding of the world, or the genetic print in your body.