Half Day Happenings

APRIL, 2009 WE WRITE IT, YOU READ IT.
Check Out the Third Grade Chess Team, Mate By Tyler G., 3rd grade Success may seem to come easy for the third grade chess team of District 103. As second graders in Spring, 2008, they nished third in the nation. As third graders, in the fall of 2008, they placed rst in the state of Illinois. At the Illinois Chess All-Grade State Tournament in November, the third grade chess team placed rst place by combining the top four scores from the team. The third graders whose scores earned the rst place trophy in that event were Alex B. (2nd place), James W. (3rd place), Haoyang Y. (8th place) and Conrad O. (13th place). Also, Katherine M., Bridget H. and Weston A. participated in this tournament.
Over spring break, the third grade team competed in SuperNational IV at Nashville, Tennessee. The team came in rst place again but this time it was a national meet. Alex B. tied for 2nd place, James W. tied for 3rd place and Conrad O. tied for 4th place. The teams success may seem easy but it involves long hours of practice. Just ask Conrad O. who will be going to the National K-12 Scholastic Championship in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, December 12-14, 2008. Before a national tournament, I practice at least 4 hours a day, Conrad reported. His highest nish in a national tournament was third place in 2008 in the K-3 age division. The District 103 chess team was founded in 2001 by Coach Dave Monatelli. I went to Sprague when I was in Kindergarten. I started
coaching here when my son went here for Kindergarten and I wanted a chess club for him, explained Coach Dave. Currently, there are 35 members on the District 103 Chess Team. The chess club congregates Tuesday evenings from 6:45-7:45. The members break into small groups to work with the coaching staff. New members are always welcome from kindergarten through eighth grade. You can be just learning or a chess wizard. If you join, you can have great success, but youll have to work hard!

www.chesstheory.com

Americas Hope is Renewed By:Ashley S. 3rd grade President Barack Obama was inaugurated on January 20, 2009. It was a historical moment because Barack Obama is the rst multiracial president, Asian and African American. The inauguration was held in front of the U.S. Capitol Building. The oath was given to the President by Justice John Roberts Jr. Unfortunately the Justice messed up the oath, so later that day he gave the oath again to our President. One of the promises the President agreed to keep is to defend the Constitution. The Constitution is a set of rules that all Americans live by. It belongs to the United States and all Americans. It is the highest law of government. The Constitution also explains how the government works including the jobs of the President, Congress and Supreme Court. Approximately 12.4 million people watched the inauguration including the students at Half Day School. After President Obama took the oath, he spoke to America and the world about his hopes and beliefs for the next four years. Later that day, President Obama and our new rst lady, Michelle Obama , walked in the Presidential Parade on Pennsylvania Avenue. That evening the President and the rst lady danced the night away at ten different inaugural balls. Also that night Malia and Sasha, the Presidents daughters had a sleepover. At the sleepover the Jonas brothers sang! How cool would that be! At 2 a.m., the President and the rst lady took the presidential car to their new home, the White House. When
they walked into the door, I bet their kids Malia and Sasha came running up to their dad, the President of the United States of America. Laughing While Learning With Mrs. Gordon By: Jenna M., 4th grade Have you ever thought about being a teacher and changed your mind? Well think again! Fourth grade teacher, Mrs. Gordon, says, I love being a teacher and I wouldnt want any other job in the world. My favorite thing about teaching is watching kids laugh while they learn. I also love watching students learn a new skill or make new friends. When students successfully nish a project, write a story, or complete a hard math problem, I feel as proud as they do. I cant imagine doing anything else for a job. Teaching is my passion! In a recent interview with Mrs. Gordon, I learned more about her life and teaching. Question: When did you become a teacher at Half Day? Answer: I became a teacher at Half Day in 2003. First I taught third grade and now I am loving teaching fourth grade. Question: How many years have you been a teacher? Answer: I have been teaching for 20 years. Question: Who inspired you to become a teacher? Answer: I had many special teachers in my life that made me want to be a teacher, like my sixth grade teacher, Mr. Bellamini. He told funny stories. My high school economics teacher told us that we could be anything we wanted if we worked hard and

believed in ourselves. BUT.the person who made me want to be a teacher the most was my dad who said to follow my dreams! Question: Why did you want to become a teacher? Answer: I wanted to become a teacher because I love being around kids. I also wanted to make sure that students have fun learning. School should be fun (at least most of the time) and learning should be something that everyone enjoys. Question: Where did you do your rst year of teaching? Answer: My rst teaching job was in Chicago. I worked with children who lived in special government housing. There was a lot of crime and poverty where they lived. I enjoyed my experience there very much. Question: What do you do outside of school? Answer: Outside of school I spend time with my two daughters, Zoe and Amanda. We like to go to Life Time, shop, play games and go on the computer. My hobbies are reading, crafts and tennis.
Keeping It All In.Airplane Advice By Laura M., 4th grade Everybody loves to travel, right? Not exactly, in fact not everyone loves to travel, but most people dont mind it too much. Plenty of people dont like travel because of air sickness and trust me, if you puke, the person next to you wont enjoy it anymore than you. Nausea including vomiting, and stomach aches are a few of the difculties people face while ying on airplanes. One reason for nausea could be claustrophobia which is when you feel nausea in small, closed-in places like cars and AIRPLANES. So, here are some ways to help keep your last meal in.when you y. Dont drink too much soda or juice because you dont want it splashing around in your stomach making your stomach hurt. The acid in those drinks can lead to nausea. Try sleeping because it passes time and obviously you wont be awake to feel nausea. Earaches can cause headaches because in your ear there are air lled chambers that connect to your sinuses. When you go up in an airplane, the air pressure increases and pushes on your ear making your ear drum hurt. One way to prevent these earaches is to chew gum. It releases the air pressure preventing headaches. So follow these tactics to keep your meal in while. but if you lose your lunch, PLEASE.use the garbage bin !

TopTenMoviesof2008

byJakeS.,3rdgrade
I conducted a survey where all of the third grade decided on what movie was the the best in 2008. I decided to show the top ten movies below. Bolthasthemostvotes.Boltisacomedyadventure lmaboutadogwhothinkshehassuperpowers.

Bolt Twilight Kung Fu Panda The Tale of Despereaux Madagascar 2 Star Wars: The Clone Wars High-School Musical 3 Wall-e Ironman Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull Survey of Third Graders top ten movies of 2008

4% 5% 7% 7% 8%

14% 9% 11% 11%
The Secret of Teaching According to Mrs.Belford By: Michelle S., 4th grade

www.lewisgraphics.com

Do you think you know everything about Mrs.Belford? If you do, this is the chance to make sure. If you dont then this is the chance to learn more. Mrs.Belford says, The secret of teaching students is to respect them because if you do, they feel you care for them and listen to you, work hard and start learning. Fourth grader Hayley R. agrees with Mrs.Belford, I feel she cares for me like a godmother, Im always ready to listen to what she has to say and learn because she makes learning fun. Mrs.Belford also says, Students love to learn when you make learning fun, so you should use games and activities to help students learn. Classmate Ming L. grades Mrs.Belfords games after playing with most of them in the last 5 months,I think that all of the games are really fun. My favorite game is Mancala. She also said that Mrs.Belford makes grammar fun, When the whole class learns grammar, she lets us watch mini songs or videos from School House Rocks! Planning for class? Easy to do! Mrs.Belfords advice is if you taught a year before all you have to do is just make things more fun and mostly get it in the style of your students!
Top Ten Toys of 08-09 by Adit G., 4th grade
Playskool, Kota the Triceratops Kota, the Triceratops TM, moves in all directions, makes silly sounds, plays music , and looks as if he could to life! Lego Agents Mobile Commander A Lego set that has boats, jets, and all kinds of top secret vehicles. great entertainment for kids of all ages. Bratz Girlz Really Rock! Bratz Girlz are real rock star dolls. Their packages come with a movie and a doll. Each doll comes with its own personal instrument and the movie is one of the best ever! Bakugans Magnetic balls that open up into a type of monster when touched by a magnet. Animal Scramble from Wild Planet Animal Scramble is an addictive game that teaches kids how to classify animals into color, size, habitat and more. Ultimate Wall-E Ultimate Wall-E, from the hit selling movie Wall-E, has ten motors and lots of sensors to make it move around easily. Its a robot. U-Dance from Hasbro Are you a dance maniac? Then this is the perfect toy for you This electronic mat has you as the controller because on the TV, you see steps to perform on the U-Dance mat. Wonder Pets Wonder Pets recite famous sayings, sing, and dance. You cant nd better stuffed animals then these! Crayola Glow Station The Crayola Glow Station works when you move a wand over a canvas and then the picture you draw will magically appear on the canvas Girl Gourmet Cupcake Maker from Jakks An entertaining cupcake maker which teaches kids how to make cupcakes taste delicious. All Good Things in Moderation By Abby M., 4th grade Chocolate is a great food, but you cant enjoy it all of the time. Most foods, including chocolate are best in moderation. It is true that dark chocolate is better for the heart and arteries, and prevents something called oxidative damage, but that doesnt mean you should have chocolate all the time. This is because of there is a large amount of fat and sugar in chocolate. Fat is bad because it can cause weight gain, and sugar causes tooth decay. Although cocoa, an ingredient in chocolate ghts tooth decay, it is once again, covered in sugar. This defeats the whole purpose because sugar is bad for your teeth, and there is more sugar than there is cocoa mixed into chocolate. So even though cocoa helps with tooth decay, too much will give you tooth decay because of the amount of sugar. Ariel is a chocolate freak and Caroline is a chocolate grouch. Both of them are wrong. Listen to me and I promise you wont regret. Anyone can have the tasty satisfaction of chocolate, if you have it just every once in a while. Chocolate is a Health Food By Ariel R., 4th grade

Chocolate is the best food in the whole wide world! This mouth-watering treat comes in so many different kinds. Chocolate comes in milk chocolate, dark chocolate, white chocolate, and well you get the point.
All chocolate is made from cocoa. Cocoa includes antibacterial agents that ght tooth decay. Although people say that chocolate has plenty of sugar, cocoa turns this around and prevents the sugar eating up your teeth. Another advantage of chocolate is that the smell of it supposedly increases something called theta brain waves which causes relaxation. So if you are ever feeling stressed out go to Jewel and buy some chocolate. Chocolate is made from plants meaning that it contains many of the benets of dark vegetables. So that means that if you eat chocolate it is like eating vegetables! If you ask anybody, dark chocolate is so much better than milk chocolate. It contains a lot less sugar. Even more important, a small amount of dark chocolate everyday can keep your heart and cardiovascular system in good shape. So when you nd out from the doctor that your heart is not doing well, you should denitely go back to Jewel and buy some more chocolate, (dark chocolate, of course) In conclusion, it is clear that any educated person should think of chocolate as a health food, not as a junk food! I hope you will take Dr. Ariels advice and use it on a regular basis.