Just an Average Day

So far, all of the posts on the blog have been about special occasions, but what really makes the writing center special is the work that goes on each day. Today we'll spotlight the after school crowd.

As I write, there are six students and three tutors in the WC.



(Foregound Left)
Ali works with Julian on finalizing his paper on federalism for Mr. Ruzzo. This is the culmination of two weeks of work and four visits to the writing center. Julian had worked with tutors earlier in the year in Ms. Terry's class, but was reintroduced to the WC last week when Mr. Ruzzo invited us into his classroom.

(Foreground Right)
Rossana doesn't need a tutor, she just needs to type and print her paper, and she's got moral support. Jennifer and Anthonie anxiously await her finishing so they can go home for the day. This is Rosanna's writing center m.o. She's here a lot, and she almost never asks for help. Just typing and printing. Fine with us; she knows we're here if she needs us.

(Background Left)
Shaq is back. For the second straight day, Shiquile is in the writing center after school working on his ghost story for Ms. Bylaska. This time Kelly is helping him finish what Ben helped him start. She provides a sounding board for his thoughts as he progresses through the plot.

(Background Right)
After some technical difficulties, Devon and Luis get underway. The first draft of the ghost story was trapped on a computer at home, so a phone call, an e-mail and some finaigling gets them ready to work.

That's it. . .just a regular day. We'll be here a while, just like every other day.

Heroes and Villains: December Essay Contest Announced

6th Period Classes Pick Up an Assist at the Library

On November 19th, Ms. Bylaska's and Mr. Peterson's 6th period English classes had the opportunity to meet author Neil Swidey at the Boston Public Library. Swidey spoke about his book The Assist, and brought along Hugh Coleman, the assistant basketball coach at Charlestown High and an important character in the book.



Some students summed up the event.


Armando writes:

Neil Swidey is the author of The Assist. The Assist is based on a group of teens on a basketball team from Charlestown High. When I first heard about going to the library to hear some author I never heard about talk, I was like "Damn, this is going to be wack." I didn't want to go. The day and time came to go and we were off to the library. . .

Neil Swidey put on a little slide show based on the book The Assist, giving us a little taste of what it was about. It was mostly about a group of boys who love to play basketball and play together as one. . .

The speech given by Hugh Coleman was outstanding. It was really deep. Based on what he had been through, he inspired me so much that I can stand up and say "Anything is Possible."

Monica Nguyen adds:

I enjoyed yesterday because I met an author, someone who really wrote a book. That was one of my dreams, to meet an author. Yesterday, when Mr. Coleman was explaining his life story, I could sort of relate to how he grew up. My mother wasn't a druggie or alcoholic, but I could always imagine that my mom would never come home. . .

When Mr. Coleman told his story, I felt not alone anymore. I felt that someone would understand where I was coming from.

Demetria continues:

Yesterday was a very positive experience. We met with an author about his new book called The Assist The author's name was Neil Swidey. He talked about how the book ws about the people of Charlestown High. It was good to see him speak because we got an idea of how the book got started and why he decided to write it.

We also spoke with [Hugh Coleman] He told us about his life when he was growing up and how he had a lot of responsibility. He talked about how you're the only one who decides how your life is going to be. It really made me think and I enjoyed being there.Hugh Coleman inspires the crowd.

Elijah and nine other students won copies of the book in a special raffle.

Everybody smile!

Thanks to Ms. Shannon and The librarians at the YA Room at the BPL for helping organize the event.

For more information on Neil Swidey or The Assist, visit here.

Christian Patino wins Inaugural Essay Contest!!

Congratulations to Christian who wrote an excellent essay answering the question:

If you were running for president, what would you say to the American people?

Christian won for excellent use of emotional imagery and other rhetorical devices, most notably parallel structure and rhetorical questions. It is a thought provoking speech that Christian may want to keep in his back pocket for when he really does run for president some day.

Christian won a pizza party for several friends and some lucky students who happened to drop by for writing help yesterday afternoon.

Pictures of the festivities are below, as is the text of Christian's essay.


It pays to hang with good writers!


Seriously? All this food? I'm entering next month.


Looks like these guys dropped by on the right day.


"Hmmm. . .I think I have an idea," says Kelly.


As long as we're here, we might as well work on our essays. . .
and the snacks don't hurt either.


Me For President

By: Christian Patino

Hello my fellow Americans, as you all may know I am Christian Patino. I am a Democrat and I am here to run for president for America. As you all know I am an honest man. Also because of my past you know I make the right choices and I can get others out of tough situations. I have many plans for this land that are going to be both influential and beneficial for this country. I will create programs where kids will be able to go everyday in order to stay out of the streets, and get the benefit of being taught by mentors. I will do everything possible to try to create en economy where we will have less people in the lower class and more people in the middle and upper classes. I will make this country earn its respect and make outsiders remember why America is the role model country of this world.

Babies, kids, and teenagers are the age group of people in the United States that we should be focusing on the most. If we do not pay attention to the kids or treat them right and give them the right knowledge they need for a better future, then this country won’t have a future. The kids playing in the playground today are going to be the adults building the playgrounds tomorrow. If we do not start to train our kids in learning what will be best for the future then in about twenty years this country is still going to have the problems it has today. Kids are the future! The smartest investment to make is not in any share in the stock market; it’s in the brains of our ten year old son or daughter. They’re going to be the ones shaping this nation in a couple of years. Which is why if I’m elected I will make sure those new programs for our kids will be made for their future.

It's sad walking down the streets in downtown to turn my head and see an old man isolated from everyone else struggling to get out of his cot that’s laid across the ground. It’s horrible to watch him pick up his empty Dunkin’ Donuts cup and plead with every pedestrian for spare change. What’s even sadder about that is that people walk right by him snarling at him. Is that really what Americans are like? Do the people really treat the lower class so poorly? Since this has been brought to my attention, I will make funds and lower tax payments so that people that are less fortunate can become fortunate, but still keep a balance in our economy. In this country there is poor and there is rich. If you elect me as your president, we will have an upper class and an upper-middle class.

What has America become in these past years? Is America the same as it was before? As far as I can remember, this country used to be one of the most respected if not the most respected country in the world. It might still be respected, but not in the same way as it used to be. This country used to be a role model country for the rest of the world, now many foreigners speak so cruelly about this country. If I am elected to be the president of this country, I will be sure to regain the respect that this nation once had. I will regain the confidence of our government. I will prevent unnecessary attacks from being fired and make choices that will benefit this country in having better relationships with other countries.

If you vote for me and elect me to be your next president, I will be sure that you live in the ideal country that you once imagine living in. I will support programs that will benefit our kids in their futures, which eventually in time will benefit us. I will set a level of equality between the people living in the lower, middle and upper class but still have an organized government that will have balance. Most importantly I will regain the name of this country as the role model country of this world. I should and I will be the next president and leader of this country!


Stay tuned for next month's contest. . .coming soon.

Welcome!

This is just the beginning of what we hope will be an eternity of blogging from the Writing Center here at Snowden. In the coming weeks and months, we hope to publish contest winners, important news, photos, event listings and more.

Check back regularly, and leave comments!