Always Earth Day

“This morning I feel calm. It is Earth day!! Yay!

“To keep my spirits high during this coronavirus season, I decided to clean litter but when I looked outside, I saw rain! Oh well. I will do anything for the Earth, even go out in the rain to clean it up because it helps me feel both full of joy and calm. 

“I have been thinking of planting a few vegetables in my garden. Should I do it on this rainy day? Or should I wait for the rain to stop? 

“I hear people say that Earth Day should be every day. I think I agree. It is always do-something-good-to-the-Earth Day!” – Arithika 

Books for Earth Day

Pesky Siblings

Today is a sad and gloomy day. It’s raining outside and I can’t play basketball. But today is a great day to spend an hour reading my novel: Hideout by Gordan Korman. Before I start reading, though, I’ll finish my schoolwork. 
When I am done reading, I will play a new game with my sister because she talks all day long without stopping. For the game, we’ll sit on my bed and I’ll tell her, “Whoever stays silent the longest wins.”  Then, I’ll turn off the light and not talk to her. We’ll see what happens! I bet I’ll win! 
Later, I’ll go down to the garage and dribble my basketball for half an hour or so. This is the most rainy it has been for the past two weeks.
P.S. I played the silent game with my sister. She lasted for 20 minutes. I won! – Manshan in grade 6

 

Brothers

 

BROTHERS (Mehtej in grade 6)

I wake up. 

Brush my teeth. 
Eat eggs and toast. 
Drink milk. 
Listen to shabads.
Meditate to calm my body.
Go upstairs to wake my younger brother 
Who takes 10 years to open his eyes.  
Pick him up and drop him on his bed.

I’m mad.

Time to meditate again.

“Whenever I want to laugh, I read a wonderful book, ‘Children’s Letters to God.’ You can open it anywhere. One I read recently said, ‘Dear God, thank you for the baby brother, but what I prayed for was a puppy.'” – Maya Angelou

 

 

Everyday ups and downs…

Change is the rule of nature. Changes occur naturally and constantly. Weather, animals and plants all are continually changing as well as any human’s mood, growth and knowledge. Mood is the part of a human that changes the most. Mood also depends on what environment and surroundings you are in. For example, if you are with friends and it is sunny outside, you are most likely to be in a happy mood. 

As far as I know myself, I can say that I am not a moody person. Even so, many things can affect my mood. Things like riding a bike, eating delicious food, playing fun games or watching TV help me get in a happy mood, but things like staying inside, eating the food I do not like over and over again or playing a game over and over again or when someone (like my sister) keeps bothering me, can get me in a bad or unhappy mood. 

As for today, I woke up in a lazy mood, as usual. It took a while, but when I said good morning to my mom, it really cheered me up. After my mom made breakfast for me, she made an omelette, a bagel, milk and a handful of nuts. She tried to make a smile with the omelette and bagel. It turned out to be eyebrows with a smile. It really encouraged me to eat it. 

Then as I opened the MacBook, I went back into my lazy mood, because I did not want to work. Instead I wanted to play. But when I saw an email that said I got 92% on a math review test – the second best score in the whole class – I was on cloud nine. I was blown away! My mom was extremely happy with my results. That really changed my mood. I was really motivated and finished all my work very quickly. 

Now, I am in a great mood. So moods keep on changing with different events, days, and expectations.  – Gurshaan in grade 6

Read stories about the ups and downs of regular life…

Becoming a Reader

Today was a nice day with the birds chirping and the bees buzzing. I read a book called Sisters. It was a nice book about a family going to their cousins.

Covid-19. Covid-19 has changed everything, including me. One way it has changed me is that I don’t feel the need to go outside anymore. I am scared that I will never want to go outside ever again after Covid-19. But sometimes I do think what it would be like to go outside and not be stuck in this house all day. But again, whenever god makes something happen, it is good. Even if it seems bad.

Since I have been staying inside all the time,  I have started to read a lot more. Like I said in the beginning,  I read a book called Sisters. That is not the only book I have read. I am now reading Smile. That book is good, too. I am starting to like it even more. 

I have also been playing with my brother who is 4 months old. I will tell you one thing: he screams a lot. Like last night. I don’t know what happened to him, but he started screaming and crying so loudly, it scared my mom and me a lot. 

But even after all that, even after all the hard times right now, I can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings and what it will be like.  – Darshpreet in grade 6 

More journal excerpts

 

Journals and Diaries

“It’s Spring. Everyone can’t wait to go outside. But this Spring is different; everybody is quarantined because of the coronavirus. I am getting bored and more bored as every second passes by, so I go on a walk around our farm. 

“There are puddles of water on the ground. I try to make sure I don’t step in them. It’s cloudy and it looks like a sad day. I can hear birds chirping from far away but I can’t see them. It’s also windy. I walk around and see all the mud and all the soaked plants. 

“I normally hear our neighbours’ children, who are teenagers, revving their cars because they are expensive and they want to show them off. I usually see a lot of people coming to throw garbage at the compost area in front of our house, but not today. I usually see people come parachuting at the Skydive area near us, but not today.

“My parents went to the store to buy sanitizer, gloves and masks from the store and when they came back I asked, “Was there anybody even there?” They told me that there were no people at parks or walking outside but quite a few people at the store. There was barely any sanitizer left and there were no gloves or masks left. They had to go to five different stores to find everything we needed.” – Mehtej in grade six

More excerpts from journals

Journals become history. 

History tells stories…

Liu, Na and Andrés Vera Martínez. Little White Duck: a Childhood in China. Minneapolis: Graphic Universe, 2012.
Da Qin and her younger sister live with their parents in the city of Wuhan, China. This thought-provoking graphic novel – composed of 8 short stories – describes the author’s childhood in the 1970s. Emotive illustrations by the author’s husband – Andrés Vera Martínez – help to create a powerful portrait of life for two little girls in a changing world. Recommended for competent readers 9 years old and up.

McMullan, James. Leaving China: An Artist Paints His World War II Childhood. Chapel Hill, North Carolina: Algonquin, 2014.
Do you ever feel like you’re not quite good enough? That you can’t ever please your parents? That you don’t belong anywhere? Read this memoir about an artist who grew up moving from China to Canada to India to the U.S.A. where he became a highly acclaimed designer and illustrator. A 113-page autobiography – with full-page illustrations – recommended for readers 10 years old and up.

More stories based on the author’s memories

      “Last night, I found out about something that for me, is the scariest thing so far.  I live in a quiet neighbourhood, but the street in front of my house is one of the main streets in my city.  On the busy street, there is a place where people who are retired or are old live.  Then, last night, my family and I found out that some people were diagnosed with Covid-19.
       “Everything is so strange.  Who would ever think that on April 2, it would snow?  I mean it is not snowing a lot, just small flurries.  Just three days ago, it was sunny.  A beautiful blue sky with some white clouds gently but swiftly moving across the sky.  And now, today just a while ago, it was snowing.
        “Same thing with Covid-19.  Three months ago, everything was perfect; but now everything is the complete opposite.  The only words that I hear on the news are Covid-19 and deaths.  I really want to go outside and play or have a nice walk; but what do I do? It is cold out and it just snowed.  I definitely do not want to get sick!
“I might play some games with my siblings or maybe help my mom in the kitchen.  For now, all we can do is hope that doctors and scientists work together to find a cure and stop Covid-19!” – Esha in grade 6

Real Life in Books

READ AROUND THE WORLD: A Reflection by Gurnoor in Grade 6

                From books, I have learned about real life. The Human Body taught me much about myself! I learned that if you are very sick for more than a week and not feeling any better, it is a wise choice to go to the doctor and get a check up. Two books about Canada, Nunavut and Yukon informed me about two of our territories. I discovered that in Nunavut, the traditional flower is the purple saxifrage, and in the Yukon, the official bird is the raven. A book about a famous Canadian, Roberta Bondar, showed me that determination can lead to outstanding results. I learned that Roberta Bondar went into space in 1992 for the first time, and the she studied neurology: disorders of the nervous system, the eyes and inner ear. Finally, Malala and Iqbal taught me about courage. I read that Malala and Iqbal both stood up for the good and fought for two really important things, the education of girls and the ending of slavery, which has inspired me to become a lawyer. Reading nonfiction books has greatly improved my understanding of real life.

More biographies

More stories of courage