week15-11

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WEEK 15 -- Jan. 17, 2011  Click here to READ THIS WEEK'S SELECTIONS or click Grades and Cheating to read all recent submissions.  To view or download the pages as pdf files, click the newspaper's name in the attachments below.

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I shiver in bed as I think of ghosts wandering in my closet. Coming to get me, in the middle of the night when I least expect it. But I'm never afraid in the morning. Is it that all of the hidden monsters disappear during daylight? Or is it that the light of the sun coming through my frost-bitten windows hides the ghosts but never actually makes them go away. When I was younger these thoughts haunted me and both my closet and bathroom doors had to be closed. If they weren't closed I wouldn't be able to fall asleep. Read more »

Grades
By
Christopher Charles
Haverhill Cooperative Middle School
Grade 8

Grades,
something I obsess
about.
All I hear
in my head is,
“You need straight A’s.”
I keep that weight on my
shoulders until the end of the quarter.

Grades
they drive me crazy,
but they give me
good work ethic.
One thing I will
use my whole life.
Something I look forward to show
my parents and grandparents.

Grades
they keep me determined
to get straight A’s.
The pressure that I feel
when the end of the quarter is about to end
is like nothing else.
It makes me work harder Read more »

The Report Card
RIPPPP.... It was the 3rd trimester into the school year and the report cards came out today. I have to think to myself about good things but it is hard for me to when I’m under so much pressure. I finally have the guts to open up my envelope with that horrible piece of paper in it. I glare at the report card and study the mistakes I make. Read more »

Grades are great because they can help you to get the job that you want to have. You can get good grades if you work hard in school. I love working hard in school because I want to work at the Fire Station No. One when I get older. I know that working hard is a skill that will help me when I'm a student and when I have a job.

The teacher says, "This should be your best work. I am going to grade this." Suddenly pencils are in motion as fast as they can everyone scribbling to do their best because it is going to be graded. When teachers say things like this it has an effect on students. There are many pros and cons to being graded and people could argue either way but I don't think that students should be graded. Read more »

Not a lot of hardcore, I'll pay you for answers cheating goes on at our schoool.

But, if your friend forgot to do a problem on a worksheet, most kids, me included, will slide over their paper so their friend can see.

It could be considered cheating, but not really.

We all have each other's backs.

One problem isn't going to kill you, but I think copying a whole paper is a little much.

As for the other kind of cheating, I don't think it happens that much.

Relationships don't really get serious in middle school, so what would cheating be? Read more »

To cheat or not to cheat? Most teens face this question sometime during their lives. Maybe you forgot to study for the test, and the person next to you just left the room. How bad is it really to just take a little peek? In my opinion, this is not only morally and ethically wrong, but is not an accurate representation of how much you learned and how much you tried. If you do not understand a concept, cheating might get you a better grade in the short term, but you will eventually fall too far behind and not be able to catch up. Read more »

Another test?

Stress and more stress

Test after test

More time spent out of my day studying

Grades for everything

When will there be a break?

Imagine no tests and grades

Time to relax for a while

Try something new

Learn something in a different way

The Cheat
Her eyes dart swiftly from one paper to the next, never staying on one test too long.

"The answer for B is... The French and Indian War." She says in her mind. "For C... The Seven Year War. For D... The British. For E The French. For..." Read more »

It all started during a math test, you know one of the really long ones that make you dread them. There was a kid sitting next to me that was cheating by looking at my answers, and when I put my arms over my paper, the kid just smacked me on the leg, KA-POW! Boy do I hate it when people cheat! Anyways, back to the kid that’s being a cheater, I just want to warn you that he is a little bit odd so brace yourself. Read more »

Cheating should not be as common as it is. It's not something that occurs daily. Everybody's different, therefore, cheating is interpreted differently as well. To me, cheating is taking credit for something when it's not deserved. I'm not just talking about school work or relationships. How often do people take something another person said and claim it as their own? People's opinions are influenced by the opinions of others. This means that it's not what's really in ones heart, it's what was heard and claimed. That is cheating. Read more »

I am in the middle of a test.
I am the smartest in my class.
Everyone tries to look at my paper.
I swat them away like flies.
I have to hide my paper with my arms.
Some kids threaten me.
Some shoot spitballs at me.
I try not to care.
I hope the teacher comes back soon.
She left to get coffee.
I wish I had coffee.
Not to drink.
To drown the flies so I can get some work done.

Cheating, everyone has done it, but many people have failed. The age-old art of cheating has never been perfected. While there are many forms of cheating, no one has succeeded in gaining mastery over the art. There are simple rules to cheating and these will make you much more successful.
I. Whatever you do, do not get caught.
II. If you get caught, deny all accusations.
III. When possible put the blame on others. Read more »

Bobby Thompson’s Bad Dad
By Hayden Holland

The kids storm in, eager to learn
What the teacher has planned
Everyone prepared with a pencil at hand
Except for one boy who’s staring down at the floor
At the study guide for the American Civil War
The boy had a week to study
But instead wasted time playing games with his buddies

History class rolls around and the boy is still reviewing
The teacher says “spit out what ever you are chewing”
The teacher hands out the test and sweat replaces the gum
His mind goes blank, and his body numb Read more »

Getting Good Grades

My middle school career began
with a nice slap in the face.
After A’s in elementary school,
a C and C+ took their place.
I couldn’t believe my eyes,
looking at the report card in my hand.
Such a goodie-good since birth
couldn’t possibly take this like a man.
But it only ignited a fire
that has kept me going strong.
And I’ve proven to the doubtful teachers
that what they thought of me was wrong.

John Davis
12-6-10

At a Thanksgiving dinner with his cousins, nine-year-old Stephen dishes out fluffy, mashed potatoes to his family and relatives. When he sees no one is watching, he slides a little extra onto his plate.

In a sunlit room, James is acting as the banker in a game of Monopoly with his younger sister. When she glances away, he slides two five-hundred dollar bills into his pile of money.

Alec is researching information on the internet for his college essay. He finds an already-written one and prints it out as his own work. Read more »

“Grades, grades, and more grades. I hate it when grades come out,” thought Axle. Axle’s name really isn’t Axle, it is Alexander. But because Axle loved building things, he was always covered in grease and under a car or vehicle, earning him the nickname Axle from the other kids. Axle always had straight A’s, but this trimester was different. He had entered a go-cart competition and all of his time was consumed with modifying his go-cart. Because he was so obsessed with the competition, he was getting worse and worse grades. He had still managed to keep his grades in the low 90s. Read more »

Peering eyes,
glancing from paper to paper.
Your pencil quickly writes down the words.
You see on the desk beside you.
Inside you know it’s wrong,
in some ways it is a form of stealing,
but…you just can’t come up with the answers.
You’re bombarded with the pressure of getting good grades,
not failing this quiz,
wanting to ace that next homework.
This is your last resort,
you’ve run equations through your head,
jumbled words together,
tried to pry out memories of previous lessons.
Nothing works.
Your mind is blank.
In front of you a piece of paper covered in eraser shavings. Read more »

I Like Grades Because...

I like grades

I like grades because they give me something to work for

I like grades they tell me where I stand in math, writing, reading and spelling

Grades are a way to set a goal on a test

If there was not grades you would have to say I did well or okay on my test

But with them you go home and say “I Got An A+!”

Grades are a terrific thing.

By Ezra Astbury
Grade Six
Bridgewater Village School

“You have 20 minutes. Begin.” Read more »

Grades
Becky Arnold

We are constantly being graded in school.
Tests
Essays
Papers
Home work assignments
Presentations
Posters
Speeches
Journals
Labs
Worksheets
Neatness
Spelling
Grammar
You name it, it’s been graded.
Weather or not you’re paying attention in class.
Are you copying their test?
Did you finish your homework on time?
What if we just weren’t graded anymore? What if we just did our assignments because they were fun?

Grades

You’ve handed in a paper
You’re feeling pretty good
Days later it’s on your desk
Not the grade you thought you would

Why is it that A or B
Or C or D or F
Determine how we do in school
Or if we become a chef

Who came up with this system?
And why didn’t they include the letter E
Numbers are good enough
At least they are for me

Grading should be based on
Things that really matter
Not finding the square route of pi
Please integrate some chatter

Social skills are important
Out in the real world
Not the structure of an atom
Toward us useless things are hurled Read more »

Grades, progress reports, tests, midterms and final exams. All of these things matter way more than any student would like to admit. The idea itself is somewhat ridiculous. What do colleges look at when they are evaluating whether or not a student should attend? Grades, of course. The idea that someone should be judged on based on how hard they work in high school is ridiculous. The idea that how well I’m going to do in college depends on my performance in high school is crazy. I’m a teenager, in the prime of my youth. Read more »

My name is not A or B
I don’t view myself as a number
I wish others could see
That the grade is not who I am
I feel shut out
From opportunities and learning
By letters that shout:
“They’re not smart enough”
What does it teach us
Those little pieces of paper
That there is no plus
If we don’t do well
What else can I say
I feel a bit lost
Nothing seems to go my way
Because of a grade
That is all there is
To the story of life
We are determined as is
By grades given by another

When I take a test...
my arms curls
round my paper
my pen scribbles
my eyes glance
at the cheaters
who surround me.
My answers
are for me
and me alone.
I don't want you reading
my work.
You pretend
to be my friend
so you
can take
advantage of
my A+
I hate you.
I hate your fake smiles,
your pretend sympathy,
your backstabbing ways.

Go away.