The Past & The Future

by AlGene C (posted by Mrs. Whelan)

When I was younger I lived in Cleveland, Ohio, on a busy street called Detroit Road.I didn’t have many friends and then had no one to talk to. My parents were always too busy and my sisters hated spending time with me. So like most small, 4 to 7-year-old children, I made my own friends. But I failed, for my imagination was set on creating worlds with characters of my own design. Most of the time I was flying. Even though I wasn’t there I could feel the wind blowing through my hair; the clouds as I glided through them, the small drops of water tapping my face. Yes my images were small, but to me they were my only true place to be and not be alone at the same time. Then I moved for the first time.

New house. New people. New neighbors. New everything. My sisters and I weren't affected that much. For we were too young to realize what happened. But at that moment I found my first acquaintance, and his name was  Anthony. Now he wasn’t a real friend he was more like a TRAP to me; his words were like fire and actions like bricks raining from the sky and crashing on my head. I always was the player two in our crimes. We would run from the man behind the huge pine trees. I thought we were having fun. But I was the one taking the punishment. I was the one that was unhappy. The one that was left in the snow crying. The one with the black eye, and the blood-covered nose. Then a ray of light shined on me with one word. -----Moving. At the time I didn’t know why he was so mean and still considered him a friend. So as a result, on that single day when I got into that car to move away, I cried as I said good bye. For I had no one else to go to. No one to laugh with, no one to spend time with. Again I was alone. Even though I was finally free from that horrible experience, I didn’t feel good about it.

While I was dealing with the problem at home I was also dealing with a new school. A school that talked about how you could be anything but made it to the point you were nothing. The teachers were hypocrites; they would say stand up to bullying but not help when they saw it. They would punish you for being weak or scared. For me, the detention room was my class. I would be punished for the things I didn’t do. If it was for yelling @#%# in the lunchroom. Or saying that I was going to kill a kid. I had no friends in that hole. I was alone. No teachers to help me. That's the thing about teachers. They don’t understand kids and what they're going through. They don't understand how much pain I was in. Always living in fear of the sport kids. I had no talents. No special abilities. I had nothing. They made me felt like nothing. It hurt and no matter how hard I tried it wouldn't go away. I was crushed to the point I again felt that I wasn’t needed in this world. There was a guidance counselor that was supposed to help. But instead of stopping the real problem she made it seem like I was the problem. Why didn’t you do this?  Well, you did do this. My parents were the same. When I did stand up for myself I still got in trouble. But then the golden word appeared again.  -----Moving. The word that set me free again.

Now I am here, talking about the past - how it hurt me, and how I wish it never happened. The past is the past. After that third time moving I had lost all hope for a happy life.

Then I got to my new school. It was my first day of third grade. I was alone... I hadn't made any friends, nor did I want to. I had no skills. No similar interests of other boys. While some played football, I played. I was in the still in the sky. Then I met people. I slowly started to come out of my bubble. I knew it would take a long to to keep popping my bubble. Even now I still have parts of it floating around me. Yes I did find people that blew a new one around me. But I pushed through it. I learned to look at the bigger picture.

Don’t take pity on me. Learn from me. Learn to stop looking in the past, and start looking into the future. Yes the past has shaped me into the person I am today. Even though i’m still finding myself I know that. Sometime, somewhere I will find who I am. So if you're having trouble with your past. Stop. Take a moment, and think about the future. For staying in the past will get you nowhere. Take it from me. It’s difficult I know, but you will find yourself.

Go Orange: UNITY DAY!

On Wednesday, October 19th, students and staff joined other communities and schools in the nation to celebrate Unity Day. Students and staff wore orange, recognized each other for random acts of kindness, and united together with friends for kindness, acceptance, and inclusion. It was a day that we all came together against bullying, and showed that Asa continues to be a safe and supportive school environment.
(posted by Ms. Bartoszewski)

An essay about tolerance, as a country, and as a school

by Valerie W.

Everyone gets that feeling of butterflies flapping in their stomach, palms sometimes start sweating buckets, you start shaking and that one thing is all you can think about. It can happen to anyone, not just in a sports game. It can be waiting for a test result, finding out what part you get in a play, or going to present something in front of your class. When you win or get the grade, or part you wanted, you just want to celebrate. Celebrate with your friends, teammates, or new cast. A whole layer of stress just lifts off your shoulders. No matter who you are around when something amazing happens, you are ecstatic. Even if you show it to someone that you aren’t that great of friends with, it still is exciting. Leroy Butler explains this in his piece that he wrote. It is all about how sports can bring us together. “You and anyone around you might be all but blood enemies. Yet here at the game, you’re all in it together. You’re on the same team.” Throughout the whole piece, he talks about how sports can bring people together and teach them things about life as well. I feel like Leroy Butler is trying to show teens around the world that we need to stop focusing on why we don’t like some people and more about putting ourselves in each other's shoes.

Our world has changed so much with people judging others about more and more things that shouldn’t matter. For us teens, we don’t like some people because they did something that was totally rude in 3rd grade, or possibly spread some secret rumor about you in 5th grade, or maybe that person just isn’t in your group of friends. Why can’t we just go back to how it was in kindergarten: be friends with everyone, have a kind heart, and just be curious about everything? As we get older almost every teenager either gossips or just makes fun of one another. Leroy Butler stated that  “We’re all God’s kids, and I think He wants us to play nicely together on this playground called Earth, and not hurt one another.” We need to take this into consideration and live everyday as if we were young.

 I have talked to so many different people from different schools and almost every one of them said that there is a ‘popular’ group of kids that just seem like they have no heart. I am not saying that teens need to be best friends with everyone 24/7, just that they should remember that they are humans too and have feelings. Another thing mentioned in that piece of writing was how in a football game, people cheer together and laugh together for about 3-4 hours. None of that gossiping and talking behind people’s backs matters anymore, because we are all in the game together. With just this little bit of time in your week, this time should show how you should act at school, at practice, and at home.  Wherever you are, just don't forget about the time that you can share together.
As you can see, even just a small getaway like a sports game, or a trip to the past could change how you see things. We shouldn’t dwell on the past because today is in the present. Each year that I have gone to school, there seems to be more and more drama. I understand that some believe this is just how life goes, but why can’t all teenagers learn that it isn’t right. Life goes on, and I know that gossiping will never go away completely because it is something natural that some people do. However, people need to understand what it feels like to get talked about behind their back; it hurts. Putting yourself in someone else’s shoes is something very difficult, but it will help limit the amount of mean things that are said at school. (submitted by Mrs. Whelan)

Tourette Syndrome Awareness Month

What do soccer players Tim Howard and David Beckham, musical composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and actor Dan Aykroyd have in common?  All were diagnosed with Tourette's Syndrome.

May 15 - June 15 is Tourettes Awareness Month. According to WebMD, Tourettes is "a brain condition that starts in childhood. Children with Tourettes make sounds or movements, such as coughing or twitching, that they can't control. These are called tics. Tics usually start at about age 2, may be at their worst by age 12, and tend to decrease during teenage years. They can continue into adulthood but occur less often and are less severe."

What Tourette Syndrome (TS) is and is not can be as confusing for both those who live with it as those who do not.  Here are a few myths surrounding TS:

1. Swearing: It is a common myth that those with TS swear often and uncontrollably.  In reality, only a small percentage of those with Tourette’s Syndrome have obscenity specific outbursts. In fact, there is a special name for it: coprolalia.
2. They are mentally challenged: Tourette Syndrome is not like Down’s Syndrome or cerebral palsy.  It is a neurological disorder that is characterized by involuntary movement and speech tics.
3. It is extremely rare: It is estimated that every 1 in 100 children suffers from Tourette Syndrome, a higher number than those with autism.  Most of them go undiagnosed and misunderstood.
4. TS is debilitating: Most people with Tourette Syndrome can go on to lead rich, fulfilling lives and take part in just about any activity as anyone else, especially if they are cared for properly.
5. Those with TS can’t do jobs with fine motor functions" Another false truth, famous Canadian surgeon Dr. Matt Doran was able to do complex procedures even though he had Tourette Syndrome.

More information regarding Tourette Syndrome can be accessed by visiting http://tourette.org/Medical/whatists_cov.html
*Sources: http://www.njcts.org/tsparents/top-10-tourette-syndrome-myths, http://www.webmd.com/brain/tourettes-syndrome

(posted by Mr. Pizzo)

Don't be a "Flaming Troll"

A blog is a venue for self-expression. It is a digital space in which people make their voices heard. If you write with a sense of caution and responsibility—not to mention creativity and enthusiasm— blogging can be a highly rewarding activity. But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t some dangers inherent in blogging. For example, there is the risk of oversharing, of accidentally providing personal information to those who would use it to hurt you, and of exposing yourself to cyberbullying.
Think before you blog. Remember, anything you post remains accessible in cyberspace indefinitely.

When reading blogs like this one, you are invited to share your thoughts in the comments at the bottom of each post. Your thoughtful comments will be moderated and posted if they provide honest and productive feedback to the writers and readers of this blog. Avoid engaging in negative, potentially hurtful comments. People tend to say things on the Internet that they wouldn’t feel comfortable saying in person. They may be more comfortable expressing anger, disgust, or disapproval in written form over the Internet. Leaving rude or insulting comments on someone’s online content is simply not good "netiquette." In fact there's a term for this mean-spirited, cyber-bullying -- it's called flaming, and people who start arguments or deliberately upset people by posting rude or hurtful comments are called trolls.

Don't be a flaming troll ! Keep in mind the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Enjoy this blog and share your constructive feedback with our readers.

Source: http://digitalliteracy.rosendigital.com/

Anti-Bullying Project

by Maya & Rebekah, Advanced Technology Skills (submitted by Mrs. KBD)