Battle of the Books Round 8

A few days ago was my 8^th and final round in the Battle of the Books. The Hypernovas lost 8-7 in a 10-point match against McAuliffe’s team. I feel that I have gained a lot of experience through this year’s Battles – I have learned many lessons in some very well-written books, and have learned how to be a good leader. One of the lessons I have learned is from Wonder, a book by R.J. Palacio. The lesson is “never judge a person by his looks, judge him by his personality.” In the book, August, a kid who is going to middle school, has a few genetic problems that make his face look abnormal. In the end, though, after the school year had passed, everyone starts to respect August for his courageous personality and kindness. I have learned how to be a good leader through the Battles, too. I learned that you just have to take full responsibility sometimes, and there’s no way around it. I had to read all of the books to keep my team alive, a very hard task. I also learned that pressuring people never helps; you have to ask them what the problem is and try to help. This happened with Kevin – I kept pressuring him to read the books, but he never did. It was a while later until I figured out from asking him that he couldn’t get his hands on any of the books (he always seemed to have something overdue or didn’t find the book he needed). I solved the problem by showing him the set of all 12 Battle Books that were reserved for the champions of Alcott. You could check them out even if you had overdue books, but you would have to be one of the champions. Even though my team didn’t win, it still was a very beneficial event!

Battle of the Books Rounds 6 & 7

Yesterday was the sixth round of the Battle of the Books. Once again, the Hypernovas proved dominant, this time with 14 points. The Fantasy Readers scored 12, the Bookworms 11, the One Way Ticket 10, the Quadruplets of Doom 9, and the Return of the ABMW 10. Once again, the Hypernovas achieved an almost perfect score! They will be facing off with the Fantasy Readers and maybe even the Bookworms, because they have two challenges! What will happen next?

Today was the seventh and final round of the Battle of the Books. Since the teams were mostly Ms. Chen’s kids (there was one kid from Ms. Lynch in the Fantasy Readers), the whole class came to watch while eating lunch! The score was close – the Fantasy Readers 13, and the Hypernovas 15! For the first time, the Hypernovas scored a perfect score! The problem is… they are moving on to the district against Blackwell, another school known for its well-educated students! The Hypernovas may be Ms. Chen’s first group of school champions, but what will happen with Blackwell in the Battles?

Battle of the Books Round 5

Yesterday was the fifth round of the Battle of the Books. The Hypernovas once again claimed first place, but this time with only 12 points and one challenge. The Return of the ABMW (Angry Birds Mighty Wargame) scored 11 points, also with one challenge. The Quadruplets of Doom scored 11 points because of one approved challenge. The Epic Flying Cheetas scored 9 points with two challenges. The Quadruplets of Doom will make it to the school finals unless the Return of the ABMW and the Hypernovas both have their challenges approved! What a close match… who will succeed at the finals?

The Hypernovas are expected to make it because most of the powerful teams were knocked out of the race just now. Their only competition is the One Way Ticket, another strong team that tied with them last time. But one question still remains… will the Hypernovas’ score keep dropping down? If it does, they may not make it! Team member Patrick Peng says: "I feel this is the worst we've ever done. We have to improve. Otherwise, we will not make it."

Battle of the Books Round 4

Today was the third official round in the Battle of the Books. The Hypernovas went against five other teams – the Return of the Twinkies, the Bookworms, the Book Ninjas, the One Way Ticket, and the Polka Dot Pie. The Hypernovas scored 14 points, just like last time, tying with the One Way Ticket. In third were the Bookworms, with 13. The Book Ninjas got 11, the Return of the Twinkies 12, and the Polka Dot Pie also got 12. The Hypernovas survived the round, along with the Bookworms and the One Way Ticket. If any of them wins the next two rounds, they will proceed to the district competitions! The Hypernovas are extremely excited. They really want to claim the school championship this year. But to do that, they will have to score 15 points in later competitions! Nobody knows just what will happen at the next Battle.
P.S. I forgot to write about the second official round.

Centrifugal Crash

Today our class played an interesting game. I forgot what it was called but I call it “Centrifugal Crash”.

Everybody got in groups of four, with two pairs of two, and sang a four-verse song while holding hands. One pair of hands would go on top of the other. With each verse, one hand would go over somebody’s head, until it looked like a woven circle of arms and bodies. Then everybody would put their feet into the center and lean back, pushing against the circle. The tune changed into a more exciting song, and everybody would keep leaning back and hopping in a circle counter-clockwise. The centrifugal force would throw all of us out and onto the ground, and it was really funny. We were supposed to let go once the tension got great, but once, Kevin and Patrick Fan didn't let go, and I was trapped between them. I got thrown out to the far side of the classroom, dangerously close to the wood piano.

It was a very exciting (and “moving”) class!

Unusual Houses

There are many houses, large and small, squat and tall. But which house is the best for you?

You will probably want to consider MiniHomes, the new rage! These houses are less than 300 square feet, and you can live in them comfortably. They are green and environment friendly. Also, most of them are very mobile. They can be towed around on their wheels, and then set down in a place where normal houses can’t go, like a rocky cliff or the beach.

Another interesting house is the zeroHouse by Japanese designers. Unlike other houses, the zeroHouse generates its own energy, collects its own water from the rain, and even  has a waste treatment system! Like the MiniHomes, though, this house is portable, and can be put where even MiniHomes can’t go – in shallow water. The helical anchor system allows zeroHouse to support itself in the ground. The house produces extra energy to charge hybrid and electric cars. The windows are triple-layered and the doors are Kevlar reinforced, with an automatic lock system. The house can resist winds of up to 140 mph.

To sum up, if you’re looking for a house, the you might want to consider classic homes and unusual ones.