February 2023 archive

Spanish

Recently, our Spanish class has learned how to write emails that can reach six paragraphs. I think that the concept of learning a language other than your original language is pretty cool. In our class, we also learn about Spanish culture as well. Once, we had the option to learn the merengue, or act as a famous person with Hispanic heritage in our auditorium for Hispanic heritage month. 

I chose Spanish out of French, Spanish, and Chinese because its the main language in 21 countries, and is spoken around the world. It’s also good to have a different language in your head if you come into a situation where you need it.

As stated before, my Spanish class has recently learned how to write emails. This could be beneficial to everyday life, especially when I grow up. When I grow up I might have to write an email to, lets say, my colleague, and they could only read Spanish and could have simple conversations in English. Like I said, conversations like this could come in handy. 

I love learning Spanish, and if I could, wouldn’t change to Chinese or French, because I find it very interesting and enjoyable to learn. It’s also fun, because my mom can speak a little bit of Spanish as well, and I can practice when I need to. If you could speak another language, what would it be?

My Ideal World : Planet Ziabong

Come visit planet Ziabong, named after the giant Ziabong fruits. Ziabong fruits taste like any delicious tropical fruit you like, growing everywhere except for that one sixth of the planet. For the actual planet, there are continents that are like the seasons we have here in terms of weather, and/or visuals. One continent has lots of plant and animal life, that is sunny, but not too hot like spring. Time goes faster there than on earth, so plants grow full sized within a week. There could also be a continent with wind, and autumn colored leaves like fall. One that’s hot and sandy, like summer, but not like a desert. This would be the smallest continent, with beautiful beaches and tropical fruit trees. Last but not least, a continent like the Arctic. The continent of life would be barely connected, the others, islands.

Some animal life that you would be able to find there would be not many insects, (except ones that are really necessary) there is an uncountable number of different species of animals. There are animals that you never have even imagined, totally creative, and beautiful. All the mammals and birds, except vultures, are on this planet and a mix of all other types of animals.then, is the giant variety of random creatures.

The conditions on this planet are simple. The air is breathable and you can drink the water safely. The plants are ten times bigger than normal size, so a couple blueberries could be your filling breakfast. There are giant varieties of plants and unprepared foods. All of the animals are vegetarian, yet the population never explodes, surprisingly. The gravity, on the other hand, allows you to jump 15 feet into the air. All the water is warm due to non eruptive underwater volcanoes.

Outside of this planet, it orbits around a slightly dim giant star. It has three moons, with no possible life, and the sky always looks like a sunset. Light also comes from bioluminescent plants in all continents, and a special tree with glowing orbs on it. The orbs are holdable, but they are pretty warm, and catch fire easily. The grass is soft and fluffy as well. 

Some special features that are added to this are clouds three feet from the ground that animals can securely sit on, and waterfalls pooling out. There are also no carnivorous plants that could harm anyone or anything. There is a sixth of the planet with no life. It has rough terrain, and there is nearly no soil to plant things. But most places you go are guaranteed to have a beautiful landscape to feast your eyes on.

Ziabong is a nice place to live for most animals and many reasons. With beautiful landscapes, colorful continents, and delicious, giant fruits, who wouldn’t want to at least tour there? Enjoy calming hot springs, relaxing clouds to read on, and many other various features. Come visit Ziabong today!

 

6th Grade Museum Field Trip

All photos taken by DA staff.

This last week, our Durham Academy grade six took a field trip to the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. We were split up into groups of two advisories. Our group got to see a lot of exhibits, including some interactive and live animals. Today I’m going to talk about some of my favorites.

First, the RACE exhibit would definitely go on my list. The pictures on the posters were beautiful, and I learned a lot about what some groups have to face, and race in general (it technically isn’t real). I learned that more people with black/Latino etc skin, have more covid deaths than people with Caucasian skin.

Another exhibit that I really liked was the one on gems. All the gems were real and dazzling. Some of the rocks there were worth at least a  thousand dollars, if not, more. A rock that I liked the most was the amethyst because amethyst is also known as the stone of peace (I don’t know if that was a fact in the museum).

Lastly, one last exhibit that I thought was really interesting was the place that had these fish with really long noses. They were in fact, not swordfish, but had quick reflexes and pointy teeth. We got to see these skills in action, because some employees started feeding them and the other smaller fish in the tank.

All in all, this trip was really fun to get off campus for a day and learn in a different setting. I had fun with friends while learning about science. I would recommend this museum to any person, because it’s interesting, interactive, and mind blowing. I am grateful to have this experience and I hope you will too sometime!