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Examples of good writing from elementary students EIDTOR'S NOTE :Here are several samples of writing students prepared for the Southern Oregon Young Writers' Festival under way this week in Ashland. FRIENDS by Christine Clark Grade 6 Scenic Middle School I remember only short memories of my friend Yuki Serieta. The one that stands out the most is the swimming hole. Yuki and I met at a 4-H camp this summer, and we soon became good friends. She was a foreign exchange student from Japan who loves to swim. One afternoon in our free time, Yuki and I went to the swimming hole. The trail to it was beautiful. The colors were extraordinary. Beautiful shades of green and violet, and walking through it was as if in a dream. Yuki and I were silent, yet communicating. The cries of laughter roared as we drew closer. Our faces lit up when we came upon the glistening water hole. It was a spectacular color of emerald green. We laid our belongings down on a warm flat rock and put our feet in the water. We didn't talk much because we know little of each other's languages. The water was cold yet pleasant because of the treacherous heat. We jumped in. Both of us sighed with relief of the sun's rays. Yuki gave me a nudge and pointed to the swing swaying over the water. I nodded. We made our way over and got in line. We watched as the people plunged themselves into the water, clinging to the rope, then dropping. Then it was our turn. Yuki went first. Her splash drenched the people sitting on the sand next to the swing and transformed them into laughing maniacs. When I was done, we made our way back to the other side where people were jumping off a great rock. Of course this appealed to us, so up we went. We jumped together, holding hands. When we hit the water our hands spilt and we swam to the side to rest. We wrapped ourselves in our towels. A glimmering caught Yuki's eye. She bent down and wedged the object out from under a boulder. It was a ring, and a beautiful one at that. It was carved with great detail. Yuki handed the ring to me and said one word, "friends." That word, being only one simple word, meant a lot. Yuki and I didn't talk much, we did not have to. Friendship can be so much more than words and this is just one example. Yuki left for Japan Aug. 21. I didn't get to say goodbye, but Yuki and I write often. I still miss her, but I will always have this special memory and the ring Yuki gave to me that day at the swimming hole. DRAGON KISSES by Athena Haxton Grade 4 Briscoe Elementary School Iridescent blue lips, Sparkle in the eye, He purrs and breathes Like whispering trees And a steamy hot mug of chamomile tea. My dragon smells of hot July sun, And flowers in the air. He tastes like a citrus river gone wild With a pinch of cotton candy from the fair. Whenever I'm feeling lonely, I call and he always comes To hold me in a winged embrace And play with me in the sun. A wish and a daydream is all it takes to find My secret friend who brings me joy And only exists in my mind. A SCARY DAY IN KINDERGARTEN by Rachel Kathol Grade 4 Jewett Elementary School I am going to tell you about a scary thing that happened to me at school. It is about a day I will never forget. I was in kindergarten and I went to school every other day. I went to school on Monday, and I didn't go to school Tuesday. I went to school on Wednesday, but I didn't go to school on the weekends. Well, anyway, my mom accidentally sent me to school on the wrong day. While I was riding the bus, I didn't see any of my friends, but I thought they were sick. Not many of my friends rode on my bus anyway. When I got to school, I trudged to my classroom. I didn't see any of my friends standing by the door and I didn't see my teacher, Mrs. Meredith, in the classroom. Usually, Mrs. Meredith was in the classroom and my friends were by the door waiting for me. The door was locked and I couldn't get in the room. I was looking for my teacher on the playground when an older kid said, "Why are you here?" That's when I started to cry. I went into the hallway still weeping tears out of my eyes. One of the teachers saw me and asked what was wrong. I told her the whole terrible story while I was crying. She took me to the office and asked what my phone number was and I told her. While she was calling my mom, I was coloring on a paper and just barely crying. My mom was at school in a few minutes and we went home. That was a scary day, and I 'm glad it's over! HOW TO MAKE YOUR BED by Garrett Frierson Grade 4 Hoover Elementary School You will hear your mom coming down the hall, you look around, nowhere to hide. Wait, your bed! You can hide in your bed! You jump on your bed trying to cover up, but it is too messy. You keep trying, but there is not enough time. Just as you are about to cover up, your mom comes in. Oh, what an upset. Now you have to listen to a long, cold, and hard lecture. Longer than the time in between the rise and fall of the Roman Empire. Colder than the water at the Oregon Coast and harder than a rock. This whole mess could have been avoided if your bed had been made. How do you make a bed, you ask? Pay attention closely. First, you make sure your pillows are straight, then you pull your sheet up over the pillows and make sure there are no wrinkles. If there are wrinkles, it will ruin the whole process. Pull your covers up to a little behind the point where the sheet stops. Again, make sure there are no wrinkles. Be sure to have some fun making your bed. For example, you can sit on the wrinkles and hit the pillows for effect. Now you know how to make your bed. Your bed will be much easier to hide in, it looks nice and should feel comfortable when you get in. Class is dismissed. BEDTIME BLUES by Heather Nicholson Grade 6 Jefferson Elementary School Many problems arouse the house at bedtime, especially for adolescents that think they're old enough to choose their own bedtime. Homework, parties, TV, no sleep, all sorts of things go on and most people don't care. But do you ever stop to think how that affects your mornings and even the rest of their day? I do and I know. If your child gets five hours of sleep, what do you think happens to their mind? They come home, "Mom, can you sign my math test because I flunked and it needs to be signed." What goes through your head? Kids these days need discipline! They can't live their life thinking whatever they want to do is the right thing to do. Kids are supposed to get eight hours of sleep, but depending on what time they need to wake up, depends on what time they go to sleep. Most kids disagree with the idea of 8:30 to 9 p.m. bedtime. My suggestion is: Give them a chance, and if it works out, use it! Whichever time works out best is the time you use. That should discipline them and they most likely will agree. Please influence your children to good habits before they grow up and are on their own, but not allowing them to pick their own bedtime. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA