Independence Day

1. ABOUT AMERICAN CULTUREWhich festivals do you celebrate besides Christmas, Halloween and Thanksgiving? • In America, we celebrate many different holidays throughout the year. Besides Christmas, Halloween, and Thanksgiving, a few other national holidays we celebrate are Independence Day, New Year’s Day, Valentine’s Day, Memorial Day, and Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

2. Independence Day • Independence Day – This is also called 4th of July because in 1776 the Declaration of Independence was signed on this date. On this holiday we usually have cook outs, fireworks, and wear something patriotic that is red, white, and blue.

3. New Year’s Day • New Year’s Day – This is the first day of the calendar year which is on January 1st . On this day we don’t have school and we celebrate New Year’s Eve more than the actual day. On New Year’s Eve we watch TV and wait until this glass ball on top of this building drops; counting down to midnight to announce the new year. When this happens fireworks light up the sky.

4. Valentine’s Day • Valentine’s Day – For this holiday, we celebrate the people we love and care about. To celebrate, some people give gifts while younger kids give each other cards and candy. In our school class we have to write one nice thing to about each other

5. Memorial Day • Memorial Day – This day is about celebrating the people who served in the military and to remember those who died. It is also to appreciate all the military does for our country

6. Martin Luther King, Jr Day • Martin Luther King, Jr. Day – This day is in remembrance of Martin Luther King Jr. He stood up for African American rights and died trying to follow through with his dream.

7. Can you name a few American food specialties? • Some classic American foods are hamburgers, hotdogs, French fries, apple pie, chili, and fried chicken. Hamburgers are juicy hunk of meat on a toasted bun and can have lettuce on it, tomatoes, bacon, onions, pickles, ketchup, and mustard. Hotdogs can be processed pork pieces or turkey sometimes, which can have lettuce, relish, onions, and tomatoes. Apple Pie is a delicious desert that has chunks of apples in it, cinnamon sauce, and a pie crust which consists of flour, sugar, and butter. • Other meats include: steaks, turkey, ribs and ham. Other side dishes include: macaroni and cheese, salads, soups, mashed potatoes and vegetables.

8. ABOUT OUR TOWN AND STATEWhat sports can you practice in the ocean in Florida? • In the ocean in Florida, you can do many things depending on if you have a boat to be attached to or not. If you don’t have a boat, you can go surfing, ride the waves on a long board and try to get up onto your feet from lying down. You can go body boarding, which is similar to surfing but you lie down the whole time. You can also go swimming! With a boat, you can go wake boarding, which is like snow-boarding behind a boat on water. You can go water skiing or tubing, which involves sitting in a big, floating raft called a tube, and you get pulled by a boat and bounced around all the waves! Living in Florida allows us to spend a lot of time on the beach – you should come and visit!

9. Are there any dance studios in Jacksonville? What kind of dances do they teach: ballet, modern dance, hip hop, zumba? • There are over 90 dance studios in Jacksonville, one of which I attend called Bravo! School of Dance and Theater. They do teach ballet, modern dance, hip hop, and Zumba as well as jazz, tap, acrobatics/tumbling, pointe, contemporary, lyrical, technique, and theatre

10. Are there any schools with special classes for kids who are gifted for music or sport in Florida? • There are three schools in Jacksonville for kids who are gifted in sports or music. There is an elementary school called Pine Forests that is a school of the Arts, there is a middle school called La Villathat is a school of the Arts, and there is also a high school called Douglas Anderson that is a school of the Arts. The kids who attend these schools are not necessarily gifted in sports but in other things such as music, dance, singing, acting/drama, and creative writing. They still have classes like English, Math, Science, and History but after school or during their lunch break they have the class for their gift or talent.

11. About our schoolWhat sports can you play at your school? • At my school there are a variety of sports. There is a new sport every trimester which happens three times our school year. The beginning of the year we have soccer, volleyball, and cross country. You have to try out for these sports but you’re most likely going to make it. I play volleyball and do cross country both of them are lots of fun. We practice volleyball every day which sounds like a lot but it just makes the team better. Soccer is every day also. Our soccer team is fantastic. They usually go undefeated all season and win the championships. Cross country practices twice a week and has meets about once a week. The middle of the school year we have basketball and cheer going on. Our school divides the basketball team between junior varsity, girls, and boys. We are known for a basketball. Last year our girls were the champions and the boys’ team came extremely close. The cheerleaders go and cheer for every game. I do cheer leading and it’s so much fun to go and support our school. The ending of the school year there is baseball, softball, and track. Baseball and softball practice every day while track practices twice a week. I personally haven’t done either of these sports but they seem like a blast to play. Our school also has a flag football team since we are too small to have a regular football team. I don’t mind it though because I would rather be inside watching basketball than in the heat watching football. Sports are a great way to have fun and stay fit and our school offers many sports to play.

12. Do you have a cheerleading squad? •               Yes, I am on my school’s cheerleading squad. It is so much fun. We don’t have football so we just cheer for basketball. We do cheers, dances, stunts, and tumbling. I am a flyer and also tumble. We have about 14 girls on our squad. We do a bunch of cool stunts like full stunts, full downs, scorpions, heel stretch, scales, and bow and arrows. These are all types of tricks you can do in the air when you are flying. We have so much fun cheering on our team and would also love to do this in high school!

13. What school subjects do you take? • In, my school we have many different subjects. We have classes on Tuesdays and Thursday called encores. For example you can do yoga or yearbook. After all of our classes on Mondays, Wednesdays, called wheel classes. We have a smart wheel. Smart stands for: Stock market Music appreciation Art Rocket science Technology • Every student before school starts during the summer has a chance to sign up for an encore of their choice. These are some of the subjects at our school.

14. Have you ever travelled in the USA? If yes, which states did you go? Have you ever been to Hollywood and seen movie stars? • I have lived in the U.S.A for all my life and I have only moved once. I was born in Texas and live in Florida. I have traveled a lot though. I have been to Colorado, Georgia, North Carolina, D.C., Pennsylvania, South Carolina, New York, Tennessee, and Texas. Traveling is a great experience by seeing new things and exploring new places. New York is probably my favorite because of the city life and how different it is to Florida. Colorado was my first time every seeing snow. That was awesome because in Florida it never gets cold and snow is a whole new life style. I recently just came back from D.C. with my school and that was interesting with all the historic facts the city has. I have traveled to a new country before but only because I was on a cruise. I really would like to fly to a new country and see the different life style it has compared to the U.S. I am so excited for the summer because I am most likely going to California. I am excited because I have never been and also all the famous people live around there. I have met a famous person once in New York City because they were in a Broadway show. I have been to many concerts but I have never bumped into one walking on the streets before. I wish I could meet all of my favorite stars one day. I will just have to wait for this summer.