FCAs                                                                                           Allie DeGrazio

1. Supporting details                                                                   February 1, 2012

2. Parallel structure                                                                     English 6-4

3. Sophisticated vocabulary                                                        School Uniforms

Dear Dr. Richard O’Malley,

“When we lose the right to be different, we lose the privilege to be free,” quoted by Charles Evans Hughes. School uniforms are going to be mandatory in Edison Public Schools. It’s like a dress code, but everyone wears the same thing. School uniforms shouldnot be mandatory in schools. If kids had to wear them, people wouldn’t be able to express themselves. Students would also need to buy extra clothing. And people wouldn’t be able to dress for their religion, if they had to.

With uniforms kids won’t be able to express themselves. Middle school is a time in life when kids figure out who they are. And fashion is a big part of that. With uniforms, they couldn’t express themselves. That could be a problem. With uniforms, they can’t be individuals.

Another reason school uniforms could be a problem is because of the cost. Kids need clothes for after school and the weekends. School uniforms themselves could cost up to $100, maybe even more! When that cost gets factored in, plus the cost for extra clothes it could turn into a big expense. That might even go out of some parents budgets.

Some religions also require certain attire. With school uniforms, they won’t be able to wear those certain clothes. That isn’t fair at all. People would be very upset if they couldn’t wear their religious clothing.

School uniforms should not be mandatory in schools. If they were, we wouldn’t be able to express ourselves. Also, it could turn into a big expense. Lastly, people wouldn’t be able to dress for their religion. Just think of how many people would dislike having school uniforms it would be appreciated, if you took my reasons into consideration.

                                                         Sincerely,

                                                       Allie DeGrazio

Boardroom Essay

Allie DeGrazio                                                                                             1/11/12

Boardroom Essay                                                                                          Pd. 4-5

            Music Pens are the best pen around. There is no product like it! I’m sure people would enjoy my commercial very much. It might even double your views! Music pens come in seven different colors. It’s also 100% recycled. We even donate 3% of your purchase to breast cancer awareness. My commercial would be the best for after the three o’clock news.

As I said before Music Pens aren’t your average pen. They’re better! They play music while you write. You could even put headphones in it! Also, you can get music easily off of the computer. It doesn’t get much cooler than that! This pen has so many cool features!

Music Pens also come in seven different colors. Our colors are: red, green, blue, yellow, pink, orange and purple. Most companies don’t offer such a variety of colors. Just think, your pen could match your outfit! Music Pens are also great for drawing with.

Music pens are 100% recycled. They’re made of all natural products. Go green! You could enjoy writing and be saving the earth at the same time! Our commercial would get many views when people see that our pens are 100% recycled. Everyone likes to save the earth! Music pens are completely un-breakable. They will never break. Most pens break right away, but not ours!

I think my commercial would be the best for after the three o’clock news. I’m sure it’ll double; maybe even triple your views! Our pen is better than the gummy yummy pencil and the tootsie roll pen. They can get sticky and messy, and maybe even distracting. But music isn’t distracting! The gum and tootsie roll can also get stale. And anyway, who wants blue pee and constipation?! There are so many cool features on Music Pens. They come in many different colors. They’re great for drawing with. They’re un-breakable, and 100% recycled. It’ll be music to your ears…while you write!

Commercial

I had tons of fun making the commercial. It was awesome! Dinah and I enjoyed it very much.We can't wait to see what our grade is. It was fun to make the commercial, but very hard to edit it.I can't wait to see everyone's video's!

Family Tradition

Every year my dad's side of the family and I go to Wildwood on vacation. We always go July 31-August 6. We go with my whole family on my dad's side. My 5 uncles, and Aunts. And my 21 cousins! We go to the pool , the beach, boardwalk, miniuture golfing, and many, many other things. I always look forward to that every summer. And that's my family tradition!!!

1 Thing About Me

One thing about me is that I like to dance. I've been dancing since I was little. I do Hip-Hop, Tap, and Jazz. I love to do it!!

Patriots Pen

                   “Are You Proud of Your Country?”

“There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America.”-Bill Clinton. Are you proud of your country? I am. There are too many people out there that aren’t proud. How could you not be proud of America?! We should defend our country. Love our country. Care for our country. We have freedom, which is one of the best things you could have. America is one of the greatest places to live. We have freedom of speech. I’m very proud of that. I’m proud to live in America. To live in ‘One Nation Under God’.

     We express our proudness in many ways. Raising the flag. Saying the Pledge of Allegiance. Singing patriotic songs. Those are ways you show you’re proud of your Nation. There are fifty states in our country. Fifty states to be proud of. But we didn’t start out with fifty states. We had to work our way up to fifty. Just another reason to be proud!

     I wouldn’t want to live in any other country. America wasn’t always free though. That’s where war came in. Eventually, we won the war. Yet, another reason to be proud. There are so many things to be proud about in America. There are too many to count! We should all be proud for those things, and respect our country. We should also be grateful. Not many countries have the freedom we have. We are very lucky.

     It doesn’t take that much time to put your hand over your heart and pledge. It doesn’t take time to stop and sing a patriotic song. Or even just to raise a flag. Respect it. Love it. Care for it. Be grateful. Do you think about doing those things? Do you do those things? But the real question is……..are you proud of your country?

Halloween

Halloween is one of my FAVORITE holidays. You get to dress, up go trick-or-treating, and get LOTS of candy!! It's SO much fun!! I don't really know what I'm going to be this year, yet. But I'm very excited. I can't wait for the Halloween dance at school, and to go trick-or-treating with my friends. Halloween is only around the corner:)