• Josephine Baker, the noted African-American dancer, was born in St. Louis on June 3.
• Cabanne House, now a local landmark, was completed in June 1876.
• Missouri's state fossil, tree and song were all named in June.

• There are all sorts of how-to-do classes for kids in June at the Missouri Department of Conservation facilities in the St. Louis area, including an introduction to caving.
• Two more "Fun Rides for Kids" are among the bicycling and hiking activities sponsored by Trailnet.
• Dozens of camps and classes will occur in June at St. Louis County Parks.

 

Giant student-inspired mural completed

(For a view of all 10 panels of the Westridge Elementary mural, click here.)

The giant, 10-panel mural on the outside of Westridge Elementary School was finished and dedicated ahead of a school-year-ending deadline. And virtually every kid in the west St. Louis County school had a hand in finishing the mural.

The multi-colored mural is the largest art project ever attempted at the school. Westridge kids and teachers like to use different artwork to make its building "more welcoming" for kids and adults.

The artwork helps to soften the rather utilitarian, one-story construction, which looks a little like a light-industry factory building.

But, not any more.

(Young St. Louis.com first wrote about the Westridge mural project in the March, 2005, edition. At that time, the mural project had just cleared a difficult hurdle. Ballwin Mayor Robert Jones, Jr., broke a 4-4 tie in the Board of Aldermen that gave the school a "work-of-art" exception to the city's strict sign ordinance. To read that earlier story, click here.)

Eleven-year-old Jeffrey Orf said the completed mural gives the school a "good presence."

Eleven-year-old Dustin Readenour said he really liked the inclusion of the Rockwood School District's tree symbol in the mural. The district's tree logo is based on a giant oak tree that used to be on the Westridge school grounds.

Dustin said, before the mural, the 10 plain board panels on the front of the school "were kind of ugly."

Eleven-year-old Cecilia Knappmiller said she likes the mural because "it shows the things we do in school." She said it also "shows we have a good art teacher."

Art teacher Carol Mobley and principal Meg Brooks were involved in the mural project from start to finish. The two also led the dedication ceremony outside the school on Wednesday, May 25.

Ms. Mobley told the kids, "Now the school looks on the outside like the great school we know it is on the inside."

Kids were in the mural project all the way. In the beginning, kids were asked to submit drawings on what they wanted in the mural.

In the final days, Ms. Mobley was at the school on weekends to put finishing touches on the mural.

She said all the students, even the kindergarten kids, were given a chance to apply paint to the mural. The school also utilized two professional mural painters-Catharine Magel and Sarah Frost-- to translate the kids' design ideas into the final mural.

The school's 5th graders had the biggest part in the mural design and painting. After all, this is their last year at Westridge. They'll be in middle school next year.

Ten-year-old Elizabeth Doing said the mural will give the school a "welcoming feeling" when young kids come to their first days of kindergarten next fall.

She said she's looking forward to returning to Westridge in future years. "I'm going to come to see my former teachers and I can say that I had a hand in the mural," she said.

However, Elizabeth and some other older students wished they'd had more time to paint.

Juggling time for kids to work on the mural was difficult. That was especially true for older students who have very busy schedules. For instance, they got to work only during school hours that didn't involve basic core curriculum classes.

But, 5th graders Cecilia Knappmiller and Jeffery Orf already have three other classes in those "free time" class periods. Both were in two musical programs and also in the TAG program. TAG is an accelerated program and kids from Westridge have to travel to a special TAG buildings elsewhere in the school district.

As a result, they only got to work on the mural for four days in a two-week period. They were in one of their other "free-time" classes the other six days.

Ten-year-old Tyler Fishback said he worked on five different days. "We went where the artists told us we were needed. We had to redo some of the things that the little kids had done," he said.

He said the mural turned out to "look like I thought it would" and the mural will help make the school a "better place." He added, "That blank wall was rather boring."

Dustin Readenour said he got to paint on the mural nine out of the 10 days the two-week painting period. He said he got to work on a variety of different mural panels. "I worked on just about everything," he said.

He said he was happy that he was part of the art project. The artists and kids used high-quality exterior latex paint so it will last many years. The mural will be a good reminder for the kids on their years at Westridge Elementary.

 

Kids learn about solving city problems

Eighth grader David Sears said he was surprised to discover "how much work goes into planning" of a multi-use development proposed in his hometown of St. Peters.

He said the proposed 1,600-acre Lakeside 370 project has been in the planning stage for five years. And the developers haven't even got final governmental approvals needed before construction can start.

Sears and a group of other Saeger Middle School students were taking part in a Citizenship Education Clearing House ( CECH) program. CECH is sponsored by the University of Missouri-St. Louis and helps kids get involved in local government issues.

The Saeger kids researched the Lakeside 370 project and then held a debate on whether they favor or oppose the development. The debate involved Saeger kids as well as 8th graders from nearby Hollenbeck Middle School.

Hollenbeck kids had their own CECH study. But, their work was much more local.

They were trying to determine what should be done about growing traffic congestion near their school. In mornings and afternoons, traffic moves very slowly at the intersection of St. Peters Howell and Central School roads.

In addition to Hollenbeck School, there is also an elementary school at the same corner.

Eighth grader Kendall Blanzy said vehicle traffic is bad but she thinks a bigger hazard involves "kids who walk to and from school."

The Saeger and Hollenbeck kids met last month at Saeger for a Mini-Project Fair. Each group made a presentation about their CECH projects to the other.

Both used Powerpoint videos to explain their research. The Hollenbeck showing also involved a large-scale model of their school grounds and surrounding roads.

The Saeger presentation included a debate on the merits of the Lakeside 370 project. One group presented arguments for development. The other presented arguments against, which have been raised by environmentalists and hunters.

Fourteen-year-old Christy Rasch of Saeger Middle said she'd vote in favor of the development. "We don't need it right now but we'll need it later," she said. Sears said he's against the project. "We need the business in St. Peters but it doesn't have to be there," the 14-year-old said.

One thing that makes it controversial is that Lakeside 370 would be built on land designated as Missouri River flood plain. Developers' plans include a 4½ mile levee to protect the area from possible flooding.

Saeger 8th grader Carrie Scherr said she found the research on the Lakeside 370 project interesting. "It was good to see how people decide things," she said.

Christy Rasch said she was most interested to learn about opposition to the development project. The kids also found that some opponents have clout. Among members of the hunting group opposing the project was August Busch of the giant Anheuser-Busch brewing company.

The environmental group, Great Rivers Habitat Alliance, opposes the project because it would reduce the amount of wetlands.

Developers say they are planning a $350 million project with a combination of residential, office, light industrial and recreational construction. They estimate it would take 10 years to complete.

In gathering information about the Lakeside 370 project, Saeger students heard talks by St. Peter city planners. They also got an overview of city government operations from St. Peters' Mayor Shaun Brown.

The Hollenbeck students' research work included gathering detailed information about the area surrounding the intersection of St. Peters Howell Rd. and Central School Rd. They took GPS readings to get all the buildings properly sited.

They also had topographical information to show the terrain.

Kendall Blanzy said she helped count the number of cars that passed that intersection.

She also was impressed by the amount of work "that goes into the zoning and other actions by the city" before making a decision. Her Hollenbeck classmate Rachel Dismukes said the CECH research helped her learn a lot about city government. "Now, if I have a problem, I'd know where to go to get it fixed," she said.

Thirteen-year-old Josh Walters of Hollenbeck said he helped find the elevations for buildings on the site. Also, he helped build the structures that went on the scale model.

About lessons he learned, Josh said, "I learned a lot about how to make scale models."

 

Kids learn about solving city problems

Eighth grader David Sears said he was surprised to discover "how much work goes into planning" of a multi-use development proposed in his hometown of St. Peters.

He said the proposed 1,600-acre Lakeside 370 project has been in the planning stage for five years. And the developers haven't even got final governmental approvals needed before construction can start.

Sears and a group of other Saeger Middle School students were taking part in a Citizenship Education Clearing House ( CECH) program. CECH is sponsored by the University of Missouri-St. Louis and helps kids get involved in local government issues.

The Saeger kids researched the Lakeside 370 project and then held a debate on whether they favor or oppose the development. The debate involved Saeger kids as well as 8th graders from nearby Hollenbeck Middle School.

Hollenbeck kids had their own CECH study. But, their work was much more local.

They were trying to determine what should be done about growing traffic congestion near their school. In mornings and afternoons, traffic moves very slowly at the intersection of St. Peters Howell and Central School roads.

In addition to Hollenbeck School, there is also an elementary school at the same corner.

Eighth grader Kendall Blanzy said vehicle traffic is bad but she thinks a bigger hazard involves "kids who walk to and from school."

The Saeger and Hollenbeck kids met last month at Saeger for a Mini-Project Fair. Each group made a presentation about their CECH projects to the other.

Both used Powerpoint videos to explain their research. The Hollenbeck showing also involved a large-scale model of their school grounds and surrounding roads.

The Saeger presentation included a debate on the merits of the Lakeside 370 project. One group presented arguments for development. The other presented arguments against, which have been raised by environmentalists and hunters.

Fourteen-year-old Christy Rasch of Saeger Middle said she'd vote in favor of the development. "We don't need it right now but we'll need it later," she said. Sears said he's against the project. "We need the business in St. Peters but it doesn't have to be there," the 14-year-old said.

One thing that makes it controversial is that Lakeside 370 would be built on land designated as Missouri River flood plain. Developers' plans include a 4½ mile levee to protect the area from possible flooding.

Saeger 8th grader Carrie Scherr said she found the research on the Lakeside 370 project interesting. "It was good to see how people decide things," she said.

Christy Rasch said she was most interested to learn about opposition to the development project. The kids also found that some opponents have clout. Among members of the hunting group opposing the project was August Busch of the giant Anheuser-Busch brewing company.

The environmental group, Great Rivers Habitat Alliance, opposes the project because it would reduce the amount of wetlands.

Developers say they are planning a $350 million project with a combination of residential, office, light industrial and recreational construction. They estimate it would take 10 years to complete.

In gathering information about the Lakeside 370 project, Saeger students heard talks by St. Peter city planners. They also got an overview of city government operations from St. Peters' Mayor Shaun Brown.

The Hollenbeck students' research work included gathering detailed information about the area surrounding the intersection of St. Peters Howell Rd. and Central School Rd. They took GPS readings to get all the buildings properly sited.

They also had topographical information to show the terrain.

Kendall Blanzy said she helped count the number of cars that passed that intersection.

She also was impressed by the amount of work "that goes into the zoning and other actions by the city" before making a decision. Her Hollenbeck classmate Rachel Dismukes said the CECH research helped her learn a lot about city government. "Now, if I have a problem, I'd know where to go to get it fixed," she said.

Thirteen-year-old Josh Walters of Hollenbeck said he helped find the elevations for buildings on the site. Also, he helped build the structures that went on the scale model.

About lessons he learned, Josh said, "I learned a lot about how to make scale models."

 

A timely story told in a
comic-book picture format

"Alia's Mission" is a newly-popularized type of book format. It's a short novel presented in pictures with talk balloons for the characters' dialogue. Book publishers are calling these publications "graphic novels", because of their use of pictures to tell the story.

In the case of "Alia's Mission", Alia is Alia Muhammad Baker, a librarian in Basra, Iraq. In 2003, as The United States was getting closer to invading Iraq, Alia started worrying about what would happen to the books in the library in case of war. She had loved books and reading since she was a little girl. She knew that in wars of the past, priceless books and documents had been destroyed.

Alia went to government officials to get permission to put the books in a safe place. Not only was she denied that permission, but the military placed anti-aircraft weapons on the very roof of the library. The army even turned the library into a command post for its soldiers. Once the war started, it looked like there was no chance to save the books.

Alia was so desperate that she started sneaking books out of the library past the soldiers. She hid them in her own home. Each day she slipped more and more books out to her little car and took them home to hide them away. But as the war draws closer to the building and bombs became more threatening, she knew that she couldn't save all the books by herself.

Finally, looters break into the library and steal furniture, lights, fixtures, even the pencil sharpeners. Strangely, they leave the books alone. Now, Alia knows she must get assistance in protecting the books. With the help of workers from around the city, she is able to get many of the books moved to a neighboring restaurant, where they are less likely to be destroyed by fire and bombing. The library is burned before all of the books can be salvaged.

Alia is so concerned that she has a stroke and has to go to bed for several weeks to recover. While getting better, she learns that over 30,000 books have been saved, or almost all of the library collection. Alia is overjoyed, and finds that she has become a national hero.

 

St. Louis team will compete at AAU

The Team St. Louis 12-and-under boys basketball will be looking for a national championship at the AAU competition next month in Virginia Beach, VA. The goal might not be too far fetched.

The same boys won the Division 2 nationals last year in the 11-and-under bracket. But, they know the competition will be tougher this year. That's because they are competing in the Division 1 tournament, which brings together teams with more skills.

Coach Rick Wilson said the Division 1 championships will be decided in a 9-day tournament.

Wilson put together his Team St. Louis four years ago. Starting in the 9-and-under division, the team has competed in the nationals each year. The first year, competing in Division 1, his team finished 6th.

The next year, in 10-and-under, Team St. Louis finished 15th in Division 1.

Then, last year, was the championship year in 11-and-under in Division 2. That finished guaranteed them a place in this year's 12-and-under Division 1 meet.

But, Team St. Louis made doubly sure by winning the Ozark AAU regional tournament in April. That capped a year when the team has gone 65-9.

Many of this year's team members have been with Team St. Louis for three or four years. Most of them picked last year's national title as their best basketball experience. And they are looking forward to this year's trip.

However, these kids are used to traveling to meets. In the four years that Coach Wilson has had the team, the boys have played 21 different states. Their record is 287-49.

One of the original players on Team St. Louis is Wilson's son, 12-year-old Jordan. Asked about his father as coach, Jordan said, "He's hard on everybody…but in a good way."

Like most of his teammates, Jordan started playing basketball early. He said his first experience was at age 5 at the Mathews-Dickey Boys and Girls Club.

Jordan is a 6th grader at the City Academy School. He said he's pretty much focused on basketball as his sport. He plays either the point or shooting guard position.

But, he's been active in musicals at school. "I've performed in lots of them," he said. The current production he's working on is "The Wiz," a modern version of "Wizard of Oz."

Eleven-year-old Bradley Beal said he was recruited by Coach Wilson for the 10-and-under team three years ago. He's a 6th grader at Chaminade College Prep School. The 5-foot-4-inch small forward also competes on select teams in both football and baseball.

Like many of the kids, he hopes to be a professional basketball player some day.

Twelve-year-old Alex Doss also would like to be an NBA player. However, the point guard said he has a Plan B if the professional basketball career doesn't work.

"I'd like to be an engineer. I have an interest in building things," he said. He is a 6th grader at Wedgwood Elementary School in the Ferguson-Florissant School District.

Doss said his basketball strengths include "handling the ball and passing." He admits he needs to work on his outside shooting. "I get most of my points driving to the basket and getting fouled and going to the free-throw line," he said.

Coach Wilson admits most of his players are short. That means, they need to make up for the lack of height with a fast breaking offense and a variety of pressing defenses.

Twelve-year-old Gerald Jones has a offensive strategy when he plays against taller players. "You either have to go around them or go straight at them," he said. By getting closer to a bigger player, he can oftentimes use a quick jump to get free for a shot.

Gerald plays forward and guard for Team St. Louis. He said he started playing basketball at age 3 at the YMCA. Later he played at the Herbert Hoover Boys and Girls Club.

He said Team St. Louis' best defense is a "half-court zone." He said that defense includes two players out front, then two others behind with the fifth player under the basket, running the baseline.

Twelve-year-old Alonzo Chappelle Jr. has been with Team St. Louis since the beginning four years ago. The power forward is a 6th grader at Grannemann Elementary School in the Hazelwood School District.

He also said his team isn't bothered by lack of height. "We have to play hard and box out on rebounds," he said. And he said shorter players oftentimes are faster down the court.

Twelve-year-old Dorian Hobbs Jr. is in his third year with Team St. Louis. He is a 6th grader at Parkway Northeast Middle School in west St. Louis County.

He also plays football and track in school. And, he plays in a steel drum musical group. He gets some traveling in there also. The drummers played at Branson, Mo., in mid-May.

Other members of the tournament team are Shaquille Boga, Jared Booker, Dominique Walker and Rakim Randle. Coach Wilson has two assistant coaches, Jamarr Hoskin and Troy Griffin.

 

 

About Lewis & Clark

Videoconference links kids, re-enactors

Ten-year-old Katie McTearman last month took part in a national videoconference tied to the Lewis&Clark re-enactment. The program had a character-development theme and Katie had a unique, personal view of the subject.

The one-hour videoconference linked 4th graders from Green Pines Elementary School in west St. Louis County with high school kids from Minnesota and re-enactors camped in Montana. The show was broadcast both locally and on a nationwide, online site.

With help from the Cooperating School District, the broadcast was available to schools across the country. It was shown locally on Charter Cable's educational Channel 22.

The broadcast explored how the words "perseverance," "cooperation" and "courage" were demonstrated by the Lewis&Clark, Led by St. Louis area teachers, the re-enactors are traveling the route of the original 1804-06 exploration to the Pacific Northwest.

Katie gave a demonstration of "perseverance" as she hobbled to the mike on crutches.

Since last September she's been trying to recover from no

The first break came last September when she fell off her bicycle. She said it took her two or three weeks of hard work to get used to the crutches. "They hurt my armpits and it was hard to walk with just one leg," she said.

She was just about healed when she slipped on wet grass and broke her right ankle again. "The second break was on the same ankle but on the other side," she said. She was back on crutches and persevering again.

Besides taking part in the videoconference, the Green Pines 4th graders had three weeks of character study focused on Lewis&Clark in February. Then, they competed to see who would be one of the 15 kids picked to be on the May conference program.

The kids did research on three subjects. One was on finding out how the original discovery crew found their food. Another was how they coped with the bitter winters. The third was about the problems of going over the Bitterroot Mountains.

Katie said part of her research involved how injuries and illnesses were treated on the two-year wilderness journey. She was especially interested in comparing medical practices "of today with those used in the past."

William Clark was the medical officer on the original trek. On the re-enactment, St. Louis teacher Scott Mandrell as Meriwether Lewis is the current crew's doctor.

He told the videoconference audience that dry weather has led to an unusual problem: a super-abundance of ticks. "Much of the time recently, I've been tick-picking," he said.

Ten-year-old Eddie Strode's videoconference job was to "give real world examples" that demonstrate "courage." He used two personal examples. One was "my younger sister's courage in learning how to ride a two-wheeled bike."

His other was his own experiences in learning to use his skateboard.

Eddie said most interesting part of the whole Lewis&Clark study was learning how to do research. He used both written sources and the Internet in his studies.

Ten-year-old Katie Fogarty gave examples of the Lewis&Clark crew's "courage." She used the example of Sacagawea's leaping into the river to recover critical items when a boat overturned. The Indian woman was the only female on the first discovery journey.

She also mentioned the need for both "perseverance" and "courage" when facing the crossing of the Bitterroot Mountains. "They kept on going west even though they only saw more and more mountains and didn't see the ocean they expected," she said.

Ten-year-old David Branam's part in the videoconference was to give a dictionary definition of "cooperation." He said, "It means working together as a group."

He got a chance to practice cooperation during his classroom study. He was on a five-member team that built a scale model of Fort Mandan. That's the camp in the Dakotas where the first Lewis&Clark crew spent the winter.

In making the model, David said, "Our team worked well together."

Students in all five 4th grade classes at Green Pines Elementary worked on the Lewis&Clark project.

The contributions from Minnesota came from Hinckley-Finlayson High School. The school is in Hinckley, Minn., a town about halfway between Minneapolis-St. Paul and Duluth, Minn.

Mandrell broadcast his part of the videoconference while outdoors in a snowstorm near Fort Peck, Montana, on the banks of the Missouri River.

 

Summer workshops help toward law career

(Editor's note: From time to time, Young Saint Louis.com likes to introduce you to older people who have used experiences when they were young to shape their lives as they grew older. This profile of Katie Grzenczyk of Olivette is an example.)

When she was in elementary school, Katie Grzenczyk looked forward to Gifted Resource Council's summer enrichment workshops to help her "step out of the usual." She said they helped her prepare for her new career as a West Coast lawyer.

Ms. Grzenczyk is now 25 and recently completed academic requirements at the Harvard University Law School. This fall, she will join a San Francisco law firm, where she did a summer internship last year.

She said, "Those early GRC workshops helped me to become more self-directed."

She remembers an Ancient Academy workshop on Rome where she got her first lessons in how government works. "We really got into the politics of Rome with each of us playing the part of a member of one of the Roman classes," she said.

Individual workshop members would "immerse themselves" in the old society. "We'd see how we could persuade other people to advance our projects," she said.

Hands-on projects at the workshops helped her learn better than just learning things in books, she said. In addition to the Ancient Academies, she also took part in workshops that studied life science, biotechnology and outer space.

Those workshops "helped me stretch the muscles of my imagination," she said.

Because of those good early experiences, Katie came back as a GRC workshop helper while she was in college. She helped on workshops in the summers of 1999, 2000 and 2002.

When working as a class helper, Katie always let the new kids know she'd been in their spots. "That connection helped them understand I shared their enthusiasm," she said.

She said she'd saved some workshop T-shirts from her elementary school days. "Those T-shirts had been too big on me then. So I was still able to wear them when I was a helper," she said. She also found an old Egyptian board game, called Senet, that she'd made in one of those early workshops. "I dusted off that old game and brought it in for the new kids to see what I had done," Katie added.

That desire to share enthusiasm about summer workshops continues today.

Katie's graduation ceremonies are in June. Then, she has to study for her bar exams that lead to her law license. That needs to be done before she begins work on Oct. 1.

But, she is applying for opportunities to be a summer helper at GRC-like workshops in the San Francisco area this summer.

She said early GRC workshop experiences helped her to meet with other kids "who shared my idea that learning was cool." She added the GRC workshops "drew kids who wanted to know more than they were getting in regular school."

Since many of the lessons involved doing hands-on exercises, they also helped her to become better at socializing with other kids. Some involved staging "theatrical" events.

After her workshop experiences in "persuasion" and theater, Katie decided to get into debate and acting in high school.

Those two extra activities fit into her idea of what sort of a lawyer she'd like to be. She said that her idea of a good lawyer is much more than book learning.

Strengthening her debate skills helped her develop a way to persuade people better. Then, the acting skills will help her courtroom presentations.

During her final semester in law school, she said she had another experience that drew on her imagination skills. At Harvard, the state laws allow final-year law students to represent clients in actual courtrooms, "as long as we're under supervision of a licensed lawyer,"

Therefore, she worked on real cases out of a public defender's office.

"I had real clients from under-privileged areas. Sometimes, I had only a half-hour to get to know them. It's important to step out of my life and get the perspective of the client," she said.

Katie said she wants her law career to include representing "real clients" in courtrooms, not just corporate law. She thinks the early foundation for that type of law work got a big boost when, as an elementary student, she participated in GRC summer academies.

(This summer's Gifted Resource Council summer programs are from June 20 through July 29. To learn more, visit www.giftedresourcecouncil.org.)

 

2005 Young Achievers

5th grader has diverse career goals

(First in a series)

Eleven-year-old Holly Doerr wants to be a children's author when she grows up. That is, unless she becomes a professional singer or a marine biologist. Or maybe she'll do all three.

At this time, the 5th grader at Gotsch Intermediate School in south St. Louis County might seem further along as a writer. She's been thinking about story ideas since pre-school. Now, she's at work on a chapter book, tentatively titled "Shark Attack."

But, she's also busy as a straight-A student and active in school government. She takes dance lessons, is teaching herself to play the guitar, writes song lyrics and is active in the Girl Scouts.

This record of accomplishment helped Holly become one of ten 2005 Gateway Young Achievers. This marked the 15th year that the awards have been given to elementary, middle and senior high students.

The awards are given for outstanding accomplishments in school and various service and artistic areas. Holly was one of two elementary school students who were honored for all-around achievement. Over 370 young people were nominated for the competition.

(Young Saint Louis.com last month published an article about the 2005 Young Achiever winners. To read that article, click here.)

(The profile on Holly is the first in a series on the 2005 winners. Each following edition will include another profile of an elementary and middle school winner. YSL.com is a website targeted to St. Louis-area kids, ages 8-13.)

Fifth grade teacher Anna Steffen nominated Holly for the Young Achiever award. Ms. Steffen said, "Holly is a strong asset in our classroom. She deserves to be recognized for her outstanding leadership skills, academic success and service to the community."

Holly has served as a Student Senate Representative for the past three years.

"The Student Senate studies how we can help improve our school," she said. Then, they try to get school officials or school board members to act on suggestions, she added.

One of the projects was to get more balls for use in recesses, she said. Another effort is to get the hallway to the 5th grade classrooms air-conditioned.

She also works in the school's early-morning store, where kids can buy school supplies and some snacks. Last month, the current store workers began training 4th graders who will take over in the 2005-06 school year.

Holly is a member of Gotsch Intermediate's S.A.I.L. program. That's an accelerated academic program. Kids in the program gather on Wednesdays to study a variety of subjects.

There's a lot of emphasis on writing in advanced classes. But, Holly does more on her own.

"I've been writing stories for as long as I can remember," she said. One of her recent books was titled, "True Calling."

She explained that True is the heroine of the book. She's a girl who has the power to stop history and "go back and change things so no one dies," Holly said.

She acknowledged that she has one writing weakness. She has trouble ending a story because she's always thinking of more twists in the plot.

Holly said she also likes to read. Her favorite books are usually fiction, science fiction and mysteries.

She has been a straight-A student since pre-school. She said she thinks she's on track to finish this year with all-As. Holly moves to Rogers Middle School for 6th grade next fall.

On the community service side, she's been active in Girl Scouts. But, she also tries to help around the neighborhood.

One of her favorite activities was helping parents across the street when the mother gave birth to twins. "I helped with their 3-year-old when the twins came," Holly said.

The family has since moved to Waterloo, Ill. But, Holly said, "I go over a couple times a month to play with the kids."

She's looking forward to doing more babysitting. "The family that moved in across the street is going to have a new baby soon," she said.

As for her multiple choice of possible adult occupations, Holly has the background for being a children's book writer and a singer. But, she's not sure where the marine biologist idea came from. "But, it would be fun to do all three," she said.

 

YSL.com movie reviewer Eddie Szewczyk of Belleville, Ill., takes a look at the new blockbuster animated feature, "Madagascar." As with other reviews, Eddie attended a special critics' advance showing so YSL.com can cover the film even before it opened to the general public.

"Madagascar" starts summer with fun

By Eddie Szewczyk
(Exclusive to Young Saint Louis.com)

Are you looking for a fun, "lets get the summer started" movie with plenty of great computer animals and hysterically funny one-liners?

Dreamworks production of "Madagascar" could be your passport to one wacky adventure.

Directed by Eric Darnell and Tom McGrath, our story begins in the Central Park Zoo in New York. There, we find four hopelessly charming and endearing occupants in the Animal Kingdom.

There's Alex the Lion, the Zoo's "mane" attraction who enjoys king of the park status. There's also Melman, a hypochondriacally, but lovable giraffe.

Gloria is a very "hip' hippo who knows exactly what she wants and how to get it.

Then, there's one loveable, pampered but bored with captivity zebra named Marty (Chris Rock)

Marty eventually lets high curiosity for "the great outdoors beyond the zoo gates," get the best of him. He decides to follow a group of rebel penguins in a well-worked escape tunnel.

It had been dug out under the zoo walls with plastic ice cream spoons and Popsicle sticks.

Marty's disappearance is discovered by Melman the Giraffe in the middle of the night.

Alex the Lion (Ben Stiller), Melman (David Schwimmer) and Gloria the Hippo (Jada Pickett Smith) decide they have to form a search and rescue team to find Marty and bring him back to the safety of the Zoo.

As can be expected, things don't go as smoothly as planned. As soon as the group reconnects, the police and animal control arrive with tranquilizer guns and subdue the rebellious renegades.

The foursome finally awakens after a nice, long, tranquilized-induced sleep. They've been crated up in wooden boxes on a ship headed back to the Kenyan Wildlife Preserve where unmanageable animals are sent.

Claustrophobic and in a panic, they somehow manage to rock their crates overboard. They end up washing ashore on the exotic island of Madagascar.

They think all they have to do is find the next available human and

correct this horrible mistake. They set out to follow a distant drumbeat in hopes that this nightmare soon will be behind them.

Ironically, the sounds are coming from a tribal gathering of lemurs, who quickly realize the health benefits of having such big, important friends nearby.

High jinks continue, especially for Alex the Lion, who hasn't eaten a steak for quite some time. His visions of T-bones begin to not only dance in his head but also on the backside of his best friend, Marty, who looks tasty in a dinner sort of way.

Try to catch this movie, kids.

"Madagascar" is a fun, light-hearted animated feature that's sure to please young and old alike.

The animation and graphics are amazing and incredibly lifelike. The story and music have a fun, quick-paced tempo.

And, as if that isn't enough, there's plenty of cute, cuddly, wide-eyed little animals that are sure to tug at your heartstrings.

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This month's book reviews

A kid with a weird imagination
finds a reality that's even weirder

Nicholas Dill had been named for his dad, but everybody called him "Nickel" since his mom had called him that from the time he was a baby. "Nickel" was okay as a name, but he didn't like it when his teacher called him "Mr. Dill" - just too many pickle jokes. His best friend at school was Inez, a tall and very self-assured African American girl. Nickel, with his wild fantasies about animals, was spaced out most of the time. Inez would say "Hello, earth calling Nickel," and manage to get him tuned back in some of the time.

Nickel's mom was divorced from his dad. Nickel lived in an apartment in the city with his mom, but once a month spent a week-end with his dad in the suburbs. Nickel really preferred living in the inner city to living in a suburban neighborhood. He was never lonely anywhere since he carried Miriam, his pet kangaroo rat, with him everywhere he goes. He's constantly telling Miriam about the different animals he sees in cloud formations. He sees some kind of animal in every person he encounters. He uses an old camera to shoot pictures of those things he imagines he sees. Of course, his pictures never are as good as his imagination.

The landlord in the Gardenview apartments, where Nickel lives is a mean old grouch. He is constantly raising the rent. With the last raise, Nickel's mom says they will have to move since she can't afford the rent anymore. Nickel's biggest fear is they might move to the suburbs, so he starts keeping an eye out for a cheaper apartment for them in the city.

By accident, Nickel runs across a kind of isolated apartment building in a run-down part of town. It has a brass plate on the door that says "The Beastly Arms". His mother reluctantly agrees to take the apartment, which is large and newly painted, when Mr. Beastly offers to rent it to them for an unbelievably low price.

Nickel knows right away that there is something strange about Mr. Beastly and the apartment. However, Mr. Beastly likes animals and Nickel finds that he gets along very well with this landlord, whose real name, by the way, is Mr. Beasley, not Beastly. Nickel knows that there is something strange about this apartment building. Even though it's seven stories tall, there does not seem to be any other tenants living in it.

It turns out that there is a really wild secret about The Beastly Arms, but you need to read the book to find out what it is.

 

A suspense-filled novel about two kids
with a mission to free their parents

Aiden and Meg Falconer are brother and sister. Their parents have been falsely convicted of being traitors to their country. The two kids were hidden away on a Nebraska farm operated as a juvenile correction center. They hate the life in what the inmates call "Alcatraz Junior." They know they are innocent of any crimes and that, while imprisoned, there is no way they can help prove that their parents were framed.

As the result of an accidental fire in the cow barn that spread through the compound, the kids were able to escape into the countryside. They have no money, no plan, and no one on the outside who can offer them any assistance. Teen-aged Aiden can vaguely remember some pictures hidden in a vacation cottage in Vermont. One of them was of the FBI man who would have cleared his parents if only he had been available for their trial. The question is how can two kids make it across the country from Nebraska to Vermont without being caught by the authorities.

"Chasing the Falconers" is an adventurous, suspense-filled paperback that will keep you running along with the two Falconer kids. The bad news is that it is only book one of a projected series. You probably will want to pick up book two when it comes

 

A historical novel about the
Norman invasion of England in 1066

Those of us who are fans of the legends of Robin Hood know that the Normans invaded England and defeated the Saxons who ruled England at that time. The cruel and bloodthirsty Norman ruler who led the invaders across the English Channel was known as William the Conqueror. The army that was defeated was led by King Harold. The novel "The King's Shadow" is the story of Evyn, a young Welsh boy who became a trusted supporter of King Harold.

At the beginning of the novel, Evyn lives on a small farm in Wales with his father. Evyn is becoming well-known as a storyteller because of his unusual voice. His life is disrupted when his father, who is mistaken for someone else, is murdered. The murderers, to quiet a witness to their crime, cut out Evyn's tongue. Not only can he no longer tell stories, but at fourteen, Evyn is an orphan who cannot speak at all.

Evyn has to flee his homeland with his uncle, the one whom the killers had been looking for in the first place. His uncle finally sells Evyn into slavery since it appears that they were going to starve to death anyway. Of course, Evyn is bitter at his uncle and at the fate that had brought him to slavery. Fortunately for him, he ends up working for a scholarly monk who teaches him to read and write.

Since Evyn was unable to speak, others began to call him "Shadow" because he was so quiet. Circumstances brought him to the attention of Harold, the Earl of Wessex. The Earl needed an assistant who could read and write to help take care of his records and correspondence. Evyn proved his loyalty and bravery to the point that Harold freed him from slavery and made him his squire.

When Harold becomes King of England at the death of Edward the Confessor, Evyn, the onetime slave, becomes an influential member of the group who surrounds the King. Unfortunately, for the King and for England, Harold is confronted by rebellious attacks from his jealous brother at the same time the Normans are about to invade his kingdom.

"The King's Shadow" is an exciting adventure story. At the same time, it informs the reader about the actual events that drastically changed the history of England.