Battle - A Poem

BATTLE

On the battle's brink,

The two men fought,

Until they lost their lives.

To Mark his life,

To Paul his height.

Paul’s town was victorious, and became

The ruling might.

8 Years Old Flies An Airplane?

     This summer I flew a Piper Cub and it was so fun. The Piper Cub which has a propeller and mono-wing is a tail–wheel two-seater airplane. Most are privately flown although some are used by the military for training. I will now give an account of my incredible experience taking off, flying, and landing the Piper Cub in Exeter, NH.

     When we were ready a helper spun the propeller; it did not go. After that the instructor primed the engine and then the propeller spun. I sat in the front and the instructor, who took us off, was in the back. When we took off I was excited and I gripped the throttle tightly. It was jumpy and the plane rolled swiftly along. We dipped goodbye to family and friends. We were off.

     The nice instructor who controlled during the most of flight gave me a chance to steer too. It was really exciting to control the plane. While I was controlling, I got to climb, dive and roll the Cub right and left. We saw surfers, horses and a farm while we were flying. We also raced cars. I was excited and it was fun and cool. When we smoothly were done we headed smoothly to the airfield.

     It was time to land and we slowly came in with the instructor controlling. There was a little bump when we landed. While we taxied I waved to family and friends who were standing nearby. I logged .4 hours towards my pilot’s license.

     I had a fun flight and I learned a lot about flying airplanes. When we were done getting my pilot’s log, we had breakfast at the Airfield cafe. I was happy. It was exciting. I was 8 years old.

Sea Master?

During the war of 1812 America and Britain were at war with one another. The Constitution, which was an American warship, was captained by Isaac Hull. James Dacres was Captain of the British warship, Guerriere. They were both looking for battle when they met. The battle they engaged in would undeniably challenge British naval superiority.

Hull was searching for a British frigate when he noticed a challenge from Dacres. Dacres opened fire on the Constitution and when an 18 pound shot landed on the Constitution deck it was shot back at the Guerriere. When an unknown seaman stuck his head out of a porthole he loudly exclaimed, “Her sides are made of iron!”The USS Constitution waited until getting closer before returning fire.

           The Constitution began to return fire and while it was firing the Guerriere’s mizzenmast falls. An ensign dangling from the Constitution mast was seen by a boy who quickly climbed up among the rigging and made it secure so that it could only fall if the mast came down with it. As the Constitution fires Dacres bowsprit falls and there is an attempt to board Hulls ship. As the firing continues the Guerriere’s foremast falls pulling the mainmast down with it. After the loosing of the Guerriere’s masts there is little ship left for Dacres who surrenders.

      After the surrender of Dacres, Hull is very polite and when Dacres offers up his sword Hull replies, “I’ll not take a sword from one who knows so well how to use it. But I will thank you for that hat.’’ Hull’s crew assists the wounded off the Guerriere before burning her. After the Constitution gets back to Boston, Hull is grandly celebrated at Faneuil hall.

When the British hear about the defeat of Dacres they’re shocked and notably disbelieve it but the Americans on the other hand are shocked and thrilled. The crew’s story about the cannonballs ends up earning the Constitution the nickname “Old Ironsides”. For the first time the British Navy had been defeated in battle, challenging their title as Master of the Seas.

Stinkerbot

I have a baby brother Leif who is one year old. He is blonde and has brown eyes. He gets into mischief, is very cute and always loves to journey outside. I would like to tell you more about these things.

My baby brother who is Leif loves to get into mischief; he can find it anywhere. Some types of mischief he can find are playing on the stairs and in the trash. He will also get onto chairs and then rapidly climb onto the table. He will even bite Mom when he is trying to nurse and eat. All this mischief could hurt him, ruin things, make him sick, and make a mess.

In addition to mischief Leif is cute. Some things he does that I want to tell you are frequently hugging family members and other children who are babies. During prayers Leif folds his arms and when he talks he exclaims “Mama!” Dada!” “nana!” But the cutest things I want to tell you are that he hugs people, loves people, and he laughs.

Leif who we also call Stinkerbot loves to go outside. When he goes outside he is very cute and frequently gets into a bit of mischief. To get outside he opens the back door and does it when it is unlocked. The first thing he does is to run. Then he chases our chickens which quickly run away. He then he announces “Ooh ooh.” Sometimes he gets dirty playing in the dirt. When he is caught by his brothers he screams in protests.

As you can see Leif gets in to mischief and is very cute. In addition he loves to go outside. But the most important thing that I want you to remember about Leif is that he loves people. I want you to know this because Stinkerbot is swell.

Allied Aircraft Downer

Tiny, under-powered and badly constructed, yet for Germany the Fokker Dr. I Triplane was a wonder weapon. Even before he first flew the Dr. I, Baron Manfred von Richtofen, who is also known as The Red Baron, was bragging about the Dr I’s qualities .He wanted one though it would be his death. His first flight in the Dr.I on September 1, 1917 he scored his 60^th kill .All of his subsequent 20 victories up until his death were won in the triplane.

Fokker was happy to supply new machines but German industry couldn’t produce enough Dr.I engines. Rotaries were scavenged from downed allied aircraft. Furniture makers built the Dr. I’s wooden wings which, along with the body, occasionally broke up in combat. Despite these problems, the majority of German aces flying the triplane could down most allied aircraft.

Aaa Lightning!

The P38 Lightning was designed to be a long-range fighter. This plane was the 1^st fighter with turbochargers and a tricycle undercarriage. It was complex and expensive to produce.

The Lightning was first used in the Pacific theater. Its most famous action occurred there in 1943 when it courageously downed Admiral Yamamoto who was the Japanese commander in chief. In 1944 the P38 was introduced to Europe. There it was used by the tactical air forces for ground attack and photographic reconnaissance.

Geography Club: Venezuela

The Brazilian Tapir looks essentially like a mixture of a pig and a small hippo and weighs 300-700 pounds. Just like an elephant the, tapir has an elongated nose that can grab things .The tapir’s colors are black or black / brown. Baby tapirs have stripes to help camouflage them. The mother tapir is pregnant for 13 months. Mother tapirs raise their young, but otherwise tapirs live alone.

The natural habitat of a tapir is swampy rainforests in Venezuela and other parts of South America. The tapir eats 85 pounds of vegetation each day. Tapirs are active in the evenings and at night. The predators of a tapir are jaguars, crocodiles and anacondas. The thick skin on the back of a tapir’s neck helps protect it from its predators. I thought the Brazilian Tapir looked ridiculous.

The Natter