Library Book

I got a book from the library called Frankenstien Dog.  It is a goosebump book. I can't wait to finish it.  

The 4 beautiful Orchids

 On Tuesday, when I got home, I sent an email to Fred Clarke. We have been corresponding with him ever since Monday after our teacher and her friends went to his nursery. She brought back plants and now all of Classtopia is mad about orchids. I asked him if he wouldn't  mind sending me pictures of some of his hybridization's or his favorites, and he sent me 4 beautiful pics of orchids.
 I told him that I can't pick between the 4. So, which is your favorite?

Here is Carlos (his worker) holding one of his crossings

I think this is Brassavola?

Unknown

Unknown as well

More To Love

Almost every one in Classtopia knows that I love wolves. Ever since I was a little girl I have loved them very much. I have a collection of dogs and wolf stuff. I have had them since I was a little girl. When I was younger my parents used to say that I might have been a dog before because I used to do many things that dogs did. Like get a bowl of water and lap it nonstop.  As I grow up I seem to love them more that ever. Not one but 2 Classtopians have drawn me a cute drawing of wolves. I will always cherish them.

Another wolf drawn by Lindsay

A cute wolf drawn by Natalia

Dragon Punch

On September 28, in the after school program, we got a special juice that said Dragon punch. Last year my teacher was talking about a fruit that was called the dragon fruit. She showed us the fruit but there was not enough for everyone. So when we got the fruit I remembered that we knew what it was and I said, "Hey guys look, we have dragon punch." My friends and I were so happy that we could finally taste the good dragon fruit. Other kids got it too. It was in a small carton box, and it was so delicious.  So I decided to share this with everyone who missed out. Then my friends told me that I can make an entry about it.

  Dragon punch is better than boring old apple juice that we get EVERYDAY.                                              

 

Beautiful Echeveria

My favorite plant is Echeveria Subrigida. That is the plant I like because it has pink around the edges. It has a nice shape and it is a beautiful plant. I would like to grow it for show and tell. It was the plant I saw first when I came new Classtopia. The Echeveria subrigida in the garden behind the auditorium.

Echeveria  subrigida plant.

                                           

Abby The Artist

There is a girl in my classroom who is a great drawer she can draw realistic people! She told me that her uncle drew it, she was inspired by her uncle. These are some pictures by her and her uncle.

by Abby

by Abby

                                                   

by Abby

Books!Books!Books!

Today Classtopians were ordering their favorite books from Scholastic. People had all different kinds of books. Some of them were ordering the book The One And Only Ivan because it was only 1 buck. Aiden ordered a book called Dairy Of The Wimpy Kid: The Getaway. This is special because when you order it your class gets a chance to win a class trip. So this could give our nation a class trip!

Another Classtopian named Kaleb ordered a book called Haunted America. Our teacher was so scared when she saw the book as she was placing the order. She felt goosebumps on her arms. It was so funny. 

So today was the last day that the Classtopians could put an order in for September. Don't worry, if you did not get a book this time. So I hope you one day will get a book from Scholastic too. 

My Mini Terrarium

On Wednesday,  I planted my Aloe seeds and my Echeveria seeds. I planted my Aloe seeds in a big juice bottle, and the Echeveria seeds in two water bottles. Before I went to school yesterday, I checked the seeds and the bottles looked all fogged up because the water was evaporating and condensing. This means that there is plenty of humidity to help them germinate. I made the labels out of paper, makers, and tape.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

                          These are my mini terrariums.

The Stapelia Gigantea Flowered!!!

 On Tuesday, the Stapelia Gigantea flowered. It was really awful smelling. Leslie went and told our principal that it flowered, and that it smelled really good. So, she came and smelled it, but when she put her nose on top of the flower she made a face that indicated that it was stinky. She walked away, shaking her head. We all laughed because she didn't want to smell it anymore. It was really awful. We tired to get other teachers to smell it. One person said he was not going to smell it flies do not like good smelling flowers. He walked away.

 When I smelled it, I almost gagged. It was DISGUSTING! But, I am excited that it finally opened, because it took about a week to fully open.

Bringing Back The Old Times

Today in french class our teacher took out a record. She asked us " Qu'est- ce que c'est ?" and about half the class had never seen a record before. Some of us were surprised that the little kids have never seen one. Then the teacher explained to the kids that did not know what is was. She told them them that it is like a CD that we have today.

Even Better Pictures

On Tuesday I brought something for the Photography Department. I had brought a camera kit for phones. The camera kit came with three different lenses and a clip. The names of the lenses are the fish eye lens, the macro lens, and last but not least the wide angle lens.

This is a picture of an ant taken by the macro lens.

This picture was taken by the wide angle lens. In this picture the girls are buying seeds.

This is a picture of a bromiliad taken with the fish eye lens.

These are pictures of the lenses. The lenses go from fish eye to the wide angle lens.

Seeds Through The Insignia Lens

Today, I will buy some Aloe seeds. The mixed Aloe seeds are from The. The has a Ziploc bag with  Echeveria seeds, too. The seeds are different types of Aloes. I have one Aloe at my house, so I wanted to get more. I am curious to know what the Aloes will look like.  I kind of want it to be a little bit small, since I already have one.

Also, I will buy Echeveria seeds. I will make a little terrarium with water bottles, just like we have done in class before. I think that the seeds are Echeveria Gibbiflora. We have this pant in our garden, and I hope my plant will look as nice as that one. Maybe, It would look even better!  Plants from seeds are way cooler to grow because the plants could be better than what you have already.

To buy the seeds, you have to say how many pennies you will pay for the seeds. It is five cents for a pinch of seeds. So, I will pay twenty-five cents for Echeveria seeds, and ten cents for the mixed Aloe seeds. 

I really hope that my seeds will grow, and that the Echeveria will flower. 

These are my Echeveria seeds taken by Jessica with the macro lens. 

These are my Aloe seeds taken by Jessica with the wide angle lens 

A New Plant for Show and Tell!

Today my teacher brought in a new plant for show and tell. Another beautiful and spectacular creation from our new plant friend, Fred Clarke.

This one is another Ctsm but this one is very different from the one yesterday, it is called  Ctsm. denticulatum 'SVO AM/AOS x Ctms. Penang 'Sweet Heart.

One day some of us in Classtopia will be hybridizing plants of our own.

Close up of the flower.

Our Teacher's Show And Tell

This morning, our teacher came to school with a little box. We could see some plants, so we crowded around her. It turns out that  over the weekend, she had gone on a plant field trip. She had gone with The, Jennifer, Fernando, and Dave. They went to a nursery in Vista, California. The nursery was called the SVO. The owner is Fred Clarke. Fred hybridizes Orchids.

The Orchid has beautiful flowers! It is purple and yellow. It has a lot of spots, too. This cross made by Fred Clarke is Ctsm. Frilly 'SVO II' Am/AOS x Clo. Upper Echelon 'SVO Sun Blast'


Our teacher told us a little trick that Fred told her. The first rain is the best, because then, the plants can get all the nutrients from the trees. I learned that Orchids have been around for millions of years! I learned that before, Orchids used to be on the ground, but then they moved to the trees. I think that this is very cool!

My favorite plant is the Orchid. I really like the Orchid's flower.

This is the link for Fred Clarke's nursery website. https://www.sunsetvalleyorchids.com/

This is a close up of the Orchid's flower. 

This the Orchid plant. 

Fruit Fraction.

Today during math time we did a fraction problem. The problem had to do with jujube and wax jambu fruits. We had 22 wax jambus but our teacher decided that she would take away 9 for her friends. Now we have 13 apples. After this we had to make the 13 fruits feed 29 Classtopians. We were each in 5 tables  groups with six students, one of the tables only has 5 people. After a few minutes of thinking, Classtopians came to the conclusion that the tables with 6 students got 3 apples and cut them in half to share with the 6 people. The table with 5 students had got two and one half the apples. That way each person got an equal amount.

The wax jambu has an unusual taste.  They were not sweet nor sour but a combination of both. It just tasted like water. Honestly I think these fruits should be called water fruits. This name is the best name for this fruit because of it's taste. The jujube were like mini apples. Very sweet and crispy.

This is a picture of the apples. The bitter apples are the apples on the left.

The Big, Pregnant Praying Mantis

On Wednesday, as we were about to be dismissed, our teacher got a call from her friend Georgia. She said that she was cleaning out her garage and she found a big creature in a jar. She said that she wanted to donate it to our class. It could possibly be a praying mantis, but she had never seen one that large.
We were excited because Classtopia's insect is the praying mantis.

So, this morning before our teacher came, she stopped off  at Georgia's house to get the praying mantis.

When we first looked at her we noticed that she was very big.  Everyone took turns looking at her. Then we decided that she must be pregnant and placed her in the Epiphyte garden. We chose this site for her because has the most plants and places to shelter, eat, and lay eggs. She would have a safe place for her young to develop.

We will have to wait a while to see all the young insects, if everything goes well.

Written by Jessica and Laila

 Praying Mantis coming out the jar.

Freedom at last. 

Lunchtime Reading

After lunch today my BFFs and I spent a few minutes reading. The rest of the bunch were completing their homework or were working in the garden. Our Teacher was sitting in the bench trying to rest her back. She and Aiden are in pain because they lifted a huge bag of soil over the rail to spread in the garden during recess.

Terrarium Update

About 2 weeks ago all Classtopians had planted different  seed in pots. The pots were made out of  water bottle that had the top cut off. Then we had cut holes close to the bottom of the pots so that the water in the pots will drain out if there is too much water in them. The holes are not at the very bottom because we want to make sure that as the plants continue to grow that have a supply of water to help keep the moisture in. Then we used the tops of the bottles to put back on the bottles to make little terrariums.

When we first started we thought that it would take a very long time to see germination. Some people said two months and other said one month. It turns out that we were all wrong. We started to check last week and did not see anything. I did see something in one of my pots.

This Tuesday  morning Sept. 19th,  we took out the table containers with the terrariums  and to our surprise we all had something growing. Most people have germination in two of their three pots. Jessica is a great grower because she has germination in all three of her pots. We wrote in our science journals what we noticed. We are planning to do a google spread sheet to track our plant growth.

We are happy to see that most of every body's seedlings are becoming little tiny plants. I really think that our predictions were not very accurate. We will soon have plants to share and grow.

This is a picture of Jessica's Rhypsalis.

These are Jessica's Echeveria buds.

This is a picture of Jessica's Columnea Elmer Lorenz.

Saying Good-Bye!!!

On September 13th, Pepe went away!!!! The person that Pepe went with was the cousin of my neighbor. I miss him so much and so has my brother because we have tried everything to make him stay, but it wasn't enough. "How was it not enough", my brother and I asked my mom. She said that it wasn't enough because she had to sweep, vacuum, mop, and she had to take him to the restroom everyday and the only thing we did is clean up his business. She had to vacuum everyday because Pepe and Chloe shed when they scratch themselves and their hair flew all around the house, and it gets in my dad's nose and he sneezes everyday, and night.

When we got home from school that day, he was gone. My brother and I started to cry so badly that when my mom talked to us, we ignored her.

I hope Pepe will miss us and he will never forget his mom or us.

The Coins From Jeanne

This is a thank you to our new friend Jeanne. She has been a friend of our teacher for a very long time and she has decided to help us, The Garden Department, by giving us a beautiful metal jar with coins.  Our teacher said that jeanne is a collector of plants and has a beautiful succulent garden.  We have already inherited plants from Jeanne. She gave us a Epidendrum, some bromeliads, and some of the succulents that we have in our garden. It would be nice to have her come visit our garden.

Classtopians are thanking her for this donation because we can use it to buy some plants for the garden. The jar is full of coins! Quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies are all inside of this little jar. In total, there is $33.13 inside of this jar! And, all of this money is for the garden department! This year we will buy plants, and this donation will surely help!

The pretty jar.

Inside the jar.

Dance Class

September 5, 2017 was the first day of dance class for me and my good  friend Camila. Our coach, Ms. Andrea is a fun teacher. We are going to perform for Hispanic Heritage in two months. We are dancing 5 different songs in Spanish and we are learning so many cool dance moves.

Everybody in dance first has to stretch before dancing because you might get hurt or pull a muscle and you will not be able to perform or move at all. After we have finished stretching our coach gives us a break for a few minutes to catch a breath and get some water before we start dancing . After the break ,we start dancing and have fun.

 

My Pregnant Cat

My dad doesn't get mad about our cats a lot. But last weekend he was really mad at my uncle Jason. He was mad because they didn't take care of our cats that well so one of them named Marshmallow got pregnant by another neighbor's cat.

We don't have enough money to spade her. If you don't know what spade means it means that you make your female cat not have kittens. Right now she is really close to having her kittens.

So we figured out what to do with them. We decided to tell the shelter that it is not our cat and that we chose to have her but she got pregnant and we can't keep all of them because my step mom 's mom is allergic to too much cat fur and we all don't like fleas. So when she has them we don't have to worry one single bit.

I hope.

This is my cat Marshmallow.

A Great Party

On Saturday, I went  to Alyssa's birthday party. We had so much fun, because Ashley was there too!

I arrived at four. We sat down and ate. I got chicken, orange rice, beans, and a piece of bread. The roasted chicken was DELICIOUS! You could choose white or orange rice. Alyssa came and ate with me. She was a super hero, just like her little sister, Naomi. Naomi had her hair blue, so I asked Alyssa about it. She had dyed her hair. But, unfortunately, Alyssa could not die her hair because it was too thick. So, instead she clipped on colored hair. Then, Ashley came and sat with us. Ashley's mom was talking with my mom about school, while we talked about hair.

When we finished eating, we went to the jumper. It was cool because there was a slide! There was a little section to jump, then the slide. We jumped and went down the slide, but then it got kind of full, so got out. Then, Alyssa led us  to a jumper in the back. That is where the littler children were playing. It was kind of high, so we used a little ladder to climb on. We jumped there for a while, but soon came out.

We went inside Alyssa's house. I found out that she had gone to Texas and Arizona! That is cool! Ashley found an electric piano. We played with that for a bit, then we went into her kitchen. Her kitchen looked nice. Then, I saw her fish! The big fish bowl had pebbles at the bottom, and a little plant. The fish was red. Ashley actually touched it!

We went back in the jumper with the slide, and this time it was not full. My little brother joined us, and he just kept going down the slide. We played a little bit of tag, Then came out. Alyssa went in her house, and came out with goody bags!. The girls got a barrel of monkeys, candy, and a little package to make bracelets. The boys got candy, a barrel of monkeys, and an airplane.

Soon, I had to leave. I wanted to stay more, but could not. I said bye, then went home. I had a lot of fun today, with Alyssa and Ashley.

This is the slide.

This is my goody bag.

My favorite thing is the barrel of monkeys.  These are the monkeys.

The barrel.

Little Terrariums

Today in Classtopia we used our math/science time to put seeds in our terrariums.

On Tuesday, we had cut the water bottles so that they were ready. On Tuesday we also made the soil ready. We mixed the soil with pumice, perlite, and peat moss. We filled the water bottles two thirds full with soil, then we watered them. We left them in the classroom in a bin, to let the water drain out.

Finally, today we put the seeds inside the bottles. The seeds are a little powder, so we used a Q-tip to sprinkle them.  One type of seeds needed moss, Columnea Elmer Lorenz, so we got the moss ready. Then, we just closed the tops, and we were done. For the extra seeds that needed moss, we made a a mix of only pumice and moss on top.  Everything was finally done!

 I hope that everyone's grows.

Here is the list of the choices that each person got to choose from:

Columnea Elmer Lorenz
Anthurium scandens
Tillandsia stricta  (We are going to plant them on a log and a piece of bark.)
Aloe kedongensis
Aloe nyeriensis
Rhipsalis
Echeveria gibbiflora
Echeveria maybe crossed with E. coccinea,  E. rosea
Manfreda

This is how the mix looks in the bottles.

This is the ready sphagnum moss mix.

These are the bottles of a Classtopian.

I love Hairstyles

I will be talking about simple and tricky hairstyles. There are many different kinds of hairstyles. My favorite one is the messy bun because it easy to put up. Some other hairstyles that I love doing is a dutch braid, pigtail braids, messy bun, ballerina bun, and braided bun. I love working hard and doing different hairstyles.

The first hairstyle I want to show is the fishtail braid. To start off you can do wherever you want the fishtail to go. Take a tiny piece from the back of 1 part and drag that piece of your hair to the 2 part. Then you do it again on the 2 part to the 1 part and you keep repeating that till you get to the end of your hair and then adjust a rubber band in the bottom. It is very simple to do. I love wearing this hairstyles to party or school.

The next one is a ballerina bun with bow { optional }. What you need to do is brush your hair all the way back. You can put hairspray if you want to make it straight. Make a ponytail and then twist it in a circle.  But it is not like any other bun it is a really wide bun. So once you did that make a put your two fingers in the middle and twist, then your ballerina bun and then you are finished. But then put hairspray if you want it to stay still. This is a really simple hairstyle to do. I love also like doing this hairstyle because I look like a real ballerina.

The third hairstyle is the pigtail braid. This is really easy and simple for little kids. It is 2 braids on each side of your face. It is really comfortable because it does not cover your neck on hot days.  Then you split your hair into 3 parts. Then you cross the outside strand and replace the middle, move the middle to replace the outside piece. Repeat that till the end. Then separate both sides and start braiding.  You can use a comb and use the back of it so in is thin enough to split your hair. Then you start braiding on both sides.You can do it neat or messy, but my favorite is doing it neat because it is straight.


The braided bun. It is a simple braid in a bun. It is just a braid wrapped up in a bun. First you put your hair back in a pony tail. Add a little bit of hairspray on the top.You braid it. Wrap it in a bun and tie it. I like it to be messy so I pull and spread the braid out. Add more hairspray to get it to stay still. That will be the finished look.


The twisted back hairstyle. This hairstyle is so cool. This can work with any kind of hair. What you do is split your hair straight in the middle. Spray water in your hair so it s flat and will hold longer. Then you take a piece of the hair that is in front. Twisted tightly till you get to the end or where it stops. Take the twisted piece and put it in the back but make it slanted down to the bottom of your hair. Put a bobby pin to secure it. Do the same thing on the other side. Then it is done this look is good if you are in a hurry but still want to look cool. You can also put a bow.

This is the messy bun. For this you will need a scrunchy, or something that would fit your hair. But I have very thick hair so I use a scrunchy. First is put your hair back as high as you want. Twist your hair until I looks like a ball. Then tie it and your done. It is great for just quick thing to do.

The is a braided crown. First, you take a strand of hair from under your ear and braid it. bobby pin it to the other side of your head. I for hair is a little short cover some hair over and bobby pin it. Then your done.


The last one is the twisted pony. Take a strand of hair in the front. Then twist it back. Hold it and put your hair in a pony tail. There is another way but you put your hair in a ponytail, then bobby pin. But I think the other way is easier.

The braided crown

The twisted back

The twisted ponytail

The pigtail braids

A messy bun

 

A braided ponytail

             

A ballerina bun