Should Exotic Animals Be Kept as Pets?

Do you have a snake or a type of lizard? Well, those are exotic animals. Animals that should live in the wild. About 18,000,000 Americans have exotic animals and I think that should stop. Many animals should be in their own habitat. Today, I will tell you 3 reasons why exotic animals should not be pets.

To begin with, wild animals can die if they escape. Snakes and small exotic animals are mostly likely to escape. For instant, most animals need to be guided from their mothers. For example, baby birds need to learn how to fly from their mothers.

Second, wild animals can be very aggressive to humans and that can involve injuries to deaths. In 2005, a woman named Paris Hilton got a pet kinkajou, native from Central and South America, named Baby Luv. Soon, Baby Luv bit Hilton deeply enough for her to go to the hospital. Luckily, Hilton got better from her severe injury. Most wild animals are not used to be being next to humans.

Lastly, it is cruel to keep them as pets. First of all, they are not used to our climate conditions. Imagine being in a desert 130 degrees, or a very chilly place about 10 degrees! That’s what it kind of feels like for them. Also, most owners do not know how to train how their pets. Finally, pets end up suffering.

To restate my opinion, exotic animals should not be pets. It can be dangerous to us but more importantly, dangerous to them. Also, there are many other animals to adopt/own. Again, 18,000,000 Americans own exotic animals. That should stop. So if you are thinking to get some sort of lizard, make the right choice.

patricia pierce via Compfight

Category: Animals, Current Events & News, Student Posts | 2 Comments

June 15

Should Sports Teams Change Their Names and Logos?

Did you know that there are over 500 Native American tribes in the United States of America. About 2,100 sports teams contain Native American names and logos. Since 2005 NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association) told 18 teams to change their names or logo because it is offensive to native americans and they don’t like being called indians or redskins. From my point of view, sports teams should change their names because they can be offensive to Native Americans because it makes look like savages. Many Native Americans don’t like the team names because it makes it look like they all have the same culture even though there is many different cultures of Native Americans.

Many of the team logos make the Indians look like savages. In fact many Indians were rarely at war or violent. People don’t want to accept the fact that the Redskins name is racist and offends many Native Americans. Nine out of 10 Native Americans think the Redskins name is racist because it makes them look like savages and violent people. In 2017 California governor Jerry Brown banned any school to have the name or logo of the Redskins.

The team names make Indians look like one culture of people. The cartoon like logos make them all look the same. For example, the Chief’s logo of Chief Wahoo has a painted face and feathers. Not all Indian tribes painted their faces or wore feathers. One thing fans do is that they go to baseball games and they go to the game with feathers even though not a lot of tribes do that. There are 500 plus different Indian tribes in the United States and they are all very different.

The Seminoles are at FSU (Florida State University) because the Native American tribe the seminoles said they can use their name as the school name and logo. The Seminoles the tribe says represents bravery and courage. Also, San Diego State University there has been multiple petitions to get rid of their name and logo and mascot of the Aztecs. Surprisingly in the year 2000 about 95% of people voted to keep the name and mascot of the Aztecs. I think the mascot is fine. It shows the culture of the Aztecs and doesn’t make them look like a cartoon or savage.

Did you know that most protests for the Cleveland Indians happen on opening day? In 2019, the Cleveland Indians are changing their logo, Chief Wahoo. They’ve had this logo since 1947. I think it is good that they are changing their logo because they are hosting the All Star Game the year they are getting rid of their logo. That makes me think they are honoring tribes. So, in conclusion those are my reasons I think that they should change the names and logos. But then again, some teams say that they will never ever change their team names because it is an important part of team history. It seems to me that all teams should change their names if it’s offensive.

Photo credit: https://newsmaven.io/indiancountrytoday/news/no-more-wahoo-cleveland-indians-to-discontinue-chief-wahoo-logo-in-2019-L7uHOdUyT0CFjXVK4hnHKw/

Category: Community, Current Events & News, Student Posts | 2 Comments

June 15

Cats or Dogs?

There’s no question that Americans love both dogs and cats. About 48 percent of people own dogs and 38 percent own cats. That’s according to the American Pet Products Association. But one thing many people can’t agree on is which animal makes a better pet.

Cat lovers say their pets are easier to care for than dogs. They point out that cats don’t bark or jump on visitors. Also, it’s cheaper to own a cat. Dogs often need training classes and eat more than cats do.

Still, dog owners say the money they spend is worth it. They argue that dogs are more social than cats. Plus, scientists who studied the brains of both animals determined that dogs are smarter than cats. Dog lovers also point out that canines help people in ways that felines can’t. For example, dogs can be trained as service pets for people who are disabled or have food allergies. What you think?

Category: Animals, Community, Current Events & News, Student Posts | 5 Comments

June 14

Let’s end factory farms

Many chickens are stuffed together in each cage just to get their eggs.

Have you ever heard about those factory farms that adults are always talking about? Well, I’m gonna show you why we should ban them. First of all the factory farms produce more CO2 than volcanoes and that is causing global warming. Also, It is one of the worst forms of animal abuse right next to keeping exotic animals as pets and Bullfighting.

To start it off, factory farms make about %86 of the carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. That is like 8 times more carbon dioxide produced than volcanoes! Carbon dioxide traps heat inside the atmosphere and that is what has been causing global warming. The planet Venus’ surface is completely covered in carbon dioxide making it the hottest planet in the solar system! And it’s not even the closest to the sun! Would you like to boil alive like venus?

To make things worse it is a severe form of animal cruelty. Like in the picture above many animals are smushed together in order to get more eggs. This is very painful and uncomfortable to the animal. If you want this to stop you should say something.

Category: Animals, Current Events & News, Environment, Health, Nature, Student Posts | LEAVE A COMMENT

May 7

The “Kill”auea Erupts

Although the recent eruption of the Kilauea has taken no lives it has taken many homes and valuables. Also, the poisonous gases haven’t taken lives, it has come very close. Here are some facts about why the gas is poisonous and how scientists are able to predict explosions.

The reason the gas spit out of volcanos is poisonous is because magma contains dissolved gases, which provide the driving force that causes most volcanic eruptions. As magma rises towards the surface and pressure decreases, gases are released from the liquid portion of the magma (melt) and continue to travel upward and are eventually released into the atmosphere. By far the most abundant volcanic gas is water vapor, which is harmless. However, large amounts of carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, hydrogen sulfide and hydrogen halides can also be spit out from volcanoes. Depending on their amounts, these gases are all possibly dangerous to people, animals, agriculture, and property.

While volcanoes may give off several warning signs they are about to blow some are taken more seriously by volcanologists, who alert and advise government officials regarding when evacuations need to take place. These signs may include very small earthquakes beneath the volcano, slight inflation, or swelling, of the volcano and increased emission of heat and gas from vents on the volcano.

Now you know a little bit about volcanoes and if you are still interested in volcanoes you can find out facts about volcanoes at livescience.com/27295-volcanoes.html

Video Credit: Youtube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfDAfxOu0Fs

Category: Current Events & News, Environment, Student Posts | 1 Comment

May 2

YAY! I got perfect attendance!

At some schools in California, kids who have perfect attendance this year will get a new bicycle and helmet! Other schools in the U.S. also reward kids who don’t miss any classes with prizes like movie tickets and even money! Why should they get rewarded? It’s just coming to school every single day. Parents have to go to work every day and don’t get rewarded for that!

All they are doing is coming to school! They could have gotten all F’s in school but still got a pizza party or something just because they came to school! What if you got straight A+ all year and only got a sticker because they missed a day of school? How would you feel about that?

Plus, Parents have to go to work every day and do they get rewarded? No, so why should the kids get rewarded? they should have to work hard to earn something special! I mean I can understand if you got A+ all year and got perfect attendance, but just for attendance? It is just plain unnecessary.

Category: Community, Current Events & News, Special Events, Student Posts | 3 Comments

May 2

FREE PLAY!

Last school year, some schools in the U.S., started a new recess program. Each day, teachers set up organized activity stations. Students can choose from games like soccer, volleyball, and four-square. This type of program, called a structured recess, is used by thousands of schools across the United States. Why can’t we just get to do what we want?

At my school, recess is free time. Of course, teachers are around to make sure everyone behaves. But we can play whatever we want. After sitting in classes all morning, students need a break so we’ll be refreshed and ready to learn in the afternoon.

Plus, sometimes you just want to hang out with friends at recess. We have P.E. class to make sure we get enough exercise. Recess should be a time without so many rules so we can actually do something without being controlled.

Category: Current Events & News, Games, Sports, Student Posts | 3 Comments

May 2

Silence your Phone!

Above: Mike Kemp/Getty Images; Below: Photos Courtesy of Families

Have you ever gone to a movie and been bothered by someone’s glowing phone screen when you want to focus on the movie screen? Most theaters ask people to turn off their phones before the film starts. But many theaters don’t enforce that rule. Why can’t they just do us a favor and ban cell phones at the movies?

Most people use their phone constantly and can hardly get off them! The movies are one of my favorite places because hardly anyone is on their phone. But when people are on their phone it really agitates me, why can’t they just go somewhere else to use their phones?

The movies are a place for most people to relax and watch a good screenplay, but for phone users, it’s just another relaxing place for them to use their phone. Plus it’s pretty annoying when you are in the middle of an intense movie and you keep hearing “RRRRRIIIIIIIINNNNNNNGGGGGG RRRRRIIIIIIIINNNNNGGGG” So next time you go to the movies please remember to silence your phone.

Category: Community, Current Events & News, Student Posts | 2 Comments

April 25

Dye Hair, Dye

It helps kids express their personality. That should be left up to the kids and their parents. At my school, we’re allowed to dye our hair any color we want. We even have a “Crazy Hair Day” during Spirit Week. It’s important to be able to express yourself, so why can’t you express yourself at school?

I don’t think dyed hair is distracting. Most people would look at a kid’s brightly colored hair for a minute and then go back to what they were doing. plus the only reason adults say it is distracting is that they don’t like it.

Category: Art, Current Events & News, Special Events, Student Posts | 3 Comments

April 12

Dump the Test!

Have you ever been super stressed out about taking a test? Well, I definitely have. and many others do too. In California, kids in grades 3-12 take a standardized test every spring. Some schools don’t even have tests anymore just because it costs so much money! It costs about $1,270 dollars per classroom to have one test per year! Not to mention the fact on how much stress piles up on the students. One test can change your heart rate from 115200 to 2340000! That’s just crazy! I think schools should dump these tests.

Tests cost so much money so why even bother to keep doing them? Between the cost of the paper and the ink, the cost can pile up to over 1000 dollars! And that’s just one test per year! Why keep taking them. We could just take them on the computer. Why waste precious trees just to take a stupid test?

Not to mention how much stress piles up on the poor students. just one test per day can change your heart rate by 2224800! That’s only one test per day and in middle school, you can have up to 5 tests per day! Why do schools want us kids to be so stressed all the time?

Standardized tests do not boost learning Most kids guess on a standardized test like GATE and if they get lucky and do good when they guess the test will be harder. And say there is a kid in high school tacking the NWEA then he guesses and if he does good he could go to a good college if he does bad he will go to a bad college. And most people think there should not be the test is because they never do good on them.

Category: Current Events & News, Student Posts | 6 Comments

May 16

Endangered Elephants!

Elephants are endangered because poachers kill them for their ivory tusks.

AmberBrooke. via Compfight

Did you know that about 100,000 African elephants are killed in just 3 years by ivory-seeking poachers? If the poachers keep hunting and killing the elephants just for their ivory tusks, the number will go down and the African elephants will be endangered of becoming extinct.

The reason the poachers are killing the elephants for their ivory is to make it into jewelry, ornaments, statues, and chopsticks. Ivory is seen as a symbol of wealth in countries in Asia. The most demand for the ivory is in China and Asia countries. The U.S also buy ivory from outside the country.

Many countries have laws against poaching and ivory trade. But why don’t the poachers follow the law? The poachers don’t follow the law because it is a weak law and the poachers always find a way to get out of it and there are a lot of corruption in most of these countries. Another reason people still want to buy ivory is because they are willing to spend a lot of money.

We can help save the elephants by spreading the words or to take action to stop the illegal ivory trade. We should stop buying ivory and new ivory is strictly banned. We can make a stronger law to protect the African elephants in the wild. We can also help by donating to world wildlife foundation or any other wildlife protection.

Elephants must be saved!

Arno Meintjes via Compfight

Ivory might be beautiful and valuable to all of us but it comes from dead elephants we would all rather have African elephants instead of ivory chopsticks or jewelry. We should stop the poachers from killing the elephants so we can make them go back into the millions like they used to be.

Links:

http://wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/endangered_species/elephants/african_elephants/afelephants_threats/

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/08/140818-elephants-africa-poaching-cites-census/
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/04/140425-hong-kong-ivory-trafficking-elephants-china-world/

Category: Animals, Current Events & News, Student Posts | 1 Comment

May 15

The Giant Dipper at Belmont Park!

The Giant Dipper was built in 1925 and still runs today.

Have you ever been to Belmont Park? Well if you haven’t I’m about to tell you about the most dangerous ride there. It’s called the Giant Dipper. The Giant Dipper, also known as the Mission Beach Roller Coaster, is a historical wooden Roller Coaster located in Belmont Park, a small amusement park in mission beach, in San Diego, California.

The Giant Dipper was built in 1925 and opened on July 3rd, 1925. It took 47 days to build it with the cost of $50,000!!!! I think the Giant Dipper is a really fun ride I just wish it wasn’t made out of wood because it is safer and could be more stable.

Well, I’ve experienced this moment one time in my life when I was going to Belmont park with my friend. I nearly died when I went on this ride because the seat belts were not tight enough. I almost fell out of the seat of this ride. This is why I think the Giant Dipper is not safe. A scary/fun fact about Belmont park is that it is one of the top 10 most dangerous roller Coasters ever!!!

Well if you are going to Belmont Park you better be careful and make sure you hold on tight to your seat and have a tight seat belt. Imagine all the bad things that can happen to you if you don’t hold on tight and be safe. Well, that is why I never go on the Ride The Giant Dipper.

Category: Community, Current Events & News, Student Posts | 5 Comments

May 15

Let’s Save Elephants

So you’re at zoo and you’ve just finished looking at the fearsome polar bears, you proceed past the baboons, the porcupines, and lions, and you stop where the elephants always are with their pride in their trunks and ears flopping super cute in the air. But guess what? There not there.

Imagine that. Here’s some 🔣 math about elephants. If every 11 hours 50 elephants get poached then about how many will be left in the next 2 years or 730 days? 73,000. If there are about 100,000 then in 2 yrs it’d be 27,000 and in the next three… none!

If an elephant had no tusks would you really call that an elephant? Think you would call an elephant this, “The largest land animal in the world, with big tusks and floppy ears.” But if you take away the tusk part of it here’s all that is left.” The largest animal in the world with floppy ears.” That’s basically just describing a really big dog. Plus that’s pretty boring. Would you like to see a really, really big dog instead of the elephant that’s been around for generations? We should protect animals.

Did you know that even elephants go through the awkward age? Well only Male ones, and it’s a bit different. When the male reaches a certain age they leave their family and go live alone or with others. Another fun fact about the life stages and ages of elephants is that when one is fully grown the elephant usually only familiar groups while it’s looking for a mate.It also is more aggressive to more animals which increase its power and success.

Let’s talk about the necessities of the elephant and all of it’s regular and well-known facts.

Its family is the Elephantine. In Spanish elephant means elephants and African elephants spread their ears out as a threat or (rarely) if they’re rarely interested n something.

flowcomm via Compfight Elephant scurry free!

Category: Animals, Current Events & News, Student Posts | LEAVE A COMMENT

May 8

The Last Show at SeaWorld

The Shamu Show at Seaworld. Amaury Laporte via Compfight

You are sitting in the splash zone waiting to get wet, he is over there not too far away. He finally comes over and… SPLASH! In an instant you’re soaked! Watching the Shamu show at SeaWorld is always really exciting! There are only 3 SeaWorlds in America, and San Diego is one of them. What if i told you that the show at SeaWorld San Diego is coming to an end? Sadly it’s true, the last show was on a Sunday in April 2017.

7 years ago there was an incident where killer whale, Tilikum killed trainer, Dawn Brancheau. Since then there has been less comfort and more worry. The whale Tilikum died very soon before the show ended and it shouldn’t be her fault the trainer died. It was mainly under the stress the whale has been through and being forced to perform.The whales are killer and that’s probably how it got its name. No animal can ever kill these underwater mammals. The animals get stressed out and put under pressure from not being able to do their thing and roam with no worries.

There is no need to worry about shamus completely vanishing from SeaWorld, because they will still be in the exhibits and the only thing ending is the show. There will still likely be a Shamu Store. There will still be a place where you can get Shamu souvenirs and take them home. It wouldn’t make sense to get rid of everything Shamu related since SeaWorld is mostly known for Shamus. It just wouldn’t be right!

The main reason this show is ending is because of the incident and the stress over the Shamus. I think we all learned that we should let animals do what they want to do, especially when the word “killer” is a part of their name. Another reason is also that the show was teaching children all animals were friendly when they really aren’t.

I think all of us are sad about the show ending but it was for the best. If it didn’t end quickly enough more trainers could have been killed or Shamus could have gotten an illness from all the pressure and stress they are put under every day from training too hard and performing too hard. I’m upset too but we should all learn to accept it. You could still catch the dolphin show, but sadly, it will end soon too.

Category: Animals, Current Events & News, Student Posts | 1 Comment

May 8

Child Labor

jankie via Compfight

Can you imagine a kid that is only 6 years old and that is forced to do work like mining gold in a deep cave? Some kids are unlucky and are forced to do child labor. Child labor means that children have to be put to work in order to help support their families.

There are many different jobs that children do. The majority of them are harvesting crops like tobacco, cotton, bananas, sugar cane and much more. One of the most difficult and dangerous jobs is mining gold. Almost all of these jobs are very dangerous and many times result in accidents and even death. For an example mining gold is super dangerous because kids can die from explosions or even from the air. Also, tobacco can poison them or be cutting sugar cane with a machete can hurt someone seriously.

There are different regions of the world where child labor exists. The jobs children do depend on the local economy. For example, Peru has gold so many kids work in gold mines. In Mexico, they have a lot of farms so children will often work in fields. Many times in large cities children work in large, dirty and unsafe factories.

There is a big population of child labor. The total number of estimated participating in child labor is 148 million, 100 million of them are boys and 48 million of them are girls. The region that has the most child workers is South America. The two countries in South America with the most child workers are Peru and Brazil. The second largest is Mexico followed by Africa, India and last but not least the Philippines.

Most people agree that “Child labor can be dangerous and harmful.” Also, it keeps kids away from school because kids are working during the years they should be learning in school. As they become adults they are left with no education. This makes being successful in life much harder and many times leaves little hope of escaping poverty. Child labor is still happening right now. People are fighting to stop child labor because it is dangerous and affects their chance of success in life.

Category: Current Events & News, Student Posts | 1 Comment

March 20

Supersonic Transit System

Not long ago, billionaire Elon Musk had a vision of the future. He dreamed of a supersonic transit system. Soon after, he released a 57-page document on a concept called Hyperloop. Hyperloop is a huge supersonic transit system that travels in between cities filled with traffic. The sponsor of Tesla motors and SpaceX dreamed of a friction-less, low-pressure, vacuum-sealed pod. Powered with energy from solar panels, it should be able to withstand major natural disasters. Elon believed this pod would shorten travel times drastically. For example, the distance from San Francisco to Los Angeles takes 6 hours. This pod could get there in 35 minutes.

Category: Art, Community, Current Events & News, Games, History, Movies, Science & Tech, Special Events, Student Posts | 2 Comments

March 17

Wonder Woman

Tom Simpson via Compfight

What feminine character has all the strength of Superman plus all the attraction of a good and beautiful woman? If you guessed Wonder Woman, you are right. Wonder Woman was one of the first superheroes to be a female. She was loyal, caring and a good hero of Earth.The Amazons taught her the skills of a warrior as well as the lessons of love and peace. Princess Diana, better known as Wonder Woman, was a new kind of superhero, who would win not with fist or firepower, but with love. In this report, I will introduce you to Wonder Woman, tell you about her mission, her powers and how she got created. Listen close or she, Wonder Woman, will get you!

Wonder Woman was created in December 1941 by William Moulton-Marston. She is Princess Diana of Themyscira, Wonder Woman, Princess of Amazons. She is one of the Earth’s most powerful defenders of peace and equality and a member of the Justice League. Wonder Woman became a frontrunner for the suffragettes who fought for the rights of women in the early 20th century.

Sculpted from clay by her mother, Queen Hippolyta and given life by Athena. It is told, that her father is Zeus. Named Princess Diana of Themyscira, Diana was raised by her mother and aunts on Themyscira, an island of Amazonian women. The Amazonian women taught her all her skills that combined with her superhuman powers that were gifted to her by the Greek Gods.

Wonder Woman had superhuman powers and more. Wonder Woman’s powers are strength, speed, durability and longevity. The Amazonian training helped her in skills of strategy, hunting, and combat. You may know what strength and speed mean, but do you know what durability and longevity mean? It means to last long or live long. Wonder Woman could live a very long time. Wonder Woman had flight too! Flight means the ability to fly at fast speeds. She was skilled in hand to hand combat and could handle weapons. Wonder Woman had a Lasso of Truth. It possessed strength and was unbreakable most of the time. When truth is challenged it can break. Wonder Woman had indestructible bracelets.The bracelets could absorb the impact of incoming danger. She had a sword and shield to protect her in combat.

Wonder Woman’s mission was to go to man’s world on a mission of diplomacy and peace to make things right. Princess Diana, Wonder Woman, acted as a strong moral guide and role model for females. Wonder Woman was an activist for justice. She became a founding member of the original Justice League of America. She saved people.

What did you learn about Wonder Woman you didn’t know? We’ve learned a lot more than you think. We learned when and how she was created. When the creator was thinking about the story, his wife said to him “fine, but make her a woman”. We learned about her superhuman powers and her mission.We found out about all her special weapons she used while fighting for the good. What amazes me about Wonder Woman is that she had longevity. A fun fact to know is that this June 2017, a new Wonder Woman is going to be in the movie theaters. I can’t wait, can you?

Category: Current Events & News, Games, Student Posts | 2 Comments

January 29

Should There Be An Extra Tax On Sodas?

How many Americans drink soda each year? 48% and that’s almost half of the people in the United States but some laws might take soda away from some people. I’m here to make sure this doesn’t happen. You’re probably thinking why I said that the law might take soda away from certain people. This is because the state thinks that soda is bad for you in some ways and are putting extra tax on it. Some people might just say “ Well, I don’t want to spend extra money on a puny can of soda.” But I think this is wrong. Soda can keep you away from falling asleep from late nights driving. If you have an addiction to alcohol, you can drink soda instead. It’s a healthier choice. This helps with almost any addiction. If you’re bored you can get soda and collect the bottle caps. These are just some of the reasons I think soda shouldn’t be banned. Soda helps us in many ways, so go out there and drink some!

Brent Moore via Compfight

Category: Current Events & News, Health, Student Posts | 1 Comment

January 29

Socktober

Image result for Socktober

Category: Community, Current Events & News, Health, Student Posts | LEAVE A COMMENT

January 13

The Story of Martin Luther King Jr.

On Monday we get a holiday from school to celebrate the great Martin Luther King Jr. Isn’t it cool that we can change things like Dr. King. What’s your plan to change things?

Category: Current Events & News | 17 Comments

Bloggin Frogs

Mrs. McKelvey's 3rd Grade

Should Exotic Animals Be Kept as Pets?

Should Sports Teams Change Their Names and Logos?

Cats or Dogs?

Let’s end factory farms

The “Kill”auea Erupts

YAY! I got perfect attendance!

FREE PLAY!

Silence your Phone!

Dye Hair, Dye

Dump the Test!

Endangered Elephants!

The Giant Dipper at Belmont Park!

Let’s Save Elephants

The Last Show at SeaWorld

Child Labor

Supersonic Transit System

Wonder Woman

Should There Be An Extra Tax On Sodas?

Socktober

The Story of Martin Luther King Jr.