Flaming Hot! 99+ Stories from the Kids and Youth of the Writers' Exchange

Copyright © 2024 The Writers’ Exchange This book is a collection of writing and art created by kids and youth in the Writers’ Exchange and Writers’ Room after-school programs during our winter and spring 2024 terms.

The Writers’ Exchange is a community that supports under-resourced kids and youth to build their confidence and get excited about reading, writing and their own potential. All of our programs are free for the children and families we serve, and we could not exist without the support of our amazing donors.

The Grayross Foundation

Many thanks also to anonymous, the Government of Canada’s Community Service Recovery Fund, Louis Family Foundation, City of Vancouver, The Waterbury Foundation, The Grayross Foundation held at the Vancouver Foundation, Megan Abbott, Sasamat Foundation, BC Gaming, Bernard MacLeod, Premium Brands, Seedlings Foundation, Vancouver Fraser Port Authority, JTC Heersink Foundation, Low Tide Properties, Taylor Taliesin Foundation, Captain Scott, Canadian Red Cross, CLICK, Amir and Yasmin Virani Family Foundation, BC Social Venture Partners Foundation, CKNW Orphan’s Fund, Face the World Foundation, Jim and Casey Fletcher, Judy Gale, LRJ Charitable Foundation, RBC Global Asset Management, Rogers Communications, Tweedledum Foundation, Y.P. Heung Foundation, SFU’s Vancity Office of Community Engagement, Nancy Maitland, Jamie Evrard, Rain or Shine Homemade Ice Cream, Morie Ford, Not Just Coffee Fund, The Wolrige Foundation, RBC, Uniwealth Financial Management Inc, Mathisen Family Foundation, Van Tel/ Safeway Credit Union Legacy Fund, Raise-a-Reader and Decoda Literacy Solutions, Denise Baker, David Ferguson, Fraser Valley Quilters’ Guild, Vancity Community Foundation, the Chase Family, The Hamber Foundation, Translink, Vancouver School Board, Margaret Dickson, Mark Tindle and Leslie Cliff, Melissa McAuley, Sarah Maitland, Teresa Toews, Jeff Charpentier and Lauren Whicher.

generously donated the printing of this chapbook

Sasamat Foundation Supported by the Province of British Columbia

is an in-kind partner of the Writers’ Exchange

All of our programs take place on the traditional and stolen territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh and Səl̓ílwətaʔ Nations. We recognize that we all work within ongoing systems of oppression and colonization, and we commit to being a decolonial ally by building long-term relationships and by listening to, learning from, and amplifying the voices of our Indigenous friends.

JTC Heersink Foundation Seedlings Foundation Taylor Taliesin Foundation

207 – 877 E HASTINGS STREET VANCOUVER, BC V6A 3Y1 VANCOUVERWE.COM

Flaming Hot! 99+ Stories from the Kids and Youth of the Writers' Exchange

The Writers' Exchange at 877 1 1 2 2 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 5 6 6 7 7 8 8 9 10 10 10 11 11 11 12

Tim is Getting Strong and Then Fat by Julian

12 13 13 13 13 14 14 14 15 16 16 17 19 20 21 22 22

The Pig Ate the Bird by Layla

My Mom Coming From Mexico by Mariana Queen Claire by Merkel The Dog Named Jeff by Luis Bob by Marco The Dinosaurs Are Coming Back! by Oscar Birthday by Aimee Birthday Party by Maysaa Turkey Story by Diala The Soccer Book by Mustafa Soccer by Mohamed The Ronaldo and Messi Book by Mohammad A. Hello Kitty Fairy by Amal Leen’s Stories by Leen Shooting Star by Gordon Shopping by Renata Rabbit and Koala by Ayato The Al Nassr Team by Ali and Adnan The Concert by Jade Dream by Sundus The Sisters by Sarah Spiderman by Mohamed Hello! by Hayden My Day with Gong Gong by Yasmeen How to Touch Grass by Mattias This Is Why I Don’t Like Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift Being Together! by Jennifer Mary Went to the Toilet by Monji Monji Came to Visit by Mary The Bad Daycare by Melania Me! by Sydney Glasses by Louisa Horror by Hamza and Uday IDK by Lucia Want to Play a Game? by Taim Skittles Among M&Ms by Shimara Creepy Summer by Malak Naughty Goldilocks and the Three Bears by Remas My New Three Month Old Cat Alex! by Ana The Haunted House by Sara The Mystery About a Pet by Maryam My Trip to Jordan by Taima Marley’s Story by Sireen

The Writers' Room at Queen Alexandra Elementary 23 24 24 25 26 26 27 28 29 29 30 31 32 32 33 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 40 41

The Lonely Alien by Navy

41

What To Do When the Police Find Your Illegal Business: THE DOWNFALL by Tanya and Aralyn

42 42 43 44 45 45 46 47 48 48 49 50 51 51

The Scary SCARY Story by Aralyn

Shop by Anthony For Treat’s Sake by Cole Colour Explosion by Chloe I Love Vacations by Amayra Food We Need in Writers’ Room by Oceania The Magic Bakery by Natalia and Nayeli The Little Princess and the Big Dragon by Freya FUNNNN by Hunter Emma the Cat’s Vacation by Leah I Love Clash Royale and Roblox by Rumi The Noob Gets Rich (Air Quotes) by Casper The Sky Build by Helena Went to the Beach by Elton Find 7 Noobs in This Picture of Noob World by Fin Bad Dumpling 2! by Brooklyn Rocket League Sideswipe by Arjuna SONGS I LOVE/LIKE by Ari Fat Cat & Mouse by Tegna Ghostface Chasing 3 People by Basil and Moshe The Hairstylist by K.L. Bionic Lamo Saves Skiddzie Playz by Anvay Closed Basement by M.K. Xerneas by Wilson Kuromi and My Melody’s Adventure by Ayla, drawings by Ari and Karmina

The Telephone Booth: Part 2 by Jaden The Lonely Banana Man by Nancy Cat? Mystery? by Daisy Meghan & Wren’s Likes and Dislikes by Meghan and Wren Tanks by Omari Video Game by Andrei Hurt by A.L. Jasmine’s Top 10 Favourite Songs by Ali Ali’s Top 10 Fav Songs by Jasmine Treasure (Part 2) by Aiyana K-POP Songs You Should Listen To: 2 by Phyllis Life Isn’t Fair by Jewel A Tragic Tale by Lilac

Grandview ¿uuqinak'uuh Elementary 52 53 53 53 54 54 55 55 56 56 57 59 60 61 61 62 62 63 64 65 66 67 67 67

Bats by Tia Ninjago From Best to Worst by Linden Love Me by Queen Oyinkansola Elizabeth Story About I by D.M. Hello Kitty and Friends! by Juliet The Missing Girl by Saphire Bloody Snakes by Athena Nezuko by Izzy Next-Gen Ninjago 2 by T.S. An Illegal Alien by Ryan Demon Slayer Story: Pt 1 by Ghinnvieve Sonic The Hedgehog: 1-CD by Johnny The Fairy Kingdom: Part One by Zhona The Girl That Was Never Seen Again by Zoey and Saphire Muichiro Tokito by Lyan MINECRAFT by Elian Vacation by Jerico Hi. by Hunter The Book by Miracle Demons: Part 1 by Adara Sister Location by Hassan My Brain by Lily My Brain by Diamond Mi Nombre es Goku (My Name is Goku) by M.H.

Thunderbird Elementary 68 69 69 70 70 71 71 72

Unpopular Opinions (I’m Sorry) by Aahiri (Iree) Relaxing by Enzo French Riddles by Diana The Panda Adventures by Ben How to Draw Hands by Chloe Abi’s Turn-Up List by Abi How To Be a Nerd by Violetta COMIX by Rujaanth

χpey’ Elementary 73 73 73 74 74

Genesis and Friends by Genesis The Moon by Anna Would You Rather by Anha Lillian by Rakita ´ kids, volunteers and staff Elf by the χpey

Vancouver Technical Secondary School 75 76 76 77 78 79 80 81 81

Thoo’s Diary #3 by Thoo, found by Mason Waze E Picture! by Mackenzie I Just Pulled This Out of My Pocket by Tommyinnt My Story of Why the Canucks Are Doing So Good (fake) by Kasper Would You Rather? by Damien, Riley, Maria and M.N. Rosie by Destiny Summer Bucket List by Rhoda, Olivia, and Addie Touchdown Playlist by Maria Sonic Te Hedog by Tony

The Youth Program at 877 82 82 83 83 84 85 85 86 86

These Facts Are All True 100% of the Time by William

87

Autographs

John Pregbert Part 2: KarKat Finds Love by Kiana Fake News by Matthias Military Going Home by Shyanne Daytime Television by Tony Clownology by Dr. Peter Künher Shoot for the Stars by AJ Skull by Philip Bye by Legend

The Writers' Exchange at 877 Tim is Getting Strong and Then Fat

By Julian, age 7

TIM GYM TIM

KFC TIM

Tim was working out at the gym building BIG muscles. Tim then ate so much KFC that he got super fat and super long.

My Mom Coming From Mexico

By Mariana, age 7 My mom got me a water bottle from Mexico. My sister and I were so happy because my mom was coming from Mexico to see us.

I love you, Mom. From, Mariana 1

Queen Claire

By Merkel, age 7 Once upon a time, there was a fairy princess named Lasia. She lived in a castle. There was a rainbow over the castle. There was the song “Peace Like a River” playing in the background. There was a queen named Claire who always rode everywhere on a unicorn. Over bridges and even in her own house. She never walked, she always rode her unicorn everywhere. With her magic wand, she went outside on a cold November day and made it snow tiny snowflakes everywhere.

The Dog Named Jeff

By Luis, age 7 Chapter 1 Once there was a dog named Jeff and his owner’s name was John.

Jeff and John were best friends. One day Jeff and John went to the park. But the next day they went camping. When they were camping, Jeff got stung by a mosquito so John had to get first aid, but that didn’t work so John had to bring Jeff to the animal hospital. After that, Jeff was not feeling well.

Chapter 2 The vet came to check on Jeff. The vet said, “Woof, woof,” because he could speak dog language. The doctor told Jeff: “Woof woof, woof woof woof.” So they went home and Jeff did the things the doctor told him.

Chapter 3 One day Jeff was pregnant and John was shocked. Jeff pinched himself to see if it was a dream and it was, so John woke up and checked on Jeff and he was still sleeping. When Jeff woke up, John startled him. At dinner, John gave him magic dog food.

Chapter 4 When Jeff ate the magic dog food he had magic powers. Now he could fly. A flying dog, now every dog wants it. He flew to his friend’s house and he was shocked. Now he wants it. Every dog wants it.

Corgis, golden retrievers, chihuahuas, fluffy dogs, really fluffy dogs, less fluffy dogs, small dogs, and big dogs.

2

Bob

By Marco, age 6

Bob had a dream that his mom was going to have a baby brother.

Then Bob went to school. In the sandbox, a bully pushed Bob down into the sand. Then a bird pooped on Bob’s head. The school bell rang and Bob was sad walking back home.

The Dinosaurs Are Coming Back!

By Oscar, age 7 One day I went to Writers’ Exchange. When Sarah said, “Are you going to do the activity?” I said “Yes!” She was so surprised she fell over and formed a bridge to the past. Then, I went to the dinosaur era and I got a big laser shield and put mirrors all over the asteroid and pointed the laser.

I shot the lasers and they hit the asteroid, which never hit the ground.

Then, when I got back from the past, Writers’ Exchange was filled with dinosaurs. Then I went home and my mom and dad had a pet dinosaur.

3

Birthday

By Aimee, age 8

For my birthday I am going to Camp Qwanoes and I am old enough to go on the zipline. I’m having a sleepover and I’m inviting Mariana and other friends.

Birthday Party

By Maysaa, age 7 My whole family all went to my cousin’s house for a birthday party and so many people came. We had cupcakes and cake. It was so much fun.

We played hide and seek and duck-duck-goose and it was fun. I played with my iPad and someone else played with my iPad. I said “No” and they said “Please” and I said “Yes.” I went home and played with my iPad and it was so much fun. So many people gave my cousin a present. They were so happy and I said, “Can I play with you?” and they said “No.”

Turkey Story

By Diala, age 7 My family all went to Turkey. It was so much fun and I saw a man doing a trick with ice cream. On my next trip, I will eat shawarma and ride a horse.

4

The Soccer Book

By Mustafa, age 7

GOAT

BEST

GOOD TRASH

RONALDO MESSI The best soccer player is Ronaldo the GOAT. The worst soccer player is Messi. Messi is a trash can.

Soccer

By Mohamed, age 7 Soccer is my best sport. I play soccer with Mohammad.

The Ronaldo and Messi Book

By Mohammad A., age 8

MESSI

RONALDO

Ronaldo’s team is the best. Messi’s team is trash. Last last week Ronaldo won and Messi Lost.

5

Hello Kitty Fairy

By Amal, age 8

Once, Hello Kitty was on the rainbow when she met two fairies. The fairies gave her one wish. Hello Kitty wanted to be a fairy too. Hello Kitty wanted to be a fairy so that she could fly up high in the sky and spread magic everywhere she went. The powerful magic that turns people happy when they are sad. She will spread magic everywhere until all the sad people turn happy.

Leen’s Stories

By Leen, age 7 Family Airplane I went with my family to Jordan. I saw my cousins there. We did our Eid there.

Going to the Zoo with My Family We went to see rabbits with my family and we saw kangaroos. They were jumping all around. And we saw tigers and cheetahs and we saw giraffes. And we saw chickens. It was so much fun with my family.

Be Kind I was being kind to my sister Ruoa and I was being kind to my other sister Yasmeen by helping them clean their bedrooms. I was being kind to my mom and dad, cleaning the house. I did the dishes two times.

The end.

6

Shooting Star

By Gordon, age 8

You can see stars at night. I take the rocket to see the shooting star. It is blue and big. It broke a house. The shooting star was a special rock.

Shopping

By Renata, age 8

Disneyland shopping. Mom, Dad and sister go to sleep in my house.

7

Rabbit and Koala

By Ayato, age 8

EXIT

EXIT

Rabbit and Koala were in a Sama house. One day there was a big thunderstorm. The light went off and they had to use the flashlight to get out of the building.

The Al Nassr Team

By Ali, age 10 and Adnan, age 9 Hamza – striker Uday – left field Khalil – right field Wael – midfield defence Ali and Adnan – goalie Ahmad – goalie 8

The Concert

By Jade, age 8

♩♬♪♪ WAIT!

W WOO

WHAT? WAIT! WOO WOO OOW

OO W

OO

THANK YOU! WAIT!

YAY YES!

9

Dream

By Sundus, age 9 One day I had a dream about my friends and me. We were walking in a forest and we saw something and we went inside. It was so scary we tried to go back but we couldn’t, so we walked and walked and then one of my friends fell in. I tried to help but then a snake pulled her. So we walked and walked, but then a crocodile pulled my other friend and I was alone. I saw a door and I went inside and exited.

The end. Fake story.

The Sisters

By Marah, age 10 Once upon a time, there was a girl with her sisters. She had a lot of sisters. They lived in the forest. They were all kind and friendly. All animals loved them, except one tiger. He tried to eat the sisters all the time, but each time he tried to eat them the other animals stopped him.

Once one of them got really sick and was about to die. Her medicine was on top of the big mountain. The animals could not go with them because it was really cold there and the animals would not survive, so the sisters had to go by themselves. The tiger heard they were going but he did not know that the sisters had a friend polar bear there. So when they went, the tiger followed them. Then, when they were out of the forest, they started climbing up the big mountain.

When they were close to getting the medicine, the tiger jumped on them and was about to eat them when the polar bear saved them. Then the sisters thanked the polar bear and took the medicine to their sister.

The next day she was much better. The sisters and the animals were so happy and lived happily ever after.

Spiderman

By Mohamed, age 6 Spiderman killed a monster because the monster was mean. The monster hated Spiderman.

10

Hello!

By Hayden, age 10 Hello!

Hi! Hello!

Hi! Hi Hi Hello!

12345678910

My Day with Gong Gong

By Yasmeen, age 10 Mom is dropping me off at my Gong Gong’s house for the day. “I wish you could stay with me,” I say. “What will Gong Gong and I talk about? I don’t know Chinese.”

“It will be okay,” says Mom. “You will still have fun.” I don’t know about that. Gong Gong is watching hockey on TV. Boring. Gong Gong must think so too because he is asleep. I change the channel to a cartoon and Gong Gong wakes up and smiles. He turns off the TV. “Hey, I wanted to keep watching.” He gets up and puts on his old cap and his puffy vest. It’s time for a walk. Gong Gong’s neighbour waves at us. “Ni hao,” says Gong Gong. His neighbour says something in Chinese.

Gong Gong laughs and points at me. “Hah, what’s so funny?”

How to Touch Grass I LOVE GRASS

By Mattias, age 10

1. Get off your device 2. Go outside 3. TOUCH GRASS!

11

This Is Why I Don’t Like Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift Being Together!

BOOOO

By Jennifer, age 10

Kelce 1. He plays football (not to be mean) Tay Tay 2. She is so nice (he looks not nice) Kelce 3. He’s built like a bus (too big) Tay Tay 4. She sings!

Kelce 5. He has a bad taste in music (I think, idk) Tay Tay 6. What can I say, she’s perfect. 😊

The Pig Ate the Bird

By Layla, age 10 Once upon a time, there was a pig and she was soooo fat. She had an enemy that was soooo small. The pig’s sister was friends with the bird, AKA her enemy. The pig was walking and she saw her enemy. So she walked up and started a roast battle and someone said “Ohhhh!!!” They both looked over and saw Ronaldo and said “Shut up.” But the bird grabbed a shrink ray and shrank the pig. She started laughing and the pig got so mad she ate the bird. Blah blah blah blah blah ca-ca-ca.

The end. Fuzzy banana.

12

Mary Went to the Toilet

By Monji, age 10 I’m having a playdate with Mary and Maryam and my dog. I’m going to play fetch with Maryam and Mary and me and my brother. Mary farted a big one and it was as big as a hippopotamus.

Monji Came to Visit

By Mary, age 9 Long, long ago, Monji came to visit me and she farted a long one, as long as a cow. It was as loud as an elephant. And then she stopped.

The Bad Daycare

By Melania, age 10 One day a mom took her son to a home daycare. The person running the place was not nice. She locked the son in the room until he started crying.

He cried until his mom picked him up.

Me!

By Sydney, age 10 Hi, my name is Sydney. Bye now 😊

If you know, you know.

13

Glasses

By Louisa, age 11 Reasons why you shouldn’t get glasses: 1. None.

Horror

By Hamza, age 9 and Uday, age 9 Once upon a time, Hamza, Uday and Khalil went to Mohammed’s house.

We played Fortnite, then played hide-and-seek. Mohammed was “It”.

He counted to one minute and then went to find us. We found a door so we went inside. We thought it was a good hiding spot, but when we got out, we were teleported to a murderer's house. We tried to get out but we couldn’t. The murderer saw us, so he got something and threw it at Khalil. Khalil dodged it. Then we ran out of the house. We went to the neighbour's house and called the police. The police came and caught him. The police took him to prison. Then the cops took us home. We never played hide-and-seek again.

IDK

By Lucia, age 10 If you don’t know me, your life is sad. BTW pootato!!! If you are Sydney, Louisa, Meisa, or my other best friends: Love you bestie!!!

14

Want to Play a Game?

By Taim, age 9

HEY

WHAT?

DO YOU WANT TO PLAY A GAME?

DO YOU WANT TO PLAY A GAME?

HOURS LATER MAD

I SAID, DO YOU WANT TO PLAY?

ZZZ

ZZZ

SL AP

TO BE CONTINUED

One day a person said, "Do you want to play a game with me?" The other person did not listen, so he got a slap.

15

Skittles Among M&Ms

By Shimara, age 10

ONCE UPON A TIME...

THERE LIVED A BOWL OF M&MS LIFEWORKS

Creepy Summer

By Malak, age 12 Once upon a time, there was a girl. She was a weird and creepy girl that lived on Keefer Street (don’t ask me how I know…). Anyway, she would follow people and make them eat something until they turned blue. She could only wear black during the day to prevent the sun, and yellow at night to prevent the light. So when people found out their friends kept going missing, they knew it was her!! Why, you may ask? Well, she’s weird, creepy, annoying, and other stuff (I’m not gonna continue because she might read this book). If you catch her in the sun, she turns into a MONSTER, and in the light, she turns into a bloody monster, so if you see her run for your life. If she sees you, you are gonna go in her mysterious book, but she will only do that if you are mean to her. If you are nice to her, you will be her best friend forever until you die. So you should never, and I mean never, talk to her or make eye contact with her. If you’re her friend, I’mma pray for you and if you're in her mysterious book, see you on the other side.

To be continued... Muahahahaha. See you later 😈

16

Naughty Goldilocks and the Three Bears

By Remas, age 10

WA NTEEEDN H AV E YOU S T H IS GIR L?

GOLDILOCKS

Once upon a time, there was a little girl named Goldilocks. She liked to do something naughty each day. On Monday she scared her brother.

On Tuesday she put mashed potatoes on her dad’s seat before he sat down. On Wednesday she painted her name on the living room wall in black. On Thursday she cut her brother’s hair. “Now...” thought Goldilocks. “What should I do now?”

Goldilocks’s mother always said, “Don’t go into the forest, it’s full of big fat scary bears!” But Goldilocks wasn’t scared of bears, so on Friday, she went into the forest.

“Ha!” she said. “I can’t see any bears.” She skipped happily along the path until she saw… a pretty little cottage. “I wonder who lives here?” thought Goldilocks and went inside. “Mmm...” she said. On the table were three delicious-smelling bowls of porridge. “I’m sure no one would mind if I had a tiny taste,” thought Goldilocks.

First, Goldilocks tried the great big bowl. “Eww, too cold!” Next, she tried the middle-sized bowl. “Ow! Too hot!” Last of all, Goldilocks tried the tiny bowl. “YUMMYYYYYY!” she said. “Just right!” And she ate it all up.

Feeling full, Goldilocks looked for somewhere to sit. First, she tried the great big chair. “Ow! Too hard!” Next, she tried the middle-sized chair. “Too soft, I’m drowning!” Last she tried the tiny chair. “Aha!” thought Goldilocks. “Just right”. Then she broke it with a KRACK! She was a bit too big for the chair. “Oops!” said Goldilocks. “Time for a nap.”

17

Upstairs she found a great big bed. “OW, MY BACK, IT BROKE” she cried. Next, she tried the middle-sized bed. “Too soft, I’m drowning!”

Last of all, she tried the tiny bed. “Ah, perfect, it’s just right,” said Goldilocks, getting comfy. “Zzzzzz!”

As she slept, a large paw pulled the doorknob, opening the front door. The three bears plodded into the house. There was a great big, fat father bear, a sweet, beautiful mother bear, and a tiny, boring baby bear.

“Who’s been eating my porridge?” growled the great, fat, big father bear.

“Who’s been eating my porridge?” gasped the sweet, beautiful mother bear.

“Who has been eating my porridge?” squeaked the boring baby bear.

“Maybe the bees ate it all up?”

Father big fat bear looked around the room. “Who’s been sitting in my chair?” he growled.

“Well! Who’s been sitting in my chair?” howled the sweet, beautiful mother bear.

“Bees have been sitting in my chair!” squeaked the boring baby bear.

“The bees would not have done that,” said the sweet, beautiful mother bear.

They heard a rumbling SNORE coming from the bedroom. The three bears climbed the stairs.

“Who’s been sleeping in my beautiful bed?” growled the big, fat father bear.

“Who’s been sleeping in my comfy bed?” wailed the sweet, beautiful mother bear.

“A girl has been sleeping in my bed!” cried the boring baby bear.

Goldilocks woke up and... KRACK— she broke the bed. She screamed and then stopped. “Bears? Ooooooh, I love bears” squeaked Goldilocks. “Sorry I broke your bed, Baby Bear.”

The boring baby bear smiled, and then the sweet beautiful mother bear offered Goldilocks to stay for a bit. Goldilocks waited for the food that the sweet, beautiful mother bear was cooking. As the (not-so) sweet mother bear was boiling some delicious carrots, the big fat father bear grabbed Goldilocks and plopped her into the pot full of boiling hot carrots. “Now,” said the big, fat, mean father bear as he closed the lid of the pot.

Goldilocks opened the lid and jumped out. She ran away as fast as she could and started screaming “Help! Get me out of the woods, there are bears that want to eat me! Help, help!” And she was never naughty ever again.

18

19

POOP

ANA

TO THIS DAY ALEX SOMETIMES POOS ON THE FLOOR

ALEX

WHEN I WAS GETTING READY FOR SCHOOL, MY CAT POOED ON THE FLOOR. IT MADE ME LATE FOR SCHOOL.

ALEX

ME

ONE DAY, ON FEB 7TH, MY MOM GOT ME MY CAT, ALEX. HE WAS SHY AND PLAYFUL.

ZOOM!

P.S. MY CAT IS GOING CRAZY SOMETIMES

WHEN I GOT TO SCHOOL MY BACK WAS HURTING BECAUSE I HAD TO BEND DOWN. MY BACK WAS HURTING THE WHOLE DAY. ALEX

I LOVE ALEX THE CAT!

BUT I LOVE ALEX SO MUCH, HE IS SO CUTE!

ONE DAY, I WAS GOING OUTSIDE TO THROW AWAY GARBAGE AND MY CAT RAN OUTSIDE I CHASED HIM FOR HALF AN HOUR. FINALLY , I GOT HIM IN.

My New Three Month Old Cat Alex!

By Ana, age 10

TURN TO READ!



The Haunted House

By Sara, age 12

Once upon a time, there was a girl named Leia. She was at home and her mom called her, “Leia come down to eat.”

“Coming, Mom,” Leia said, and then she went down to eat. She ate and she got so full that she went to her room and slept. She started to dream about a haunted house. She was there with her friend, Layla. They both went in and it was so, so dark. Then the door closed behind them, they got sooo scared. Layla said, “I am so scared, can we leave this place?”

They heard screaming and then they started to scream. “AAHHH!” they yelled. They started to run as fast as they could. There was a problem.“How do we get out?” They said. They started to yell, “HELP! HELP, please, anyone!”

They started to bang on the door. There was no sign of help so they explored the place and they saw something. Leia and Layla were so scared. It turned out to be a creepy doll and then Leia fell onto the ground but when Layla checked if she was okay, she wasn’t there.

Layla started to panic and fell to the ground. She saw Leia there.

They saw a man dressed in all black. They started to run. Leia said, “Run, run, Layla!"

They ran and then they bumped into a wall. They were so scared they did not know what to do. Leia said, “Should we fight him or what?”

Layla said, “I don’t know, what do we do?” and then Leia woke up.

She was so scared. She said, “Thank God, that was a dream.” Her alarm went off and her mom came in and said it was time to get up.

“Okay Mom,” Leia said. The mom noticed she looked scared or worried. The mom asked, “Are you okay, Leia?” Leia said, “I just had a bad dream but I am fine.” The mom said, “Can you get ready?”

Leia said okay and then her room started to look like the room in her dream. Leia got so scared and then her mom turned into a creature. She yelled. She saw an open door and ran to it. It was about to close but she made it in time. She escaped. She was relieved. Sometimes dreams can come true. The End. 20

The Mystery About a Pet

By Maryam, age 10

I WOKE UP FINDING MYSELF IN A DREAM.

WHEN I WOKE UP, I FOUND SOMETHING WAS NOT REAL.

OPEN ME

WHEN I WAS ABOUT TO OPEN IT, MY PARENTS CALLED ME TO GO TO SCHOOL.

WHEN I GOT HOME, I STARTED TO OPEN IT...

IT WAS... TWO KITTENS!

THEY WERE SO CUTE. THEY WERE BLACK AND WHITE. IT WAS A BOY AND A GIRL.

UNTIL THEY HAD TO GO TO THE SHELTER 😞

MEOW! OREO'S PAW

21

My Trip to Jordan

By Taima, age 11 Hi, I'm going to tell you about my trip to Jordan. I hadn’t seen my cousins for seven years, so I didn’t really know them at first. I was scared for the first week and really quiet. The second week I was crazy and loud and I got really used to it.

Ramadan went so fast!! Because we went on March 16, 2023, we decided to stay for another month. When we told them, everyone started to cry, even me. They took us everywhere because we hadn’t seen them since I was three years old.

We came back and I was very very depressed. Sireen’s family came to pick us up. As soon as I was back home my friends were crying and happy to see me because I was away for three months.

Marley’s Story

By Sireen, age 11 Once upon a time, there was a girl named Marley who used to always get picked on since she couldn’t afford any nice clothes since her family didn’t have much money to even buy food. Marley was known for “moving too much” or being the “stinky girl”. Some days she would eat her lunch in the bathroom while everyone would eat in the cafeteria. There were some days when she would try to eat in the cafeteria, but kids would make fun of her. The next day, she didn’t show up to school, or the next day, or the next, and so on. The rude girls felt bad for her because of the news: she died saving an old man from crossing the street.

The end...

22

The Writers' Room at Queen Alexandra Elementary The Lonely Alien

By Navy, age 7

THEY MADE FUN OF SHY.

SHY WAS AN ALIEN

SHY

HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA

BUT A SHY ALIEN

HA HA HA HA HA SHY WAS SAD

SHY SIGHED

TO BE CONTINUED...

23

Shop

By Anthony, age 8 This shop is named the Big Brain Play. You can buy the Gloop. This shop is cheap and you can buy candy, too. And if you are lucky you can be a YouTuber.

For Treat's Sake

By Cole, age 8

For Treat's Sake

Once upon a time, there was a magic bakery. The bakery was cute. The bakery had magic cupcakes and chocolate kisses that glow in the dark.

There is a guy who gets the newspaper every day. The newspaper says the Barbie movie is coming out tonight.

24

Colour Explosion

By Chloe, age 8

PROS: GOOD 1. YOU GET CREATIVE 2. THERE'S LOTS OF COLOUR 3. YOU CAN DO ART ALMOST ANYWHERE

PROS AHHH

CONS: BAD 1. GLUE GETS ALL OVER YOU 2. YOU CAN'T ERASE SHARPIE 3. IT TAKES A LONG TIME TO WASH OFF PAINT

PROS

CONS PROS

Sha rpie

TH DAY E NEX COM FIN T ES ALLY OFF

CONS

TH NO E NEX TC T OM DAY ING ST OFF ILL

FOLLOW THE ARROWS TO THE PANEL.

25

CONS

I Love Vacations

By Amayra, age 7

I love vacations and they are good. And I love love love love love love love love love love love love India and it is good good good. Because it is so so so so so so so so so so hot. I went to the pool with my dad.

Food We Need in Writers’ Room

By Oceania, age 11 1. Korean fried chicken! It’s crispy and crunchy!

2. Buldak!

3. Tanghulu! It’s a satisfying crunchy sugar coat on top of fruits!

4. Korean corn dogs!

5. Kooso fried chicken honey butter 6. 600 strawberries 7. Lays!

8. Doritos!

9. Popsicles!

10. Donuts 26

The Magic Bakery

By Natalia, age 9 and Nayeli, age 7

Menu Chocolate Lollipop Rainbow lemonade Cake

Cupcake

Seaweed cupcake

Fairy ice cream

This bakery is magic.

27

The Little Princess and the Big Dragon

By Freya, age 8

Once upon a time, a little princess saw a castle and she said, “I can stay there?” In the castle there was a big dragon, but the princess said to the dragon, “Can I stay at the castle?”

The dragon said, “Why?” and the princess said, “Because out there it is cold and in the castle it is cozy. Please?”

“Ok, but can you bring food for me?” said the dragon and the princess said, “Yes. Can I be your friend?” and the dragon said, “Yes, let’s be friends.”

The end.

28

FUNNNN

By Hunter, age 7

There was a tent, and inside there was a dragon. He was trying to eat a baby chick. He had to run upstairs, but couldn’t get past a tree so he tried to knock it down. The worm in the tree was trying to get the apples. After, there was a path over a river. In the end, they were safe in the apple.

Emma the Cat's Vacation

By Leah, age 8 *Real story* One day, my sister’s cat got taken away by our neighbour. They knew it was our cat, but they still took her. While Emma was gone, she was fed A LOT of cat food. My mom tried to get Emma back, but Emma bit my mom.

We started feeding her more, and she started coming into the house more. Emma started fighting our new cat that we replaced her with. All our four cats’ names are Coco (which is my cat), Fluffy, Bear, and Emma, who the whole story is dedicated to. Now they are a happy family, and Emma came back mean. 😊 29

I Love Clash Royale and Roblox

By Rumi, age 6 Clash Royale In Clash Royale I’m in Arena 7 and I have every single guy in Arena 7, except Dark Prince. I only know one of them and it’s called Prince. Prince is better than Dark Prince and I don’t even have Dark Prince. Prince could defeat most of the skeleton army and Prince is so bad against the skeletons. But if you have Dark Prince and the skeleton army to go in front of Prince, then if there is anybody that Prince could not defeat, Dark Prince and the skeleton army could defeat them. Prince is stronger than Dark Prince and is better than Dark Prince. And Dark Prince and Prince and the skeleton army can defeat them together!

Robolox My best now is 30 My second best is 29 My third best is 28 My fourth best is 27 My fifth best is 26 My sixth best is 25 My seventh best is 24 My eighth best is 23 My ninth best is 22 My tenth best is 21 My eleventh best is 20 My complete worst is 19 The more I play the more fun it is!

The 30 has a circle and it has spikes all around it.

Sentence count: 29 sentences

30

The Noob Gets Rich (Air Quotes)

By Casper, age 8

EWO HANGH

YUMMY!

GIWVEE!

HANGH

A LITTLE LATER...

EOWF!

TRAPPED CHEST

YAY!

SS

YAY!

SS

YAY!

BOOM

THE END

TO BE CONTINUED...

31

The Sky Build

By Helena, age 7

I THIS In the sky build, there is an underground city for animals. People’s pets live there. There is food and water. All animals here are friends, even dogs and cats, and cats and rats.

Went to the Beach

By Elton, age 7 One time, this family went to the beach and they were playing in the sand. When they were parking, the parking spot was not there, so they went home. Then they went to the mountain and they were sledding and they went so fast and they almost hit a tree. They forgot the car up the mountain. The dad climbed up the mountain and when he got into the car, he drove down the mountain. When he was down, he stopped and told them to get in and he drove back home. They went to sleep and when it was the next day, the dad took all of the kid’s money to use it to buy lots of cars and lots of homes. And he paid the king lots of money to be the king and the king said yes!

32

Find 7 Noobs in This Picture of Noob World

By Fin, age 6

And! Noob! City! Is! Falling! Over! The sun is coming to Noob City.

Bad Dumpling 2!

By Brooklyn, age 10 Hey… it’s me again… Dump. I'm not so bad now, I'm better than before!

We moved to a new location; we moved to the mall. It is nighttime and I'm going to sneak around because this place is huge. So I'm going to stop talking and go cuz I want to lie on the beds.

So, I left my area of the mall. I got there and two beds down I heard something. I looked— it was Steam Bun! He scared me. I asked him why was he there. He did not answer. I asked him to look around and he said yes. We had so much fun but we had to stop.

The end! Hehe.

You have to see pt 3.

33

Rocket League Sideswipe

By Arjuna, age 9

It’s about Rocket League Sideswipe It’s 2D, not 3D (like RL regular) People who like regular Rocket League will like it People who don’t like regular Rocket League will not like it The three best parts of the game are that it’s fun, easy to play, and available on mobile devices They’re both good games. Five stars.

34

SONGS I LOVE/LIKE

By Ari, age 10

35

Fat Cat & Mouse

By Tegna, age 10

FAT CAT & MOUSE

OH, A MOUSE

HE'S STUCK BUT HE'S TRYING SO HARD

END :P

Where’s his owner?

36

Ghostface Chasing 3 People

By Basil, age 7 and Moshe, age 8

I'M BACK

HI

H!!!

H A AA AAA

😐 Y YAA

A BAGUETTE!

! BYE M! O O -B A K

ZAP

The next night, Ghostface came back. This time there were three people: One was tiny, one was big, and one was medium. They were running down an alley. They dug a hole to escape into the mines.

They found gold, diamonds, emeralds, and the HOLY BAGUETTE! When they got out of the mines, Ghostface was flying to them but the HOLY BAGUETTE gave them laser eyes to OBLITERATE Ghostface!!!

THE END. 37

The Hairstylist

By K.L., age 10

I REALLY NEED TO GO TO THE BARBERSHOP

WAKE UP PLAY GAMES SLEEP REPEAT

10 MINUTES LATER

SIR, IT'S NECESSARY FOR ME TO PUSH YOUR HEAD DOWN.

IS IT FINALLY DONE?

HOW DARE YOU.

WHY!?!

38

Bionic Lamo Saves Skiddzie Playz

By Anvay, age 9

BIONIC

Bionic and Skiddzie were in the oak biome searching for their mob farm.

Skiddzie said, “Stay away from me, Bionic. It’s here and will take you with me if you touch me.”

Skiddzie disappeared. Where Skiddzie was, a random temple appeared that had earth particles, water particles, fire particles and air particles. Bionic got curious and went inside. He saw a chalkboard with instructions on how to save Skiddzie. Once he read the instructions, one of the earth particles suddenly flew. He followed it to the earth particle where it was too easy to get the gem. After that, there were a few skeletons wearing armour attacking Bionic. Bionic used a sharpness V (five) diamond sword that he had to fight them.

He went back to the temple, there was a special ember crest that he opened and placed the earth gem in. A fun fact about the chest is it is unbreakable and only able to be opened by Bionic.

To be continued...

39

Closed Basement

By M.K., age 9 Emaa, Fona, Mia, Sally, Max, and May met each other at the park. Mia said, “Hi guys!”

Emaa said, “How’s it going?” and Max glared at them. The girls, Mia, Emaa, and Sally, start gossiping. Max shrugged and ran off. Mia said, “Where did he go?”

They followed his footsteps. It led to a creepy house. They were looking around and they saw Max standing there. He was floating. A dark voice said, “I shall take all your souls!”

They all ran as fast as they could, but Mia tripped. Fona said, “NO! Mia!” and Sally said, “We still have to keep going before we get caught.” They ran and they saw the basement. They jumped in. Emaa fell and scraped her knee. Emaa was crying. “ Are you okay?” Asked May. “I am fine,” said Emaa and then they heard a big bang.

“What is that?” said Emaa. “I don’t know,” said May. Another BANG. “I am scared now,” said Emaa.

“Whatever it is, it’s getting closer,” said Fona. A big bald guy came. It was the same guy from last time. Who knows how?

Xerneas

By Wilson, age 13 The Xerneas is nice and powerful and as shiny as light. Fairy type. The Xerneas is a legendary Pokémon.

40

Kuromi and My Melody’s Adventure Writing and story by Ayla, age 9 Drawings by Ari, age 10 and Karmina, age 11 WHERE IS MY MELODY?

WHERE IS KUROMI?

On Christmas Eve, Kuromi and My Melody went snowboarding. But first, they went to a cafe that was at the snowboarding place and they ordered hot chocolate and cookies! After they finished their food, they got ready to go snowboarding. After that, they climbed up a hill and went down, and then Kuromi fell into a snow pile. Soon My Melody came down but didn’t know that Kuromi fell in a snow pile. Later, Kuromi came out and she couldn’t find My Melody…

TO BE CONTINUED...

What To Do When the Police Find Your Illegal Business: THE DOWNFALL

By Tanya, age 11 and Aralyn, age 10 1. Grab Shrek and put him outside to scare the police!

2. If they aren’t scared yet, turn into a chicken nugget.

3. Take off the McDonnas sign because if the police see it… you’re done, bro.

4. Also, make sure the sign that says “I’m Illegal” is taken down so they don’t investigate you further.

5. If they somehow see you in your chicken nugget form, start tickling their toes 😈 (That should scare them off so you’re done!)

41

The Scary SCARY Story

By Aralyn, age 10 Olivia was a small-town girl with very few resources. Once, she heard the telephone ring but she was home alone. She decided to answer the phone anyway. There was an old, grumpy voice. “Meet at the park at three o’clock. Or ELSE.” “Huh? I—” and he hung up, “What?”

Her parents came home at four o’clock and she was scared. But the words echoed in her head: “Or else...!” She had to go. At three o’clock, she walked to the park. She saw a huge van but thought nothing of it.

Next thing she knew, she was snatched into a van with more kids. The man said, “Too easy.”

The Telephone Booth: Part 2

By Jaden, age 11 Sarah turned her head to look at the telephone booth, then, when I blinked, she was gone. There was no trace of her and the booth was gone. I needed to find out where she went. I walked to the door and opened it to get my car, but then I saw the black shadow that was in the school. It looked at me for a quick second before running away.

I ran to my car, started the engine and pressed the gas pedal. I followed the black shadow for a long time. I was about to fall asleep but then I heard a knock on my glass window. I turned my head to see it was the girl. She looked crazy; she had something all over her mouth and she was grinning while looking me straight in the eyes. She kept knocking until I let her in. My heart was beating and my hand was shaking while I opened the door. She opened the backseat door and got in. “Hi,” she said.

“You can speak?”

“Ya, what you think I was mute, huh?”

“You’re a murderer!”

“Ya, you wanna see something else?”

“What—“ She started to pull something from her bag and then it all went black.

The End. 42

43

...ALONE

BRUSHING MY TEETH

I'M A BANANA MAN

PLAY

ALONE.

ALONE.

EAT ICE CREAM

BUT A LONELY ONE...

EVERY DAY I EITHER HANG OUT WITH MYSELF OR WITH MYSELF.

The Lonely Banana Man

By Nancy, age 13

TURN TO READ!



Cat? Mystery?

By Daisy, age 11

OH NO!

CAT? MYSTERY? WHAT'S WRONG?

MEETING CALLED!

IT'S YOU, BOXY!

MONKEYS

I WILL COME BACK!

AW MAN

OH NO!

HU?

NO!

THE END OR IS IT?

44

Meghan & Wren’s Likes and Dislikes

By Meghan, age 11 and Wren, age 12 Meghan & Wren’s Likes:

Meghan & Wren’s Dislikes:

• The colour purple

• Marzipan

• Taylor Swift

• Deep breaths

• Monkeys

• Hailey Bieber

• Skittles

• No wi-fi

• Candy

• Power outages

• Sugar

• Global warming

• Chocolate

• Intruders in the kid’s headquarters

• Veggie Tales • Backyardigans • Peppa Pig

• Soggy noodles • Velvet

• Micky Mouse Clubhouse • Art • Houses • L ooking at other people's houses

Tanks

By Omari, age 7 I like Sherman tanks because they’re cool and they were used in World War II. They were used in the US originally and they were also used by the Allies.

45

Video Game

By Andrei, age 13

MY FRIEND WILL BEAT YOU

NUH UH

HT GOODNIG Y LITTLE BO

EZ

A HA H

LOL

NOOOOO!

CRASH

BO

OM KABAMM THE END

46

Hurt

By A.L., age 11

I'M TOTALLY NOT HURT

BYE

STILL NOT HURT

T RIP

STILL NOT HURT

47

100 MET RES

NOW I'M HURT

WILL NOT BE CONTINUED

Jasmine’s Top 10 Favourite Songs

By Ali, age 13 1.

“Good Days” – SZA

2. “London Boy” – Taylor Swift 3. “Cool With You” – NewJeans 4. “I Knew You Were Trouble” – Taylor Swift 5. “The Man” – Taylor Swift 6. “Valentine” – Laufey 7.

“Perfect Night” – LE SSERAFIM

8. “All the Girls You Loved Before” – Taylor Swift 9. “Fair Trade” – Drake 10. “Snooze” – SZA Great playlist for: • Taking a shower • Studying

• Road trips • Walking

Ali’s Top 10 Fav Songs

By Jasmine, age 11 1.

“Good Days” – SZA

2. “Passionfruit” – Drake 3. “Open Arms” – Travis Scott and SZA 4. “Love” – Keyshia Cole 5. “Broken Clocks” – SZA 6. “Spin Bout U” – Drake 7.

“Not Allowed” – TV Girl

8. “All the Stars” – Kendrick Lamar 9. “Fair Trade” – Drake 10. “Valentine” – Laufey Great playlist for: • Road trips • Chores • Walking to school 48

Treasure (Part 2)

By Aiyana, age 11

I'M BACK AT THE ISLAND IT'S JUST SAND

I AM VERY MAD I WANT GOLD

SAND

GO I AM GONNAON TO THE PERS E THAT TOLD M ABOUT THE TREASURE

AT THE OLD PERSON 'S HOUSE CAN YOU TELL ME ABOUT TREASURE?

OH AND

BY THE WAY, I LOST MY MEMORY YESTERDAY

WHAT TREASURE?

OH, THAT SUCKS

TO BE CONTINUED

49

K-POP Songs You Should Listen To: 2

By Phyllis, age 11

• TWICE – “I Got You”

• STAYC – “Beautiful Monster”

• TWICE – “ONE SPARK”

• (G)I-DLE – “Allergy”

• NewJeans – “Super Shy”

• (G)I-DLE – “Queencard”

• EXO – “Love Shot”

• NMIXX – “Run For Roses”

• EXO – “The First Snow”

• 2NE1 – “I Am the Best”

• Red Velvet – “Chill Kill”

• BabyMonster – “Batter Up”

• MAX (feat. Huh Yunjin of LE SSERAFIM) – “Stupid in Love” (Not a K-pop song but it’s a rlly good song 😃)

• Viviz – “MANIAC"

• LE SSERAFIM – “Smart” • LE SSERAFIM – “EASY” • NewJeans – “GODS” • aespa – “Drama” • BTS – “Wings” • BTS – “Take Two” • BLACKPINK – “Hope Not” • BLACKPINK – “Typa Girl” • IZ*ONE – “La Vie en Rose” • IZ*ONE – “Panorama” • IZ*ONE – “Secret Story of the Swan” • NMIXX – “Break the Wall” • NMIXX – “Passionfruit” • STAYC – “ASAP”

• Stray Kids – “S-Class” • Viviz – “Untie” • IVE – “I WANT” • NewJeans – “Zero” • Jo Yuri – “TAXI” • Choi Yena – “Good Girls in the Dark” • Lee Chae Yeon – “Knock” • Jeon Somi – “Fast Forward” • Kiss of Life – “Shhh” • Kiss of Life – “Sugarcoat (NATTY solo)” • Kiss of Life – “Bad News” • ITZY – “Mr. Vampire” • ITZY – “Born to Be” • Kep1er – “Wa Da Da” • ENHYPEN – "Sweet Venom” • ENHYPEN – “Drunk-Dazed”

50

Life Isn't Fair

By Jewel, age 13 Life isn’t fair: • When you get blamed for things you didn’t do • When there are double standards—treating people differently for doing the same thing • When you don’t get a complete history—not getting different perspectives on different topics • When you judge people's faith and there are unfair stereotypes • When you judge people for having an accent when they speak English • When you get judged for the way you look • When people try to get around saying slurs but still say offensive things Treat people the way you want to be treated.

A Tragic Tale

By Lilac, age 11 Disclaimer: This story is simply untrue and not to be taken seriously.

I was so excited to go home at exactly 3:03 on Friday afternoon, but little did I know, the Writers’ Room staff awaited me in the lunch room grounds. “See you tomorrow!” I called out as I walked to the exit of the school… when I heard the words “We have Writers’ Room today!”

My heart dropped. Everything was in slow motion. I could hear myself breathing so rapidly and hoarse. I slowly turned around. “Let’s go!” my friend motioned for me to come on over. With every step, I felt the tension gather up into a pile of despair and grief as I walked down the hall towards the lunchroom doors: one open, and one closed. Shivers slithered down my spine like snakes. The sound of working children stopped me in my tracks. “I can’t do it,” I mumbled under my breath.

Tina popped her head out the door. “Lilac!” she said with excitement.

I froze.

“C’mon," I sucked it up with a gulp. I arrived at the entrance...and that’s when I knew it was over. The end.

51

Grandview ¿uuqinak'uuh Elementary Bats

By Tia, age 10

BATS ARE AMAZING CREATURES THAT ARE EVERYWHERE IN THE WORLD...

OR THE FRUIT OR VAMPIRE BAT...

LIKE THE RARE NECTAR BAT...

OR THE COMMON INSECT BAT...

OR THE KRIMPET BAT THAT LOOKS A LOT LIKE A JELLY DO...

HEY, OK I DO NOT LOLY LIKE A JEL !

DOUGHNUT

52

Ninjago From Best to Worst

By Linden, age 9 1.

Kai – red

2.

Lloyd – green

3.

Zane – white

4.

Nya – grey

5.

Cole – black

A city where crime happens every day.

Love Me By Queen Oyinkansola Elizabeth, age 12 Roses are red Violets are blue I see you And you see me I love you And you love me

Story About I

By D.M., age 11 This is a story about I. Once upon a time, there was a silly person who created the letter I. And then...he...raised...the...ring...finger which did not have a ring on it. There was a Lego piece balancing on his ring finger. It was a Ninjago figure, and it was doing flips! And he said, “It’s me, myself, and I!” 53

Hello Kitty and Friends!

By Juliet, age 9

KUROMI

HELLO KITTY

ROLL

Go to Hogwarts!

The Cafe

The Missing Girl

By Saphire, age 10 There was a girl named May and she was sad all the time because things at home were bad. So she was walking to her place and she was followed by an old man. He had round eyes. The girl ran and she yelled, “Help, a creepy man is following me!” No one was there. She called 911, no answer.

She stopped and looked behind her, but he was not there. She ran to her home. It was all dark. May ran to her room. She hid in her closet. She looked behind her and screamed!

A week later, the cops found an empty house. The girl was never found... Byeee!

54

Bloody Snakes

By Athena, age 10

If you’re wondering why I chose tic-tac-toe again, its because it is very fun and it can be fun for your friends as well. And you can add your own style to it. You can make it 3D or 2D. You can make it bloody and zombiestyle or rainbow-style. The middle or the corner is the best first move.

Get your opponent distracted. Tell them “Don’t go in this one place” and then go in another.

Nezuko

By Izzy, age 10 Nezuko used to be a human. She became a demon and she lost her whole family to the leader of the demons. Nezuko was the only one that survived. The only good demon, Nezuko, was cut by a Hashira. A Hashira is a highly trained demon slayer. She was okay, as she was tougher than most demons.

55

Next-Gen Ninjago 2

By T.S., age 9 “Meet me at noon,” said the mysterious note.

“What! How did that note talk!?” Ghinnvieve said. “Meet in the cave down the hill?” And so she walked down the hill to the cave entrance “This looks menacing,” she said. She walked inside.

(Meanwhile…)

“Breakfast is ready!” said Thalia.

Tia and Iger walked into the room. “Ghinnvieve is gone!” said Tia. “And we saw a mysterious note,” said Iger. He showed Thalia the note. It wrote: Mysterious Note.

“We need to find Ghinnvieve,” said Amethyst.

“When did you come in?” asked Thalia.

“No time to explain,” said Amethyst, “Let’s go!”

(Flashback to dinner the night before) “Umai! Mac and real cheese is delicious,” said Ghinnvieve.

“Thanks!” said Thalia. *Ding*Ding* “Was that the door or the oven?” asked Thalia.

“I’m going to go check,” said Ghinnvieve.

(Present time…)

“And we haven't seen her since!” said Thalia To be continued...

An Illegal Alien

By Ryan, age 12 He shoots dinosaurs and humans 😉 But he never gets caught because he is slick with it.

56

Demon Slayer Story: Pt 1

By Ghinnvieve, age 12 “Hashira! We have a new member in the Demon Slayer Corps,” Kagaya Ubuyashiki hollered.

All the Hashira appeared from what seemed like thin air. “Where is the new member? I love meeting new people!” Mitsuri squealed.

“Calm down, Mitsuri! I’m sure everyone is excited to meet the new member!” Kyojuro laughed as he patted Mitsuri on the head.

“I think this person is weak” Sanemi growled. Mitsuri and Kyojuro glared at him, as Kagaya made an announcement. “Hashira! She is ready to be presented. Now, say hello to Yoriachi!” As the final part of the announcement was made, Yoriachi stepped out into the light.

Yoriachi was a tall, fierce female with silky black hair and purple eyes.

She had a dragon tail haori in the colours of black and white. Her blade sheath had the design of a fierce dragon that flew to where the handle was. Her sword guard had a tail pattern in a circle and two dragon heads. “Hello! I’m Yoriachi, just like Master Ubuyashiki said.”

Sanemi took one look at her and he scowled. “You look weak.

Leave the corps, for you are not worthy.” He growled, and Yoriachi drew her Nichirin blade.

“Dragon breathing, first form… claws of sizzling burns,” Yoriachi incanted as she gently waved her blade at Sanemi. Everyone gasped as her eyes and blade turned a deep gray.

Sanemi laughed, underestimating her. “What breathing is that?

It’s probably fake! HahaaAAAH!” Sanemi screeched as the invisible scorching claws struck Sanemi.

“Still think I’m weak Shinazugawa-san? Yoriachi smiled as she said that.

“Now wait just a minute!” Giyu said, confused. “How do you have a breathing that nobody knows of?”

“My sister passed it down to me before she passed away, due to an upper moon demon.” Yoriachi explained to Giyu as Tanjiro arrived.

“Good morning, Hashira! OH! You must be the new member that Shinobu told me about!” Tanjiro happily exclaimed as he saw Yoriachi.

“Yes! I am the new member—” Yoriachi tried to explain and then Mitsuri squealed. “EEE! OH MY GOSH, YOU ARE SOOO PRETTY YORIACHI!” “Ok, Mitsuri! Calm down now and I agree. Yoriachi is really pretty!”

Kyojuro said, while very slightly blushing.

57

As Mitsuri was taking a deep breath, Tanjiro asked Yoriachi another question. “So Yoriachi, I’ve been wondering what your last name is?”

“Hah! It’s probably a last name of a family that is pathetic,” Obanai spat.

“Enough out of you, Iguro-san! Oh and by the way, Tanjiro, my last name is Tsugikuni,” Yoriachi replied. Everyone was so shocked, even Sanemi and Obanai.

“Your l-last name is T-Tsugikuni?” Sanemi stuttered.

“Yes, any questions, dear Hashira?” Yoriachi politely said.

“I sense a great path of power for you,” Gyomei said softly. As Kyojuro walked to Yoriachi, she looked to her left and saw Obanai passed out and Sanemi trying to wake him up.

“Hey Yoriachi, wanna be, uh, friends?” Kyojuro nervously whispered.

Yoriachi turned her head towards Kyojuro and she smiled softly.

“Of course, Kyo! I’ll be your friend.” Kyojuro smiled and Sanemi glared at him. Some of the other Hashira crossed their arms and faced away because they were growing envious of Kyojuro. Tengen walked up to both of them and they all started talking and laughing with each other. Little did Kyojuro know… He’d just made several enemies.

TO BE CONTINUED P.S. I made this part one a bit long, tbh.

58

Sonic The Hedgehog: 1-CD

By Johnny, age 12

Sonic the Hedgehog was made in 1992. He was originally found in a racing game from Sega in 1991, one year prior to Sonic’s release.

Sonic is a 15-year-old hedgehog. He lives in Green Hill and his best friend is Miles ‘Tails’ Prower. They beat Eggman whenever he causes trouble. Eggman is always causing havoc, chaos, and mayhem.

In Sonic 3, they meet Knuckles. Knuckles is an echidna. He guards the Master Emerald. They fight sometimes, whenever Eggman calls for Knuckles.

At the end of Sonic 3, they team up to beat Eggman. In Sonic CD they meet a new enemy and ... it's Sonic? But it’s metal. Metal Sonic.

Sonic meets someone who gets kidnapped by Metal Sonic and this someone is Amy Rose. She liked Sonic when she first saw him, before she got kidnapped.

Sonic finds Metal Sonic on the highway and starts to race him.

Sonic wins the race and Metal Sonic gets blown up by a laser that Eggman made.

After that Sonic goes to find Amy and saves her.

To be continued…

59

The Fairy Kingdom: Part One

By Zhona, age 9 “Once there was a magical kingdom,” said the narrator.

Queen: Get me her now, please.

King: Fine (In the human world) Ari: I am bored Stepmom: Ari, get the mail now! It’s the third time I told you.

Ari: Coming!

“Ari looked in the mail and surprisingly there was one for her,” said the narrator.

Ari went to her room and read it.

Dear Ari, You have been invited to the kingdom of Fairy Valley. We have detected you are a fairy.

From: Queen A PS. You can call us with a dandelion

Ari: Mom, I’mma go for a walk.

Stepmom: Come back fast.

Ari: Ok, Mom. Queen: Ok, she’s here.

Ari: Wow. Queen: Welcome.

Ari: What is this place?

To be continued…

60

The Girl That Was Never Seen Again

By Zoey, age 9 and Saphire, age 10 There was this girl named Avril. She was walking to school. She was with her best friend, May. They got to school. People were always following them because they were so cool.

School ended and May was going over to Avril’s house, but someone was following them. They had to take a bus and a train.

They had to walk 30 minutes to the bus. They got off the bus to catch the train. They rode for two stops, got off and took another 30-minute walk. It was starting to get dark… a dark blue sky. The people were still following them home.

May got a call from her mother. The mother said, “Where are you?

Get home now!” May said, “Sorry, I have to go home. My mom wants me to go.”

May left Avril alone. The people were hiding. May caught her bus home. Avril was alone. She remembered that her mom wanted her to get food and snacks. The store was at the train stop before, so she went back to catch the train. After she left the store, she got kidnapped by the people.

The next day, May’s mom saw an article saying that Avril had gone missing.

Muichiro Tokito

By Lyan, age 10

Mist Hashira

61

MINECRAFT

By Elian, age 11

I LOVE MINECRAFT I play every single day (almost two hours a day).

Almost three hours on weekends.

I like this game because I have mods that allow me to do more things and have more items.

I make a world and my friends from Mexico can enter and play with me.

It’s really exciting to stay connected with my friends from Mexico through Minecraft.

Vacation

By Jerico, age 11 This spring break we went on vacation to Victoria on Vancouver Island.

We took BC Ferries. It was the first time for me. We stayed at the Best Western Plus. There was a pool and a hot tub. Sadly, the pool was closed 😕. We saw a horse named Jerry (that’s my nickname 😛) and we got to pet it. It was smooth and fluffy. We stayed for three days, from Friday to Monday. The end.

62

Hi.

By Hunter, age 12

WOW

OK

HEY, GO ON

GOAL!

63

The Book

By Miracle, age 9

I LOOK BEAUTIFUL

HOUSE IS GOOD

GOOD PLACE

TODAY IS SUNNY

64

Demons: Part 1

By Adara, age 11

THIS IS CHARLES. HE IS A NORMAL HUMAN.

THIS IS A DEMON. RIGHT NOW THE DEMON IS PLANNING TO HURT CHARLES!

HE HE HE

MY NAME IS CHARLES

PHEW, THANKS MISS ANGEL.

OH NO, CHARLES RUN!

YOUNG MAN!

AHHH! MWAHAHA MOM!

65

Sister Location

By Hassan, age 10

SHOW TIME

HA

BONBON HEHEHE AAARG!

SANIC PARENTS...

NO HA MY FACE

HAPPY

Don't be fooled, it’s NOT Sonic, it’s Sanic, the opposite of Sonic. Sanic goes slow.

Sanic is green.

66

My Brain

By Lily, age 13 My brain is...

My brain is colourful My brain is me My brain is emo My brain is loving

My Brain

By Diamond, age 13 My brain is weird.

My brain is bright.

Unlike my clothes, My brain is emo.

Mi Nombre es Goku (My Name is Goku)

By M.H., age 11 Mi nombre es Goku. Vivía en una gran casa con una piscina, juego de billar, y un jacuzzi. Festejábamos cada noche porque mi casa era la más grande en todo el mundo. Pero un día… Cristiano Ronaldo me visitó y jugamos soccer y le gané 10-0.

67

Thunderbird Elementary Unpopular Opinions (I’m Sorry)

By Aahiri (Iree), age 13

• Biriyani is overrated • Strawberry ice cream is not that good • Cats are superior domestic pets • Jorts are a bit ugly (skaters don’t come after me) • Cilantro does NOT taste like soap • Names that start with “Z” are so cool • Taylor Swift is Mid • War is overrated • Snow is overrated • Volleyball is underrated • I'm underrated • Colour is overrated

68

Relaxing

By Enzo, age 11

OH

French Riddles

By Diana / Farbriqúe par Diana, age 12 1.

Qui suis je? Je fini dans le matin et je commence dans le nuit.

Translation: I am in the middle of morning and the start of night.

Who am I? Answer: N

2.

Quest ce que les enfants usent le plus à l’école?

Translation: What do the kids use the most at school?

Answer: Teacher (le professeur)

3.

Quelles sont les lettres les plus anciennes dans l’alphabet Translation: Which letters are the most ancient in the alphabet?

Answer: A & J

69

The Panda Adventures

By Ben, age 11 One day there was a panda eating bamboo in a forest, but there was a problem. There was no more bamboo. So the panda went on an adventure to find bamboo to eat. The panda was walking and walking until he saw a hill full of bamboo. When the panda got up the hill, there was another panda too. But the panda was actually a red panda. The red panda said, “You can’t have some unless you help me find an ancient panda statue in a forest.”

But the other panda said, “The statue is behind you.”

The red panda said, “Oh, I guess you can have some bamboo.”

How to Draw Hands

By Chloe, age 10 1.

First, draw this squarish shape for the base

2. hen draw these weird triangle pyramid T shapes for the fingers

3.

Lastly, make the fingers curvy but don’t make it perfect, make it a bit messy

70

Abi’s Turn-Up List

By Abi, age 12 1.

“Could’ve Been” by H.E.R.

2. “Girls Need Love” by Summer Walker 3. “Valentina” by Daniel Caesar 4. “Finesse” by Drake 5. “Japanese Denim” by Daniel Caesar 6. “Moonlight” by Kali Uchis 7.

“Jackie Brown” by Brent Faiyaz

8. “Love.” by K Dot 9. “Persian Rugs” by PARTYNEXTDOOR 10. “B.E.D.” by Jacquees

How To Be a Nerd

By Violetta, age 11 1.

Don’t swear

2.

Don’t look good

3.

Don’t have friends

4.

Like Taylor Swift

5.

Be nice

6.

Cry when people say “Therian”

This is very important.

71

COMIX

By Rujaanth, age 11

HOW DO I MAKE A COMIC WITHOUT IDEAS?

LIFE IS A GOOD SUBJECT

OH! YOU'RE GOOFY

YOU'RE SO ANNOYING I HATE YOU

HOW THE CHIPS?

THEY ARE KIND OF SALTY

CHIPS

72

χpey’ Elementary

Genesis and Friends

By Genesis, age 8 We robbed a bank and a jewellery store. We flew first class on a jet plane to Hawaii. We went to the beach and we surfed and swam. We went to a charity dinner and had mint chocolate chip ice cream. We were so happy we gave all our money and jewellery to the charity.

The Moon

By Anna, age 12 The moon is the light at night and it is the most beautiful of the night.

Would You Rather

By Anha, age 9

73

A squishy

or

slime

A phone

or

no phone

No bf

or

a bf

Lillian

By Rakita, age 11

POOKIE WOOKIE COOKIE

I'M LILLIAN

Elf By the χpeý kids, volunteers and staff, all ages Through snowfall there was an elf, tiptoeing slowly. Suddenly, bubbles came out of his mouth, covering the fluffy snow. Then, Bubbles the Elf ate candy canes. High up in the window, there was a coyote with a hat who could dance and sleep and sing all night long. One cold, winter day, the elf remembered it was the solstice, so he cooked a great big meal and shared it with his friends. Christmas night was good until this happened.

It all started when Bubbles the Elf left the North Pole. He decided he would change his curled shoes and buy some Jordans with gum. When he walked out of the store, he ate one piece of gum. It was strawberryflavoured and then he went under a table. Under the table, he found a mini oven and he made chocolate chip cookies. He went to bed to wait for his presents.

74

Vancouver Technical Secondary School Thoo’s Diary #3

By Thoo, Found by Mason, age 14 How to Make an Air Engine.

An air engine is a mechanical contraption that uses compressed air or normal air to create torque. Here is a way to make an air engine.

Air exhaust

Air tank at 60 or 80 PSI

Ball valve Piston

Air at 60 PSI

This movement happens many times per second.

There you go now you can make a simple air engine!

75

Waze E Picture!

By Mackenzie, age 17

I Just Pulled This Out of My Pocket

By Tommyinnt, age 16

76

77

BOOO

UFO

ARE MORE ANGRY

3. THE FANS

COACH IS 2.THE NOW ANGRY CANUCKS

6.

THEY SCORE!!!

CANUCKS 80 PTS BRUINS 78 PTS

STANDINGS

PLANTED CHIPS 7.

5. THE ALIENS IN THEIR BRAINS NOW THEY'RE UNSTOPPABLE

2011 STANLEY CUP FINAL BRUINS WIN 4-0

CANUCKS

4. 2023

BOOO

3RD PERIOD FINAL

1. VANCOUVER 0 4 BRUINS



PO LIC E

TURN TO READ!

My Story of Why the Canucks Are Doing So Good (fake)

By Kasper, age 13

Would You Rather?

By Damien, Riley, Maria, and M.N., age 15+

Circle one!

Damien’s Would You Rather: Be a dog

OR

Be a cat

Do a backflip

OR

Do a front flip

Be Anakin Skywalker

OR

Be Obi-Wan Kenobi

Be 6 ft. 4 in.

OR

Be 4 ft. 4 in.

Eat tacos

OR

Eat burritos

Play ping pong for the rest of your life

OR

Play tennis for the rest of your life

Wear shorts in the snow

OR

Wear winter gear in the summer

Eat the world’s saltiest chip

OR

The world’s spiciest chip

Be a truck driver for the rest of your life

OR

Be a monster truck driver for the rest of your life

Have a tall friend

OR

Have a short friend

Have chocolate milk

OR

Have orange juice

Write a 1000 word essay

OR

Have no wi-fi

OR

Wear full winter gear in the summer 24/7

Riley’s Would You Rather:

M.N.’s Would You Rather:

Maria’s Would You Rather: Be locked in a room with a fart for 24 hours

78

Rosie

By Destiny, age 13

79

Summer Bucket List

By Rhoda, Olivia, and Addie, age 14

Summer Bucket List □ Get ice cream with friends □ Go to Playland □ Movie theatre with friends □ Mall with friends □ Lake day □ PJ party □ Sleepover with friends □ Go somewhere new □ Sleep outside □ Nature hike □ Picnic □ Dance in the rain □ Phone break for the weekend □ Exercise for a week straight □ Make popsicles □ Prank call someone you know □ Go to pool 80

Touchdown Playlist

By Maria, age 17 • “Or Nah” by Ty Dolla $ign ft. the Weeknd • “Me U & Hennessy” by DeJ Loaf • “Feel It” by Jacquees • “Bed Peace” by Jhené Aiko • “One of the Girls” by JENNIE, Lily-Rose Depp, and The Weeknd

Sonic Te Hedog

By Tony, age 13

81

The Youth Program at 877 These Facts Are All True 100% of the Time

By William, age 12 Aries – How do you guys wall climb?

Taurus – Why do y’all hate red?

Gemini – Not tryna throw shade or start beef. Cool.

Cancer – Optimistic.

Leo – People hate Leos, idk why. What do you think, huh? Nice.

Virgo – Inspiringly aggressive. Fake news. Honest.

Libra – They have skibbidirizz.

Scorpio – No good things about them, indeed. Pure evil. The one good thing is they’re funny. Naive because vain and vulnerable, didactic, detached, insecure, indulgent, over the top, rigid, needy, tactless, escapist, superficial. I definitely don’t have beef with a Scorpio.

Sagittarius – They are pro gamers.

Capricorn – Are you magic? Tell the future.

Aquarius – Cool. What the Gemini says is what I am.

Pisces – 2+2 = fish. Fish, that is you. Thoughtful.

John Pregbert Part 2: KarKat Finds Love

By Kiana, age 12 KarKat goes to his crush, Gamzee, only to find out Gamzee is dating Tavros. Then KarKat goes to his other crush, Sollux. But after a while, Sollux cheats! KarKat goes to his friend, Terezi and Terezi tells KarKat, “I love you.” Then they date. Happily ever after.

82

Fake News

By Matthias, age 12

In today's news You read this You fake news

You

Military Going Home

By Shyanne, age 13 Content warning: Discussion of war The fear in their eyes with a battle cry The dirt upon their face as they shoot guns They get ready to battle with a sigh As they run through the field in the hot sun The injuries they get from their victim The pain they feel when they get on the field With a war cry, they fight for their kingdom In this battle, we always need a shield As they return home they feel lots of love Their family celebrates their return They celebrate as the sun is above Now they can live life without concern Until it’s time to go back and fight They know that in the distance there is a light 83

Daytime Television

By Tony, age 15 Wake up. Brush teeth. Consume food. Use remote. Consume content.

Consume yourself. Consume.

Daytime television, more commonly referred to as the “bubonic plague for the psyche”, is a medium that tries to suck the life out of your eyes in exchange for Monopoly money. You may wonder, “What do they do to the Monopoly money?” They use the money to stage a communist uprising on Chef Boyardee. Their cans are red for a reason!

Do you wanna know what’s red? Your blood. You wanna know what that means? Chef Boyardee has made you a commie! And I’m just getting started! For 200 easy payments of $2.99, I’ll give you a lobotomy! You’ll free your mind because your mind has always been free for daytime television. Do I know who’s writing this anymore?

No! Do I care? No! I have more important things to do, like buy life insurance to hide my hairline from you strangers! There are as many plot holes in daytime television as grains of sand on a beach! And I still got more filler to shove into your gullible minds! Why do old people wake up early? To defend their homes from tax season! I mean it! There’s an elephant in the room. And it’s made of lies! LIES! The elephant represents daytime television and daytime television represents the advertising demographic, you poor reader! Back in my day, our bananas came in peels!

We are back from our commercial break!

84

Clownology

By Dr. Peter Künher, age 81 Father said to me, “Good boy! Finally, I can afford the clown suit!” But, of course, these are all just silly fabrications in my head. Sometimes it is extremely difficult to understand what is real and what is not.

CLOWNOLOGY 101: You take a clown, destroy a clown, or do anything with a clown. It’s all the same. Clownology is everywhere, in every country, every city, every neighbourhood, and every room. You cannot escape the power of the clown. You should quit while you’re ahead.

Aside from the silly people in my head, this is the story of the little picture behind me. This is Connor Davidson. In 1967 I had been linked to the death of Connor in the Manitoba forest: 53°45'39.2"N 98°48'50.0"W. I have no evidence to defend against these accusations against me and the Connor Davidson case. But, I assure you, I have no regrets.

I have a severe obsession with gold. When I come in contact with any piece of golden material, my mind tells me to do awful things. NEVER wear the golden clown suit for more than 36 hours. It will do horrendous things to your mind. A man named Peter Künher did it. He was never caught for his crimes. Clowns are the true evil. Good day, ma’am!

Shoot for the Stars

By AJ, age 13 You can colour it in!

85

Skull

By Philip, age 15

Bye

By Legend, age 18 Bye.

86

Autographs

87

Gratitude We could not run our programs without our amazing volunteers! We want to thank them for generously dedicating so much of their time to the Writers’ Exchange. Here are our current volunteers in order of years spent with us.

10+ years: Stacey 5+ years: Angel, Charlotte, Chloe M., Christina, Dom, Gregory, Jane, Joyce, Manon, Matt L. and Penny 3+ years: Cherry, Ian, Jeff, Myla, Ryan, Shefali, Tasia and Terry 1+ years: Anna, Chloe S., Colin, Corey, Gerna, Grace M., Heather, Helen, Kachi, Mahima and Sheri And our newest volunteers: AJ, Benny, Caitlin, Chloe C., Chloe F., Elizabeth, Grace N., Hana, Hannah, Jacqueline, Jenna, Laura, Lisa, Luke, Marianna, Mia, Nikhar, Nora, Robyn, Sally, Sebastian, Seo, Shauna, Sofia, Stella, Stewart, Sukhi, Svetlana, Taylor, Tessa, Thomas, Timothy and Warren

Our volunteer team is supported by the Captain Scott Legacy Society

Writers’ Exchange Program Staff Anne-Claire Parent, Danielle Domingo, Doaa Magdy, Haley Wells, Malique Stonechild, Omar Tanbouz, Phillies Tanafranca, Sarah Grasse, Sylvia Raymond, Tracy Liu and Ciara Martin Book design: Melanie Kwan | melaniekwan.com