Winter Olympics Sports

Alpine Skiing by Charvi Kasala

Do you know what alpine skiing is? If not let me tell you. Alpine skiing is an amazing winter sport. One fun fact is that Alpine skiing events were held for the first time at the Winter Olympics in 1936.Downhill skiing is another name for alpine skiing. Let me tell you more

about alpine skiing in this text.

Let me tell you about downhill skiing. Alpine skiing is the action of traveling over snow on skis.

What alpine skiing is the sliding down snow-covered hills. That is what alpine skiing is. There is also special equipment needed for alpine skiing. You will need skis with binding. They are for skiing downhill and a ski binding is an attachment with anchors from the ski boot to the ski. Ski boots are also needed for climbing. The ski boots are a normal leather boot. Each boot is fastened to the ski at the toe allowing the heel to rise off the ski to allow striding motions. A ski helmet is also needed when you are skiing. The helmet must be properly fitted to provide protection and comfort. The ski goggles are to protect your eyes. Snow pants, a coat, mittens and a hat are to keep the skier warm. Every one of these pieces of equipment is needed to keep the person safe and warm.

Alpine is done in a lot of places. Downhill skiing is done anywhere that has snow covered hills and mountain slopes. It started as a club sport in 1816 in North America. Alpine skiing is done in Europe, North America, and Australia. It is even done in New Zealand and the South American Andes. These are the places alpine skiing is done in.

As you see downhill skiing is a great sport. I'll tell you one more fact. The word ski

Issue 2: March 2014

has its origins in the Norwegian word skio which means a piece of wood. Those are some facts I wrote about alpine skiing.

Luge by Harshitha Thota

Did you know that the first luge championship was started in 1914? Later, it was introduced in the Winter Olympics in 1964. ¬¬Luge is a small one/two person(s) sled, where the lugers lie down on their backs. The steering is done by leg and hand movement. This is the most dangerous sliding Olympic sport. The trails are very dangerous, because they are usually built on mountain slopes. The tracks are half a mile or three fourths of a mile long, and lugers can reach speeds up to 90miles per hour.

That is why, when luging it is very important to wear a helmet, to prevent brain injuries. Luge gloves have spikes to assist the paddling motion. Lugers wear specially designed suits to keep strong wind from hitting them. Sliders are supposed to wear shoes with a special heel, and zipper. The sled, called a luge, is of wood, plastic, or fiberglass construction, with wide runners faced with steel.

This year the Winter Olympics is being held in Sochi, Russia, in the month of February. There are many mascots for the 2014 Winter Olympics Luge. One of them is the “Polar Bear”, which symbolizes the cold weather. The next one is “Hare”, which stands for the sports. Third is the “Snow Leopard”, which that plays the part of the snow and ice. Last, are the “Ray of Light” and, “Snowflake”. Both of them represent the bravery of people who participate.

This year there are four men competing for luge singles from the United States. They are, Chris Mazdzer, Taylor Morris, Aldan Kelly,

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Mane News: Hear us Roar a

and, Tucker West. The women who are vying for luge titles ,that represent U.S.A, are Erin Hamlin, Julia Clukey, Emily Sweeny, Kate Hansen, and, Summer Britcher. Doubles and singles will be picked out of the 10 member team. Let’s all wish them good luck at the games. We hope they come back with gold medals.

Freestyle Skiing by Srinidhi Venkatesh

Dun dada da! Here’s the time we’re all waiting for. The winter Olympics are here! There are many winter sports. One of them is freestyle skiing. In this sport there are three main branches, aerials, moguls and new school. Aerials are when skiers do tricks in air and land on snow. In moguls, skiers push snow into mounds and mogul skiers have to ski in this type of terrain. All the tweaked equipment and stunts belong to new school.

Many athletes are in this field. Some medal winning American freestyle skiers are Bryon Wilson, Hannah Kearney, and Shannon Bahrke. There are many

other medal winning athletes in this sport. Anyways, freestyle skiing is an awesome sport in the winter Olympics.

Ice Skating by Heena Aidoo and Alexis Kustka

Have you ever seen the Winter Olympics? Well, it’s when people do all kinds of winter related sports like ice skating. Ice skating

is when you use skates on ice and you skate around doing all kinds of cool tricks. Ice skating first stared around 3,000 years ago in Finland. Before, people just glided on ice. But then, the people off Dutch added blades in the thirteenth, or fourteenth century. In the seventeenth century, ice skating was brought to the British. In 1783, Scotland had better skaters than any other country. In the country Europe, ice skating was for the upper classes or for the rich people. The Holy Roman Empire liked ice skating so much; he had a large ice carnival made in his court in order to play the sport. The kind of France brought ice skating to Paris during his region to also play. The next ice skating club to be made was made in London and was not founded until 1830. By the mid-19th century, ice skating was popular sport among the British upper and middle classes. Queen Victoria got to know her future husband, Prince Albert, through a series of ice skating trips. Ice skating is a very great sport. It gives you great exercise and it gives you balance. It can be a great experience to be gliding and sliding on frozen ice. So if you are not too scared, give ice-skating a try. It can be really fun and exciting to do and maybe you can be world famous skater!

Grace Gold, a figure skater in the Winter Olympics, recently changed coaches, and is now being coached by Frank Coral. After winning the gold medal on January 11th in Boston, she was chosen to be a part of the Olympic team.

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Nordic Combined: Ski Jumping and Cross Country Skiing by Sukanya Sharma and

Shikha Agarwal

Have you ever heard of the winter sport Nordic Combined? No, well, you are in luck. We are going to inform you about it. In this sport there are two sections: ski jumping and cross-country skiing. We are going to tell you about cross-country skiing. Did you know that in the 2012-13 seasons a team event has introduced, in which two man teams complete a series of 1.5 km legs of cross-country skiing? The first Olympic Winter Games in Chamonix, France, in 1924, included men's cross-country skiing on 18 km and 50 km courses. Man that’s long! There are 2 main portions played in this sport. The first is Cross Country Skiing and the second section is Ski Jumping. You get points for each event and the athlete with the most points wins that event.

In cross-country skiing, men and women race against each other while basically running in the snow with their skies on. Though it seems easy, it is very dangerous because skiers are at increased risk of developing arrhythmia, or abnormal heart rhythm. In the

individual race, the skiers start at 30-second intervals, and the competitor who covers the distance in the shortest time wins. Participants start in reverse order to their ranking for the season, meaning the athletes ranked highest

start last. Racers who are overtaken by faster competitors must step aside if necessary to allow the faster skier to pass. At the Sochi 2014 Olympic Winter Games, men will race in the classical style for 15 km, and ladies for 10 km. The equipment cross country skiing requires five pieces, skis, poles, bindings, waxes, and kilter. The skis are long and narrow and are fitted based on the height and weight of the skier. They carry two poles for steadiness and

propulsion. The bindings hold the toe of the boot to the ski. The waxes are used on the skis to go faster, or even to grip the snow. Kilter, is a glue-like paste, and is used when the snow is icy or wet.

Ski jumping has been a part of the Olympic program since the very first Winter Olympic Games, in Chamonix in 1924. Ski jumping is a very dangerous sport people sometimes die or get severe injury. But people still enjoy or participate in ski jumping. In Ski Jumping the object is to jump the farther than other athletes. In addition to the length of the jump, judges give points for style. There will be 2 jumps. The first jump is to qualify for next level. The first the top 8 athletes with the jump with the farthest distance are going to jump for the next level. The next level’s jump is to find that event’s winner. Skiers are expected to make a minimum distance on each hill. This is the K-point. For the normal hill it is 95 meters, and the large hill and team event, 125 meters. A competitor who makes this distance earns 60 points. If he falls short or goes past the mark, he either loses or gains 1.8 points for every meter away from the K-point. In addition to the distance score, ski jumpers receive style marks. There is a panel of five judges who can give the skier up to 20 points depending on how well he landed and how steady and balanced he was during the flight. The highest and lowest scores are dropped and the middle scores are added together and then added to the distance score. The equipment ski jumping requires four pieces, bindings, boots, connection cord, and a suit. The binding must be mounted parallel to the run-direction. The binding must be placed in such a way that a maximum 57% of the entire ski length is used as the front part. High-backed, flexible, yet firm boots must be worn, with a low cut at the front. They are designed to allow the skier to lean forward during flight. Part of the binding is a cord that attaches the ski to the boot and prevents the wobbling of skis

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during flight. All portions of the ski jumping suit must be made of the same material and

must show certain air permeability. The size of the suit must conform to the body shape in an upright position with certain tolerances

This is very good for your health too, because in the winter, you aren’t able to exercise properly, so this would be perfect for your health and for great fun! I hope that you learned all about this Olympic sport and you also try this one day, too! Bye!!!

The Winter Olympics: Curlingby Abhinav Arya and Rachit Gupta

Curling is a sport where players slide stones, also known as rocks, across a blanket of ice towards a target which is separated into four rings. There are two teams, four players on each, take turns sliding heavy stones, made of granite, across the ice into a target called the house. The house is a circular target marked on the ice. Each team gets eight stones. The purpose of the game is to acquire the most superlative amount of points. Points are scored by players sliding the stones trying to get it as close as possible into the center of the house. The closer the stone is to the center of the house, the more points are rewarded. One end or inning is complete when both teams have slid their rocks into the center of the house. A game of curling is usually eight to ten ends.

TermsA draw is when player slides the stone into a special spot. A takeout is when you slide harder and remove stones from a position you don’t like.

GearSome gear you use when you play curling are special stretchy pants, gloves, and two types of shoes. One of the shoes is called the gripper. It is used so you can get a good grip on the ice. The other shoe is called the slider. You use the slider to help you move faster on the ice. The slider is made of steel or Teflon because both are very slippery material. The brush is used to sweep. In the olden times the brushes were corn brooms, but now they are synthetic brushes. A brush has a light handle to make it easier to sweep. Sweeping has two purposes. One purpose is that the stone will slide further. The other purpose is that the stone will curl less.

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One type of job is the guy in the house. His job is to tell the sweeper how much he needs to sweep. The sweeper’s job is to judge how fast the stone is, and how far it will slide. The players yell out to each other, so they can establish communication. After finding out about curling we hope you want to try it out. We also hope you are inspired to watch the Winter Olympics this year. Plus, we would like it if you would go to a professional curling game to see how the pros play!!!

Skeleton by Krishita Laungani

Did you know about the Winter Olympics? It is the Olympics in winter. One really cool sport is the skeleton. You have to go headfirst on a sled. It is really dangerous to do this. People who do this sport go at least 75-85 miles per hour! Plus, you get push starts up to 100 feet! This sport started in Switzerland. One person who took home a gold medal was Nino Bibbia. There are almost 55% women doing this sport, even when they don’t want to take a risk. This sport is used with a

Bobsleigh. It is the 4th sport played in the whole schedule. Players who play this sport may freak out, but they do it. It would be cool doing this sport.

Snowboarding by Shashank Madhavan

Snowboarding is a type of winter sport where you descend on a slope that is covered with snow. The equipment you use to snowboard is boots, bindings and a snowboarding deck. Snowboarding was developed by skateboarding, sledding, surfing and skiing. Snowboarding has been here since the 1920’s when people tie plywood or wooden planks from barrels to their feet using clotheslines and horse reins to steer themselves. Modern snowboarding began in 1965 when an engineer, Sherman Poppen made a gift for his daughter. He fastened to skis together and attached a rope to one end, so his daughter will have some control of steering it. The invention became so popular that in one year, 1966, they sold over half a million of those.

Guess how many ways are there to Snowboard? If you guessed 10 ways, you are right. One style is called, Jibbing. In Jibbing you just perform tricks. Another way is Free Riding. In Free Riding, the concept is to alternate the basic snowboarding moves which then makes it into a move itself. The 3 rd way is Freestyle. People doing Freestyle Snowboarding do any type of riding including doing tricks. The rider will use natural and man-made resources such as rails, jumps, boxes, logs, rocks and etc. Another style is Alpine Snowboarding. Alpine Snowboarding which is sometimes called as free carving, takes place in hard packed snow or groomed runs and it concentrates on carving linked turns like surfing or longboarding. Little or no jumping takes place in this Snowboarding style. This style consists of a very small population of the general snowboarding population. Slope style is a style in which competitors perform tricks while descending a course of moving around, over, across, up or down terrain features. The course is full of anything snowboarders can slide on. The next style is Big Air. In this, riders who compete perform tricks after launching from a jump which was built by man

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for the events. The competitors perform tricks in the air aiming for a sizable height and distance. The next style Half Pipe, is one in which competitors perform tricks in a ditch which is dug in the mountains or in a built ramp which is built by snow. Each side of the ramp is between 8 through 23 feet tall. Next one, the Boarder Cross, started in the 1980’s when 4 to 6 people race down a course with jumps and etc. The winner is the first person who finishes first in the final round. The next kind of style is Big Mountain and Free Ride. It is a contest on a big mountain where people need to find their way through, with the most difficulty and style. The last style is the Rail Jam. This style is a jib contest where competitors perform tricks on pipes, jumps, rails and boxes. There are 2 to 3 choices for the runner to hit on.

There are some rules for snowboarding:

1. Always stay in control and be able to step to avoid other objects.2. People ahead of you have the right of way. It is your responsibility to avoid them.3. You must not stop where you obstruct a trail.4. Whenever starting downhill look up and yield to others.5. Always use devices to help prevent runaway equipment.6. Observe all posted signs and warnings.7. Prior to using any lift, you much have the knowledge and ability to load, ride and unload safely.

Speed Skating: Thrill On Ice by Tanisha Shah

“Whoosh Whoosh” goes the skater in circles on slippery ice. One of the most popular events at the Winter Olympics, Speed Skating is thrilling and fun to watch. Competitors from all over the world enthrall everyone with their spell binding display of speed and skills.

Skaters skate on a track built on an ice rink that varies in length from 100 meters to 400 meters. There are 2 type of tracks – the long track which is 400 meters long and the short track which is 111 meters long. Skaters wear ice skates on their foot which resembles a sharp blade attached to a snow boot. For achieving aero dynamics skaters wear full body suits that are made of a special material

called “Spandex” or they may also wear body suits made of ‘Kevlar” which protects them from being cut by the other skaters. Since speed is a major part of this sport, quite a few protective items are worn by the skaters, such as Helmets, Eye Glasses, Shin Pads, Knee Pads and Neck Guards.

There circular ice arena is divided into different tracks and the skaters race in a counter clock wise direction in their own tracks. In the long track version, 2 skaters race against each other, whereas in the short track version up to 8 skaters may race against each other. Skaters may be disqualified if they impede any other skater. A skater may also be disqualified if he/she has two false starts.

The sport is played mostly by players from cold weather countries such as USA, Canada, Netherlands, Norway, Russia and also some eastern countries such as Japan and South Korea.

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USA has done very well in this sport and players like Shani Davis and Apolo Anton Ohno have won multiple gold medals in this sport.

As you can see Speed Skating is a very thrilling sport and will be a major attraction at the next Olympic Games starting on February 6th to be held in Sochi, Russia. Like always USA will be

sending a big contingent, so let’s stay warm and cheer our team as they work hard to bring glory to our nation. “All the Best” team USA.

Book Talks“Don’t forget to Read!!!”

Diary of a Wimpy Kid Hard Lucka review by Shikha Agarwal

You may have read many funny books but I am going to tell you the best one yet: Diary of a Wimpy Kid Hard Luck! In this book Greg Heffley has lost his best friend, Rowley Jefferson. In the beginning of the book, Greg’s mom is trying to cheer up Greg because Rowley ditched him for his girlfriend, Abigail. I think Greg is feeling really lonely because he is starting to talk about how he and

Rowley had so many great memories together. He got so desperate that he was inviting Fregley to be his friend. Then he finds a Magic 8 Ball underneath Rodrick’s bed. He asked it a few questions and realized that it isn’t only good for asking questions, but also good for advice. Then he starts using it all over the house and his mom tells him that he needs to go outside. The Magic 8 Ball tells him not to so he goes into his mom’s closet and he discovers that mom has parent guide line books for every situation. Then he gets a cell phone by trying to use reverse words; he always wanted a phone, and he

is going to say that he doesn’t want a phone, so the very next day he gets a phone. He had even found a Body Blankie. In school things aren’t going very well for either because he wore it to school and when it was time for gym, it made Greg so sweaty, he tried to take it off, but the zipper snapped! In his social studies class he had a test and he was very worried. Then he found out that it was all true or false. He took out the Magic 8 Ball and started asking questions. But the ball wasn’t helping so he shook it harder and the Magic 8 Ball slipped it out of his hand and it rolled right over to his social studies teacher, Mrs. Merritt. Then she took Greg to the vice-principal’s office and told him that he was using a “high-tech cheating device” on the test. Finally he got bailed by his mom and he was going to summer school. The

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Shani Davis at the Vancouver Olympics

only way out, get better grades and finish three weeks of homework. Well he did finish the homework, but never did the science project. Finally he went to the teenagers. The teenagers sell projects, homework, and stuff like that. He makes a run for it. You’re going to have to read the rest of the book to know the most important parts. So don’t forget to read, Diary of a Wimpy Kid Hard Luck!

The Amazing Voyagea review by Harshitha Thota

This book is part of the Geronimo Stilton Series. The famous journalist, and detective Geronimo Stilton, is heading off for a new adventure in The Kingdom of Fantasy. All this happened when he slipped on a leak in the bathroom when Scribble Hopper {the frog messenger}, and the rainbow dragon took him to The Kingdom of Fantasy. Queen Blossom, the Queen of the whole kingdom has been captured by the evil Queen of Witches, Cackle. It is up to Geronimo to save the Queen. In his past adventures he conquered the enemies, but this time, will he defeat Cackle?

This book is the most spectacular book I have ever read. The suspense and mysterious happenings, makes me read more. In my point of view after every page I read, the author made it more interesting, and exciting. I like the way Geronimo slips in Disney Fairytale characters, like Puss in the Boots.

If you like mystery and adventure stories, you’ll love this one. You should read this book, for its interesting events, and unusual fantasy elements.

Now You See Mea review by Heena Aidoo

Have you ever heard of the book “Now You See Me”? Well it is a great book! Especially for people who like scary books. This book is about to best friends named Abby and Lena. Lena found an old camera for the thrift shop that she really wanted. When Lena and Abby started to take pictures, they saw a boy, who they never saw, in the background. Each time they took pictures with the camera the bought in the thrift shop, the boy became clearer and clearer and clearer. Will they ever find who he is and what he wants? You will have to find out by reading the book. I think this book is for any age or grade, only if you want to read

it. You can find this book in Amazon and you can buy it.

No Talkinga review by Srinidhi Venkatesh

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Have you ever browsed through the shelves of a library not knowing what to read? Well, let me introduce you to the book, No Talking. Though the title might make you think this book is about a bunch of kids getting in trouble for talking in the hallways, the story is very interesting. The story tak es place in a regular school with a common problem, too much talking. One fifth grader researching for a social studies project and a little cooties make a big difference. The new situation might seem better, but brings its own set of problems. This thrilling tale shows boys and girls joining forces without noticing it and helps the kids and adults in the school understand each other better. This mind blowing story by Andrew

Clements is a story you should read.

Hamstermagica review by Sukanya Sharma

Life in Grace’s Pet Shop is more magical than ever. Talking animals, magical powers, enchantress, so much included in one book! When Lottie’s uncle owns a store full of magical animals every day is full of surprises for Lottie! This book includes adventures, suspense, comedy and action.

As you may have read in previous book of this series that Lottie’s mum’s job transferred in Paris. It had been a huge an upheaval when Lottie found out she had to leave all her friends and move to her uncle’s and his son Danny’s pet store. She was even more furious when her mum told her she’ll have to stay there for a couple of months. But then after a couple of weeks she learned there were talking animals present in the store and learned about her magical powers she loved it and never imagined to go back home. She has been linked minds to a talking dog Sofie and learns new magic spells from a good witch named Ariadne. Wouldn’t that be fun!In this book Lottie’s best friend Ruby as acted strangely after Ruby and Lottie entered a

new enchantress’ shop. The enchantress just moved to Netherbridge. Surprisingly when her uncle Jack told the enchantress that Lottie was her uncle’s brother’s daughter she suddenly tried hurt Lottie at different times. But when uncle jack saw the enchantress he was an acting strangely, he was hiding something. What was he hiding? Why was the enchantress attacking Lottie? Why was Ruby acting so strange? Well you’ll have to read the book to find out.

This book is one of the books from the series Animalmagic by Holly Webb. This is book #3. There are:

Catmagic : #1Dogmagic : #2Hamstermagic : #3Rabbitmagic : #4Birdmagic : #5Ponymagic : #6

andMousemagic : #7

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Hamstermagic and Ponymagic are my favorite books from Holly Webb. These are some very interesting books. So try to read the whole series if you can. Have fun reading!

Sideways Stories from Wayside School

a review by Krishita Laungani

It is awesome to read the wacky, sideways stories from wayside school! The school was made one classroom on top of the other, 30 stories high. Maybe that's why all kinds of funny things happened at Wayside, especially on the thirtieth floor.

The Sideways Stories From Wayside School is written by Lois Sachar and illustrated by Adam McCauley. This is probably the first book of the whole series.It is a good way to start the series. This was one of the favorite of elementary school kids, and still probably is. The characters of this book are super funny/interesting. Some steal lunches and give back their own and some are named a name from an opposite gender (a boy is named

Nancy and a girl was named Mac).The Sideways Stories From Wayside School is also a book with word varieties. You can learn new words.

Winter According to Humphrey

a review by Charvi Kasala and Shashank Madhavan

This book and it’s series are an excellent book(s) to read. You can find this book in the public library. I am doing a book report on the book called, "Winter According to Humphrey". It is a book that mostly third and fourth graders love to read. Two stores you find this book at are Walmart and Barnes & Noble. Let me tell you a little about the book. It is a wonderful book about a cute, fuzzy hamster named Humphrey. A “hamsterific” celebration is going to happen at Longfellow School. Ms. Lark, the music teacher, is putting on a Winter Wonderland for the school. The Winter Wonderland is like the Winter Concert.

Room 26 is going to sing songs at the Winter Wonderland. The boys in Room 26 are going to dress up like prancing horses with bells and sing Jingle Bells. The girls will dress up like snowflakes and sing a snowflake song that Ms. Lark made up. I recommend this book to third and fourth graders because if you like humorous books then the book, "Winter According to Humphrey" is just the right one for you. Read the book and find out what all the squeaking is about.

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A chapter by chapter breakdown…

The first chapter is about the music teacher, Ms. Lark telling the class about the winter wonderland, the songs they are going to do, and about Ms. Lark being afraid of Humphrey and Og.

Chapter 2 is about Mrs. Brisbane talking about snowflakes, ask the class some ideas of what you can do in the snow, explaining to Holly that she should sleep in the night, and Humphrey begging Aldo the janitor to sing the song.

Chapter 3 is about Ms. Lark coming and the whole class practiced including Humphrey and when he sang too much, Ms. Lark wasn’t happy at all. Small Paul did some research on snowflakes and said that there is a possibility that 2 snowflakes can look the same.

Chapter 4 & 5 are about everyone in the class didn’t want to change the song and Joey’s singing was horrible. In Chapter 5, Holly made presents for everyone and doesn’t get enough sleep.

In chapter 6 Holly’s parents are saying she needs to sleep and then when everyone was away, Humphrey jiggled the lock that doesn’t work, went to the craft book, and turned it to the page of a ginger bread house because Holly’s parents said it would be better to make present for the whole class.

Chapter 7 is about everybody sharing what they did over the week.

Chapter 8 is about how sad Joey is when his dad couldn’t come for the show and Aldo is going to get a baby.

Chapter 9 is about Daniel playing the wrong notes on the keyboard and that the girls can’t put glitter on their costumes but they can put in foil.

Chapter 10 is about Humphrey playing Jingle Bells on the Piano and when Daniel saw him, he got confident and sounded a lot better.

In Chapter 11, it is about Joey sounding like a horse and Mrs. Brisbane got an idea for him for the show.

Chapter 12 is about the class is having a rehearsal for the show but everyone bumped with each other.

In Chapter 13, Holly makes a ginger bread house for the class, but then everyone shook the table; the house broke, so everyone helped to fix the house during the recess while Holly was at the nurse’s office.

Chapter 14 is about Humphrey making a present for Og while keeping him distracted.

In chapter 15, it is the day of the show so Daniel takes Humphrey, puts him in his pocket, but Humphrey got out and everyone tumbled and then Joey’s dad came.

Chapter 16, the last chapter is about Mrs. Brisbane convincing Ms. Lark to like them and she did after she saw them do tricks.

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