Harry Potter is one of the most well-known and best-selling fantasy novels ever. Warner Bros. Pictures even produced multiple movies fans can enjoy based on the books written by J.K. Rowling. As the Harry Potter franchise grew in popularity, it almost seemed that the books were coming to life. There were people left and right dressed up as the characters, theme parks built the wizarding world, and fans began playing the magical sport of quidditch.

I have been learning Japanese for 459 days and counting. This is my story on learning a new language.

I never really considered learning a new language. I always thought, “Why bother with the hassle when I already know one language. Why would I need to learn an entirely new one?”

Have you ever experienced history being retold, but with a little twist? Well, meet Matthew Windham. Windham is the writer and main actor for the play “Simply Silly Shakespeare.”

Windham is from Flagstaff, Arizona, and went to college at the University of Utah. At a young age he was signed up for theater. He was interested in theater and the art of writing. He loved writing and sci-fi growing up. Later on, Windham came up with an idea to bring theater to younger audiences.

 “Wonder” was written and illustrated by R. J. Palacio. It is a realistic fiction book that I think all kids grades 3 and up should read. The book is about a boy named Auggie Pullman who was born with a facial difference. Auggie has been homeschooled his whole life, but finally in the fifth grade he attends a public school named Beecher Prep.

This school year, Arizona Desert Elementary School had two championship teams, in basketball and volleyball. I set out to learn about our coaches and what makes for winning teams. After interviewing both coaches, a few things stood out to me. Our school has a culture of hope. We say the Kids at Hope pledge every morning. We say “all kids are capable of success, no exceptions.”

I asked what makes a good coach. Ms. Franki Diaz, who coaches our girls 6th–8th grade basketball, said “My love for the sport and willingness to teach it to others” is what makes her a good coach.

We have heard many stories of 9/11 in the past. I met one of the first responders who was actually a part of that day that changed America forever.

Mike Penchina joined the fire department in 1969. He decided to give it a go without knowing he would eventually wind up becoming a firefighter. On Sept. 11, 2001, firefighter Penchina and his wife celebrated their wedding anniversary in Canada. Penchina was watching the news while his wife was in another room. A jet had recently struck the north tower.

A park ranger found a starving turtle washed up at a river, and he found a balloon string wrapped around its neck! Even worse, the deflated balloon was wrapped in it, too. This is the effect of balloons on the environment. It hurts humans, animals and the Earth! Balloons are one of the leading causes of wildlife deaths. Sadly, you may have been contributing to this, so, pause and think before letting go or buying balloons!

The year 2023 is going to have many new video games—some are highly anticipated. These are a few of those games.

The first video game is The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. This game is a sequel to The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and like its predecessor this game is also an open world game. The new game is like The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword where it has a lot more sky elements and flying things. According to Wikipedia, we will see this game release onMay 12, 2023, on the Nintendo Switch.

Imagine being a child in another country, coming to America with a dream. Dr. Lupita Hightower, Superintendent for the Tolleson Elementary School District had a dream.

As a child, Hightower knew since kindergarten that she wanted to be in education. When she was younger she used to teach her cousins, siblings and the neighborhood kids.

To many people, Martin Luther King Jr. was a brave leader. King helped lead the Civil Rights movement. Today, many Americans honor him on the National Day named after him, this year on Jan. 16. Martin Luther King Day was first celebrated in 1986.

In the book “Martin Luther King Day” by Ciara Cella, the author recalls that King worked for change, to fix all that was unfair through passive resistance. Some disagreed with King.