"Christmas Rap" by Dylan

I was walking down the hall

with Santa Claus giving all
presents after all

with him and me
we are a big team
making people happy

and I forgot
to talk about the reindeer
with the red glowing nose

but I know though
Santa is my bro
ho ho ho
to the north pole we go

"Christmas Cookies Recipe!" by Amanda

Christmas Cookies Recipe

Hi! My name is Amanda and the reason why I want to write about Christmas cookies is because cookies are fun to make. You can design the cookies any way you want. For an example you can make snowman cookies, Christmas tree cookies, reindeer cookies, and star cookies.  You can put any kind of topping on the cookies like white chocolate and dark chocolate.  My mom and my dad like Christmas cookies because of the decoration and the sweet taste of cookies.    

Ingredients

1 ½ cups confectioners sugar

1 cup butter, softened  

 

1 egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon almond extract

2 ½  cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cream of tartar     

Directions

1: Mix confectioners sugar, butter or margarine, egg, vanilla, and almond extract. Stir in flour, baking soda, and cream of tartar. Cover and refrigerate  for 2 hours.

2: Heat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Divide dough into halves, on lightly floured cloth-covered board. Roll each half out to 3/16 inch thick. Then cut the cookies into Christmas shapes.

3: Bake on parchment lined baking sheets for 7 to 8 minutes. Last, cool the cookies on wire racks and decorate as desired.

"A House on Beekman Christmas" by Jeremiah

Hi, my name is Jeremiah and I'm 10 years old. This story is about how me and my after school celebrate Christmas. When me and my friends were walking to after school, and we opened the door. We took our stuff off and sat on the chairs and one of our leaders, Lauren, told us, "You know today is Christmas. What we are going to do is make decorations for the tree." We were all excited, especially me, and the other kids walked in and we filled them in on what we were going to do for Christmas. Later on that day grown-ups started to come in, even my mom and my little sister. Lauren told us, "We have some presents for kids that come to after school and the kids who don’t." I was excited when I got mine. When I got home I played with my gift and had fun, and I also shared my gift (and Christmas cookies!) with my sisters.

"DIY Christmas Ornament" by Jermaine

DIY Christmas Ornament

Hi! My name is Jermaine, and I like being creative. The reason I want to do this DIY Christmas ornament is because I think it is a really cool idea. I also like this DIY project because it is kid-friendly and something you can do with your family or friends. So have fun and try it out!

Things you may need

glass ornament, broken CD, gold ribbon, scissors and hot glue gun

Steps

1. You need to cut the CDs into various sizes.
2. Next you need the glue gun and glue a small dot on the ornament and press a piece of the broken CD on the ornament shiney side up.
3. Continue gluing until the entire ornament is covered.
4. Place some ribbon inside the ornament.
5. Then you have your CD ornament!

"Optimus Prime Toy Review" by Ibrahima

The "Age of Extinction Smash and Change" Optimus Prime toy is cool because he’s very strong. He is a truck. Optimus Prime is the good guy. He can turn into a robot and a truck. He has many weapons. Optimus Prime is a fun toy. I think it is a great toy and a fun toy for kids. If you want to buy this toy it costs $22.99 and you can find it at Target.

Follow this link to buy:

http://www.target.com/p/transformers-age-of-extinction-smash-and-change-optimus-prime-figure/-/A-15191849#prodSlot=medium_1_10&term=optimus+prime

"How to Celebrate Christmas in Real Life" by Teyri

One day on Christmas night everyone was sleeping. In 10, 20, or 30 minutes Santa came  from the top. Santa came down. I woke up and I saw Santa eat my cookies and milk. He didn't see me and I played with all my presents. In the morning I played with it again with my sister. Me, my sister, my Tia, my dad and my mom played with the snow. We made snow angels. I saw the cars sliding in the slippery snow. I wanted to play basketball but I couldn't play because there was snow. I still was in school and I hated that but in a while there was no school. In my house I was bored. I asked my mom if I could go outside and she sad yes!! I went outside. I played with the snow. I made a snowman. Then I wanted to go home. Then I went to sleep.  This is the real story of what I did last Christmas, a long time ago.  Maybe next year, you and your family could celebrate Christmas the way I did.

"Seanette's Voice" by Steven

Hi! My name is Steven and my piece is an interview. I interviewed Seanette. She is one of the leaders at the House on Beekman after-school program. She has been my leader for two and a half years.

1. How are you feeling?
Feeling good.

2. How do you feel about after-school?
I love it.

3. How do you feel about your siblings?
I love my siblings BUT! they work my nerves.

4. How do you feel about your after-school kids?
I feel blessed because they're meeting their goals.

5. How do you feel about the people around you
I like the people who bring out the best of me.

6. How do you feel about your health?

I feel ok about it but I know I can eat healthy.

It is important to hear what other people have to say. Seanette's voice is important.

"Why is Christmas Important?" by Brandon

Christmas is important because it's a holiday where families celebrate Jesus' birthday.  Christmas is a time for being respectful and a time for giving, not getting.  That means that you will all be with your family on Christmas. Christmas is where peace and joy comes to families. So if you are alone, you can always join with your family on Christmas (or on Jesus' birthday!) and have happiness and love together.

This is why Christmas is important!!!!!!!!!!

Santa's Candy Sleigh by Naryah

Santa's Candy Sleigh

Hi! My name is Naryah and today I’m going to tell you

how to make Santa's sleigh out of candy.

Things you may need

To make a candy sleigh you have to get...

2 candy canes

1 Kit Kat bar

1 Three Musketeer bar  

1 Snicker bar

A Christmas ornament hook, a hot glue gun, tape, and a ribbon

Keep candy wrapped!

Directions

First, you take the Kit Kat bar and put it on a flat surface. Then you put the Snicker bar on top of the Kit kat bar. Next you take your Three Musketeer and place it on top of your Snicker bar. After that you take the ribbon and place it around the candy and tie a bow on top of the candies. Then, the next step is to tape the candy canes to the sides of the candies. Last, you take your ornament hook and hot glue it to the back of the bow.

This ornament could go on a tree and it will be a perfect gift to your child if they love candy and it looks like Santa's watching them when they are naughty or good. I wanted to do this because kids and their family could do it together. They could have candy to enjoy on Christmas and have the best Christmas ever, enjoying it with their whole family. Also, you could have a beautiful ornament that you made and it will look perfect on your Christmas tree. That's why I wanted to do a candy sleigh.