Free Write
Haiku
Dolphin, elephant, cat, bird, tiger, monkey, fox, chicken, dog, lion.
Students from the Lilla G. Frederick Pilot Middle School
Thanh pho co Hoi An
Ho Chi Minh City
By: Quynh Anh Thach

I love the city
I love the city buildings
I love weather here

Animals
By: Cristiana Ramos Timas Dos Santos

Animals—they are
the best company, man’s best
friend and part of life.

Math
By: Danilson De Pina Da Silveira

Add and subtract stars
take notes, explore difference
khan academy.

Animals
By: Dawens Desroches 

Dolphin, elephant,
cat, bird, tiger, monkey, fox,
chicken, dog, lion.

Soccer
By: Elias Sultan 

I do love to play
soccer, my favorite sport, 
I like Ronaldo.




Love
By: Elili Sultan

I love my mother 
I have my family love 
I love injera. 

Me
By: Hafsha Akter

I love my country              
I like my garden flowers 
I am a student.

Weather
By: Huy Le 

Today there is rain.
Snow storms— very dangerous.
The sun—very hot.

My Art
By: Ksenia Clark 

I draw a dolphin,
multicolor drawing sky,
drawing school for kids.

Family
By: Simone Resende Pires

I love my sisters
I have two sisters—all mine
my funny sisters.

Food
By: Tien Nguyen 

I like black milk tea 
in Vietnam— pho very good
I love hamburger.

Dessert
By: Dahyana Feliz Diaz

The ice cream is cold,
ice cream has different flavors,
helado frio.

Science in a New Language
By: Ery Mejia Vallana 

My organism
experiments are the best,
give me a second.

Watermelon
By: Fabrina Abreu Rosario

The reds are tasty,
the reds are my favorite part
the reds drip water.

What I Eat
By: Fleiver Ramirez 

Yo como uva
me gusta el tomate 
yo como sopa. 

Island   
By Paola Reyes Maria

The water is blue.
On the island there’s cocoa
the wind is blowing. 


Jardín  
By: Yolainis Trinidad Troncoso

Me gusta rosas
las rosas son hermosas
rosas bonitas.

El Cielo
By: Johan Arias de la Cruz 

Cielo azul
la luna resplandece
estrellas grises.

La Pizza
By: Nikaulys Suero Guzman 

La compran todos
me encanta la pizza
salsa tomate.

Animals
By: Aneuris Mateo Nova

Snake is poisonous 
Lion—King of the jungle 
I love animals.
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Free Write
You Don't Know Me
I write this essay to inform you, reader, that you are trustworthy, but to warn you that you do not know everyone's story.
Nathan DeJesus
“Are they speaking about me? What if they don’t like me? What if I don’t pass my test and I won’t be able to pass to the next grade?” “How do you feel today?” “… Good…” 
These are the thoughts that go through my head on a daily basis. Because I was born with the developmental disorder autism, I find it extremely hard to speak about my emotions and feelings, even to the people closest to me. Autism affects one out of 63 American children, making it a common disorder. So why do I feel so alone with it?
I noticed that I was different when I was in public and the sounds of trains made me go insane and cover my ears and cry. I’ve noticed that the simple gesture of making eye contact when speaking to someone is like climbing Mount Everest for me. When I was four I did not speak. I was put into several varieties of therapy such as speech, music and regular therapy where they would ask me about my emotions, which to this day I still have a problem speaking about. 
I was six when I met Julie. I was hesitant and didn’t speak to her for about two weeks, but as I opened my book of life I realized that she understood me, and till this day is the only person I am comfortable sharing my emotions with. Julie would stay silent with me when I chose not to speak and would help me decipher problems when I couldn’t control my emotions. When I was nine Julie declared I was prepared enough to control my emotions. I was overjoyed and happy to feel like a free being. When I was nine my parents and I were at the Esplanade for the annual fireworks show (a tolerable noise), and as we left it started to pour. I wanted to run to the station but my body just stood there trembling and I felt the tears coming. My father had to pick me up and cover me with his jacket while people stared as I cried in the rain. They did not know me and my story and my many small but mighty accomplishments before this incident.
By my own choice, I decided to transfer to a school closer to home during fourth grade and it was small, which made making friends easier. The school I was in before was too large and my autism made navigating the school feel like I was walking for hours. When I arrived it was thrilling, until a boy came up from behind me and humped me with a pencil between his legs during lunch one day. This was confusing, but I knew that it wasn’t okay. This and several other bullying incidents caused me to be paranoid and scared about the other kids around me. I would wake up crying and pleading with my mom not to send me to school. This traumatizing experience forced me back into therapy at the age of 11, with a guy named Cooper. He also changed my life by helping me let go of the suspicion that everyone was out to get me. 
We talked a lot, and this time around therapy felt a lot more mature. Because of Julie, I was able to express my emotions to a therapist much easier. After a bit, Cooper thought that I was ready to trust the world. So after a combined seven years of therapy, I´ve learned to truly appreciate the small feats. When I made my first friend in school I thought that was a call for celebration. So I write this essay to inform you, reader, that you are trustworthy, but to warn you that you do not know everyone's story. You have just walked in on one chapter of their book, and you have no right to judge without asking about their accomplishments and past.


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Free Write
Me, Mexico, Who?
You think you know me,
Amy Aguilar
ME
I ask myself sometimes what is right and what is wrong.
Yo soy de sangre Mexicana,
and will forever be. Pero I wonder,
does being born here make me mudblood, 
like Hermione Granger in Harry Potter? 
But then I sit, look at my skin, look at my hair and I see the eyes of a fighter— 
I see that I do so much for my family, who will always have their hearts open. 
And my wonder, am I half or am I full Mexican, comes to an end.
I will always be loyal to the country where my roots come from, 
to the place my grandfather died, and the body of my godfather was sent to. 

MEXICO
Si, I was born here in the U.S., 
my home almost 3.3 miles from here.
My heart will never beat to American colors pero 
de Mexico na mas.
I may not have been born el la tierra santa, 
but I grew up in a Mexican household.
Though my accent might not seem Mexican, 
eso es porque, crecí en un area Dominicana all my life.
Though I never felt in the right place here in America,
or Roxbury,
I've only ever felt close to home while in East Boston, Revere, Chelsea—  
they are latinos close to mi tierra, not like those in Roxbury.
So my question is to where I belong, 
where my heart takes me, which has lead me to open up today.


Who?
You think you know me,
You think you’re my friend, but you have it wrong.
You have no idea what my WHOLE story is.
You ask me, 
“Why are you sad, what’s wrong?”
Nothing's wrong, I peep and fall back. 
It took me a few good blows to realize people’s true colors 
But here I am standing strong, overcoming things I thought I’d never do.
So no, you’re not my friend,
God is my friend, though I'm not always nice to him.
He’s seen my ups and downs, 
he knows my WHOLE story, and didn't stop loving me.
And those who know part leave ASAP
So the question is who am I?
A fighter
A soldier
A big sister
A daughter 
More importantly, I am a Mexican. 
With all the dirt the President hands on us, I only become prouder,
because he does not know each and every one of our stories.
So do you know who I am?
Pues eso si, que es un no. 


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Pros&Conversation
Mariella Murillo's P&C Speech
Being exposed to journalism is the first stepping stone of reaching the future I want as a writer
Mariella Murillo
TiP Journalists Tiffany Cespedes, Jacob Downey, and Mariella Murillo
On May 9, around 175 people showed their support for student literacy by coming out to Pros&Conversation, WriteBoston's only annual fundraiser. Mariella Murillo, student journalist and sophomore at Boston Arts Academy, delivered a passionate speech about finding her voice in writing. She received a standing ovation—the only one of the evening. We think it's safe to say that her speech was an inspiration.

The following is an excerpt from Mariella’s keynote speech: 

Ever since I was young, I have loved to read, write and tell stories. My mother loves to brag about how from a young age when she would read to me, I knew exactly when to turn the page. I remember the first chapter book I read (Magic Tree House #8, Midnight on the Moon), and knowing even then that I wanted to make stories just like that one. Over the years, I have made up hundreds of characters my brother and cousins would pick when we would play games and go on adventures.
As I grew older and dress-up became less appealing, I knew I had to find another way to get these stories out. So, I would write versions of my life as it was happening in a diary, or would even take characters that exist in the real world, my own friends and family, and put them into new worlds that I had created—essentially just fanfiction of the people in my life.
However, you can’t really go up to your teacher or friends with your journal and ask “Hey, is this any good?” I was never able to figure out how to take the bits and pieces of my writing and make it into something an audience can enjoy, or even understand. So, my characters stayed as characters, never entering a story. I had scenes planned out in my head, but trouble finding how to make them fit in a bigger picture. It was like having the pieces of a bridge, but not the tools I needed to put it together. I had the ideas and I had the skill, but I wished I had fresh eyes to help push me and mold what was in my brain into something well done. That’s why, in fall 2017, I joined Teens in Print. 
I still remember my first meeting—I was greeted with the coolest conference room I had ever been in. But, to be honest, I had never been in a conference room before. I will never forget that I was instantly treated as an individual. The Teens in Print staff welcomed me despite knowing nothing about me, or what I could bring to the table; they were ready and willing to help me become the best writer I can be. With the Teens in Print staff supporting me, I finally had the help I needed to finish a piece of writing that made sense, told a story, and could be read and understood by an audience. Writing articles for Teens in Print allows me to be creative while still giving me the roots I need to for writing in school and college.
Without Teens in Print, I would have continued through high school and college believing that I had to wait before I could truly share my writing with others in a realistic way. The day when I would be able to fulfill the dreams of a little girl lost in her fantasy novels. And now that day is every day for me, as I stand before you as a published journalist, with people coming up to me and expressing how much they enjoy my writing. Being exposed to journalism is the first stepping stone of reaching the future I want as a writer. Impacting people with my writing is something I have wanted to do ever since Mary Pope Osborne impacted me with her stories of a brother, sister and their magic tree house.  


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Current Events
Broken Water Fountains Brew Distrust in Schools
Clearly, the drinking water situation in schools is a major problem
David Santana
In the wake of the Flint, Michigan water crisis, lead in tap water has become a major concern across the nation. The Massachusetts Water Resources Authority rated Boston’s tap water as “excellent” in 2017. Yet, in the same year, water test results at some public schools rivaled the amount of lead and copper found in Flint, Michigan at the peak of the water crisis, according to the Boston Globe.
Boston has seen a marked improvement in water quality in public schools. This is a good thing, but 94 of the 125 Boston Public Schools still report their water fountains to be offline, according to the BPS website. While factors like old buildings and water fountains that don’t work influence the results, this still demonstrates that water quality is a big problem.
The city spent $411,000 on bottled water and cups for public schools during the 2013-14 school year, the Globe reported in 2015. The city tried to fix water fountains the following year as part of a $300,000 project, yet most of them are still offline.
To enforce water safety policies in schools, BPS regularly tests the water. During 2019, the school system will test 859 drinking water units, 473 of which are fountains, said Katherine Walsh, BPS’ Sustainability and Environmental Resources Manager. Walsh is one of the people working to ensure the safety of students’ drinking water. While 93 units, or 12 percent, failed initially, by June 2018, only four samples had lead levels above the safe level, Walsh said. “In other words, 99.4 percent of the online drinking water units did not have lead safety issues.” 
Despite BPS’ efforts, students at Match Middle School remain unimpressed. A poll of 46 of my eighth-grade friends found that 39 percent of them drink the tap water at the school.
Leonard Rivers, one of the respondents, thinks that it’s unfair that the water fountains aren’t online at all schools. “It’s weird to know how much money and how much schools care about the drinking water but then after all this money has been spent, it’s still a bad result,” Rivers said, referring to the 76 percent of fountains that are offline.
Clearly, the drinking water situation in schools is a major problem. With BPS spending the amount of time and money that they have to fix this issue, it begs the question as to whether all these efforts are enough.


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