Zander Mangano

The Dog Capturer

There once was a dog named Moby that was with a really nice family. The family cared for him fed him and did everything to keep him safe. Then a dog capturer came to their town called "Unionville". One day when the owners let Moby outside, the dog capturer was in his car, the dog capturer drove up to the house and took Moby without anyone seeing. When the children ran outside to play with Moby, the dog was not there. After that they told their parents about the event and their parents got very unhappy. Then they spotted the dog capturer and asked him if he saw a yellow lab, the dog capturer had no answer and tried to drive away but the family had been ready by calling the police before. The dog capturer gave up and returned the dog back to the family and they lived happily ever after.

2015-2016 Football Frenzy

This year marks the 50th year for the NFL Super Bowl. My favorite team is the New York Giants, and they might get a chance to get to the playoffs. This year I think the two teams that are going to face off in the Super Bowl is the Seattle Seahawks against the Atlanta Falcons. First of all the Seahawks might get to the Super Bowl with the help of Russell Wilson, the teams QB, and Kam Chancellor, one of the teams safety. Secondly the Atlanta Falcons have some powerful players also, including Matt Ryan, Devin Hester, and Julio Jones. In think the best three wide receivers in the league are Julio Jones, Odell Beckham Jr., and Larry Fitzgerald. Other honorable teams are Green Bay Packers, New England Patriots, and also Pittsburgh Steelers. That is my opinion for the 2015-2016 NFL football season.

My new Dog
My sister and I have always wanted a dog. We talked about dogs all the time and tried to persuade my dad to get one. He liked dogs but he did not think we had enough responsibility to take care of a dog. So we tried being more responsible with everything, and he said maybe we can get one for Ella's birthday. [My sister] Then, we were trying to find out what kind of dog we wanted. I wanted a golden retriever but I am partly allergic to very hairy dogs so we could not get that dog. My mom suggested that we should get a smaller dog, like a Yorkie so I wouldn't be that allergic. I did not like the idea because I wanted a bigger dog, but I'd rather have a dog than nothing. We finally found a good breeder to get the dog from, and we bought the dog. We named her Fancy, of course I did not like that name but I told myself I have to deal with it. At the beginning I did not like the dog that much because he would bite everyone, but now I am starting to play with her, and have fun with her. That is the story about my dog Fancy and I.
The Buzzer Beater

Hi, I am James, and I play Basketball. I am going to tell you about an amazing

basketball game. So, one night I

basketball game and we only had five players, and were facing the best team in our league. My teammates and I got warmed and finally we were ready to play. The game started, my friend Randle had scored 7 points in the first quarter, but we were still losing by 4 points. By the time the second quarter had started, I was in the game. I had lots of assists and nice defensive plays, but I did not have any points. I started with the ball 10 seconds left until half time, I passed it to Randle, and then he passed it to my teammate, I cut towards the basket with 3 seconds left. My teammate passed the ball to me, it was a nice slick bounce pass, I went in for the layup, but I was blocked by the other teams center. The center was the teams best player and his name was Jacob. After that the bell sounded. Everyone was getting starting to get ready for the third quarter. This quarter I was out, but it was cool to see Jacob, and Randle battle it out. After that it was time for the fourth quarter, the score was 50 to 48 which means we are losing. Our coach put me back in that quarter because he wanted me to sink some shots. In that quarter I was on FIRE! I had scored 15 points in the first 7 minutes. 3 minutes left my coach had yelled out as I smoothly handled the ball passed all the defenders, and scored the layup. The score was down to 80 to 80. With
10 seconds left on the clock, Jacobs team had the ball he had fired it to one of his teammates and they scored, everyone was celebrating just as Randle had passed it in to me when nobody was looking. The clock had 2 seconds left, I took two steps and I fired the ball away from half court. The ball rolled around the basket many times but it went in as the buzzer rung! My team put me on their shoulders and everyone started chanting my name. James, James, James!

**SECOND MARKING PERIOD**
**The trouble**

The Trouble
On a Saturday night I could tell that something bad was going to happen. I sensed it, almost like a dog that senses storms. My dad is acting really weird. So any way, my name is Ronny, and I am an only child. I am in 6th grade. I have a dad named John that is fairly tall, has a beard, and a buzz cut. He works as a lumberjack, and makes a good amount of money. He also travels a lot as a lumberjack. On the other hand my mom did not have a job besides doing the chores in the household. Her name is Teresa. She is a small woman, and she has no hair because she has cancer. She was diagnosed about three weeks ago. That's when very bad things started occuring, like when something surprising and bad shows on the news. My dad was acting very weird, he could not seem to figure out what was happening. I went to school that next morning, and I remembered that I forgot to study for a science test. I had a hard time on it. After school I got off the bus, I walked into the house and found my father passed out on the floor. He looked very blue almost like a blue jay. So I quickly called my mom and she said she would be right over because she was visiting a neighbor. Unfortunately she was too late, we thought he had died. We took him to the hospital, and the doctor said he was dead! How did this happen? The doctor said that he had a rare heart condition and was unable to save him. I couldn't believe it. It couldn't be true!

We had a tough time without my dad like a baby bear has tough time without his or her dad. My mom's cancer was getting worse, and I was worried that she was going to pass away. Even though she was very sick she still managed to get a part time job. She finally found out that help was needed at a fast food restaurant called Johnny's Diner. She did not make much money but it was enough to pay for our small house. The next day, I got my science test back and my grade was 60%. I had failed! I was very upset. The reason I think I did bad was because my dad had died. I was still very sad about my dad passing away. After I got home I saw my mom talking with some random person. Apparently it was collector that was asking my mom if she had any money to pay for the electricity! I was worried that they would shut off the electricity. The next day at school I was so miserable and tired like a bear is tired from its winter nap. As I was walking down the hall to my first class, I noticed on a school bulletin board, a flyer that said "Newspaper Delivery Student Needed." So I called the number and got the job working for the community newspaper.

A few weeks passed and I was really getting a hang of the job. The owner of the newspaper became very fond of me like when a person becomes friends with you. He is an older man with his own family, and is very respected in the community. One day as I getting ready for my route the owner sat down and talked to me about my troubles. He said he felt sorry for my dad and how we were having a very tough time. He promised that he would raise money for our family to help us out. He posted my families story in the newspaper and asked if anyone in the community wanted to donate to our family. A few days went by and the fund kept getting bigger and bigger. I couldn't believe how much the community cared about us! The community ended up donating a whopping $30,000! And then to my amazement the company that owned the newspaper matched that amount, so it turned out to be $60,000!!

Things really started to look positive for my mom and I. My moms cancer started to get better after many treatments at the hospital like when someone recovers from a fire. Her doctor gave us a positive diagnosis for her illness. Because of the generosity of the community we were able to pay off some of my moms medical bills. We also moved to a new area that had a bigger house for us. My mom also set up a college fund for me. After all the troubles my family went through, we got past all the obstacles throughout the past year, and now we are heading into a positive future.

Birthday Dream:

It is in the 4th quarter of the Cleveland Cavaliers vs. Houston Rockets game with 3:00 minutes left. Cavaliers were down 85-88. LeBron James which is on the Cavaliers, takes the ball down the court. He fakes out his man, which is James Harden on the Houston Rockets, he steps back and fires from three. He gets the bucket like a football player gets a touchdown. It is now 89-88. Then all of a sudden Dwight Howard from the Rockets throws the ball inbounds to James Harden which then allyoups it all the way down court to Clint Capela for the dunk! 90-89 with 1:30 minutes left, and the the Houston Rockets in the lead. Kyrie Irving, on the Cavaliers takes the ball down the court, passes it to LeBron, LeBron passes it back, and Kyrie drives it to the hoop. He gets fouled really hard. So hard that he had to sit out for the rest of the game. That's when Zander Mangano came into the game. He was the Cavs back up point guard. Zander then passed the ball to LeBron James and he shoots for three! Unfortunately he missed the shot. Dwight Howard got the the rebound drove to the basket and got the layup! It was now 92-89 with 20 seconds left. Cavaliers were losing. Zander Mangano dribbled the ball up the court passed it to LeBron, he pump faked the shot, passed it to me with 2 seconds left. Zander fired the three and made the shot with the foul! All pressure was on Zander because if he missed it they would go into overtime and they could lose. Zander takes the shot and makes it! The Cavaliers win the game by one point to the Houston Rockets! It's a miracle! Then I woke up.

**Third Marking Period**

The Blizzard
The wind was blistery and cold the night of January 28, 2004 and snow was falling at rapid speed. My grandpa was rushing to see me in the hospital. He went though all sorts of obstacles to get there. The first being the treacherous storm. He was coming to see me because he wanted to be the first to arrive at the hospital to see his new grandson, ME! As he was driving to the hospital, he came upon an icy bridge. It was so icy that you couldn't see one part of the road. Then just as soon as he drove on the bridge a huge snowplow came up on the bridge. It slipped and slid like your ice skates do on ice, then the truck slammed into my Grandpa's car!! He had minor scratches and cuts from the accident, but now the bridge was blocked off. His car was also not starting. He then helped the snowplow driver off the road by shoveling the thick and icy snow. Since he had his phone on him, he called a tow truck. The tow truck towed the car all the way to an auto-mechanic shop that was as empty as my wallet! The name of the shop was called "Roger's Car Shop". My Grandpa slowly walked inside the shop so he did not slip from the ice on the sidewalk. He asked the owner if he could fix his damaged car. The owner named Roger said "yes", but it will take about a week. "A week!!!?" My Grandpa replied.
"I'm sorry sir." Roger said. "You'll have to drive another car." Said Roger. My Grandpa replied with an "Ok", and set out to continue his journey to the hospital to see me. It took my Grandpa about an hour longer to get there. My mom was texting, "You better get here quickly." As soon as he got there he sat on the waiting chairs in the lobby. He was so excited to have a little Grandson. He was excited as a little boy would be when he gets his Christmas presents. When I was born he came into the room and held me. After that he decided to stay the night in the lobby because it was so icy and too dangerous to drive. That morning others came, celebrated and got to hold me. But my Grandpa was the first relative to see me, and he always will be so proud of that.

**It is coming**

It is flowers
It is hours
It is bees
It is trees
It is sun
It is fun
It is a season
It is not treason
It is the reason you go out to play
It is not fall, when you play ball
It is not summer, when you are a bummer
It is not winter, when you get splinters
It is Spring!!!!
Anticipation
I am so happy to go to Aruba for spring break. My sister has been doing research on the island, and she says it is right above South America. I never knew how far the island was away from us. My dad said it is about a four hour flight which is pretty long for a plane. Also I looked to see all of the beautiful pictures on google maps of Aruba when I had extra time in computers. The ocean water is very clear and it is an awesome place! My dad said we were staying there for 7 days, and we are also skipping two days of school! We are going fishing, snorkling, riding atv's and even swimming! I can't wait to go to Aruba with my family, and I hope we have a good time.

Current NBA

In the NBA there are some great players, such as Stephen Curry, Lebron James, and Kyrie Irving. In my opinion, the three best point guards in the league are Stephen Curry, Russell Westbrook, and Kyrie Irving. Stephen Curry is best at shooting threes, Russell Westbrook is best at dunking, and Kyrie Irving is best at Driving to the basket. A point guard is the person who takes the ball up the court. They are usually around 6'0"- 6'3" feet tall. In my opinion the best shooting guards are Jimmy butler, Demar Derozan, and James Harden. Shooting guards are the players that wait for the ball and move around on both sides of the court. They are usually 6'5"- 6'7" feet tall The three best small fowards are Lebron James, Kevin Durant, and Paul George. Small forwards are all around players. they can drive, they can shoot, and they can make free throws. They can also get rebounds, and are around 6'7" - 6'9" feet tall. [most of them] The best power fowards are probably Anthony Davis, Draymond Green, and Blake Griffin. Power forwards usually play in the post and are very good at rebounding. They are usually 6'9"-6'11" feet tall. The best centers are most likely Andre Drummond, Demarcus Cousins, and Al Horford. Centers also usually play in the post, or down low, but most of them can't shoot that well. They are usually 6'11"- 7'1" feet tall.
Marking period four
Me
I am small as I play ball with my tall cousins
My sister bawls cause she can't haul her wagon
My Mom is hard working as she uses her credit card on useless things
My dad is so dedicated to his computer and his work that his face had faded

Kobe Bryant
I cannot believe Kobe Bryant who used to play on the Los Angles Lakers, scored 60 points on his final NBA basketball game. It was a very good game between the Utah Jazz and the Los Angles Lakers. In the first quater, Kobe missed his first five shots that he took but then made a couple of shots at the end of the quater. In the second quater Kobe was on fire! He had about 15 points to keep the Lakers in the game. In the beginning of the third quater he sat on the bench but then eventually came back in the game towards the end of the quater. It was now a very close match towards the end of the game. Kobe got the winning foul shot and winning assist. While Kobe was leaving the stadium, everyone was chanting his name. Kobe Bryant was the oldest player to score 60 points in a game at 38 years old. I am very happy for Kobe and his accomplishments. "Mamba Out".

Shoes
If you know me, you know that I love shoes as much as a bear loves its cub. I have about 30 pairs of shoes including, Jordan's, Kobe's, Lebron's, Kevin Durant's, and
many other nike shoes. My favorite pair of shoes probably have to be my Air Jordan 13 bred's. (at the end of this paragraph) You may think they are ugly, but they are very special to me. Brand new, they are about 300 dollars. I got into shoe collecting when my older cousin started buying selling and trading his. Also I liked the nice sleek texture and how cool they looked on somebody's feet. After that, I started collecting Jordans and many other types of shoes. My favorite shoe in my collection that I don't have is probably the Yeezy 350 boosts. Their re-sell value is about 600-1000 dollars. They are very comfortable, and feel like a bunny is hugging your feet. They are also Kanye West shoes.

I am from cheesy pizza,
that burns in my mouth as I take a bite.
I am from deliciously made Northbrook apple cider donuts,
as I watch them being made in the donut making machine.
I am from juicy, scrumptious, bacon cheeseburgers,
that I rarely get from Wendy's fast food restaurant
I am from turkey with olive oil on it,
which I have for lunch everyday.

I'm from the old tire swing at the the baseball fields,
with buddies on summer days.
I'm from the old pine tree,
swinging on the lazy hammock hung by dad.
I'm from fish aquarium's that sat in my bedroom,
watching them swim around.
I'm from my 4 acre backyard,
gardening, man hunt, kickball, and summer fun.

I'm from the saying "Never give up",
as I scored my second soccer goal.
I'm from the phrase "Don't get big",
as my mom tucked me into bed every night.
I'm from the teatherball courts,
which we played at recess in third grade.
I'm from practice makes perfect,
as I shot the 3 pointer in my basketball game.

I am from childhood memories
made before I grew up,
from family bonds and togetherness.

WW111
After the Russians invaded America's Eastern territories in 2057, everyone had gone crazy. Many committed suicide since they destroyed the White House, and the Washington Monument. However, my family and I escaped to the west side where no one knew what was happening. We tried to warn them, but no one listened. America was history. (1 day earlier) Hi, my name is Redford, and my family just moved to America a week ago from England. At first I was scared to go to school because I didn't know anyone. But many people introduced me to there school and I felt very welcome. As soon as I got home from the school bus, my dog was there to greed me. He licked me across the face, almost like the sun licks across the horizon everyday at dawn. After I walked inside my house, I did my homework, brushed my teeth, got dressed, and went to bed. While I was in bed, I felt the house shake. I decided to ignore it and kept on sleeping. When I woke up, at the break of dawn, the house was shaking much harder than last night. I looked out the window and saw Russain planes everywhere! I went to go check on my mom and dad, but they had left! I think they forgot about me I said to myself as I ran down the steps to go fetch my dog. But the house was collapsing, I had to do something. It was either get out of the house now, or try to save my dog with a great risk of dying. I decided to try and save my dog. I felt so crammed in that I thought I was going to throw up. As I saw my dog in the corner of the kitchen, flames rose up and I ran even faster as prey does when its predator is after them. I picked up my dog and then scrambled out of the kitchen. As I came to our living room, I felt very nautious. I decided to take a seat on a chair. I thought that was the end of me, but American soldiers came into my house and helped me out. They said they needed me to go to battle.......