Greetings from Chapel Hill, North Carolina
By Allie G., Correspondent

Hey y'all! Greetings from Chapel Hill, North Carolina. I moved down there this summer and it's very different from Itasca. Today (Wednesday, August 16) was my first day of school at North Chatham.
The school is from kindergarten to eighth grade. The school isn't very old (at least I don't think so) and it's very big. Not as big as Peacock of course but then again Peacock is one of the best schools in the country (yea!!!!).
My teachers are a little like the teachers at Peacock. We don't have some of the subjects though. We don't have Home Economics, IT, or Music (gasp! But we do have chorus). I really, really don't like the fact they don't have music.
I've made some friends and they remind me of everyone at Peacock. Except most of them have Southern accents.
From what I hear from my friends on-line, it seems to be getting hot up there in Illinois. Trust me, it's not as bad as North Carolina.
I live in a place called The Governor's Park. Governor's Park is a very nice place. It has tennis courts, volleyball, a pool, a basketball court and a park.
There are a lot of houses but a lot are still being built. They are building a house next to mine. There are certain types of houses you can pick from too. My house is called The Randolph. It is very big.
They have some sports at my school that they don't have at Peacock and vise-versa. They offer softball, basketball and baseball. Our gym teacher, Mr. Middleton, is very nice and says that he is going to work us hard.
They don't, however, run the mile every Friday. They only run it either once a month or once a year.
Oh yeah, you are not allowed to wear tank tops except in gym.
Well, I guess that about wraps up my article. I miss everyone back at Peacock and say "Hi!" to everyone back home. Hope to see everyone soon!

Allie now attends North Chatham Middle School
http://www9.chatham.k12.nc.us/NCS

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Spring Brook vs. Spring Valley
A Nature Center Review
By Kyle A.

Now everyone has probably been to Spring Brook Nature Center but have you ever been to Spring Valley Nature Center? Well, I have and it is so much fun. They have animals, a barn, a house, a cabin, paths, a pond and much more.
In the Main building they have a little pond with fish, frogs, and even turtles. We saw tadpoles, fish, and birds in the pond. We saw so many animal footprints that were weird.
When we were around the barn and house there was alot to do. We saw a pig who was four feet high and really fat and long.
We also saw horses and cows and many other animals.
In the house my brother Cody and my cousin Zachary washed the dishes. It was so much fun. There was so much to do.
We want to go back. Cody said "It's spectacular, I want to go back!" Zach said "I'd go any day!" You should go to the Nature Center's phone number 1-847-985-2100 for directions to Schaumburg.

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School is back and here to stay
By Lyndsey M.

Welcome back to good old Peacock. We have another whole school year ahead of us.
Well, you have to admit, by the end of August you've been sunburnt one too many times, the heat is starting to get to you, and if you see one more hotdog you're going to be sick.
I am not saying summer isn't great, but once you've seen every movie and you've been to the pool 101 times, you know it's time to go back to school.
So you begin with back to school shopping. You get new clothes, a new backpack and new shoes.
The first day of school comes a little too soon but you don't really care. You hop on the bus and pull up to Peacock and wait until they let you in.
Then you walk through the doors. The same doors you've walked though 100 times before.
Then the bell rings. The same bell you have heard 999 billion times before, and you remember the tests and quizzes and nights full of homework. Hours of studying just to take a test and get an ok grade
By the time it's lunch, your back hurts from carrying all your new books and the end of the day seems so far away.
When school is over, you hop on that smelly bus and count the days till Christmas break.

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When summer ends
By Nancy M.

When Summer ends,
We are sent,
To go to school,
And that means no more pool,
Till next summer,
Man isn't that a bummer.
School

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The storm that hit Itasca
By Nancy M.

The storm on Sunday, August 6, 2000 took many by surprise. Trees had fallen and electricity was out. Many people had no electricity for hours or days.
One house was not so lucky. A tree fell through it. After the house was boarded up, however, you could hardly notice the damage.
When the rain stopped, the neighborhood was outside walking, running, biking and roller blading instead of watching TV or listening to the radio.

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