Twisted Tweens: Drama Class #6

Happy Birthday, Zach!”

As I walked between classes at the community center yesterday, I heard plenty of random friends tell me this. Eventually, the fact was unmistakable: it was my birthday, and I was having fun.

I was born at 1:32 PM, in the bright sunlight of a Wednesday afternoon. March 25th, 1992 to be precise. Well, once again my birthday was on a Wednesday, but at 1:32 PM – instead of squirming my five pound body in the open air for the first time – I was in the middle of teaching drama class to my six to nine year old students.

We had a good class. They improvised scenes with their ever-present characters. At the end of class, I told them that I was directing a play, Puss in Boots. Previously, some of them had been interested in auditioning. But I think they might be a bit too young, and their attention spans might be a bit too short. Still, I thought I would give them each the chance to act like a cat.
They all seemed to enjoy acting like cats so much more than they enjoy the heavy, intellectual concepts that I try to present to them. I don't blame them for having this preference. For the next session of classes, I will be sure to return to such fun, light-hearted activities.

After class, my family and I were getting ready to leave. I overheard Metal Man's mother telling him that it was my birthday. Pretty soon, Metal Man walked up to me. “Happy Birthday, Zach,” he said.

“Oh, thank you, Metal Man,” I replied.

“I didn't know it was your birthday. If I had known, I would have brought you a present.”

I think I thanked him again. It's really amazing. Metal Man has such an out-of-control, egotistical and hyper personality, but he can pause everything and actually be sincerely sweet. In fact, he's an adorable child! I don't know why he has so much craziness inside of him.

Thanks for reading. I must go and prepare my house for my birthday celebration this weekend.

Zachary W.

Birthday Websites

Looking a way to fete your big day? Whether it's your 10th birthday or your 16th birthday that you're celebrating, you're sure to find some help or just some fun from these online resources:

Birthday Calculator (http://www.paulsadowski.com/birthday.asp)- Fun facts about your birthday.

Birthday Celebrations from around the world (http://www.birthdaycelebrations.net/traditions.htm)- A site that discusses the birthday traditions of different countries.

Extreme Teen B-Day Story (http://www.knoxnews.com/kns/living/article/0,1406,KNS_2796_5028219,00.html)- A story of a rather extravagent teen birthday party.Gift Finder (http://www.gifts.com/)- This site can be used to shop for or just to get ideas for birthday gifts and other gifts.

Teen Birthday Party Ideas (http://www.teenpartyideas.com/)- Birthday party ideas submitted by teens and their parents.This post was inspired by the fact that my own little brother, Frederik, is turning 12 on March 25th. I will get back to the series on doing something big that I started a few weeks ago sometime in the future.
Best B-day Wishes,

Aurelie
http://www.aurelieshealthycuisine.com

Amelia's Book Room: The Tales Of Beedle The Bard

Now, I’m sure we have some Potter fans out there, right? Cause this week’s book is for you guys!

The Tales of Beedle the Bard is a fun book; as those who’ve read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows know, it is a collection of Wizarding children’s fairy tales. This special edition, as translated from ancient runes by Hermione Granger, includes commentary by Albus Dumbledore, and footnotes by J. K. Rowling.

With stories like The Fountain of Fair Fortune and Babbity Rabbity And Her Cackling Stump, this book provides a good laugh, and Professor Dumbledore adds insightful notes on the historical facts and the times in which the stories were written. J. K. Rowling provides explanations for those Muggles (non-magical people) not quite learned in Wizarding ways. This is a must-have for any Potter fanatic, and a fun read for anyone otherwise interested.

As you know, J. K. Rowling is the author of the best-selling Harry Potter series. Her interactive homepage can be found here.

Guess who’s turning another year older this week? Yup, tomorrow I’ll be fourteen! My family and I will have ice cream cake and a small party after ballet class—I sense a round of the “Happy Birthday” song from my classmates ahead—and on the weekend, a friend and I are going miniature golfing!

Have a good week, everybody, and happy reading!