Y5-+Mitchell+S.

 I am 11 years old. I really enjoy listening to music. My favorite sport is either football or baseball. I like to swim, but I do not like the sport as much as I like to just free swim. My favorite animals are Pandas. I like Red Pandas better than Giant Pandas though. My favorite color is yellow, but I also like the color black. I enjoy the subject of Social Studies.Math, not so much. I don't know what I want to be when I grow up, maybe a songwriter for famous people. I also might want to be famous.

FIRST DRAFT

Max woke up to find a bright beam of sunshine gleaming down at the foot of his bed. The window was was open, letting a refreshing breeze tickle his face.Max yawned, kicked off his covers, and descended down the hall. When he reached the stairs, he found that the bottom was blockaded by his mother. She was staring straight at him.

"I want to talk to you about your Social Studies grade." Max hesitated. //"How'd she figure out about that?"// He hadn't told her."Your teacher called me this morning."She signaled for him to come down the stairs.She sat on a couch, and patted a spot on it; for Max to sit there."Max, you are failing Social Studies. Your teacher says that you need help on American culture and history. After lunch today, we'll work on it, together. Okay?" Max smiled." Okay."

Max's mom stood over the kitchen table,as the plates were cleared. "Okay, Max, I think we'll start with a certain time period. I'll give you a hint.This is when Rock n' Roll became popular in the U.S." she said. Max pondered. " 2006? " he threw out. " No Max, the 1960s," his mother replied " Okay, what popular president was in office this decade?" Max thought and thought. He learned this in class,but chose to ignore it."//Karma//" , Max thought. He really regretted his decision. " Abraham Lincoln?", he guessed. He had no clue. Max's mom sighed, as if she rued everything she had done today. She looked as if she had nothing to look foward to in life, almost annoyed. "Okay Max, I see that you DO need help. Enough asking questions, I need to tell you the facts." She walked over to a chalkboard, picked it up, and propped it against the table where Max was sitting.

"Okay, we'll start with Lincoln. He was the president who signed the Emancipation Proclemation, which freed all the slaves. When he signed the Proclemation, the North and the South, [which was at that time was the confederacy], were at war, the Civil War. Got that?" Max's eyes were bulged. It was apparently too much for him to take in. Max's mother groaned. She and Max were going to spend a long time on this.

"Okay Max, time for your first test," Max's mother said a week later. "We will see how much you have paid attention in my class." With that said, she swiftly left the room, swang her arms and announced, " Begin," as if it were a track meet." "//Okay//", Max thought. He read the first question throughouly. It was //What compitition between what two nations went on during the 1960's? A.The food race between France and Germany B.The space race between the Soviet Union and the United States C. The space race between the U.S and France D. The water race between China and South Korea.// Max perked up. He knew this. The Soviet Union and the United states went through the space race, sending people, shuttles, etc up into space. This was easy. He quickly circled B.

As he continued the test, Max thought," //American history is easy. Why couldn't I do this in class.?"// Max breezed through the test, always double checking the question he just finished. In no time, he completed the test. He couldn't believe it. He hadn't strained his brain.

" Mom! ", Max yelled, " I'm finished! " Max's mother quickly descended down the stairs. She picked up Max's test and started reading. Her expression was blank, so Max couldn't tell what she was thinking. Max was sure he had gotten an A, at the very most.

" Wow, I'm impressed. You got every single question correct. Why couldn't you do this well in class.?" Max blushed as his mom came over to hug him. "You should do this well on everything," she said as she held his face. Max loved today. " Now, promise me you'll do well in school tomorrow," said Max's mom. " I promise," Max said.

__THE NEXT MORNING AT SCHOOL

"__Who knows which groups tried to get equal rights in America?" Max's teacher, Mrs. Ereline, asked. Max raised his hand. " Max," Mrs. Ereline called. " African Americans, Women, Native Americans and many other ethnic groups," Max answered. Mrs. Ereline loked impressed. "Great job Max! You've improved!" She gave Max a high five. "Thanks," Max said, " I've had a great teacher." " Well that teacher should deserve the best," said Mrs. Ereline. She walked closer to him and whispered in his ear," Your mom did a great job."

THE AWARD CEREMONY AT THE END OF THE YEAR

"And now, for the perseverence award," called the announcer. "It is......." The crowd hushed. You could hear a pencil drop at the other end of the room. " Max Mitzienausch!" Everybody cheered, especially Max's mother. " He persevered through Social Studies, learning, really trying to learn about our free land's history! Everybody clap for him!" Max strutted up to get his certificate as the croud went wild. "Thanks," Max said." I learned a lot about our great land! From the Civil War, to the Vietnam War, I learned. I went from an F, to an A+! America has so much culture, it was hard to learn, but I did. Thanks for supporting me!" Everbody clapped. Max felt great as he went back to his seat. He sould have paid attention to his great country from the beginning.

FIN