by Moises A. Hernandez, age 14

Out in the fields of thick sandhill wire grass—also called pineland threeawn—just outside of the town of Cheraw in South Carolina, a 65-year-old retired English teacher and self-taught naturalist, is America’s Turtle Whisperer.

When John Rucker was ten years old, he was in a similar field near the Black River in North Carolina, hunting coveys of bobwhite quail with his father and a dog handler named Frank Simpson. Simpson’s dogs were Boykin Spaniels, which is the State Dog of South Carolina. While searching for birds, one of the dogs showed interest in a specific area of grass, all of a sudden. [Read More]

The Life of Artist Georgia O'Keeffe

by Hanna Eyobed, age 14

When Georgia O’Keeffe finished eight grade she decided she wanted to be an artist. She had this epiphany after seeing a drawing in one of her mothers’ books depicting a girl that she thought was beautiful. She said, “that picture started something in me that kept on going and has had something to do with the everlasting urge that makes me keep painting.”

O’Keeffe was born on a farm around Sun Prairie, Wisconsin in 1887. She said, “I always feel I was very fortunate to have grown up on a farm. I had a very pleasant childhood, though I was somewhat of a rebel.” When O’Keeffe was 13, she attended Sacred Heart Academy, which was a boarding school just outside of Madison. It is now known as Edgewood High School.She spent the next year at Central High School in Madison, where she began taking art classes. At first the teacher scolded her for only drawing heavy black lines. The same teacher however, encouraged her to use the natural colors of her subject. [Read More]

by Eva Stouffer, age 14

The word “orange” describes both a color and a fruit. Which one came first might be surprising.

“Orange” when used as the name of the fruit came before “orange” as a word to describe color. While the shade itself existed before the fruit, there was not a name in the English language for the color. Before the introduction of the fruit to English-speaking countries, the color was usually described as a shade of red or yellow. [Read More]

Nintendo Switch vs Nintendo Switch Lite

by Amare Smith, age 15

Hey, guys. This is Amare and I’m gonna talk about the difference between Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch Lite. The Nintendo Switch Lite releases on September 20th. It costs $200, but the original Nintendo Switch costs $300. Since the Nintendo Switch Lite costs less, why would you ever buy the original?

Even though there are differences between the Nintendo Switch and the Nintendo Switch Lite, they are very similar consoles. The key difference is that the Nintendo Switch has detachable controllers and the Switch Lite has built-in controllers that can’t be detached. Also, the Switch can be connected to a TV and has a kickstand, but the Switch Lite doesn’t have these features. [Read More]

by Melanie Sanchez, age 11, James Wright Free Press

Ever wondered why someone says “that’s just a tempest in a teapot” over an event that has nothing to do with tea? This expression is often a response to an overblown situation.

The expression “a storm in a teacup” is believed to derive from a passage in De Legibus written by Cicero, a renowned Roman philosopher, and writer who influenced future Latin prose. His “excitable fluctus in simpulo” translates to “he was stirring up billows in a ladle.” [Read More]