A day at BCAP

This summer I went to a camp called B.C.A.P (Bklyn Cultural Adventures Program) which takes place in the Brooklyn Museum and I'll tell you a bit about it! Oh yeah and I really don't see much of it being cultural like they say.
In the morning, I had to get up around seven thirty to be able to get there by 8-9 o'clock (required time) and on the first day you need to go pick up your shirt with the BCAP logo and... Now I'll just tell you about the normal days ! We have to sign in and then we can pick between art, playing outside or playing board games. (I always pick board games). Then we would play a game or something as a group, then either we have art class or a special event, and also we might go on a trip to a local popular place like the Children's Museum or the Brooklyn Botanic Garden!

We would usually have lunch at the beginning of the trip, if we have one. Then there's snack, then the shout outs (shout outs are when someone says a persons name and what they did well that day, then we would say the persons name and chant!) after those shout outs we chant for BCAP so super loud that every time we expect someone from the Bronx to call and say that we were too loud! Hahahhahhahaaaa!!! After the camp day is over there is dismissal and stay and play (stay and play is like an after school.)
                   Then the whole day is done and its 6:00 and time to go!

On the last day we had a performance followed by an art show with our work. I don't like to be on stage, but I survived! And I was very proud of my art, I made a painting representing Atlas holding the sky on his shoulders. I will post it when I have a chance. It was very fun!

Twisted History

                                                                    

There is this weird thing that I call twisted history and it’s that they sell “Italian ices” when it’s really just junk made out of high fructose corn syrup, citric acid, artificial flavor including red 40 that can give you asthma (I bet you didn't know that!) and other artificial ingredients.

The real Italians make Granita out of ice with fruit juice [no artificial flavor] and that’s it!

Coca Cola was made in Atlanta, Georgia in the late 1800's and it was made without the sugar and high fructose corn syrup added: another example of torn up history!!!  There are a lot of foods and drinks that are super popular, that so many people consume when they are made with so many added ingredients that are really bad for you! Go figure. Basically it’s as if I invited you to my house and said “Here, have some junk that will make you throw up and get asthma! It’s really bad for ya!”  And you go for it!

I actually also got to interview a woman in the street , she was selling icees . I observed that she made them by scraping ice and putting heavy syrup on to them and putting them in  cups. I asked "What is that syrup made of and where do you get it?" She said "I get the syrup from factories and companies, then because they are not very sugary so I add a lot more white sugar." [whoa!] Then I asked "What do the factories put in it to give it to you?" And she said "They put in artificial flavor/coloring and high fructose corn syrup and some sweetening liquids." "..............." I was word less. Then I came back home and wrote it all on my blog.

                              

The last day of Third Grade

The last day of school can feel very weird because you might have many different feelings at the same time.  Sometimes you can really like school, enjoy the time with your friends and teachers, and have a good time there. Sometimes you really just want to go have a fun vacation, or have time off, sleep late in the morning, take it easy. Sometimes school might be boring and annoying for some kids, or hard, and you don't like it and you really just want to leave school because of that!
On the very last day of school you might experience all these feelings all at once.

 I really like school and I also have fun on vacation, so I try to avoid the sadness of leaving  my friends and having to move on.
On the first day of summer I went to Lux's house in Rhinebeck and it was one of the fun things that have happened so far in my summer. This time it was his birthday  and we went with my mom and my brother. We had a lot of fun! I like the countryside because it's relaxing and everything goes slow-mo and calm. You don't have to prepare your big bag for school and you can awaken to the sound of birds chirping and the smell of country. You don't have to wake up early or get dressed quickly not to miss the bus, you don't need to shove your breakfast in your mouth and you can take a break from smog and pollution!

Fun times

On Saturday June 8th my cousin Matteo and his girlfriend Himena came from Buenos Aires Argentina to visit us.

Jimena is really how her name is spelled, but pronounced He-mena … not to be confused with this guy...

 On that same day they arrived we went to the Guggenheim to see abstract art from Pablo Picasso and other artists’ work. I really like the design of the Guggenheim with all the loops forming a snail-like building. 

Then on Sunday, my mom, and my cousins and I went to Bare Burger and I had  a bison burger with bacon. I had a giant stomach ache because the burger was super big!!! The bison was great and my mom had wild boar, which also was good!

That Monday the cousins went to H+M in NJ and I went to school. When they came back they brought me a t-shirt with a Capricorn and plaid pants, I like them so much that I wear them every day!

Then every other day they went to some place interesting, like the NBC studios, the statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, and I went to school, but one of the days we took a van to go to my  school  and I introduced them to my teachers. Because of Matteo’s big muscles, my friends asked : “Does he play rugby?’’ . 

It really felt good having my cousins over, because I don’t see them often.  In spite of our age difference, my cousin Matteo and I have a lot in common, including our love for our grandpa’s BBQ!  My cousin can speak English much better than my grandfather, whom I have been teaching for 6 years now. I understand Spanish better than I can speak it, therefore, we communicated mostly in Italian. We both did not grow up in Italy, yet we feel very Italian at heart.

I'm planning a trip to Buenos Aires with my mom to visit them and my aunt soon!

Culmination

This is me and Lux at our last culmination of Third grade, 

we were playing around in the Art Room.

Art classes at the Brooklyn Museum

At the Brooklyn museum they offer art classes and I took one called
"How Artists Draw" and surprisingly, it was not only drawing but we also  made  silhouette-like collages. My theme was the Dutch settlers in New Amsterdam and I made houses, and things they would have in New Amsterdam and... also some abnormal things going on! I HAD to pay a tribute to one of my favorite artists, Keith Haring! I picked that theme because in school we were currently studying the Dutch settlers and I was interested in them. To make the collages we cut black paper and pasted it on white paper. The result was pretty impressive, it is now hanging at the Museum for public display. I think it was the best class I've taken there!

Why don't you go and look at it (before August 1st) and send me a picture? 


Here you go:

Wow!

  On 5-18-13  I went to Rhinebeck with Lux to his country house and...
Wow! It was way better than I thought it would be! On Saturday, there was a giant celebration celebrating Clay's 18th birthday. Clay is one of Lux's cousins. We played basketball, capture the flag, frisbee, archery, badminton, ping pong and we bounced on the trampoline.
After the party, me and Lux made a fire pit and a burning teepee and we put all sorts of flammable things in the fire. Then Doug and Kevin brought s'mores out and we made s'mores. The day after, it rained and we still made fires and they still burned. We also went rafting with inflatable sleds in the brook, brrrrr it was cold.
When we came back home in the car we slept in horrible positions! But we were so so so tired!
Going to Rhinebeck reminded me about my country house in Italy where I make fires all the time with my grandfather.

Whoooooooooooohooooooooo........

                                         This is totally me and my brother Marco!!!

Intro

Let the line begin with exciting thoughts and highlights in life.


All are welcome, all can contribute!