Great+Homeworks

=Great Homeworks by Year 9 Caracals=

My life in Antarctica by Alex
For the last two and a half years I have been living and working on a research station on Bird Island in Antarctica. I am a zoological assistant studying penguins. Bird Island is home to about 50,000 breeding pairs of penguins. Temperatures on the island vary from −10°C to 10°C throughout the year, typically hovering around 0°C in winter and 4°C in summer. In summer, damp, misty, low cloud conditions often prevail. Strong gale force winds may occur every month. There is no permanent snow or ice on the island, though it is typically snow covered from July to October. The BAS scientific research at Bird Island focuses on seabird and seal population dynamics, feeding ecology and reproductive performance. My job was to collect long term datasets to detect trends in population numbers, mating partners, breeding success, diet quality and quantity, and seasonal feeding grounds with the aim of developing understanding of the southern ocean ecosystem. I lived in Prince House, which provides living accommodation, offices and laboratories for myself and 9 other people. Some of whom are zoological assistants like me, a technician and a base commander. There is no chef on site so everyone takes their turn to cook evening meals and make bread on a daily rota. There are no doctors or mountain leaders so we have comprehensive training in advanced first aid and medical response, and in navigation and Search and Rescue techniques. My working hours were unusual as I had to match the activity times of the penguins. Mainly working at dusk and dawn, when the penguins embark and return from their forages and the penguin colony was approximately 35 minutes walk away across rough ground. The busiest time of the year is breeding season and I was kept busy monitoring, counting, checking, tagging and weighing the penguins and their chicks. Not all my time was spent working; we often had special meals and were entertained with tv and computers. One evening we challenged the guys on Halley research station to a darts competition over the webcam. It was really fascinating to work on Bird Island for over two years, observing how the island changed through the seasons and to work so closely with penguins.

My letter! As a Zoologist Field Assistant on Bird Island by Amelia
Grimshaw Family… Hope you are all okay! I just thought I would write you all a quick letter as I have some spare time, which is going to become quite rare as it is coming up to breeding season here, so sorry if I don’t write much at the moment. Here we are all getting ready for the breeding season when lots of animals come to mate and when I say lots I mean it! There are going to be hundreds of thousands of seabirds and seals and hopefully quite a few penguins too! The next few months are going to be so hard because the breeding season is so busy you have to work at odd hours which I really hate and the work is so full on. I find it all worth it though when you get to hold and see all these animals in their own homes and not at a zoo. The weather at the moment is pretty normal to be honest it’s just hovering around -1 and cold winds. So far I love it here, even if you have to use a communal shower and toilet! It’s really quite nice because we live in a small place. I only live with about 10 people and it’s like we become a small family away from home. Wish everyone could visit but there are only two beds for visitors and well I wouldn’t want to sleep in them! Tonight it’s my turn to cook and I will be making Lasagne which as you all know is my favourite but I bet I won’t be able to pull off mum’s recipe. Really hope to be able to write my third letter to you guys after the breeding season and I will get to come home and visit when my 18 months is up! Love you lots and lots make sure you write back! Amelia xxxx

Signy Research Station By Chloe
Hello everyone back in (comparatively warm) England, Okay so this is my diary documenting my time in the Antarctic. I shall be doing research on the local wildlife monitoring their numbers and their behaviour. I shall also be doing research on the climate change and the southern ocean ecosystems. Most of this research is for the Committee for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR). I am located on the Signy research centre, one of the South Orkney Islands in the southern ocean to the north of the Weddell Sea. The weather has been as expected cold and windy very windy, though I have been assured by some of the others on my team that in the summer months though it will be wet it shall be a lot warmer. Our only company, apart from each other, is the numerous elephant seals, Chinstrap penguins, Adelie penguins, Gentoos and the occasional Macaroni penguin. I have lots to do I have to record the number of penguins that are here and their behaviour now before the laying of eggs and the hatching which will keep me very busy. This is also a busy time for the local seal population the mating season is in full swing and the chorus of grunts and gurgles is a constant soundtrack to daily life. The penguins have proved themselves to be a very mischievous, they are curious about everything and anything I have found some very interesting information and have gotten some great pictures. The seals are also proving fascinating but they do have a habit of lying in the way which has gotten some fabulous pictures but isn’t very practical. The station has had to be repaired, nothing major but the cold taken its toll while the station was unoccupied so the boiler needed repairs and everything needed a general thaw out. Getting about has proved hard work but my skiing has improved so I am starting to make good progress on my daily expeditions. I never thought I’d say this but I am actually getting used to the cold after a while it just becomes the norm. The first few weeks have flown by, we are all settled into our daily routines and my research is going really well. The penguin chicks have hatched so there has been a flurry of activity in that area penguin chicks are one of the most adorable and entertaining residents on the Island and are a firm favourite amongst us all. The elephant seals will soon be giving birth and they have now been joined by fur seals. They are not as comfortable around us as the elephant seals and penguins are but they are a welcomed guest anyway. The penguin chicks are now losing their fluffy down and are starting to venture in to the shallower waters. The elephant seals have been born as well so there is a lot of work for me to do, I’m excited but at the time I’m sad as I know once the baby boom has ended I shall be heading home again. We are finishing up now it is a week until we leave we have all collected lots of information and gotten very well acquainted with the local wildlife. All of the penguin chicks have grown up and left, the seals have also moved on as well. I have packed my stuff and the boat is coming for us tomorrow so I shall say goodbye to the few reaming wildlife residents and head home.

An Electrical Services Technician on Halley Base by Helen
Hey Mum and Dad, Well, I’m finally here at Halley Research Station. It’s pretty much what I expected. I was told of the harsh weather conditions that I would encounter during the winter, although they did turn out slightly worse than I expected; yesterday we had plummeted to -50C as I slept. I’m living in shared accommodation mounted on skis which, admittedly, makes me slightly nervous. One of my co-workers showed me, on the map, the multiple sites on which Halley had been built in the past. I hadn’t realised how much of a threat the snow is… The site has been built five times due to four of the locations being crushed by ice. I haven’t really begun my duty as Electrical Services Technician yet, as I have been told that a short adjustment period is highly recommended. A few days of rest, getting used to the environment and being shown around by other members of staff has been exciting, but I feel ready now and have asked to begin my actual job tomorrow. I have glanced at some of the other buildings, of which there are many, and noticed two types of structure. A couple of the buildings (including my accommodation and a garage) are placed on skis, which I presume was designed as to allow for easy relocation. Some of the others are on platforms with steel legs; these particular buildings are not particularly easy to move, but are designed to be raised up each year. I asked if there were any other designs that I would be expected to implement as part of my job, but I was assured that those were the only approved options at that particular moment. There were, however, things going on “behind the scenes” to attempt to find a safer, cheaper and more convenient solution. A number of people also told me how the snow increases by 1.2 metres each year. I think I understand why they need to rebuild quite so often. Oh, and when they said 24-hour darkness? They meant it literally. We have just begun the 105 day cycle of complete darkness. Luckily, the sky does look beautiful at night. Well, I guess I better get back to helping fixing the stove in the kitchen. Hope you’re both doing okay… Bye

Zoologist Field Assistant by Jade
Hi there, I am writing to you from Bird Island in South Georgia. You can only reach this place by boat or helicopter. It’s really chilly here – even in summer! It’s about 4°C now but it will be 0°C in winter. We’re expecting strong gales soon; they happen every month. I’ve been working on Bird Island as a zoological field assistant. I am responsible for work on seals but I sometimes help with the penguins and birds too. I also collect project data for BAS scientists and visiting researchers.I’ve been working on Bird Island as a zoological field assistant. I am responsible for work on seals but I sometimes help with the penguins and birds too. I also collect project data for BAS scientists and visiting researchers.

Seal work is conducted on the Seal Study beach which is a five-minute walk from base through thousands of unpredictable seals. You really need to be careful and assertive! For the past six months, I’ve been monitoring a group of fur seals; I’ve been sampling for diet and weighing pups to estimate growth rate. The pupping season is between November and January so fur seal science is intense during that period. Seal pups are remarkably adorable but surprisingly strong with shockingly sharp teeth as my friend, Riekert, found out as he tried to tag one of them! Our station is quite small compared to some other research stations. We don’t even have a doctor so we all need to have advanced first aid and medical response training. There isn’t a chef either so we have a rota instead which decides who’s going to cook dinner. You can’t argue with a rota! My diet, here at Bird Island, is very similar to the diet I had back home in the UK. The main difference is that fresh fruit and vegetable are scarce. Fruit, vegetables and meat are tinned, dried or frozen but foods such as bread are freshly baked. The station is re-supplied twice a year, at the beginning and end of summer. Hope all’s well at home. Lots of love, Jade x

An electrician on Signy station By Jonah
Signy station, Signy Island South Orkney Islands Antarctica, 60°42' S, 45°36' W , Dear mum, I am enjoying life here at Signy station; I have made some good friends with some of the guys that work around “Borge bay”. Most of the people here work with the penguins and seals that are indigenous to this area but there are some cooks and a pilot. The water is normally too frozen for us to traverse but occasionally I get to take that boat out for a spin to fix some of the radar buoys. Our research ship brought over some more tourists yesterday, not many people come here but there has been an increase in their visits since the summer came (it is 19.8°C here the hottest day on record). I have got to go so I will write again soon. From Jonah

From: Jane Doe  To: John Smith  Subject: Wow! Antarctica is cool! Hi John :-) I can’t even begin to explain how much fun I’m having aboard the RSS Ernest Shackleton! How are things with you?  The people aboard are so nice, they’ve given me such a warm welcome! Shame about the weather though, I suppose though it’s not too far off England most of the time!

Work has been pretty fun too! It’s hard, but regardless I get to see so much of the world! When I left from Dover on the boat, we sailed straight down to Cape Town! Such a lovely change from the usual scenery of England! Maintaining the radios and electronic equipment is quite fun to do as well; even better than what I expected from the description in the job advert. My full title is “Chief Radio Officer”, a title! Don’t see that a lot with me do you, eh? We’re currently moving some researchers from the Falklands over to Signy Base on the South Orkney Islands, just the typical run. Wavy Davey’s jokes really keep us in the mood on long journeys, especially his “Adventures of Postman Pat” where he takes pictures of a little plastic model all over the world! Anyway, they are preparing to disembark from the ship now and they are calling me. See you soon :-) Jane

British Antarctic Survey bird ecologist team! By Lauren
Dear everyone, We are on sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia the current temperature 0.3. Our job is to study the magnificent wandering albatross this amazing bird is displaying a change in breeding habits; these are one of the largest birds on the globe and are showing signs of breeding earlier in the year, our job is to find out what percentage of the population here are breeding early and why! My skilled team of scientists and I have discovered that because some birds are now laying their eggs earlier, laying date for the population is an average of 2.2 days earlier than before, this will be having a vast impact on the population of this bird ,exactly why these birds are laying so early is yet to become clear, Every year we can determine when the birds return to the island after migration, and the exact day they lay their egg. We knew that some birds were laying earlier such as those who were older or had recently changed partner - but now we see that those which haven’t bred successfully in the past are also laying earlier, and these birds are effectively starting this trend of “earlier laying”. We have been studying and documenting these wonderful birds for over 30 years, we learn more and more about how they breed survive and think each year, me and my team are very devoted and will continue to monitor these birds throughout the next decade to see how they are evolving. please take a look at our website for all the latest updates!!! [] Kind regards British Antarctic Survey bird ecologist team!

From Halley Station by Riekert
Dear Family back home. This place is very cold, and coming from a hot place like Zambia, it’s REALLY cold, but there are plenty of heaters at Halley Research camp so not to bad, and my job as an atmospheric researcher is fun, I get to watch the aurora lights almost every night, but I sure miss the food back home, canned food is getting boring and really doesn’t taste as good, but my time here is over soon, and I’ll be back home in good old Africa, but for now I’m stuck in a frozen version of the Sahara desert. Miss you guys Riekert P.S. send my greetings to our pets.

A Marine Biologist from Halley Station by Savannah
Dear Mum... I have finally found my research station to work at, it is called: Halley My Job is to work as a marine biologist. My life here is Fantastic, tomorrow Ive got to study the whales and seals up closer ( i am really scared to do that) but I must be brave to keep this job, I wish you were here so we could have a brew-up together. But don’t worry food and clothes are not a problem because the lady I’m staying with is a really good cook and has really good advice on how to get hold of clothes, Unfortunately I have to bring this letter to an end soon but I’ll write as much as I can. The Temperatures at Halley rarely rise above 0°C which means its freezing but it’s worse in the winter when the temperature drop to below -20c. I went to study the Weddell and leopard seals yesterday but tomorrow I have got to get closer to them and the whales. My aim is to study all the animals. I mustn’t forget to mention the emperor penguins. Halley has been occupied since 1956. The food is delicious and the clothes are really warm and snugly. I miss you and indigo so much I hope to be home soon I love you xxx Savannah P.s I will look after myself and keep warm, have to feed the sled dogs everyday (don’t worry we have snowmobiles too)

From Bird Island by Terry
Dear Friend, For the past six months, I’ve been living on Bird Island in South Georgia. This place is beautiful. The first thing I hear when I wake up is the chirping of the birds and the rushing water of the river next to our hut. I’m here with David - he’s loving it too. It’s so peaceful and quiet. You should really check this place out some time. Anyway, we’ve been studying a particular species of bird: the “Limpkin” – its real name is Aramus Guarauna but it’s too much of a tongue-twister, so I just stick to Limpkin. It basically looks like a large rail, but is skeletally closer to the Crane. We call it the crying bird because of the loud noises it makes during the day. Ear-piercing but beautiful at the same time. Sounds awesome, right? The limpkin is fairly large, 66cm long with a wingspan of 100cm. It’s feathers are a drab, olive-brown with a light-gray head and neck. There are white markings all over its feathers, especially on its neck and beck. It has a long, yellowish bill. We haven’t learnt much yet, but we’ve certainly made a start. I’m looking forward to seeing you again! I’ll keep you posted with our research. See you soon!

Antarctica Pyramids:
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The Welsh Coal Fields by Jade
__ Part 1: __ // In South Wales, the three raw materials – iron ore, coal and limestone - required to make iron were found very close to each other. This was a major advantage for the Welsh as transporting heavy goods was considerably expensive. // // The coal in South Wales was of such high quality that it became increasingly popular all over the world. For example, British colonies such as India and Africa used Welsh coal. // // Canals were replaced by railways and ships switched from sail to steam power. Both trains and steamships required coal, making the coal from South Wales in much demand. // // In the mid 19th century, the British navy concluded that Welsh coal was the best type of coal for their ships. Navies and merchant ships around the world used coal from South Wales. // // The industry relied on exporting 70% of its production. A government report said in 1919 that: "The prosperity of South Wales is entirely dependent on the export trade in coal." //

__ Part 2: __ // The river valleys naturally provided routes down to the coast. This made it easier to transport coal down to the docks where it could then be exported, hence the growth of the docks. //

__ Part 3: __ // Coal mining depended on a strong labour force. The highly successful South Wales coal industry was attractive to people seeking income. Inhabitants migrated to South Wales not only from other parts of Wales but from England, Ireland and Scotland. // // In 1860, there was a population of around 3,000 people. It had increased to 160,000 by 1910. //

__ Part 4: __ // After WWII, there was a major decline in the coal industry. This was due to a number of different things. // // First of all, vehicles were no longer powered by coal. For example, ships started to use oil and trains started to use diesel. In addition, new light industries were powered by electricity and had no use of coal. // // Furthermore, other countries which once used Welsh coal started to mine their own. Plus, the government didn’t want Britain to be dependent on coal as it was a ‘dirty’ source of energy. // // Finally, the coal seams in South Wales were too narrow so modern machinery could not be used. Coal was in less demand so less was needed, eventually leading to its mine closures. //

__ Part 5: __ // When the mines closed, families lost their income. Many moved away and those who stayed found it difficult to find a decent job. The offspring of these families now face social and economic problems. Their lack of money has resulted in a poor education which has, in many cases, caused the young to break the law. For example, vandalism, drug dealing and underage sex are some of the anti-social activities that the young engage in. //

Our top entrepreneurs!
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Alex says:
No, the valley should not be flooded because the wind farm would make a better place. It will provide electricity for the local people using the natural wind resource found in the uplands. It will also be a renewable source of clean energy. The area can still be used for hillwalking. The natural habitat would stay the same so the rare birds can still make their home here. It would only take up a part of the mountain so the local sheep farmers could still graze sheep there.

However Helen says:
I believe that there is an extremely strong argument for the dam and HEP. One of the points for the dam is that it can produce relatively inexpensive and clean power, and another reason is that it is a renewable energy source as the water is not destroyed by passing through the dam. On the flipside, hydroelectric power production requires the flooding of the entire area. However, I believe that this is not too big of a problem, as there are usually multiple valleys in one area, all with a similar type of ecosystem, and so although an ecosystem can be destroyed in that one area, the other two or three valleys are fine!

And Jade agrees:
Yes, I think the valley should be flooded for hydro-electric power. First of all, HEP is a renewable source of energy and will never run out. It will not release CO2 into the atmosphere and therefore will not add to the worrying green house effect. A HEP station is very powerful and will supply all the villages in the surrounding area with electricity, also having some to spare. The station alone can be seen as a tourist attraction and can bring jobs to many local people as well. Some may argue that the valley is a popular hill walking destination. There are many other great routes with amazing scenery for hill walkers to take instead. Others may argue that the valley could have had a wind farm instead due to its strong winds. In truth, thousands of people despise wind turbines as they ruin the scenery and are labelled ‘sound pollution’.

And Kane has put the case most forcefully!
Yes I believe that the valley should be flooded, and that the opponent’s argument is flawed. The main benefit of flooding the valley and building a HEP is the creation of electricity which would be used to power local villages or nearby cities. An environmental benefit of this is that fish and plants, which grow beside/in water, would benefit greatly from this; the argument that wildlife would be destroyed is preposterous! Our studies have shown that there is a high chance that any animals who are situated in the valley would re-locate. Also the criticism that the “view” would be destroyed is also ludicrous! There would be a beautiful, fresh and vibrant river running through the valley which would actually increase its attractiveness!

= Response to Uncle Tony’s Bedtime tale =

Lauren's bed time tale
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By Alex
High on a mountain ledge was a little marbled rock. One cold day there was a freeze-thaw and the little rock was shaken loose and tumbled down the valley side into the glacier, as part of the lateral moraine. It was carried on its journey down the valley, crashing into other rocks from another lateral moraine to form a medial moraine. The ice began to melt and the little rock was deposited as terminal moraine on the valley floor. More and more rocks are deposited around the little rock forming a smooth mound called a drumlin on the lowland floor. Beside the drumlin a ribbon lake was formed as the glacier melted and to this day the little marbled rock can be found hidden in a drumlin by a long thin lake in the bottom of a U-shaped valley.

By Chloe
The children were tired and it was time to go to bed “tell us a story Granddad” the children chimed. “Very well what kind of story would you like?” “Action!” cried Jimmy, “I want a happy story, and it can’t be scary or at least not to scary I’ll get nightmares” added Lucy. “Okay then I have just the story it is about it is about a brave little moraine who was kidnapped by the evil glacier.” “Granddad what’s a moraine?” Asked Lucy. “It is the name for boulders, which are large rocks that are transported in glaciers.” Jimmy narrowed his eyes. “Is this is another one of your stories that make us learn isn’t it Granddad?” “It might be you’ll have to listen and find out.” Granddad smiled and sat back on his chair picked Lucy up and cuddled her on his lap, Jimmy sighed and sat next to the fire. “It all started thousands of years ago back when the world was covered in ice, the boulders life was mostly happy but there was a terrible threat looming over the small village. There was a glacier that lived at the top of the mountain he was said to be slowly making his way down getting bigger and bigger as he went and plucking boulders and other materials from the ground and carrying them miles away from home before depositing them in different places. One day there was lots of shouting going on, one of the boulders had been taken; the cold weather had made him freeze stuck onto the side of the glacier that’s called plucking.” “Don’t spoil it Granddad,” complained Jimmy. “Sorry Jimmy, anyway where was I? Oh yes the boulder had just been taken, the poor boulder was carried or days and days then days turned to weeks but the boulders family never gave up hope that one day the glacier may release the boulder from its icy grasp there was a rumor that boulders had been freed from other boulders by being lured down the hill out of the safety of the chilly heights that were the secrets to its powers. So the boulders made a plan to defeat the evil glacier one warm day, well warm for the ice-age, the boulders lured the glacier down the hill by jumping in front of him and making him chase them by the time the glacier realized what was happening it was too late he was already starting to melt the boulders cheered but then they realized something, they had no way of getting the boulder back home so he would be all alone. But then they noticed that there were more boulders that the glacier had left behind when it melted so he found some new friends. There was always the risk of the glacier coming back now they knew what to do they weren’t scared any more so the village once more was at peace and free to live a happy life. The end” “Did the boulder have a happy ending?” asked Lucy. “I suppose so he got some new friends and was rescued from the glacier.” “Okay then, goodnight Granddad.” “Goodnight children.”

By Helen
Once upon a time a huge river of pure ice was flowing down a mountain, although he didn’t want to be moving - gravity, an old enemy of his, was pulling it along - it was moving very slowly, granted, but it was still moving! This rivers name was Glacier. Glacier had a lot of friends who supported him, and went along with him as gravity continued to pull him down the side of the mountain. Glacier’s friends, the rocks, wouldn’t leave him, although he wanted them to - Glacier hated to be seen as weak! - and so Glacier decided to just let them come with him. He began to pull them along as Gravity began to work even harder at pulling Glacier down the mountainside. Gravity didn’t take a break, pulling him down even on bank holidays! As Glacier continued with his journey, he met new people- ahem, rocks, who joined him as well! It was all going great, and Glacier was starting to not mind Gravity pulling him down. Glacier just kept plucking and finding more friends, and as he looked back he saw that his friends were making marks on the ground, destroying part of the mountain. He told them off for this, telling them that eroding was not a good idea! They didn’t pay attention though, and the grooves just kept appearing wherever Glacier went! He was feeling very tired the further down they got, he could feel the heat beaming down on him, and could hear his friends complaining about how hot it was. “Glacier! Why are we so far down the mountain?” “Yeah! Our home is miles away! We want to go back!” Glacier frowned, and began to sweat. He knew his friends were just getting irritable and hot, and he felt sorry for them, so he told them, “Alright, you can stay here… I’ll just… Keep…” Suddenly everyone gasped as Glacier seemed to be fading right in front of their eyes. “Glacier! What’s wrong?” Suddenly water seemed to be attacking all the rocks, dirt and gravel from all sides. They were getting pushed down rather quickly, until they each got stuck on bits of ground, and the water rushed past them, leaving them staring after their once best friend. Gravity had won once again. “… Guys?” All the material turned, eyes wide. “GLACIER?” They all exclaimed in unison, staring at their smiling friend. “I retreated just in time.” He said with happiness in his voice.

Chapter 1: Freeze-thaw
Once upon a time, there was a very content valley. He felt nothing but supreme happiness. However, he was completely unaware of the evil crack he had on his side. This crack had a plan which he named ‘freeze-thaw’. When it rained, water would enter the crack. At night when the temperature would dramatically decrease, the water would freeze and expand placing pressure on the surrounding rock. The rock would eventually crack and split. The crack cackled at his evil plan. Over time, the crack grew bigger and bigger. One day, a piece of rock eventually fell from the valley side and into the glacier below it.

Chapter 2: Moraines
The rock became part of a lateral moraine at the side of the glacier. The little rock was transported miles away from home. One day, the glacier met another glacier and merged with it to form a larger glacier. The glaciers’ lateral moraines joined and formed a medial moraine running down the centre of the new glacier.

Chapter 3: Glacial deposition
As the temperature gradually increased, the glacier started to melt. The glacier decided to deposit its moraines in Cannock Chase, leaving behind that little rock which was once part of that happy valley.

By Kane
Our story begins with Mr. Bedrock and Mrs. Bedrock; they were inseparable and loved each other very much. Mr. Bedrock was a tall person who protruded higher than the other Bedrocks in the valley, this made Mr. Glacier very jealous. Mr. Glacier was a cold-hearted and mean spirited person who would snatch anyone from the ground if they stood too high. One day Mr. Glacier was very angry and decided to slide down the valley. When he reached Mr. Bedrock; his coldness seeped into the ground and thawed him from Mrs. Bedrock, he was plucked away! Glacier then ran away with Mr. Bedrock, who had become an erratic person because of this, and Mrs. Bedrock never saw him again! After many days (years) of sliding down the valley, Glacier got tired and decided to let Bedrock go. //When I say “got tired and let him go”, I actually mean the glacier melted due to the heat of the sun and dumped the erratic at the base of the valley.//

By Riekert
Thousands of years ago there were two best friends, Granite and Glacier, they always stuck together no matter what, then one day a nasty thing came about, THE SUN started to shine after thousands of years of being locked away behind the clouds and it was mad now, so mad that it started to cause the earth to heat up, and melt all the ice, sadly Glacier was made from ice, and he started to melt, and there was nothing that Granite could do to stop it, thousands of years came to past and THE SUN kept on melting Glacier until one day he was nothing more than a puddle on the ground, but even today you can still see Glacier’s striations, but our story isn’t over yet. Granite was all alone now, and he had no friends no family, he had been moved from his home which was now hundreds of miles away, by Glacier, now Granite sitting some were one earth, just waiting for a new friend...

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** Katrina Letters - well done everyone **
Hiya Megan, You are sooo lucky that you managed to get out of New Orleans before the hurricane it was like crazy I was so scared of what would happen. I thought you might wannna know what happened so here it goes…. Okay so we were watching it online and on the news as it came towards us (don’t know if you were still here) it was really weird seeing it coming and knowing that we couldn’t get out, ’cos the government wouldn’t let us use coaches and stuff to get out so we didn’t have any transport. The people on the news and all that advised us that if we couldn’t get out then it would be strongly advised to stay at the Superdome which was what we did and pretty much everyone else judging by the fact that there was 23,ooo people there!!. It was okay at first but then the food started to run out and there was nowhere clean to go to the loo which was really minging. It was also really warm in there as well you couldn’t have a shower either. Okay so while we were doing all this my dad was back at the shop boarding up all the windows and helping to fill up sand bags with the other volunteers. Then I found out that it was now a category 5 storm and I was really worried that my dad might get hurt but don’t worry he came back fine. The storm was at its worst on probably about the 29th of August. The eye of it passed to east of the city. At first it didn’t seem to bad and everyone was saying that we had got off really lightly and then… the levees broke and flooded the city. Some old bloke was saying that within 24hrs 80% of the city was under water which is a lot. So many people drowned the government was estimating that there was like seven thousand deaths which is really sad luckily nobody I knew died. There were one hundred thousand people stuck in the city and most of them had to live on their roofs until they could be rescued! All the food and water was running out within hours but we didn’t get any food flown out for two whole days. The water was really filthy and polluted but people still had to swim through it to survive. All the hospitals were evacuating patients by boats, which was really horrible to watch because they didn’t even have decent clothes on and they all looked really uncomfortable. There was sooo much crime going on everywhere people were mainly robbing food stores for supplies which I personally think that it was quite reasonable considering the situation. The government took absolutely ages to help people out but eventually four whole days later they sent helicopters and buses came to pick us all up and take us to better areas in the U.S. Hardly anyone has come back here there are still houses and shops that haven’t been touched since it was declared safe to come back here. Everybody was saying that the government should have more to help everyone I agree the businesses around here have all suffered a lot since the hurricane hit and it could’ve been so much better prepared for. Any way gotta go now chick see you soon From Chloe Quayle xxx :)

Dear Aunty Jean,

Look there is no need to worry; I am guessing you would have heard about the disaster that hit here. I wish I could be back home in England with you and the rest of the family. Everyone here is now trying to recover but personally I am just thankful to be alive! I couldn’t get out of the city; I was one of the ones who were trapped. It was a truly awful sight to see the town ruined and people so helpless and distraught, I think that something should have been done to stop it getting to this point, I strongly believe that if we had been warned fully and generally prepared better, that Katrina wouldn’t have made the vast impact she did! I am very angry along with many others about the matter because I was stuck here with no way out. If we did know more about it then we wouldn’t be spending so much money just to sort out the impact, it’s said that it will cost about $300 billion. Now being a month on from the Hurricane you would think that things are getting better and looking up but they are certainly not. Some people still haven’t returned to their homes meaning lots of shops and businesses don’t have workers. By the sounds of it I don’t think they will ever come back it seems they have settled down elsewhere. All the bodies are going to take ages to find! There are so many people missing and you just have to hope that they’re okay. I think it is awful and just shows what the government really care about, I was stranded on the top of my roof and I could get help because they were focusing on what they think are more important problems, like looting from the shops in order to survive. I don’t believe it, calling that looting! They even threatened to shoot anyone caught taking things. We have to wait and see what happens next before buildings can be re-built and it seems to be a very long process. Only if the government had showed more of an interest and tried to help a little bit more than we wouldn’t be left in such poor conditions and a mess that used to be a lovely town! It’s such a let-down, and to be honest I have thought about coming back to England to live. All I wanted to do was to come out here and settle down but it’s really put me off the idea and if the situation doesn’t improve within the next two months I will make my way home. You can see why all the other people evacuated and never bothered to return! Thank you for your support throughout Katrina and I know it can’t be easy having the distance we have between us, but I honestly don’t know what I would do without you and the rest of the family I don’t think I would have got through this without you! Thanks again and please write back, I hope you are all okay and by the looks of it I will be with you soon! Missing you loads, Amelia Xoxo

Dear Nanny, As you have probably seen and heard there has been a hurricane here in New Orleans. It was an experience I would never want to repeat. Everyone is ok but our house was flooded and damaged. We did try to leave when the government told us to evacuate the city but we didn’t have a car and there were no buses running. So we had to sit it out. We stocked up on food and drink. We boarded up the windows and put sandbags in front of the door. The hurricane struck on the 29th of August. We watched nervously as the winds got up. Trees were starting to fall down, crashing to the ground. Debris was tossed around and we could hear to howling of the wind. This continued through the night and none of us slept as we were worried about the damage being caused to the house. Eventually the winds died down and we ventured out to look at the damage. We got off lightly – just a few missing roof tiles and an uprooted tree in the garden. But we didn’t realise that the worst was still to come. The old and not looked after levees broke and the water came and flooded the city. Luckily we had set up the radio to listen if there was anymore damage, so we heard the water would hit us in a few hours so we toughened the boards and rebuilt the sandbags, then got inside. We grabbed the cats and the valuables and went upstairs. We had food for us and the cats we had drinking water we had anything that would help us if the water came in anymore. We watched from the windows as the city was engulfed. After the water had stopped coming we stared checking if the house was ok. We had water right up to our knees we started pushing it outside to collect some of our other items. Many people lost their lives we were lucky we were at the back of it. Yours sincerely Alex

Dear Mr. Mayor, I am highly disturbed by the lack of initiative you and your staff showed in the catastrophe of hurricane Katrina. There was absolutely no adequate reaction to the sheer power of the hurricane; there was much you could have done in the event of this disaster such as using the school buses to ferry people out of the city or evacuating the city at the first sign of the hurricane instead of remaining ignorant to the immediate danger coming to your people. I was one of the people you abandoned in the city and I saw what disasters took place natural and manmade. I was shocked by the way the first thing you did was not to rescue survivors but to stop looting by threatening to shoot looters, yes some people where taking TVs and other precious items but most were just taking food and fresh water from the shops and yet they were threatened as well. I once again display my distaste for your reaction to this tragedy. Yours sincerely Jonah Cowley

To: john.smith@neworleans.co.uk CC: Subject: Hurricane Katrina

John,

It was awful, before the storm shop keepers boarded up their properties and laid down numerous sandbags everywhere to try and prevent damage. Many volunteers filled these sand-bags but it all was in vein! The mayor suggested that everyone should leave before the storm hit, but didn’t actually provide any buses or taxis! Does he expect all of us to be filthy rich? When it was declared that you had to leave, the mayor again provided no means of escape! We were all told that we could go to the Superdome if the storm got worse enough and that there would be buses taking people to the stadium; but out of all my friends and family no-one saw a single bus! As if we didn’t have enough troubles, the mayor then said that we should take some food and water, which we had already. Great advice! When the storm passed, we were relieved that there hadn’t been much damage as expected until we heard that the levees keeping us from millions of galleons of water had broken! I remember sleeping that night and from what I saw, the vast majority of the city was underwater; with all the fancy-pansies’ houses sinking fast. There were no buses or any other public transport running simply because the roads were flooded, so the people stuck in their homes couldn’t be rescued. We looked for survivors in the water, I remember it smelt and tasted like oil and pollution. There was no food or water being handed out in the parts which weren’t affected. They did manage though to evacuate the sick and injured from the hospital which I was glad to hear. How slow could they of been? It took them about 2 days just to give out rations! Of course because of the disaster, some monkeys took advantage by looting and stealing everything from shops with the police struggling to contain them. Only after a while did they fly in some emergency water and rations but they couldn’t evacuate everyone in the floods with the situation deteriorating every second! We left our home and moved into the camp at the Superbowl, it looked like a camp you’d find in a major world war, not a leading first world country! It makes me sick how slow our government responded to this disaster. They finally sent in some helicopters to evacuate the stranded and got the bus network up again and transported everyone at the Convention centre to safety. We left in a helicopter, we heard people saying that the city was a ghost town after the disaster and that they were starting to clear up and find dead bodies. Anyway the whole situation a mess to sum it up in a nutshell, Hope to see you soon Mr. Anonymous ** (KANE!) **

Dear friend, The hurricane just hit us. Hurricane Katrina, have you seen it on the news? It’s scarred the place for life. Everywhere I look all I see is cars on fire, piles of rubble and ruined houses. There’s this place on the coast called “The Gulf” and it supplies 10% of the nation’s oil. Well that just got destroyed. What on Earth could cause such a thing? A staggering one thousand eight hundred people died… it’s awful. If the government want to replace everything that was damaged, it’s going to cost them $81 billion. Wow. Reckon there will be a tax rise? I feel really sorry for the poor people though… practically the whole state was flooded. 80% of it. How will all those people find new homes? I feel so bad for them. I think I might donate a bit of money to them to help out. I’m just glad that our home wasn’t destroyed. We’re one of the few lucky ones. We weren’t affected at all. Anyway, as soon as we heard the news of a hurricane, we left for Alabama immediately. We wanted to get away as soon as possible. In fact, I expect half the state evacuated their homes to ensure their safety. Uncle Fredrick died too. I had only met him once or twice, but I guess I took him for granted. I never knew how much he meant to me until he was gone forever. Anyway, three days later, once we had returned, I swear we could have drove through the state and not have recognised it. Once everything was over, thousands of crimes took place. Robberies and riots raged all over the place. One man actually asked an officer for assistance and the officer simply replied: // “Go to hell, it's every man for himself.” // A third of the police officers actually fled the city to avoid all the hassle. Ridiculous. The government here. First sign of trouble and they’re all gone. After the whole thing was totally over, the riots and all, the total amount of citizens that actually left the state and never returned was 70%. I mean, can you believe that? Over half the city left because of a hurricane. If everyone did that, every state would be overcrowded. Anyway, I enjoyed writing this letter and I hope to see you really soon! Bye! Terry