Mr. Jefferson is Lying!

Mystery prompts writing! I'm teaching my class to write arguments using the same type of tight logic that lawyers need in a court case, and have found that mystery stories make great writing project inspiration.

Encyclopedia Brown Super Sleuth (2009) features a chapter called "The Case of the Patriotic Volunteer" in which a man in a flashy Uncle Sam costume gathers together the children of Encyclopedia's town. He tells them that as a personal acquaintance of the President of the United States, he has been commissioned to collect donations from the children of America for a new charity that will ensure that kid-generated government ideas are proposed to the legislature. Encyclopedia Brown weighs carefully the evidence presented by the costumed man, Mr. Jefferson, then announces that he is a fraud, but we don't get a chance to hear his explanation. The chapter ends simply with a question to the reader: How does Encyclopedia know Mr. Jefferson is lying? Below, three of my students finish Encyclopedia's speech for him. As you read, see if you can recognize the 7 elements of Toulmin's Argumentation Model:

• Claim
• Evidence
• Warrant
• Backing
• Qualifications
• Counter Claims
• Rebuttal

Student-Written Speeches:

By Edward Wang:
  
“Save your money, Mr. Jefferson might be from Washington D.C. but he never visited the president. He’s lying. I knew this right away as soon as he tried to avoid specifics. When people lie they tend to avoid specifics. The example that Mr. Jefferson showed was that when Mary asked if Mr. Jefferson wanted to take this to the news he said no. He refused this because he was aware that if he goes to the news station they will probably question his cause and probably figure out that he is lying,” The children watched Mr. Jefferson’s face which was normal pink turn to a sickly pale. Encouraged by this Encyclopedia continued, “Furthermore,  when Mr.Jefferson said that he visited the president often. Notice that he said that he lives in the Capitol building? The president doesn’t live there. He lives in the White House. When someone visits people they clearly should know where they live. Therefore , Mr. Jefferson don’t actually visit the president.” 

Mr. Jefferson sputtered, “Well what about the postcard of me and the presiden--” 

“You can easily photoshop that!” Encyclopedia fired back. 

“Well… well….. Yes I did photoshop it. I’m not really friends with the president. This was all a scam,” said Mr. Jefferson. He turned and ran away from the children and took the money with him. A few days later Mr. Jefferson noticed a knock on his door and when he opened it he saw the cops and was arrested for and also scamming.

By Laura Bai:

Save your money. Mr. Jefferson might be from Washington D.C., but he’s never visited the president. He’s lying. Why would Mr.Jefferson not want your parents to know? After all, he is telling you that he will take you to Washington D.C., and he doesn’t want your parents to know at all, he might just leave you all behind and take all of your money away. What would stop him? If you told your parents then he would have to actually take you to Washington D.C.. Also, Mr. Jefferson doesn’t want people to know about his charity. What charity doesn’t want the whole world to know? Real charity’s, would want everyone to know about it so they would get more money. If Mr. Jefferson only wants kids to know, don’t you think that it would be easier to steal your money and leave? Mr.Jefferson’s charity has to be fake. 
Yes, I saw the picture that Mr. Jefferson had of him with the president, but that doesn’t mean that it is real. What if it was a cardboard cutout, and he took a picture with that? Or maybe it was impersonator who was impersonating the president, and Mr.Jefferson took a picture with him? Sure, he may have taken a picture with the president, but that doesn’t mean they are best friends. Don’t give your money to him, his charity is fake.

By Sean Ge:

Save your money, Mr. Jefferson might be from Washington, D.C., but he’s never visited the president. He’s lying. First of all he states that the president, himself, sent him to do this; that’s very unlikely, it’s generally a branch of government that would get people to do this for them, a president would assign an organization to do it and the government officials hire people but they still have to prove their identification. Also, he says he told the president to sign him up as a volunteer while most broadcasts are radio stations or news, those broadcasting stations are organizations not solo people… Also to collect the money by himself rather than an organization is suspicious. Addition fact: some of those things like the idea “no more baths” do not need money; children do not have money or jobs, why would they have money to donate? Also, he’s asking for money is a jar...  Another fact is that he states “this news is only for children” which does not make sense. Plus pulling out a photo which to president, with him could be photoshopped. A badge or certificate to prove his identity would be more realistic than a photo. He also said, “I visit him and his family all the time in their home in the Capitol building.” with this in mind, you know he’s lying, the president lives in the white house or somewhere else like in the case with Donald Trump, the Capitol Building is where the Senate and the House of Representatives stay. He visited a town, not a city or a county…  But photoshopping is very difficult in this time period. Also his outfit is not some regular clothing, he is trustworthy. He has a picture with the president its the 1940s where do you get a photo with the president elsewhere? But, he can get that type of clothing anywhere, he can have it specially made for him to wear if he wanted. Last but not least, a warrant is needed to do this kind of fundraiser or at least some form of identification, like a driver's license or passport. Therefore he is lying and is guilty of a crime.  >:) (Mr. Jefferson will be arrested for doing something like this without proper truth, he is lying. This is not a way to do things. He will go through court and go to jail. But it’s still innocent until proven guilty)

Biggest Problem of My Life

Article Contributed by Jessie Chen, grade 8

One of the biggest problems going on in my life is that my bedroom is overcrowded. Every time I step into my room I think to myself, I really need to do something about it, but I never do. All my drawers are stuffed with colored pencils, pens, and stickers that I don't really use. I own two shelves, the tall one for books and the shorter one for my stuffed animals. The bookshelf is made of wood and has 5 layers. I tried to organize the books by author's last name like they do in the library, but gave up a day after I started. The extra books usually get stacked on the ground which sometimes trips me. The shorter shelf is a white one from IKEA. It has been moved around several times in my room since we moved in and now sits quietly under the window as the sunlight spills over it.  No matter how hard I try to shove my dolls and stuffed animals inside, they fall out. By now I have stopped trying and let the extra ones sit on the floor or on my bed, filling up portions of my overcrowded room. 

To solve this problem, I could try throwing the extra things away. This would clear my room and empty some of my drawers. However, this would be wasting perfectly fine toys, pens, and books. Instead, I could donate them. This would clear my room and at the same time, benefit the poor and put those things to good use. Regardless of the good this solution does, some of the extra things in my room mean too much to be donated. Most of them have been with me since I was a toddler. A few are even from my grandpa who passed away. To fix that, I will get a new shelf for my extra books and stuffed animals, and donate the colored pencils and pens that I don't use.

Problems

Article contributed by Laura Bai, grade 4

One of my problems is not knowing who to play with at school. For example, my friends always want me to play with them, but, because they are in different groups, I can’t be in all three groups at the same time. So now my friends are mad at me, because I don’t play with them. One group plays grounders, another plays Wings of Fire, and another plays infection (a type of tag.)

One possible solution could be taking turns playing with them at recess. However, Kendria and Zihan think that because I played grounders at the beginning of the year, I should play with them more than the other groups. (Kendria and Zihan play Wings of Fire.) So that wouldn’t work since my other friends wouldn’t be happy.

Another possible solution could be choosing which game I like most and sticking to it. However, I would get bored, and on the other hand, my other friends wouldn't be happy, so that wouldn’t work.

Another possible solution could be that I choose which one I like and play it most of the time and play with the others only when I want to. I will use this solution on school days from now on.

What I Think is Most Disgusting

Article contributed by Edward Wang

The thing that I find the most disgusting is soggy wet hair that is on the floor. I hate it because of the experiences that I have had. So, back when I was 8, I used to go to a swimming pool to swim. But the problem was that when I had to change, the stalls all had clumps of wet, soggy, and gross hair.The stalls were very small so there was barely any space to move in so I sometimes had to stand in a corner and try to change. Whenever I see clumps of hair, I picture them in my mouth for some reason and I get a really bad feeling that it's true, but when I check it isn't!!! And whenever I have to shower I have to dodge the hair. In order to do that,  I have to make a big hassle and sometimes I even trip on the hair. Also, I have big trouble at home too! When I shower at home, there is always hair in the drains and I have to lift them out of the drains. When I have to cut my hair I always have to be super careful not to step on any. Sometimes on the streets in China when it's raining for some reason there is a lot of hair in the puddles and floor. Now you know why I hate hair on the ground.

Homework: Is it effective? Is it healthy? Is it worth it?

Article contributed by Benjamin Lang

The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) assesses over seventy-two countries worldwide in the academic performance of fifteen year olds in mathematics, science, and reading . In 2015, Finland ranked fifth with a mean score of 523. China ranked fourth, with a mean score of 524. Both countries scored similarly, however the amount of homework given in ether country varies completely. In Finland, students are assigned virtually no homework while in China, the average student spends fourteen hours a week completing homework. If such assignments are effective in improving academic performance, and Chinese students spend fourteen hours weekly on them, then Chinese test scores should have been much higher than those of the Finnish students. However, this is not the case. Therefore, a correlation between homework and test scores cannot be observed.

Homework is likely to be ineffective, time consuming, and a risk for students’ health. To begin, homework is almost certainly inefficacious and almost no correlation is shown between homework and test grades. In a study conducted at Issaquah High School among various students in different grade levels, no correlation between homework and test grades can be observed. Ten students ranging from ninth to tenth grade were interviewed and asked about their academic lives. Some questions included amount of the homework spent daily, GPAs, and amount of sleep. One student for example, Caileen, a tenth grader, reported to have ignored all homework assignments over the course of a semester. At the end of the first term, Caileen proved to be an honor roll student with a 4.0 GPA. However, at the beginning of the second semester, Caileen announced that she would complete all assigned homework. She was true to her word and proved to have completed all assignments. Surprisingly, at the end of the second term, her GPA lowered to a 3.9. Therefore, a correlation between academic performance and homework cannot be observed, because Caileen’s GPA was actually higher when she ignored the assignments.

In addition to the ineffectiveness of homework, it is also time consuming as well. On average, students in the study spent three hours on homework per day. With many extracurricular activities, there is little time for relaxation or breaks that many high school students need. For instance, Tara reported spending an average of five hours on homework daily. On top of that, Tara participates in and teaches dance for a total of three hours every day and also plays flute in band. With her many outside activities, she has little time for homework, much less free time. According to Psychology Today, students retain information almost forty percent better when a fifteen minute break is taken per hour of studying and homework. But with an abundance of outside activities and a pile of homework, there are not enough hours in the day to make room for relaxation and study session breaks. Moreover, this trend can be seen across students at all grade levels. Cole also reported spending five hours on homework every day. But practicing euphonium for band and attending daily baseball practice consumes so much time that even though he spends five hours of homework, it is not enough for him to complete assignments on time. In fact, upon interviewing, Cole asked, “Can you hurry this up? I'm trying to finish my work.” Ideally, homework is a quick practice to build upon skills learned in class, but this study fails to provide evidence to support that such principle is properly executed at Issaquah High School. Instead, the study reveals that homework in reality is a time consuming task that many students do not have the time for.

Since homework is extremely time consuming, it directly affects students and their physical health. The National Sleep Association recommends that the minimum requirement of sleep for adolescents is eight hours. However, the study at Issaquah High School found eighty percent of students fell short of the national recommendation by two hours or more. Instead, the median high schooler sleeps for six hours at night. Sleep deprivation can lead to long term health effects such as memory loss, decreased metabolism, weakened immunity, high blood pressure, and a higher risk of diabetes and heart disease.

In the study, all students reported that if there were no given homework, they would sleep for at least eight to ten hours. For instance, Tara claimed to have slept an average of four hours daily. With this constant sleep deprivation, it is without a surprise that Tara feels “dead inside”. Without homework, she says she would be able to sleep for eight hours a night. Since homework takes a big part in a student’s schedule, homework eats away at a good night's sleep. Students are under a constant health risk as long term sleep deprivation is extremely detrimental to one’s well-being.

 At first glance, homework may seem as a necessity for students. However, with further investigation and research, homework is to have found to be ineffective in improving test scores and academic performance. On top of that, homework also creates an environment of long hours of study sessions that result in exhausted, sleep deprived students. In fact, once Finland abolished homework in 2012, the average PISA test scores increased by eleven points. Many studies find that homework is a negative aspect of students’ academic careers. According to the Finnish ambassador, formerly a chief inspector of schools, stated that before education reforms, only ten percent of students continued education after eighteen. However, after 1970, when Finland began education reforms, including the abolishment of homework, over sixty percent of students enrolled in high education. Following the abolishment of homework, researchers observed the increase of test scores, and the overall health and well being of students greatly improves. Yet, still, despite all the research and evidence, homework remains to be a large portion of a student’s academic career.