Hi! It's Zoe. This week my classmates and I performed in a play, reenacting the Alamo. It was my school's 16th annual performance, and it was in honor of my teacher's book, Journey to the Alamo. It took lots of practice and patience, but we did awesome. I tried out for the role of Davy Crockett and I got it! I'm the second girl to get the role. The last girl to play Davy Crockett was 10 years ago. I beat out 20 boys trying out for the role. Go girl power! 

When I tried out, I was extremely nervous because I thought many of the boys would be better than me. Turns out I was wrong. 

I had lots of nerves before we performed the play, but when it was my part I just pretended everyone wasn't there and that it was just another practice. It really calmed my nerves down. (Check out the second video below to see how packed the auditorium was!) 

By participating in the play, I learned lots about Texas history, like how 189 Texans were up against 4,000 Mexican soliders. I also learned that seven Texans survived the battle, including Davy Crockett, but sadly they were executed by orders from Santa Anna after their capture. Later, Sam Houston defeated Santa Anna at the battle of San Jacinto, who was forced to sign a peace treaty agreeing that the Mexican army would leave the region. That lead to the creation of the Republic of Texas. Texas became its own country before joining the United States in 1845 as the 28th state! Just think, had this not happened Texas would still be a part of Mexico! 

Have you ever seen the real Alamo? It's an interesting place where you can learn many fascinating facts. I consider myself lucky to have seen it myself and to have participated in a play about it. I will never forget this performance and the facts I've learned about my state's history. Bye!. 

Hi! It's Zoe. From an earlier blog, I wrote that I was entering a poetry contest. After writing many poems, I entered the one I liked best called, "Life". Guess what? I, and fifteen other kids from my school, had our poems chosen. I guess there may have been about 200 entries, so I'm proud that I was among those picked.

The exciting part about entering contests, and being lucky enough to win, I build up successes over time and they contribute to my ability to get scholarships for college. A scholarship is where you are allowed to go to college for free or part of it for free based on your grades or some talent or both. I plan on going to college. Doing my best now, so I can get several scholarships, is important to me. That's because going to a good university can cost up to hundreds of thousands of dollars without scholarships. There are many ways to earn a scholarship.

One way to get a scholarship is by making A's all through high school. High school can be hard, so only really smart and hard working people can make it through their high school years with all A's. I believe if you really work hard it's almost guaranteed you will earn a scholarship. That's my plan anyway, and I'm starting now even though I'm only in the fourth grade. It's something my mother has talked about with me since I could remember. Remember the saying, "Practice makes perfect". Well, it's never too early to practice making good grades. It builds a strong education by the time you enter high school.

Another way to earn a scholarship is by doing well in sports. Men and women have earned scholarships this way. Are you a natural at a sport? Maybe if you try really hard and practice a lot you can get a scholarship this way.

Did you know, I have already won a small scholarship by writing an essay? Things like essays and art projects can help you win scholarships if they are chosen. Maybe your school has opportunities for you to enter and win a scholarship. Or, you can search online for competitions for kids that you can enter, and hopefully win!

Here's a tip. If you win competitions and scholarships along the way, be sure to put them in a folder so you don't forget to use them when you apply to college. They just may help you go to college for free! Bye!

Hi! It's Zoe. Even though it was a few weeks ago, I would like to write a blog on Mother Earth Day. When I was younger, around six years old, I made a special project with my brother, Mommy, and my Grandmother, Mimi. I would like to share our special idea. 

Mother Earth Day is like a birthday for Earth, and what's at every birthday party? A cake. We made earth cakes. Here's our special recipe: 
* Wet earth the consistency of thick mud. 
* Put a few handfuls of mud onto a paper plate and mold into the shape of a cake.
* Find twigs, leaves, acorns, empty snail shells, and any other natural stuff from your backyard to decorate the mud. If the mud is beginning to dry, wet the soil by dripping water onto the top to keep it moist while you apply the things you've collected. 
* Place your cake somewhere special in your yard and watch it crumble back into the ground. When it does, you'll know that's when Mother Earth has eaten her cake! 

Before you run outside and get your clothes dirty and have a great time making the cake, here's a few fun facts about Earth Day. The year 2013 makes the 43rd Earth Day celebration. This year more than a billion people in 192 countries participated in celebrating Earth Day. Did you know there are actually two Earth Day celebrations? One is on April 22 and one is on March 20th (the first day of spring). Who knew?

That's all. Be sure to have fun and make a terrific mess while you create your earth cake. I'm so inspired by writing this blog that I want to run outside right now and make another earth cake! Bye!

Hi! It's Zoe. Do you have a dog? As you probably already know, I have three dogs. All of them pound puppies. That means we adopted them from the pound. Liberty, is our first adoption and the youngest and smartest in the group. I don't say that in front of Molly and Sophia because I don't want to hurt their feelings. (Just kidding.) Liberty has just learned a new trick. It was pretty easy for her to learn since she was trained as a puppy to do tricks. As her owner, I had to have the right tactics to teach her. I'll share some of my tactics with you.

If you'd like to teach your dog a trick, you always have to have a small treat ready, such as a piece of cheese, a baby carrot, or a part of a dog biscuit to give the dog when she successfully performs the trick. The food is used to reward the dog. You also want to praise her for completing the task. This will guarantee success. It does for Liberty.

When I first show Liberty a new trick it may take her a couple of tries before she understands what I want her to do. If your dog does not get it on the first try or even on several tries, don't get mad. This is the number one rule. If you get mad, your dog might not want to do the trick anymore because he or she is afraid of you getting upset. Making your dog afraid won't get you anywhere and trying to continue teaching would be an upsetting experience and no fun for anyone.

I have found one of the best ways to teach a new trick is using a hand sign and saying a short word like, "Speak!" or "Sit!" If you'd like your dog to sit, pointing downwards and saying "Sit!" clearly and loudly will help your dog to remember what to do. To have your dog understand what you want them to do, firmly push (not too hard) their hind legs down until they are in a sitting position. Then give them a small treat. Doing this repeatedly will help them understand their task. Don't forget to show them a lot of affection during the teaching session. Dogs love to petted and praised.

There you have it. If you'd like to see Liberty's newest tricks, click on the video below. Bye!