Student reflections At first, I had a hard time being on the newspaper staff because I was always late with my homework. Also, when it was time to interview teachers, I got very scared and nervous. However, it turned out that I liked interviewing teachers and students. I started to enjoy being on the newspaper. The more I was enjoying myself, the more comfortable I was. I started handing homework in on time and interviewing more. It was a big accomplishment for me, and it was very interesting. I learned a lot of things, like adding details, the big idea, the introductory sentence, and how to be healthy. You can be healthy by eating right and exercising for 60 minutes a day. I started doing all of this. I also enjoyed exercising with my mom. I loved it when we had press conferences. When somebody came in, we asked questions about heart health and things like fats. I also love that I can teach people, big and small, about how to be healthy. —By Jessica Hale, third grade, Hancock Elementary School I have only been on the Healthy Reporter staff for a limited amount of time. It is a very serious job. I have learned that work and friendship are very important. When I write, it feels like this is where I belong. One of the things I learned is that stress is something that everyone deals with. Interviewing has made me nervous but I feel like I’m getting better at it. At my first interview, I thought that I would get everything wrong but it turned out great. The first person couldn’t answer my question and I had to go find someone else to talk to. The Healthy Reporter is very important to the people who read it. It helps teach about how to stay healthy and active and live a long life. —By Jaden A. Jones, fourth grade, Whitehall Elementary School It was a wonderful experience to meet and interview Dr. Arthur Evans. It was awesome to meet a Philadelphia commissioner since you don’t see and meet a commissioner every day. I enjoyed that feeling. I really liked the way he was “laid back” and not boring or stiff. He laughed a couple of times and smiled, which made the rest of us smile. Dr. Evans gave us a lot of information that we could easily understand. I learned the word resilience— what it means and how to spell it correctly. The word means when you are down, you have to try to build yourself up. I would love to do this all over again. It was the best! —By Mawatta Kamara, sixth grade, Philadelphia Montessori Charter School 35