North Carolina

by Nicholas Joyner

OLPH Catholic School, third grade

WRITING WINNER

North Carolina became a state on Nov. 21, 1789. North Carolina was named for King Charles I of England.

North Carolina is off the Atlantic Coast. It's north of South Carolina, south of Virginia and east of Tennessee. In the west are mountains, the middle is the Piedmont and in the east is the Atlantic coastal plain.

The average January tempature high is 44, and the low is 36. The average high in July is 80 and the low is 76.

The Pee Dee Indians lived in 1250 on the Pee Dee River.

The capial is Raleigh. Raleigh is in the eastern Piedmont.

In 1998 the state's population was 7,546,493.

Few people make money mining. Minerals mined in North Carolina are limestone, lithium, phosphate and sand.

Some people make money from fishing for shellfish, blue crabs, flounder, catfish, crayfish and trout. The state tree is the Longleaf Pine. The state bird is the cadinal; the flower is the Dogwood; and the mammal is the gray squirrel. The state dog is the Plott Hound; the shell, Scotch Bonnett; the reptile, Eastern box turtle; the vegetable is the sweet potato; and the gemstone is the emerald.

Places to visit are the mountains, beaches, Biltmore Estate, Tryon Place and the State Capital.

Two Buddies

by Corey Pearce

Baskerville Elementary School, first grade

I love to play with Jabias. Jabias and I are best buddies. Today we have on the same color shirt.

We do everything together. We do boy things together. We both wear glasses. Jabias' glasses are brown and mine are brown. We are both boys.

We are both wearing shorts today. We sit at the same table for lunch.

Fishing

by Blake Martin

OLPH Catholic Church, third grade

Once a child went fishing in Virginia. His age was ten. He threw his line in the water, and a few seconds later the boy's line shook wildly.

He pulled and pulled and out popped a fish. Well to tell you the truth, it was a tiny, little fish. He was disappointed, but he still took the fish off the hook, put the fish in his basket and took it home.

One Day

by Victoria Hilhorst

OLPH Catholic School, third grade

One day I was in my bedroom getting ready for school. Our school is a red schoolhouse with one classroom. It is faraway. I put a handful of raisins, peanuts and seeds in a bag, got my notebook and left.

On my way there I saw a porcupine, and yikes were his quills long. His quills were sticking everywhere, even on trees. Soon I was at school where we were taught about the messiah and his mission.

In the afternoon I took highway 95 over a hillside to get home. When I went inside I did my homework.