By: Ian Ferraz

Here in Cranford there are many things that kids like to do on the weekends.  Some people, including myself, like to go downtown with my friends.  When we are downtown, we like to go out to eat at a restaurant and then go out for ice cream afterwards.  This is just a glimpse of life a teenager living in Cranford, New Jersey!
Ali Balkan 

Life and Setting in Cranford New Jersey

As I look out of my bedroom window, I see trees. Trees as green as the emeralds in fairy tales. The sky is blue. Almost no noise can be heard outside. Cranford New Jersey is a quiet and peaceful suburb. Downtown is infested with juveniles of all ages. The iconic Cranford train station stands in the distance as the distant roar of the train echoes over the distance. Tired commuters exit the train eager to get home to their families. On a hot summer day, one can go to the Cranford Vanilla Bean and buy a sweet treat.  Cranford is filled with food from many different cultures and nations. One can treat themselves to sushi, pizza, dim sum, Italian, or many other diverse and unique eats.

This is our school. Orange Avenue school is an elementary/middle school. It goes through grades 3-8. Students have four languages to choose from here at Orange. They are Spanish, German, French, and Latin. Orange Ave has a very nice teaching staff that is well educated. The school hosts plays and concerts performed by students. There is a band and orchestra for kids of any grade to join. The school sports are baseball, basketball, softball, and soccer.

Overall, Cranford New Jersey is a very peaceful, small, and quiet town. An ordinary American small town.

Hello this is Hunter,
I am really excited to participate in this blog. I hope that I can learn more about the culture of Brazil.

Have you guys read The Book Thief? It's such a good book!!!! 

To start off the pictures, I'll post a selfie or something.

Me and Katherine.

Hi EABH students,

    My name is Zach and I am going to get this blog started! My teacher, Mr. Seaman, wants us to share pictures, stories, and other examples of our culture (American/Brazilian) on this blog. I think it will be a cool idea. Let's start showing each other how diverse our cultures are. Maybe we'll even see some similarities. For example, the World Cup is a huge part of your culture like the Super Bowl or the World Series is to us. Looking forward to reading and seeing what we all contribute!

Zach

My Paragraph, Some feedback or improvements may help.

Two important and noteworthy events are coming to Brazil the first is the World Cup and the second is the Olympics. Both of these events cost a pretty penny and many do not want them to be held in Brazil. It is ridiculous to think that an impoverished country like Brazil is going to hold two extravagant events that it can barely afford. According to Dave Ziran, “this will be the most expensive World Cup in history, with a low-estimate price of $15 billion dollars” (‘There Will Be No World Cup’: Brazil on the Brink). The price tag only starts to inflate more, if you add in the Olympics that will begin in the summer. Not only is money an issue but these are also colossal events that take organization and planning. More prosperous nations could host the world cup and make a more spectacular display than Brazil could ever hope to accomplish. Some argue that Brazil should at least try to take on one event and not two but it is still unreasonable. The money going to these events can be redirected to other issues and Brazil is simply not ready yet for any of these monumental tasks the world is asking for.

Okay, we really need to research and get our arguments for whichever side we choose.

Home

The World Cup is forthcoming in about 1 month and not everybody in Brazil are thrilled about it. Education, healthcare and transportation are the three main reasons for the protests against this worldwide event. The money that the World Cup is absorbing to improve our airports and stadiums could improve healthcare across the country; which currently, needs a lot of improvements. Education is also in need of major improvements. Many schools scattered around Brazil don't even have electricity, nor basic plumbing. The estimate for the cost of the proportion was around 6-8 billion (real), but we spent 30 billion so far. This is absurd; some might even call it outrageous. But is it all that money actually going to World Cup