It is short of saying that I am very proud of our Little Man, so today in celebration of the first decade of his life I am featuring his school opinion essay here on my blog. Our guest contributor have been working really hard to get his writing better every time and it seems to be paying off. He is always excited to get good comments from his teacher. This one seems to be his best so far, plus! the fact that it talks about birthday presents and in time for his 10th! And since we can not celebrate with his friends, I thought of doing something unconventional this year and the thing that would make him smile dearly.
Here it goes...
"Would You Give Up Your Birthday Presents?"
[An opinion essay by Jacob Dominic Oliva]
Do you know anyone that has given up their birthday present and donated it to someone else? I read that children like me, are giving up their birthday presents to people in need. From my research, I learned that there are many places to donate money for people.. I also discovered that some organizations are supporting the government to keep low-income families supplied with food. In my opinion, I believe that donating money, food and presents is a kind thing to do because a lot of people need help and they run out of money sometimes. So, in my reasons I will tell you why donating presents or money is a good thing to do.
First, I think donating birthday presents is good because it helps out the community. For example, from the article called “Would you Give Up Your Birthday Presents” I read, “Shira has been hosting ‘no-gift’ parties since she was seven. She is now 13 and has raised thousands of dollars for the Humane Society, which helps and protects animals.” To explain, this example shows that children like me can start donating small amounts of money to different organizations. In conclusion, that is why I think donating your birthday presents is good because it is for a good cause.
Secondly , I think donating to the food banks is helpful because in America there are a lot of children from low-income families like in my town. For example, from “Where to Donate During Coronavirus Outbreak” article I read, “Right now, its biggest concern is children whose schools have closed, cutting off a source of healthy, free meals. Feeding America also has a running list of food banks across the country, if you'd like to donate closer to home.” To explain, this example shows that there are a lot of low-income families that depend on food banks. If we donate to our local food banks then it goes directly to the kids from my community. In closing, that is why I learned to donate more in my local community.
"I love that you found relevant research from issues affecting kids RIGHT NOW! This is so powerful!" - Ms. Kaitlyn Solnok, 4th Grade Teacher (as she comments on this piece)
Finally, I think it is better to give than to receive because it teaches me to be kind and generous to others. For example, from the Bible I read in Acts 20:35, “In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’” To explain, this example shows from the Bible that we must help the ones in need the best we can. In summary, that is what I learned about being kind and generous to others.
Some people believe that we should not give up on presents because they think that is more important than helping people . I disagree with them because helping people out is more kind than keeping presents to yourself. Spread the word about helping others and I challenge people to donate some gift or money to help the local food banks. To wrap up, that is why I believe donating your birthday presents is better instead of opening them up for yourself.
We are so pleased that in spite of his struggle coping with distance learning in the beginning, he still managed to swim against the current and did well with his writing. Oh yeah, he still has struggles with learning and I suppose it is true for every kid especially faced with this unconventional learning and difficult time of being "sheltered in place" with no social interaction with kids his age, but he is trying and thriving.
He felt so proud when he received his teacher's positive comments on his work. I will not deny that I helped him a bit (who doesn't?), but I am very proud with the research he has done and the reasoning he came up with on his own. Not only that, he is making sure he is true to his promise. Yesterday, as soon as he opened up some of his birthday presents, he immediately asked me to transfer and give money to the local Food Bank. Now, that is my next mission to be able to hopefully get him to visit and serve in our local Food Bank so that he can see where his donation goes and how it helps the community and kids like him. For now, I will need to send his donation otherwise I will not hear the last of it until he sees his money go through the appropriate channels. Tell me about children turning 10 but feeling like 30 years old instead when they make demands. You just gotta love them, right?
More than anything from this essay, I love how he has found a way to share his belief when it comes to giving. A strong opinion if you ask me. I am praying that our Little Man will grow more in GOD's Word and live to seek His kingdom everyday. I pray that he will not go astray, instead lead others in knowing Jesus and look more like Him everyday. And so as I close my birthday wish for our dearest, I wanted to share his teacher's comment on his third reasoning paragraph....
"What a great way to prove why you believe something. This was also a great opportunity to connect your beliefs and values to something that we can do in real life-I love that you are thinking so deeply about this topic." - Ms. Kaitlyn Solnok, 4th Grade Teacher (as she comments on his third reason paragraph)
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