Summary of Characters

"The Homework Machine" takes place in Grand Canyon, Arizona. The story is told through the eyes of Sam Dawkins, Judy Douglas, Kelsey Donnely, and Brenton Damagatchi, four 5th graders at Grand Canyon School. Despite their many differences, the four students, called the D squad, form a friendship as they struggle to keep the homework machine, nicknamed Belch, a secret. Brenton Damagatchi, was the creator and destroyer of the homework machine. Brenton was a genius and invented Belch, so that he would have more time for his other interests. Brenton had no friends and was considered a dork among his classmates. All of this began to change when Brenton accidentally told Sam that he spent no time doing homework because he had a machine to do it for him. Sam Dawkins, called Snik, is the new kid in school. Everyone thinks he was kicked out of his old school because he refused to get a haircut. The truth was, his dad was in the air force and was assigned to a base in Arizona. Sam's dad is sent overseas and is killed in the war. Sam was anti-homework and it was him who convinced Brenton to let all of the D squad use the homework machine. Judy Douglas was known as a teacher's pet. She enjoyed school and even liked doing homework. Judy worked very hard to get good grades, and was in awe of Brenton's intelligence and that it seemed he never had to try. When she overheard Brenton and Sam talking about the homework machine, she decided that if it did exist, she wanted to see it too. Judy told Kelsey about what she had heard. Kelsey Donnely was a slacker with pink hair. She copied Brenton's work in class and only did homework to pass and not have to repeat a grade. According to Kelsey, Brenton was a genius-dork and if anyone could invent a machine to do homework, it would be him. Without the homework machine, the D squad would have never became friends. Nobody thought Brenton was cool enough to hang out with. Good friends help you become a better student by adjusting your education with just a little help after school. Some kids, the D squad, get to use a machine to do their homework for them. Someone or something doing your homework for you won't make you smarter. You may lack on skills that classmates have mastered.

Summary by Sierra May

"The Homework Machine", written by Dan Gutman , is a story about a 5th grader who invented a homework machine because he wanted something to do his school work for him. Brenton Damagatchi, the creator of the machine, wanted to prove to specific classmates, Judy Douglas, Kelsey Donnely, and Sam Dawkins, that he truly made such a machine. One day after school, Brenton invited his friends, nicknamed the D squad, over to see if the machine was real. Brenton then started out with a simple question and slid the paper into the scanner. He sat at the keyboard and typed some stuff into the computer. Seconds after, the printer starting making noise, then a paper popped out of the printer. The paper said: 2+2=4. The D squad wasn't impressed at first, so Brenton slid his science homework in from that night to prove that it could do more than simple questions. Once the D squad saw the correct answers, they were impressed. Not only did the machine provide the correct answers, it printed out in Brenton's handwriting. From that day on, the D squad would meet at Brenton's house and have the machine do their homework. As the school year came to an end, people started to become suspicious of the D squad. No one could believe that Judy("stuck up"), Kelsey("a loser"), Snik("cool"), and Brenton("genius") were friends all turning in perfect homework. Rumors soon started claiming the D squad were cheaters using a homework machine to complete their assignments for them. The D squad had made a pact to keep "Belch", the homework machine, a secret, but it seemed that one of them leaked the information. After a break in at Brenton's house, a pop test in class that only Brenton got a 100 on, and following the death of Snik's dad, the D squad called an emergency meeting. They soon discovered that Brenton was the one who had leaked the information about Belch. All four kids decided they needed to get rid of the homework machine, and they would do this by throwing it into the Grand Canyon. Several hikers found the remains of the computer and contacted the local police. The news eventually made its way back to the school and the D squad was brought in and questioned by the police. The truth came out and the children admitted to having a homework machine. As punishment, the D squad had to go down into the Grand Canyon to collect the pieces of Belch. Although it was summer vacation and there was no more homework or homework machine, the D squad continued their new found friendship.

book review by Anzhela Page

The Island of the Blue Dolphins, written by Scott O'Dell, is based on a true story. It is about an Indian girl named Karana who is left behind when her tribe leaves the island and she then survives alone on the island for eighteen years. While on the island, she hunts for food, builds shelter, makes clothing, and finally makes friends with the wild dogs even though they killed her brother. The story ends when a ship sailed by Captain Nidever and Father Gonzales arrives and brings her to Santa Barbara Mission in California. I recommend this book because it tells about survival and personal discovery. Plus, it is full of unusual adventure and natural beauty. This book would be best for readers nine years old and up.

Fahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury

Guy Montag was a great fireman! He loved burning books. He loved the smell of ash floating up into the air. He loved the smell of kerosene. He lives in modern-day U.S.A. where books are the enemy. He loved his job until a 17-year-old teenager named Clarisse McClellan showed up. She wasn't like everyone else. She stopped to smell flowers and rub dandelions under her chin. Oh yes, she was not like everyone else. Montag started to ponder the idea of why firemen burn books. So, one night when they were burning down a house, Montag secretly took a couple. Although, he was not expecting his wife to drop to the floor in horror. Later, that night Montag started to read one of them. He didn't know what the words meant, at first, but later, he understood. He wasn't used to thinking. Guy Montag called his friend Faber over, and they had a little talk. They both liked books. Suddenly, Guy Montag knew what he would have to do. If he wanted books, he would have to become a criminal and run for his life.