SCHOOL PEN PALS MEET AT SIMI PARK.Byline: Alicia Doyle Daily News Staff Writer Even though 9-year-old Samantha Berkan had not met her yearlong year·long adj. Lasting one year. Adj. 1. yearlong - lasting through a year; "attending yearlong courses" long - primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or pen pal pen pal n. A person with whom one becomes acquainted through a friendly, regular correspondence. pen pal Noun Informal same as pen friend Noun 1. until Wednesday afternoon, the youngster knew they'd remain friends long after their first introduction. ``We have a lot in common,'' said Samantha of her 12-year-old pen pal, Shannon Foster, who also likes in-line skating, listening to music and hanging out with friends. The girls were among a crowd of pen pals Pen Pals or penpals may refer to:
The youngsters have been writing letters and exchanging presents since the fall as part of their language arts language arts pl.n. The subjects, including reading, spelling, and composition, aimed at developing reading and writing skills, usually taught in elementary and secondary school. program at school. Each year, the sixth-grade class at Abraham Lincoln Elementary and the fourth-graders from Katherine Elementary participate. Teachers Dolores Dolores (or Delores) was a common given name (until the 1960s in the USA); it is cognate with the English word "dolorous" (meaning sorrowful) and equivalent in meaning. Moore from Katherine and Yvonne Harano from Abraham Lincoln spearheaded the program three years ago as a way for their students to sharpen their writing skills. ``It gives them the experience of writing to someone other than their teacher,'' said Moore. ``They also get to meet somebody new.'' In most cases, pen pals remain friends long after they meet, Moore said. There have only been a couple of times where the kids didn't hit it off, Moore recalls, like when a ``mature sixth-grader'' is paired up with an ``immature fourth-grader.'' While Wednesday's gathering mustered up many smiles and hugs, a handful of students were disappointed to discover that their pen pals were absent. Twelve-year-old Ryan King was ``bummed out'' when he learned his pen pal, also named Ryan, had moved to another school. ``They made me come all the way over here and he's gone,'' said Ryan, who planned on giving his pen pal a handmade hand·made adj. Made or prepared by hand rather than by machine. handmade Adjective made by hand, not by machine Adj. 1. card and candy when they met. The gifts didn't go to waste, however, as Ryan was quickly paired up with another boy whose pen pal failed to show. CAPTION(S): 2 Photos Photo: (1--Color only in Simi edition) Julie Zarate, 12, left, and Melissa Dobbins, 10, share a laugh during the pen pal picnic, which united pupils from two area schools. (2--Simi edition only--Color) Kelli Mulvehill, 9, waits to meet her pen pal at Wednesday's picnic at Rancho simi Park. Andy Holzman/Special to the Daily News |
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