Compiled by Staff

A Morgan County Elementary School fourth grade Language Arts class, taught by Lori West, practiced their persuasive writing skills by penning some Letters to the Editor. Their topic? "What I want for Christmas is... A new facility for children in Morgan County!"
Needless to say, they've got some good ideas, and reasons for them.

Dear Editor,
A funland would be great for the children of Morgan County.
These reasons will help you understand what I'm talking about. Some kids have nothing to do at home. I want to change that. Half of the time when their parents aren't home, they're doing something they're not supposed to. You and your parents will love it, so I'm asking, please give me a funland, and not just me, the whole Morgan County.
My second reason is because it will help young citizens to stay off drugs. Drugs damage the brain, which can kill you. It can make you develop slowly. I looked in an encyclopedia and it said that some kids and teens are addicted to drugs. But if you give me a funland, maybe they can stop doing drugs.
My third reason is because all of the money raised for this facility will be given to a donation center. It will put animals that are endangered in a good place. It will help people that need things they need, also.
Now you've heard my reasons why I want a funland. I thank you for reading this paper. I hope you want a funland too.
Dashawn

Dear Editor,
I believe the children of Morgan County deserve additional fun and safe play. Morgan County should have a new Monster Truck Arena. Below are reasons why Morgan County should have a new Monster Truck Arena. I want to share these reasons, so please keep reading.
The first reason I think Morgan County's children need a new Monster Truck Arena is because you can go to the pit party and get the monster truck driver's picture and autograph. They also have quad wars, freestyle sports bikes, and BMX.
My second reason for a new Monster Truck Arena is you can do fun stuff and you get to see and do things inside and outside at pit parties. Some outside pit parties, you get to observe robot dinosaurs like Megasaurus and Robosaurus. There's even a robo dino battle with Galactron and Reptar! All these robo dinos breathe fire!
My next reason for a new Monster Truck Arena is because monster trucks can race and do freestyle. Some entertainment can be like Demo Cross, Demo Derby, Trailer Racing, and UTV Racing. One part of entertainment has an explosion like the Human Bomb.
I hope you enjoyed my reasons here because these are my last few reasons. If you have Speed channel, you can watch Advance Auto Parts' Monster Jam Awards Ceremony. They host it every year. The last couple of souvenirs you can buy at AAPMJ are toys, T-shirts, one-forty-third scale Rev Tredz, Hot Wheels, one-sixty-fourth scale Deluxe Jumpers, and Traxxes RC monster trucks. Thank you for being patient with me and stay tuned for the 2013 Advance Auto Parts Monster Jam Awards Ceremony.
From,
Aaron

Dear Editor,
I think us kids in Morgan County should have a zoo! I think the kids would enjoy it. I think it would be an enjoyable thing to do. Down below here are my reasons why we should have a zoo.
OK, here's my first reason why we should have a zoo in Morgan County. What if we had to write a paper on a zebra? So we could just go to the zoo, right? Who wants to go all the way to Atlanta? Just think about the people that don't have enough money to get to Atlanta. They would just drive to Madison. Well, that was my first reason. Now it is time for my second reason.
My second reason is: there's a lot of little kids in Madison. Like the Kindergarteners. I think they would love the zoo, if we had one. And who wants to take a little kid that says, "Are we there yet?" That gets annoying. So that's my second reason.
So if you agree with me, tell me.
And I hope you do. But really think about the children in Madison.
Julia

Dear Editor,
I think we should have a putt putt place in Morgan County. It would be good for all the kids. I have some reasons why. Let me share them with you.
First of all it would be a good place for kids to go when they are bored. Or if they just need somewhere to hang out. It would be fun and kids will not be bored. If children want to hang out with a friend but parents don't want kids at their house, they could go to the putt putt place. I think kids will love it. In my research 13 out of 20 like putt putt. That is my first reason why we should have a putt putt place.
Second is that kids could come for free so they will not have to worry about money. Lots of kids will be able to come. Food will cost very little. So that's not a worry either. Little things like toys or candy will also be cheap. So money will not be a problem. That is my second reason.
My third reason is that it will be a supervised area. So parents don't have to worry about their kids. It can be a safe place to go. Parents will be able to choose who supervises their child. They will make sure nobody gets hurt. That is my third reason we should have a putt putt place.
These are my three reasons we should have a putt putt place. I hope you have enjoyed them. I hope we can have a putt putt place. Thank you for reading.
Sincerely,
Terri

Dear Editor,
I believe there should be a Funopolis in Morgan County. It is a safe and inviting place where kids can hang out, and have fun. Most kids have nothing to do on weekends, so this would be an opportunity. Down below I have my reasons why. Please keep reading.
My first reason why is it has more than one thing to do so double the fun for the children. Most kid facilities only have one thing to do, and really sometimes when that's all you have, it gets kind of boring. Now Funopolis, you always have something to do. Many of us like a lot of different activities, but they can never do them at the same time; now you can with a Funopolis. Now every child will have something to do.
Another reason is you wouldn't have to travel all the way to Atlanta or the mountains to go somewhere fun. Some people don't have the money for gas. Also mothers don't have the time. Many teens and kids are sitting around at home bored or getting themselves in trouble while the parents don't know. With a Funopolis kids can go and parents don't have to worry about them.
The third reason I believe Morgan County should have a Funopolis is it is a great place where you can go on a boring Saturday, and have fun without having to feel uncomfortable. Most kids feel uncomfortable when they go somewhere and haven't ever been. Sixteen out of 20 people in my classroom feel uncomfortable when they go somewhere new. With good supervisors this can be a great place where kids can let their feelings go.
I hope this is an option for the children in Morgan County. I feel it will be a great opportunity. I thank you for your time and patience with me. Have a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Again I thank you, and hopefully this will be a facility for kids in Morgan County.
Your friend,
Claire

Dear Editor,
I think the children in Morgan County should have a skating rink. The skating rink would be located in any open space in Madison. Do you think we should have one too? Read on and you will read my reasons why I think we should have a skating rink!
The first reason is the distance! Wouldn't you want to drive a less amount of time instead of 30 or more minutes? Then you can come to the Madison skating rink and have just as much fun as you did before!
The second reason is it could be a lot safer. I would recommend having cushioned walls for the people who don't know how to skate very well. I also think that there should be supervised people so nobody would get in a fight. You would be safe and skating!
The final reason is they would allow you to have birthday parties and special events. The skating rink will allow you to come in and have a party with you and your invitees! Later on people will come in and skate too. Would you like to have your birthday party there? I know I sure would!
Now that you have read all my reasons on why I think we should have a skating rink in Madison, don't you agree? Thank you for reading my letter. I hope you enjoyed it!
Smith

Dear Editor,
I believe that kids in Morgan County should have an ice skating rink. Do you think that you should drive all the way to Gainesville to ice skate? Gainesville is two hours away from here. Look below to see my reasons why not to drive two hours away.
If we were to have an ice skating rink in Morgan County, it would be a shorter drive. The gas is a lot of money. So going to Morgan County would be better on gas and the distance.
My second reason is during Christmas or around Christmas, people and family might want to have fun and ice skate. People will not have to pay to get in because you shouldn't pay just to have fun. I don't think that's fair, do you?
There could be teachers for children that do not know how to ice skate and they wouldn't have to pay to take the lessons. If the child gets hungry, there would be snack and drinks for them so they wouldn't have to buy some at the store or take it from home.
I would love to have an ice skating rink as well. Maybe we could make that happen one day. I hope you agreed with me!
Taylor

Dear Editor,
I believe children and adults should have a zoo. It would raise money for Morgan County. There are some reasons listed below, please read them. I hope you enjoy my reasons.
My first reason is you don't want to drive to Atlanta just for a trip to the zoo. On the way to the zoo, your children usually whine and complain. It takes about an hour to drive there. The traffic around that area is usually dangerous.
My second reason is that zoos are educational. Teachers can bring the children there to learn. Children of all ages can go. Most children love animals.
The third reason is animals can have a safe place to live. Some animals need a safe environment to live in. This would keep animals happy, healthy, and safe. Most animals in zoos live longer than in the wild.
I hope you like the idea of having a zoo. Did you like my reasons? Would you consider building a zoo? I really hope you consider building a zoo here in Morgan County.
Your friend,
Leah

Dear Editor,
I believe Morgan County deserves a movie theatre. Someone will eventually say, "Morgan County should have a movie theatre. Why don't they have one?" and go on with his life. If you have gone to the movie theatre, you probably agree with me, although if you have not gone to the theatre, please read the following...
If you drive to the movie theatre, it may take you approximately 60 to 45 minutes to get there, therefore gas usage would be very high, which will cost a lot of money. But if Morgan County had a movie theatre, it may take approximately 15 to eight minutes to get to the movies, therefore gas usage would be very low which will make it cheap to go.
Having a movie theatre would be very profitable. Combining the fact that we are in a town (which will attract a lot of people) with the fact that people are taxed and because owning a movie theatre is considered a business, the owner gets a portion of tax money which will be enough for staff and property tax with a little cash left over for the owner making it a living business.
Having a movie theatre would be a great source of entertainment for the kids. Imagine a summer with the capability to go to the movies. Then imagine our town now without a movie theatre. There is a big difference in the fun you can have between the two places. A movie theatre would be a great way to have fun.
To have a movie theatre in our town would be a huge improvement for our town. Fun, social and quality time can all be spent at the movie theatre. Think of a world without the movie theatre.

Dear Editor,
I believe that the people of Morgan County would love to have a Wonder Works. A Wonder Works is an interactive children's museum. A Wonder Works would help our community in many ways, so if you want to know those reasons, read on!
One of the reasons we need a Wonder Works is that 17,951 people in Morgan County are unemployed. So a Wonder Works would employ those people. A Wonder Works is usually three stories high, and you need about 10 people to work on each floor. Plus you need cashiers. So it would employ over 35 people!
The second reason is that it would keep kids away from video games and out into the real world. In my opinion Wonder Works is a thousand times better than a video game. It would also be educational and fun at the same time.
The third reason is that the closest Wonder Works I know of is in Myrtle Beach, and I don't know anyone who would want to drive 153.8 miles just to go visit a place when you could just drive 10 miles.
I thank you for reading my persuasive (writing). I hope you take what you read and put it into consideration.
Sarah

Printed in the December 27, 2012 edition