Dear Editor,
    Would you enter a profession that is one of the most stressful jobs in America? I don't think you do. The teachers in Chicago are are striking against the City Of Chicago School Board of Education and the mayor. They are striking on the basis of poor working conditions, low salaries, increase in health care costs, and the risk of losing their jobs. I am siding with the teachers because what they do is realy important and they should be treated fairly. 
    Imagine teaching a class that has 36 students and the air conditioner doesn't work properly. Does not sound like a very good teaching condition, does it? That's what the teachers in Chicago are going through. They have massive class sizes which makes it almost impossible for any teachers to teach especially when it's really hot. The teachers nor the students will able to focus in class. My couin is a teacher and I see how stressful he is throughout the day. I as a student know what it feels like to be in a class with 40 other kids. It's not a good feeling at all. 
    Teachers in Chicago make about $75,000 per year on average. It sounds pretty good, doesn't it? Well let me tell you something, if you live in Chicago, $75,000 per year is not a big amount because everything cost almost double compared to Atlanta. $75,000 is like $50,000 here in Georgia which is in not enough for a family. In order to lead a good life, you have to have a money especially if your job is that stressful. What makes it worse is that the health care cost is increasing. It's not fair to them because they already make such a low amount of money. They have to take of their bills and their family. 
    If you were the pricipal of Chamblee High School, would you fire a teacher just because you don't like them personally? No, right? You shouldn't mix your personal life with your professional life. Teachers in Chicago are afraid of losing their jobs. Why? Because they don't have the best equations with some of the higher authorities at the school. If you fire someone, you fire them because of their bad teaching skills not because you have a personal problem with them. 
    In conclusion, I am siding with the teachers because I feel what they are doing is right and justified. I understand kids are missing out on school, but the teachers had no other choice. Even the teachers' kids are being affected. I'm on the teachers' side, what about you? 

           Ajay Avasthi, an eight-year old boy who dislikes school and fails every tests or exams. He finds all subjects difficult. His classmates nor his teachers have anything nice to say about him. He was popularly known as an idiot with attitude. However, Ajay's internal world is rich with wonders which he is unable to convey to others; magical lands filled with colors and animated animals. He was an artist whose talent was unrecognized. 

          Ajay's father, Sanjay Avasthi, is a very successful lawyer who expects his children to excel in every subjects. Ajay's mother, Sonam Avasthi, is frustrated by her inability to educate her son. His brother, Shahid, is a very smart student and an outstanding athlete which Ajay is frequently reminded of. 

          "Ajay!" yelled his mother.

Scared and horrified, "Yes mom," Ajay replied.
 
          "What is this?" asked his mother with Ajay's report card on her hand.

"You're failing in every subjects," she said. 

          "I'm sorry mom, but I don't understand any of the things they teach me because I'm not able to read or write anything," Ajay replied. 

          Glowering at him, Ms. Avasthi said,"That's it, you're going to a boarding school."

          It was the day when Ajay's parents are going to drop him off at the boarding school. They reached the school and enrolled him there. Ajay, depressed and lonely, couldn't stop his tears as his parents drove off. At the boarding school, he sinks into a state of fear and depression. On the first day at the boarding school, Ajay's teacher asked him to read a sentence from the old and rusty book. However, he couldn't read the sentence. His excuse was that the letters are dancing. His teacher thought he was trying to be funny so he send him out of the classroom. 

          Ajay's situation changes when a new teacher, Mr.Amir, joins the school's facility. Mr. Amir, young and ebullient, is a very friendly guy with a great a sense of humor. 

          Within a very few days, Mr.Amir observed that Ajay is unhappy and contributes little to class activities.
"Is everything okay my child?" asked Mr.Amir. Looking down and silence was the only reply that Mr.Amir got from Ajay. Mr.Amir sees some kind of fear in Ajay's eyes which he is really concerned about. One day when Mr.Amir was checking the class works of each of his students, he noticed something weird about Ajay's work. He quickly went on to review Ajay's work from other classes and came to the conclusion that Ajay might be dyslexic. He noticed many signs of dyslexia. For example, some of the words were spelled differently each time and some words were written backwards. Mr.Amir, concerned and worried, decides to visit Ajay's parents to let them know about Ajay's problems. 

          On his day off, Mr.Amir visited Ajay's parents. That was the day when he noticed that Ajay is an amazing artist. Stunned by Ajay's artwork, Mr.Amir asked his parents why did they send him to a boarding school. He tells them about Ajay being dyslexic and how Ajay is a bright child, but processes informations in a different manner than other childrenss. However, Ajay's father believes that the idea of dyslexia is simply an excuse for his son's poor academic performances. 

          "Mr.Avasthi, can you please read this?" asked Mr.Amir. 

"No, I cannot because it's written in Chinese," replied Mr.Avasthi. 

          "Stop giving me excuses and try to read this," said Mr.Amir in an angry tone.

"Are you crazy, I don't speak Chinese," said Mr.Avasthi. 

          "Just like you can't read this, Ajay also can't read because even English is like Chinese to him," explained Mr.Amir. There was a silence in the room for a few seconds.

          Looking at Ajay's picture and crying, Ajay's mother asked,"Why did it have to be my son?"
"There's no answer to that question ma'am, it could happen to anyone," said Mr.Amir. Mr.Amir tells them that it's not because of Ajay's attitude that he has a poor academic report, it's because of dyslexia. He also tells them that he can provide some extra tutoring to help Ajay. Before leaving, Mr.Amir asked Ajay's parents if he could go and have a look at Ajay's bedroom. There he finds a diary, a diary that tells the story through pictures of how Ajay was separated from his family. He sees many other well structured artworks on the walls. Mesmerized by Ajay's work, Mr.Amir tries to find a way to make Ajay start painting again. 

          The next day in class, Mr.Amir gave the diary to Ajay and brought the topic of dyslexia, and offered a list of famous people who were considered dyslexia. As Mr.Amir was speaking, Ajay was getting furious because he thought Mr.Amir was talking about him. Later Mr.Amir reveals that he was actually talking about someone else. The bell rang, and as the students were leaving, Mr.Amir asked Ajay to stay behind. He tells Ajay that he too experienced the same difficulties with dyslexia. Mr.Amir then visits the school's principal, and gets the permission to become Ajay's tutor. 

          Mr.Amir attempts to improve Ajay's reading and writing by using special techniques developed by the dyslexia specialists. Within few months, Ajay develops an interest in reading and writing.

          On the last day of school, when Ajay's parents met his teacher, they were left speechless by the transformations they see in Ajay. Overcome with emotions, Mr.Avasthi thanked Mr.Amir. Ajay moved back in with his parents and started attending the local school and often visits Mr.Amir for tutorial. Impressed by Mr.Amir's work, the principal asked him to be the assistance principal which Amir refused to do because he loved teaching kids. 

What do you do when you're bored? There are billions of answer to that question. For example, some people play video games, read books, watch television, use the internet, etc. What I do is play soccer; my favorite sport and my favorite activity to do when I'm bored. I can play soccer all day everyday. I never get tired of it. My favorite soccer club is FC Barcelona and my favorite national soccer team is Argentina. Lionel Messi is the guy who influenced me to play soccer because he is the best soccer player out there. Nobody is even close to him. He is fast, he has quick movements, and the ball sticks to his feet like magnet. In order to be a good soccer player, there are three requirements: you have to be quick, you have to have a good stamina, and you have to be strong. If you have all 3 of these requirements, you have the ability to be the best soccer player in the world. Quick presence of mind is also important to fool the opponent. If you want to be a good soccer player, you have to be determind and focused. Soccer is a really fun sport to play and also to watch and tha is why it's the most popular sport in the world. I love soccer; do you?