Physics Project Reflection #1 - Carey

Today was the third science class that we got to work on our roller coaster projects, but today is the day that we finally started building the coaster itself. In this project, we are required to build a rollercoaster with foam pipe insulators as tracks. A marble serves as the cart and we can use boxes or pipes to give our roller coaster structure. I am in a group with Layan and Alla and today we made quite a lot of progress. We set up a big cardboard roll as the starting point of our roller coaster and we made our first loop as well. We also started to work on our second loop, but we ran out of time. Here are the before and after pictures of our work:

One frustration we have had was that after we made our first loop, we realised that it was too small. I wanted to take it down and make a new one, but my teammates said that we worked for so long on it they aren't going to take it down. I really hope that we will be able to make better loops in the coming classes to make up for our first tiny loop.
The theme of our roller coaster is stars. We are going to cover the windows with black paper and poke tiny holes in it to let the light shine through. We are also going to bring in fairy lights and other small battery operated lights to make the roller coaster look super cool. We want to have lots of loops and a serpentine somewhere in our rollercoaster.
By next class I hope that we get at least one more loop in or maybe even two. I also hope that we can plan ahead to see exactly how the whole entire rollercoaster is going to look.

Thank You Letter

Letter to UNICEF Final Draft

A request to build rehabilitation centers around the world for former child soldiers who would like to start over in a different country:

To Whomever it may concern at UNICEF,

My name is Dori Pethes and I attend eighth grade at The American International School of Muscat. In Language Arts we are discussing whether child soldiers should be given amnesty. Child soldiers are, in my opinion, the greatest victims of war. They are torn away from their families and are compulsed to live in terrible conditions with no education, no health care, and a major insufficiency to meet basic needs. Furthermore, they are impelled to kill people and witness their friends and families being murdered by other soldiers. In "Armed and Underage", Jeffery Gettleman states; "According to human-rights groups and the United Nations, the Somali government is using hundreds of children, some as young as 9, on the front lines." I am aware that you understand this topic to a much greater extent than I do, and I have perceived that this is a very complex issue with no right answers, but in my opinion, child soldiers cannot be held accountable for their actions as they are brainwashed, manipulated and forced to take drugs that make them do things they wouldn't do otherwise. Their emotional state is also majorly disrupted by all of the atrocious things they have been through.

Firstly, child soldiers are compulsed to live in terrible conditions. They are brutally taken away from their families, and are treated brutally by their leaders. “They said we must join the army, if not they would beat us. My two colleagues refused to go and they beat them,” a fifteen year old boy told the authors of "We Can Die Too". These children are threatened to kill people in the same way. What's more, child soldiers receive no education or health care, and they are not fed well. They also have to witness dozens of people dying before their eyes, and they are obligated to kill people as well. A child soldier’s emotional state is therefore very unstable. They need expert mental help, not jail.

In addition to the inhumane way child soldiers are treated, they are also forced to take drugs and alcohol so that they are more willing to do things that they wouldn't do while they are sober. Child soldiers are desired in war because they can be manipulated effortlessly. Children do what adults tell them to do; it’s really simple to talk them into things. Since the children don't attend school, and they don't have any other adults to teach them what is wrong and what is right, they do what their recruiters tell them to do. “Children are often desired as recruits because they can be easily intimidated and indoctrinated. They lack the mental maturity and judgment to express consent or to fully understand the implications of their actions… and are pushed by their adult commanders into perpetrating atrocities,” The Children and Justice During and in the Aftermath of Armed Conflict report says. Some of the child soldiers act out of revenge for all of the abhorrent things the war has resulted in, like the loss of their family. It is therefore unreasonable to say that child soldiers are guilty of their crimes.

However, I understand that there are many people who wouldn’t agree with me. These are the people who think that the child soldiers committed many crimes including murder, and they need to be punished for doing so. This is a very valid point and I understand their view on this topic but child soldiers cannot be accused of crimes that they were impelled to do. Haven’t they payed off for their crimes with all of the affliction that they had to go through? Putting them into jail will make them even more infuriated than they already are which will cause them to be even more violent than before.

Instead of making the lives of these children even more miserable than they already are by putting them into jail, we need to help them. They need psychologists to help them recover from the things they witnessed and perpetrated. According to Irish Forum for Global Health; “The traumatic experiences that these children are forced to experience lead to increased incidence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and psychological distress.” A study from Uganda showed that over 80% of former child soldiers suffered from PTSD. I also think that former child soldiers need to be provided with a school where they can learn the things they couldn't learn while they were fighting. Most importantly, they need to learn how to interact with each other. For example, in the Bureau for Volunteer Service for Children and Health, they teach the kids how to eat without fighting over the food, and they help them to understand that losing a game is normal, OCHA said. I am aware that UNICEF already does these things in their rehabilitation centers and thus I encourage you to keep building more of these centers to sustain your remarkable work. I also believe that these children should have a choice to leave their country if they wish to; to start over in a more desirable environment. This would be especially important for the girls who are often sexually abused as a child soldier. “...after the conflict has ceased and the combatants return to their home villages, women are often shunned because of their past as a soldier and due to the very sexual violence that lead to these mental health issues.” (Irish Forum for Global Health). Therefore it would a suitable idea for UNICEF to start making rehabilitation centers in countries with a stable environment.

In conclusion, I think that UNICEF’s work is truly remarkable; you save a lot of children’s lives. I believe that helping former child soldiers leave the country they had to fight in would be an outstanding addition to your rehabilitation program. These children deserve to live stress free for the rest of their lives after all they had to withstand, and we have to help them to start a new life.

Sincerely,

Dori Pethes

The American International School of Muscat

Letter to UNICEF Draft 1

To Whomever it may concern at UNICEF

My name is Dori Pethes and I am an eighth grade student at The American International School of Muscat. Child soldiers are, in my opinion, the biggest victims of war. They are torn away from their families and are forced to live in terrible conditions with no education, health care, and major lack to meet basic needs. Furthermore, they are impelled to kill people and witness their friends and families being murdered by other soldiers. In "Armed and Underage", Jeffery Gettleman states; "According to human-rights groups and the United Nations, the Somali government is using hundreds of children, some as young as 9, on the front lines." I am aware that you know much more about this topic than I do, and I understand that this is a very complex issue and there are no right answers in this topic, but in my opinion, these kids cannot be held accountable for their actions as they are brainwashed, manipulated and forced to take drugs that make them do things they wouldn't do otherwise. Their emotional state is also majorly disrupted by all of the terrible things they have been through.

Firstly, child soldiers are forced to live in terrible conditions. They are brutally taken away from their families, and are treated cruelly by their leaders. “They said we must join the army, if not they would beat us. My two colleagues refused to go and they beat them,” a fifteen year old boy told the authors of "We Can Die Too". These children are threatened to kill people in the same way. What's more, child soldiers have no education or health care, and they are not fed well. They also have to witness dozens of people dying before their eyes, and they have to kill people as well. A child soldier’s emotional state is therefore very unstable. They need expert mental help, not jail.

In addition to the inhumane way child soldiers are treated, they are also forced to take drugs and alcohol so that they are more willing to do things that they wouldn't do while they are sober. Child soldiers are very popular in war because they can be very easily manipulated. Children do what adults tell them to do; it’s really easy to talk them into things. Since the children don't go to school, and they don't have any other adults to tell them what is wrong and what is right, they do what their recruiters tell them to do. “Children are often desired as recruits because they can be easily intimidated and indoctrinated. They lack the mental maturity and judgment to express consent or to fully understand the implications of their actions… and are pushed by their adult commanders into perpetrating atrocities,” The Children and Justice During and in the Aftermath of Armed Conflict report says. Some of the child soldiers act out of revenge for all of the abhorrent things that the war has caused them, like the loss of their family. It is therefore unreasonable to say that child soldiers are guilty of their crimes, as they were forced to do it.

However, I understand that there are many people who wouldn’t agree with me. These are the people who think that the child soldiers committed many crimes including murder so they need to be punished for doing so. This is a very valid point and I understand their view on this topic but child soldiers cannot be accused of crimes that they were forced to do. Haven’t they payed off for their crimes with all of the suffering that they had to go through? Putting them into jail will just make them angrier than they already are which will cause them to be even more violent than before.

Instead of making the lives of these children even more miserable than they already are by putting them into jail, we need to help them. They need psychologists to help them get over the things they saw and did. According to Irish Forum for Global Health; “The traumatic experiences that these children are forced to experience lead to increased incidence of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and psychological distress.” A study from Uganda showed that over 80% of former child soldiers suffered from PTSD. I also think that former child soldiers need to be provided with a school where they can learn the things they couldn't learn while they were fighting. Most importantly, they need to learn how to interact with each other. For example, in the Bureau for Volunteer Service for Children and Health, they teach the kids how to eat without fighting over the food, and they help them understand that losing a game is normal, OCHA said. I am aware that UNICEF already does this in the rehabilitation centers and I would like to encourage you to keep building more of these centers. I also think that these children should have a choice to leave their country if they wish to; to start over in a better environment. This would be especially important for the girls who are often sexually abused as a child soldier. “...after the conflict has ceased and the combatants return to their home villages, women are often shunned because of their past as a soldier and due to the very sexual violence that lead to these mental health issues.” (Irish Forum for Global Health). Therefore I think it would be a good idea for UNICEF to start making rehabilitation centers in countries with a stable environment.

In conclusion, I think that UNICEF’s work is truly remarkable; you save a lot of children’s lives. I think that helping former child soldiers leave the country they had to fight in would be an outstanding addition to your rehabilitation program. These children deserve to live stress free for the rest of their lives after all they went through, and we have to help them to start a new life.

Amnesty for Child Soldiers

Child soldiers are, in my opinion, the biggest victims of war. They are torn away from their families and are forced to live in terrible conditions with no education, health care, and major lack to meet basic needs. Furthermore, they are forced to kill people and witness their friends and families being murdered by other soldiers. In "Armed and Underage", Jeffery Gettleman states; "According to human-rights groups and the United Nations, the Somali government is using hundreds of children, some as young as 9, on the front lines." These kids cannot be held accountable for their actions as they are brainwashed and manipulated into thinking things that they wouldn't think of otherwise. Their emotional state is also majorly disrupted by all of the terrible things they have been through.

Firstly, child soldiers are forced to live in terrible conditions. They are brutally taken away from their families (if their family hasn't died in the war yet), and are treated cruelly by their leaders. “They said we must join the army, if not they would beat us. My two colleagues refused to go and they beat them,” a fifteen year old boy told the authors of "We Can Die Too". These children are then threatened to kill people in the same way. Whats more, these children have no education or healthcare, and they are not fed well. They also have to witness dozens of people dying before their eyes, and they have kill people as well. The child soldiers' emotional state is therefore very unstable. They need expert mental help, not jail.

In addition to the inhumane way child soldiers are treated, they are also forced to take drugs and alcohol so that they are more willing to do things that they wouldn't do while they are sober. Child soldiers are very popular in war because they can be very easily manipulated. Children do what adults tell them to do; its really easy to talk them into things. Since the children don't go to school, and they don't have any other adults to tell them what is wrong and what is right, they do what their recruiters tell them to do. “Children are often desired as recruits because they can be easily intimidated and indoctrinated. They lack the mental maturity and judgment to express consent or to fully understand the implications of their actions… and are pushed by their adult commanders into perpetrating atrocities,” The Children and Justice During and in the Aftermath of Armed Conflict report says. Some of the child soldiers act out of revenge for all of the terrible things that the war has caused them, like the loss of their family. It is therefore unfair to say that child soldiers are guilty of their crimes, as they were forced to do it.

Instead of making the lives of these kids even more miserable than it already is by putting them into jail, we need to help them. They need psychologists to help them get over the things they saw and did, they need a school where they can learn the things they couldn't learn while they were fighting,  and they later need to be provided with a job so that they can live a normal life. These children deserve to live stress free for the rest of their lives after all they went through. 

Child Soldier Outline

Main idea: former child soldiers shouldn't be held accountable for their actions, they should be given amnesty.

Supporting Idea 1: Bad conditions

• Torn away from family
• Witness murder
• Forced to kill
• No education
• Bad health care
• Basic needs not met
• Cruel treatment

These conditions would change the behaviour of any child due to all of the emotional distress these kids have to go through.

Supporting Idea 2: Drugs

• Child soldiers are forced to take drugs that change their behaviour, emotion, and thoughts

Why would you blame a child for the things s/he did while s/he was on drugs that changed who they are?

Supporting Idea 3: Manipulation/Revolting

• The children are liked to be used in wars because they can be easily manipulated. They are manipulated to believe in things that they wouldn't believe in otherwise
• Children want to revolt because of what happened to their family and life. Therefore they blame the people they are fighting and take out their anger in killing them.

Counter Argument

• These kids kill people
• They steal
• They say things about how they like to kill(Khadr)

My Thoughts on "The Child Soldier on Trial at Guantanamo"

I think that child soldiers are victims, not perpetrators. They have to live without their family in terrible conditions where their basic needs are rarely met. They are fed drugs and manipulated to think things that they wouldn't think otherwise. These children can't be blamed for the wrong things they did. Yes, they killed people, but most of them were forced to do so. In class we read the article "The Child Soldier on Trial at Guantanamo". Throughout the first part of the article, the information I was reading was interrupting my thinking; it was almost changing my mind about the topic. However, when I read the author's rebuttal, I was reassured that my initial veiwpoint is correct. The author talked about how the judges and lawyers never talked about the bad things that happened to Omar Khadr (the 24 year old who was on trial for the people he killed while he was a child soldier at age 15). They never talked about how badly Khadr was treated in the american prisons, however they took the fact that he memorised the Quran in jail which, in their perspective, made him jihadi. People make assumptions based off of the things these kids say like "killing americans is the best part of my life". However, they are just kids. They have been manipulated to think this way while they were fighting bloody wars in terrible conditions without a family. They cannot be blamed for believing in what they were taught by their leader. If they didn't believe in it, they would probably be long dead; killed by their very own leader for not believing what has been taught to them.