B for Brilliant - Our Digital School Magazine (Oct 2015)

Convenience Food, by Danae

Nowadays there is no denying that people do not have enough time due to their demanding jobs, so they prefer to consume convenience food instead. Convenience food may be much easier to prepare than cooking from scratch, but it cannot be denied that is has some disadvantages as well.

First of all, people prefer precooked food for the reason that they do not have enough time to cook because of their tight schedules; for instance, it is ideal for businessmen and university students looking for time-saving solutions. Needless to say that it is cheaper than buying all the ingredients required for home-cooked meals such as vegetables, fruits, fish and meat. In addition, convenience food requires little preparation, often some heating in the microwave, which - as its name suggests - proves very convenient and practical.

On the other hand, when consumed on a regular basis, convenience foods are very harmful to people's health mainly due to their high concentration of preservatives and artificial substances. Not knowing much about the origin or quality of the convenience foods' ingredients means that we also lack information about the nutritious value of precooked meals.

According to doctors and dietitians, it is imperative that more people adopt a healthier diet, including more vegetables, fruit, homemade meals, and a lot of water. They should replace fizzy drinks like cola with a glass of fresh juice or water. Moreover, they should cut down on eating hamburgers, chips, and precooked meals.

All things considered, if people keep eating junk food or precooked meals regularly, they will eventually face health problems.

My Preferred School Trip Destination, by Marco

Every school has its needs and mine is no exception. If we, the students, had the chance to choose our school trip destination every month, we would enjoy our trips more than ever. I, for one, would like to mention that I would prefer to go to the planetarium rather than any other place, because it can educate children, including my classmates, about phenomena that happen in space through a big 3D screen or an OCULUS RIFT.

The planetarium is a huge building that has a big variety of equipment such as telescopes and 3D screens that can help people of all ages understand many things about space phenomena, which have to do with the galaxy, the solar system and astronomy in general. It is located in the center of Athens, Greece and it has many science and astronomy-related games and, in addition, it has many encyclopedias either online or as books that you can buy along with some apps such as solar walk or star walk. So suggesting this kind of school trip destination would not be a bad idea!

What's more, there are many reasons why I think such an idea would be beneficial to the school. It would not only educate and inform us about space, but it will also be very exciting to see and experience all the kinds of technology that are used in spaceships and if we are lucky we may be able to enter a spaceship model. Furthermore, this educational school trip will teach many things to students and teachers alike. More specifically, students will learn from playing the games or watching the documentaries available, while the teachers will do so by purchasing new encyclopedias.

To sum up, if the school council decides to take full advantage of this opportunity, students and teachers will be able to witness incredible things about our galaxy.

The Mysterious House in the Woods, by Marco

One cold and stormy night, a man was driving to his house. The rain was pouring down and there was thunder and lightning.

Suddenly, the car's engine stopped working. After multiple attempts to start the car, the man decided to walk. "Oh no" he yelled. He walked several thousands of meters hoping to find a phone booth or even shelter to spend the night.

Minutes after walking in the woods, he heard dogs barking and wolves howling. After half a mile he saw a little house in the middle of the woods. He hurriedly got closer and knocked on the door. The door opened by itself making a creaky noise, and a scary voice said "Come in" and burst into an evil laugh!

The driver started screaming and ran away. As he was running, he heard a creepy music coming from the house. He got such a fright that he slipped and fell into a puddle of mud. When he turned around, he realized that the house had disappeared in a blink of an eye. When thunder clashed again, the man woke up in the middle of the night in his bedroom next to his wife.

The next morning, at his office, he went to see his boss and when he knocked on the door it opened by itself making a creaky noise and the same scary voice said "Come in".

A Letter about a Scary Adventure, by Ernesto

Dear George,

I hope you're well and that everything is OK at home and at school. You won't believe what happened to me last Monday.

My friends and I decided to go to an old sanatorium in Athens because we wanted to scare ourselves. The weather was terrible; it was pouring rain and there was lots of thunder and lightning. We walked along the gravelly road; it was cold and dark and the dogs were barking. We heard an eerie music coming from the sanatorium.

We knocked on the door of the sanatorium, but no one opened the door at first. We tried to get in and eventually succeeded, but the door was creaky and so someone heard us. Suddenly, we heard a scary voice saying "New patients at last", we got so scared we fled. While we were running out of the building, we heard an evil laugh!

Well, that's my story. I feel very lucky I survived such a scary adventure and the same goes for my friends! Thank goodness we ran so fast! Otherwise, our story might not have had a happy ending. Have you ever had an adventure like this? Please write and tell me about it.

Take care,
Mad Max

Mobile Phones, by Marco

Nowadays, there is a growing trend for children, especially high school students, to own a mobile phone, either a smartphone or an iPhone. However, possessing a mobile phone is not always a good thing.




While it cannot be denied that it is not good for children to have a mobile phone, it is also true that doing so can sometimes prove beneficial, even life-saving! For example, in case of an emergency you can call your parents or someone for help. Another great benefit of mobiles is that when a young student is at school and their parents are not in the area, they can track their child during the school day and instantly communicate with them when necessary. Probably the greatest advantage of mobile phones is that throughout the day you can educate, entertain, and inform yourself!

On the other hand, this entertaining and pleasing device hides great dangers young people are not aware of. It is common knowledge that mobiles phones emit radiation which can cause problems to children. For example, a child that overuses their phone can start having frequent headaches or, worse still, end up having cancer. Additionally, they might start neglecting their school work as they tend to spend more time than usual texting, playing games, or watching viral videos on their mobile phones. As a result, children may not be able to properly perform at school and their grades will eventually suffer.

Whichever way one looks at the issue, it is true that having a mobile phone in your possession is advantageous, but one should use it well and wisely, so that they do not end up facing any health or school performance issues.

My Shopping Routine, by Ernesto

Shopping has always been fun for me. I usually go shopping once a month and I always go with my friends. We find the shops we like most and we always start from there when we go on a shopping spree.

I like pc games and I have a huge collection of them; that's why I like to buy pc games time and time again and as a result I have a bookcase full of games. I also love buying jackets and jeans because there is a great variety for me to choose from. 

Sometimes I pay for the items I buy with my pocket money, but my parents give me some extra money if it's something that I really need. We always look around for bargains and we buy items with reasonable prices and we don't buy anything too expensive.

Shopping is too tiring, so after the whole shopping spree we always find a nice place to stay and relax for a while; we usually have lunch and talk about our interests. What I like most of the shopping experience is hanging out with my friends!

Ernesto, 14, Iraklio