persuasive: learning how to cook

 30MIN

use in the future, develop skills

organisational skills, improvisation, problem solving

enjoyable, off screens, family time, doing a favour

It's not rare that a parent often has to deal with a child who is reluctant to cook at home-however they genuinely have a good reason for this. It turns out that cooking is highly beneficial for a growing child, proving that it is an essential life skill that cultivates other important traits from problem solving to organisation. Not only that, but it's merely a good excuse to just have some family time and find a new hobby. Cooking does more than provide a meal for a family-it brings us together, and leaves important morals that will stay with a child for the rest of their life.

Developing skills to use beyond school is important for every growing child, and cooking is one of the most helpful and enjoyable activities to do so. You'll find that balancing many things at once and assessing your own skills when preparing a meal helps organisation, problem solving and improvisation flourish in an environment where time, preparation and presentation is key. If you can serve up an appetizing dish in record time, then it's likely you'll also be able to submit papers to an important job with equal flair thanks to the well-maintained organisation skills you established at a young age. Developing these skills at a young age is imperative for competitive work environments where timing and dedication is key, and only cooking can help one practice such things.

Not only will be able to help yourself, but you can rest assured that your family will be much better off with your help in the kitchen. Even if you can't prepare a whole meal, just chopping the garlic is a huge help thanks to the saved time and stress that I'm sure a lot of parents go through when having to balance a lot of things. This means you have more free time to spend with your family, and children can rest assured they'll be in a less tense environment  because of all the burdens weighing down on their guardians. It may be a small favour, but while you're feeding your family you'll be making happier memories with them while you still can.

If that wasn't enough, cooking even benefits your wellbeing. It's a safe space where you can block out all thoughts and merely focus on being in the moment. The more negative thoughts linger, the more worse they'll seem and it only requires a small break from them for your mood to immediately lift-and cooking is just the thing. You can get up and moving, do a favour for others and perform some mental self-care all at once. Doing chores is more enjoyable than you think-especially when it's a space free of judgement, and just a place for you to showcase your culinary talents.

It's no wonder that cooking brings others around the world together, whether it be over the family dinner table or across different countries. People can express themselves, improve themselves and their mindsets and be in a place where only eating good food matters. They can help others who need it. Therefore, it's clear that learning such an important life skill is imperative in order for children to really make the most out of life. They'll never appreciate it unless it's too late.

creative-music making

 30MIN

Struggling rookie musicians and a fallen successful singer try an on spot audition

A whiny screech reverberated around the auditorium, causing the band in the desolate room to crouch, hands over ears. A couple of groans emitted from the members as the piercing noise faded. 

"Shut it Harry," a ruddy faced girl spat, dull eyes glaring at her fumbling teammate. The aforementioned boy settled himself right, jostling past her with the speakers. 

"Sorry, Carrie!"

Another girl, pierced face glinting in the artificial light, watched the pair with heavy set eyes. 

"4 o'clock in the damn morning," Gwen drawled. "I don't have time for your bantering. Shut it."

Carrie's head whipped around, mouth ready to spit an insult, however the click of a door in the muffled distanced alerted the girls that the judges had arrived. 

Even in the sea of felt seats, the three judges were pre-eminent in their sharp suits and piercing stares. They glided down the columns, evaluating the trio over their glasses and slid into their seats at the front. Carrie's harsh words dissipated from the tip of her tongue as she watched the clean cut, stocky men and panther-like woman enter smoothly. Their footsteps echoed faintly in the auditorium, yet they thundered to the scrawny gaggle of teens. 

This would be their one chance to prove themselves. This was the breaking point. How they had toiled for months to scrimp and save to get here-and if the judges didn't like their audition, they were back to square one. From Harry to Carrie to Gwen, the utter panic and dread in their faces conveyed only one message-there was no doubt the nerd, the goth and the horse girl would ever be considered at the same level as some of the bands had auditioned.

The band realised this as they exchanged frantic glances. Clad in dusty, plain shirts, with sleeplessness etched on their faces and spots scattered around their pale skin. They knew the judges were aware of this, as they eyed them up and down over the rim of their gilt eyeglasses. Harry wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, the thick tension in the air suffocating him. A caustic silence reigned, as the team awkwardly set up their instruments.

"Name?" A faint, yet low voice growled from one of the stubbled judges. Carrie swallowed, auburn hair bouncing on her shoulders as a sheen of sweat appeared on her forehead.

"Mortal Ruin."

Several eyebrows raised from the audience before them. 

"Show us what you've got then," the woman said snarkily as she looked at them, "I hope it's better than what your visuals promise, though."

And at that moment, something miraculous happened. From pretentious Carrie to snarky Gwen, and even frantic Harry the panic seemed to melt from their faces. They exchanged another glance-this time communicating some sort of hidden knowledge only the band knew.

"Oh trust me, lady." Gwen purred. "It's far from that."

persuasive job application

 30MIN 

academics

personality

passion, usefulness

JOB-CASH REGISTER

In a world full of disobedient, incapable young workers, it's once in a while that employers will find a diamond in the rough. An intelligent, well-minded girl who actually values the jobs for herself and for others. Of course, you may be thinking that you would never find such an employee however I have full confidence that I excel in these areas. You'll never know how much the business will be benefited unless you never employ someone like me-and when you do regret it, it'll be too late and another business will have reaped the rewards of my service.

If  you are intelligent, it's more than simple to acquire any sort of job you want. I have received top education from one of Victoria's most successful girls' schools, top of the class in anything I apply myself to. Thus I would be able to pick any job I wanted to start out my career, and out of all things I chose being a cash register! Learning at VCE math level would make basic financial math rudimentary, and my excellent organisation and punctuality at school could easily be applied to this job without effort. I even get excellent grades when it comes to persuasive language and design-therefore I could even help entice new customers into the shop with superb advertising. It's clear to see that school prepares you for careers-and if you're unparalleled in your academic abilities, then obtaining and maintaining a job is elementary.

It's one thing to excel in academics, but you also have to have the personality fit for a workplace. I also believe that I have the qualities required-I'm a dedicated teammate, cooperative, have been raised with good manners and politeness and apply myself to everything I do. What would staff and consumers say if there was a new worker who was rash, uncooperative and impolite? They would surely taint the shop's reputation-and that would be terrible for the business, as the employees are essentially the face of the company. I have contributed and even led successful major assignments in my school-but the thing I only value the most is the wellbeing of my teammates and their satisfaction. If you hire someone who doesn't have the personality for the job, you can say goodbye to your success.

I may have the qualities essential for this job, however this job is so much more important to me than how much I fit the requirements. I truly need this job to help me and others. Unlike most teenage cash register workers, I have a passion for the job for this reason. I can support myself instead of relying selfishly on my family, and will be able to build work experience and improve my knowledge of knowing how to interact with teammates and customers. This way I can aim higher for better jobs, thanks to my experience and capability. Meanwhile, I can also help out my community, bring smiles to peoples' faces and help out a small business who might be struggling. Hiring someone who doesn't have the passion to improve themselves and help others means they will never truly apply themselves to the job. 

I am fully aware that operating a cash register is more than scanning items, bagging them and engaging in small talk with customers. Like any other job, it demands a certain type of employee with specific qualities to invest their time in this job with success. That is why I am sure I can assist the business-being intelligent and having the right mindset. I can also make good use out of this job, and so will your business for employing me. I never let anyone down-and if there's anyone who is capable of doing this job successfully, I am confident that it would be me.

CRITICISM:

too long, shorten to TEEL paragraphs

body paragraphs more easy to discern into TEEL sentences 

better linking?

narrative-the old clock

 old clock

30MIN

Tick tock. Tick tock.

The clicking gears were the only presence disturbing the serenity of the desolate classroom. Angel screwed up her face, scrutinising the endless pages of math. Her efforts were fruitless. Meaningless figures swarmed about her head, buzzing in between her ears like mere fruit flies. She looked helplessly towards the open window, where only the after-school netball team were horsing around in the empty court. And she had to stay back and do practice sums?

Her gaze slipped back to the book before her, yet her mind was clearly somewhere else. It was Mr Parania's stupid grandfather clock- always ensconced upon the frail wooden floor, pendulum glinting in the punishing heat as if taunting his pitiful students. Merely having that darned clock in the room already reminded her of her math teacher. Leering at his students with his wet, thin lips beneath that toothbrush moustache ready to spit insults or criticism at his victims. 

Envisioning her tormentor's face made her shiver, then flinch. The clock seemed to tower over her in a similar manner, its dark grooves at the ready to spout eyes (and perhaps a ridiculously small moustache) and tell her to focus on the bloody work.

Angel snapped out of her dreary reverie, eyes travelling to the piece of paper. Her neatly pencilled initials burned into her guilty gaze-the only thing she had managed to write so far.

Tick tock. Tick tock.

Angel writhed in her seat. Her stomach growled lowly. The ticking was beginning to burn at her ears, as it began to thunder  in her head like never before. Her clammy hands gripped the pencil. Her chapped lip lifted, revealing her grinding teeth. She glared up at the clock, panting heavily.

The table flew forwards, a few papers floating towards the floor with a hideous screech. 

"Shut it!" the girl roared, spittle flying from her mouth.

Red cheeked with rage, she stomped towards the clock and latched two hands around its bulky waist. 

"Stupid-old-noisy-clock!" Angel shrieked. Her eyes glazed over with rage, the antique rattled on the ground as she vigorously assailed it. She envisioned her grip around Mr Parania's stocky neck instead, giving her the energy to keep shaking it. 

Her hand brushed a foreign bump around the clock. Angel froze in her tracks, eyes wide with her ruddy, sweaty cheeks still present. She carefully pushed the clock back. Her arms fell back limply. 

The classroom was now thick with silence, for the clock had stopped ticking.

Angel's anger simply melted away from her features, an open-mouthed expression now on her flustered face. She leaned forward. Curiously pressed the bulge. 

A flash encapsulated the dim room, filling every crevice with a stunning light. 

Sharp footsteps thudded along the corridor, increasing in volume. The doorknob clicked. A portly, middle aged man with horrendous facial hair burst into the room, mouth twitching and ready to spout some sort of criticism at his worst student.

But all that greeted him were the papers scattered on the floor, the furniture strewn across the room-and the winking grandfather clock, clinking with an unfound vigour that it had never possessed beforehand.

persuasive-socialising

 life skills, learning from others

mental capability, confidence, team-work

become more popular and likeable, admirable

Introverts, extroverts, whatever your preference it's clear to us all that socialising is imperative for survival in this society. No one can learn important life skills from others, build teamwork skills and confidence or even make special memories when they are cooped up in their house all alone. With practice and in the right crowd even the most meek of people will see that socialising benefits them. So get out there-learn, talk, have fun! Turns out just spending time with others will teach you more about life than school or reading ever will. 

It's no surprise that socialising makes you subconsciously learn from others' morals or values, and you can indefinitely use this to your advantage. With everyone on Earth being raised by different parents with different experiences, you can learn more about life just by talking with others. What if you didn't know how to practice self defense against an assaulter? If you had a friend who could teach you the best way to defend yourself, and even gain some experience by practicing with them, you're all set and ready. Getting jobs, partners, achieving dreams-most people would have never accomplished these if it weren't for socialising with experienced people of the trade.

Not only can you utilise skills learnt from others in your daily life, but you can also obtain necessary traits from socialising that help you become a better person. When talking with others you practice becoming better at socialising, including others in the conversation, and learning how to work with them. Practice makes perfect, and by segregating yourself you'll never be able to gain progress. You could never be confident in yourself or your abilities. Socialising, in itself, is a way to make you improve, a way to make you be happier, instead of thinking it's doing a favour for others. 

And those with good interacting skills, from inclusion to understanding others, are always admired. After all, since they can make others feel validated and feel like they really being something to the group, others would want to be like them! The more you interact, the more skills you gain and the more people will look up to you for that. You'll be making friends in no time! Set a good example. If you can reach out to others the best thing you could do is help them become better people and role models following in your footsteps.

So next time you dread of catching up with somebody, think of all the good things that come out of it. You get to make someone's day. You get to learn from someone else, and even teach them some new things yourself. You'll practice the art of confidence and all those traits that will help daily life get easier, step by step. And best of all-when becoming experienced and admirable due to all this socialising, people will strive to become like you. A better person. 

narrative-new student

 murders new girl because delirious popular girl tells them to, new girl shows up again as a new student

Grunts of exasperation were muffled by the dense forest surrounding the schoolgirls. The night was serene-not a leaf stirred, leaving the clanging of shovels and heavy panting open for the desolate environment to absorb. 

Anna looked from girl to girl- neckties loose, braids astray, accumulated sweat gathered about the face of each girl. Almost all their faces were glazed over, refusing to believe that somehow the most popular girls at River School had found themselves in this position. They were too rich, too haughty to be guilty of something only desperate maniacs occupied themselves with. 

And yet Eve O'Brien, the only girl unscathed and not gripping a shovel, had the biggest smile on her face. Her dark eyes gleamed as they examined the frenzied, maddened expressions of her minions. Her gaze travelled towards the hole. 

"Oh, how sad to ruin your pretty face, new girl," a slight curl of her lip revealed sinister, pearly teeth in the dimness. "But it had to be done. Farewell, Maria!" 

And thus the queen bee tossed her head, the last thing the unblinking, pallid face of Maria Evangeline would have seen if her lifeless expression wasn't obscured by a pile of dirt flung on her.

God knows which one of the girls had a decent sleep that night. Of course, Eve would have slept like a baby knowing her reputation was intact. But as Anna tossed and turned in her satin sheets, all that plagued her were Maria's bloodied hand grasping at the air, and her goldfish-like face staring up at the girls from the hole as if she knew everything. 

It was safe to say the girls turned up at school the next day fresh as blooming flowers. They flanked their ever-so-effervescent leader Eve O'Brien, and strutted about the school as if they hadn't committed heinous crimes the night before. One might say, if they looked into one of the girls' eyes they would be met with nothing but their blackened souls, consumed by guilt and apathy. 

But as they chattered genially and carried about in their rich-school-girl manner, not one person noticed the change.

However, that all changed as the new girl walked in. 

Silky ponytail swaying, plump glossy lips smacking on piece of gum, the chattering class died down as soon as she entered. The boys were under a spell, compelled by this unfamiliar beauty. Even the unpopular girls couldn't help but steal glances, amazed by someone who they thought they had never seen before. 

The popular girls' smiles melted right from their faces, Eve's disposition changing entirely as she stared wide-eyed at the new girl.

Anna started shrieking hysterically, stumbling back from her chair with a hideous squeak and waving her arms at the girl. This was the last straw-all the other popular girls howled and screamed in terror, scrambling backwards and flailing about, even Eve wailing at the top of her lungs like a banshee. Their stunned peers watched the most enviable girls of the school break down before them, merely at the sight of a pretty new girl which no one had seen before.

At least, that's what they think. The new girl thought, remaining as still and erect with the same radiant beam on her face. At last, she turned towards the blackboard, and swept up a piece of chalk. 

Maria Evangeline. The glamorous looping scrawl said, stretching across the frame of the blackboard. 

 

persuasive-tax on junk food

 Benefits the economy, what about the homeless?

Not obligatory to eat junk

childhoods, experiences, emotions, mental health

It's quite apparent in modern society that junk food is the bane of nutritionists and salad eaters. And many of them think that they should rid us from eating unhealthy foods by putting taxes on it-but this idea is pointless and only causes everyone more trouble. Junk addicted people will stop at nothing to eat their favourite food, even if a tax is in the way, and people who are already on the streets have to suffer even more financially and (can you believe it?) nutritionally. Not only is general health and income affected but mental health can suffer, ranging from young children to impressionable teenagers. Why should they switch to diet food just because adults want to lost weight? Why can't they be allowed to experience the joys of eating food they like? You may think it's for the best, however taxes on fast food can have detrimental effects.

Money is a precious thing, but doing things such as making civilians pay more for junk food treats it as meaningless. The economy is already at a point where already filthy rich businessmen wring what they can out of struggling families, but now they have to even make them pay more just for food-a basic necessity to survive. And with people like the homeless, survival is all they can think about. This is why junk food is ideal-calorie dense, filling and cheap. No one on the streets thinks of expensive diet food to lose weight, because for them this is life or death. Are you really going to selfishly take more out of what little money they have already?

Junk food may be important for financially struggling people, but if you are well sheltered and financially secure you can rest assured you have nothing to worry about. It's highly unlikely anyone is forced to eat unhealthy food. The solution is not to put taxes on fast food-it's to educate those who indulge in it, the diseases they might have and compromises instead of eating it daily. If you make people pay more for it they will still eat it just as much, because they haven't learnt that it's not good for them. The more addicted they are, the more willing they are to pay more!

Not only is it a pointless 'solution' that can affect one's wellbeing and income, but even childhoods can be ruined. Junk food on the occasion never hurts anyone, and becomes a special treat or celebration. Everyone should be rewarded for their accomplishments, and if fast food is a reward so be it. Almost no one eats lettuce or tomatoes for leisure. Emotional and nutritional needs of children and teenagers are different to that of their middle aged mothers. If having junk food has rewarding and sentimental connotations, we must let them experience a fulfilling childhood while they still can. They've only been on the Earth for a few years, why should we teach them that they should be punished for eating what they like?

Taxes on junk food fixes nothing. It might even exacerbate the problem. It only satisfies money hungry businessmen who need no helping, but in order to do that it also takes from those who need the help most and innocent people and children who have no need for the tax. Educate, instead of punish. Reward, instead of discipline. We cannot feed into the hunger of those that need it least.

narative-friendship

 30Min

Thank god Aubrey had a friend like Sam. No one would have ever guessed the genial girl who sent dappling rays of sunlight over every room she walked into would have ever make such a friendship. But Aubrey O'Brien didn't care. As long as the meek girl could clasp Sam's hand in hers, share icypoles from the corner store and kick stones off the footpaths with her she was satisfied as could be. 

Sam, after all, was a blanket. She muffled the wretched screams and crashes that floated through the walls. Her smile obscured the leers of the bullies. Insults and taunts lashed out at the frail girl would be stifled by Sam's toasty honey-sweet voice breathing sweet comforts into her ear. As Aubrey aged and weariness drooped into the folds of her eyelids, her waxy skin growing more and more pallid, she gave no heed to her own life if only she could feed off the joy that came with seeing her flowering, rosy-cheeked friend.

Even if she would have to pay the price.

So Aubrey would take on life's challenges if it meant the golden haired nymph could remain untainted. As she helplessly stared up at leather skinned Ruby Red as she had done so many times before, a niggling feeling within her urged her that this was for the best. Ruby's premature, sagging jowls loomed over the poor girl. Aubrey could already sense the redolence of cigarette smoke that lingered whenever Ruby was near, whenever her mother was near. She scrambled back, wincing as what was left of her skin and bones crushed against the wall as Ruby stepped forwards.

And, by the dim classroom window she could feel the gaze of another person burn into her. However this one didn't pierce her skin as Ruby's did. No, this one felt like concerned waves attempting to break out out from the glass prison and caress Aubrey's figure. Sam's wide glassy eyes drifted from her friend to the beast looming over her in the dark classroom. Ruby's smirk dispersed, as her eyes mousily darted over to the window. However, she was met with nothing but the scenery of school flora obscuring any awful scenes a passerby might encounter. She turned back to her helpless victim, fully aware of the screams and cries that would follow that no one but she could revel in.

Aubrey started into the distance, unmoving save for her greasy locks swaying in the wind. She was searching for something in the corner store carpark, her eyes raking over the desolate gravel and the flickering lamps. Or perhaps she was too absorbed in her own thoughts. It was hard to discern, looking at her puffy face. A busted, swollen lip coloured horrendous shades of mauve and crimson. A dark bruise obscuring a puffy, half-lidded eye. A stream of dried blood that had made its path down the philtrum and stopped at the busted lip.

"Aubrey, our icypoles are going to melt."

No answer.

"Aubrey?"

The ghostlike girl turned her head at Sam beside her on the footpath. Sam, of course, was untouched as she should be. Her skin remained effervescent in the dim carpark lighting. Her blue gaze glittered as it cast worried glances over her beat up friend. Aubrey finally mustered the courage to meet her friends gaze through only one working eye. 

However, as Sam's figure once again flickered into empty air, Aubrey had no gaze to meet. She drearily watched the hallucination dissipate, and a defeated feeling settled in her stomach like a heavy rock. She looked back at the flickering lamp. Cold icypole juice began to trickle down either side of her arms, but Aubrey continued to stare.

persuasive-genetic engineering

natural life processes, tampering/faults

life will have no meaning or value

investments, costs and things that should be invested in instead

Genetic engineering, with its promises to lengthen life spans, sounds like a godsend to modern society. In reality this would end in worse than for the better. Experimenting with unnatural inventions will tamper with people's bodies and may even be detrimental to our health instead of a godsend. Without genetic engineering people can live life to the fullest and value what time they are naturally granted with. Worst of all, it's an awful investment that only the rich can utilise when instead we could be investing in cures for harmful illnesses or even resources for the less fortunate. If such an invention is so fruitless yet so wasteful, why should we even be interested in it?

Believe it or not genetic engineering will only interfere with our health and wellbeing. If we were born to have longer lifespans then we wouldn't need additional support from technology. It's better to have natural deaths instead of a new cause of deaths related to failures from genetic engineering. What if any problems are passed down onto future generations? Thanks to our selfish desires, we would force helpless children and grandchildren to live out potential diseases caused by genetic engineering. The human race has existed for so long without the help of any technology-so there's no reason for us to tamper with natural processes.

What's more, the power to extend our lifespans will surely make us ungrateful for what time we have already. Life is for us to achieve our greatest dreams, and achieve the most before we die. If we can extend life expectancy then it's no doubt we will start being vain with our time and taking it for granted. Look at great people in the past, who climbed mountains and created inventions without needing a longer lifespan to do it. They knew they had limited time to do something great, and so they made the most out of what they had. Those who laze around with extra time on their hands can always put off goals they need to achieve 'for later'-and that merely turns into wasted time. 

Not only time is wasted yet precious money is also thrown into such a fruitless product. Hundreds of homeless families could sustain themselves on the money used to implement genetic engineering onto only one rich businessman. It's one thing to be useless and harmful, but it's another thing to be waste millions of dollars. As you have seen the businessman would be genuinely better off without the genetic engineering-however people could even avoid death or starvation with that extra money. If you don't want future societies and generations to go to waste, it's imperative that we carefully consider how we use our resources for good.

Genetic engineering promises the slight chance of living longer-however it certainly promises a bleak future for our Earth, health and our moral standards. We need to invest precious resources into more urgent causes instead of satisfying the selfish desire to longer live out our luxuries, while billion of people continue to starve around the world. Are you going to succumb to a vain fancy? Or are you going to choose what's really best for everyone?