Panther Print
"What kind of person do you want to be today?"
2019 Turkey Trot
A few months ago, before the new year of 2020, the 37th annual Turkey Trot was held on November 8th. On that day, 6th, 7th, and 8th graders all came together and support each other, running or not, while participating in both a mental and a physical challenge. Each grade level was divided into girls and boys for separate races and the top three people in each race got prizes and gained recognition. While the race does focus on physical ability and which people do their best, the physical education department does their best to support everyone, no matter which place they finish. The Turkey Trot creates an amazing positive environment focusing on effort, growth, and sportsmanship. We were able to talk with both Mr. Eaton and Mr. Morlock of the physical education department, along with Mr. Sanchez, the 8th grade guidance counselor, to get a better idea of their views on the race and why it’s so important for our school.
Q: How many Turkey Trots have you been here for?
A: Eaton: “This is my 32nd.”
A: Sanchez: “It wasn’t my first Turkey Trot, but it was my first Bel Air one. I had run 4 at over at Aberdeen, but I would say my experience here was different in that I felt like it was very well supported by staff and students. I loved being able to finish in front of the crowd at the stadium was awesome. I think the community was really a big motivator and helped all the runners push through and do their best job. I had a good time.”
Q: What are some memories that you have from any of those Turkey Trots?
A: Eaton: “I remember how hard the students worked; they were exhausted. The students were all very proud of each other. There were a lot of hugs at the end and congratulations. And it didn’t matter how they finished, just that they were proud of themselves when they finished.”
Q: How do you think the Turkey Trot race helps develop sportsmanship among students?
A: Eaton: “The Turkey Trot tradition gains excellent spirit among students. The students really pull for each other. Even though its competitive, everyone is still together, and when they finish, it creates a great environment, camaraderie.”
A: Sanchez: “Well, I think seeing that there were a couple of students, even the ones who came in first, who were supporting the other runners. Everyone was cheering each other on, running with them, congratulating each other and it created an amazing environment which was awesome to see.”
Q: Why do you think it is important for our school tradition?
A: Eaton: “The unity of the school, school spirit, and displaying the characteristics of PRIDE. I also like seeing the staff and administration working together to support the students.”
A: Morlock: “The tradition of the race is a good way to promote wellness and school involvement from students and staff. It’s important for students to achieve things they didn’t think was possible.”
Q: What’s your favorite part of the course?
A: Morlock: "I like when students come out of the woods and are in the field. It’s wide open and you can kind of see students at all parts of the course at that time."
Q: How do you think the turkey trot race helps develop sportsmanship among students?
A: Eaton: “That’s a great question. The Turkey Trot tradition gains excellent spirit among students. The students really pull through with each other. Even though its competitive, everyone is still together, and when they finish, it creates a great environment, camaraderie.”
A: Sanchez: “I think it’s important because it brings the school together, at least by grade, and I think it’s a nice event for everyone to kind of participate in and have fun, not only to be healthy, but also just to celebrate the season around Thanksgiving.”
Q: What do you like the most about the race?
A: Sanchez: “I would have to say that I saw a lot of the staff dress up and show lots of spirit. It was very fun, and I think the kids really gravitated towards that fun which made it really cool and engaging. The fun created a great positive environment between the students, and even the staff.”
Q: How do you think the turkey trot has evolved over the years?
A: Eaton: "The PE staff has a lot more massive organization to do because we are the biggest school in the county. The more students that we have, the more safety concerns there are. Originally, it was only an intermural Turkey Trot after school. Then, they had the Turkey Trot every physical education period. Boys and girls ran together. We had to funnel the two groups (boys and girls). The course has also changed because of the building addition (BAHS moving). We had to make new courses until BAHS was done, and then we settled on the current course in 2012.”
Q: Anything else you would like to add about the Turkey Trot or your experience running it here at BAMS?
A: Sanchez: “Yeah. I loved just how it brought the school together. I loved the fact that it promoted health and wellness and helped create well rounded students. As a school, it’s important to teach not only to take care of your brain, but also your bodies and physical wellness.”
A: Eaton: “I would like to compliment the hard work behind the scenes by the PE dept.”
A: Morlock: "It’s just cool because now were at the point where former student’s kids are running the Turkey Trot, even though it’s a different course, it’s cool that they share a similar school experience."
We were also able to talk with a few students who placed in the rankings to find out what they think about the Turkey Trot. While we weren’t able to talk to everyone, we spoke with seven students throughout the school. We spoke with Cameron Brown, Morgan O’ Conner and Mia Jourdan from 8th grade, Lia Lucas and Casey Price from 7th grade, along with Sarah Fatkin and Ava Porrivorchi from 6th. The interviews are below.
Q: What do you like the most about the Turkey Trot?
A: Cameron: "The football field at the end and racing my friends."
A: Morgan: "It’s optional, you only have to do it if you want to."
Q: Did you prepare at all for the race?
A: Morgan: "I ran 3 days a week, because I had soccer practice on others."
A: Lia: “Yes, I did the Turkey Trot intramurals.”
Q: What would you change about the Turkey Trot?
A: Casey: "I wouldn’t change anything. I really like the course and feel like it works really well."
A: Cameron: “The tiny hill that comes in the race. I was really fast, but it just slowed me down.”
Q: Did you think you would place before running?
A: Morgan: “I was hoping that I would, but I didn’t really know.”
A: Mia: “Not really, I thought I was going to get in top 10, but I never thought I would get it in top 3.”
Q: What were you thinking when you crossed the finish line?
A: Sarah: “I was thinking, “This can’t be happening” because I never thought I’d be first.”
A: Casey: “I was very proud of myself.”
Q: Why do you think the Turkey Trot is important?
A: Ava: “It is a challenge to compete against others.”
A: Casey: “I really think it’s a fun activity that students can do and hang out with friends. It’s a nice break from school and a good tradition.”
Q: What do you like the most about the Turkey Trot?
A: Lia: “Entering the turf with all the support.”
A: Casey: “I really don’t know. I just love doing it, running with my friends.”
Turkey Trot first place winners, pictured left to right: Allison Mace, Casey Price, Reagan King, Jordan Ross, Sarah Fatkin and Zach Tamanini
Catching Z’s
Do you ever feel sleep deprived? A huge problem affecting middle and high schoolers is insufficient sleep. The consensus is that we need 8 to 12 hours of sleep to stay healthy. Some school boards are considering changing their start times to past 8:30 am. Doing this would give kids more time to sleep since they get up later. Keep reading to find out more about the effects of sleep deprivation, the concerns with the solutions, and what your biological rhythms are.
Most of the people I talk to about this are unconcerned with the detrimental effects of getting less than 8 hours of sleep. Nowadays, people brag about how they slept at midnight or later, then waking up at 6:00 am. Maybe the effects of such a lifestyle aren't that great. You might experience decreased performance in school, symptoms of depression, and diminished physical health. The reason we can't just sleep earlier is our biological rhythms, your sleep-wake cycle. What exactly is our sleep-wake cycle? It’s essentially like a clock inside your body. It decides when you’re tired and when you want to wake up. Due to our age, it kind of goes out of whack. That means we just don't get tired as early.
Now that we know this is a real issue, what can we do to solve it?
Well, as I previously mentioned, we might push the start times for schools up. However, some parents are opposed to the idea. The main reason being that parents think since schools start later; they would end after the usual end times to compensate. However, this isn't the case. We would just cut out homeroom and the time between classes to make up for it.
Another thing parents are worried about is transportation. Many students, including myself, take the bus to and from school, so what would happen to the buses? Well, nothing. The buses would be taking the exact same routes, and the bus drivers would get paid the same amount as well. However, one additional problem is traffic patterns. One thing people are considering is letting high schoolers and middle schoolers ride on the same bus. This would reduce the number of buses on the road. Another concern that comes with this is the impact on elementary schools. Since the middle and high school buses will be leaving later some parents think that Elementary school will have to start earlier to make up for transportation needs. One way to solve this is to have before and after school daycare for students.
If you’re interested in doing more research The Reading Eagle’s “Later school start times for middle, high school students urged in report” is a great article that has a lot of information about the things I talked about in this article. However, the report that most people and this article got the idea from is JOINT STATE GOVERNMENT COMMISSION General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. What do you think? Is this a good idea or is it unnecessary?
Wacky Words
There are some eccentric (odd, slightly strange) words in the English Language! We’ve found 15 uncommon words that you’ve probably never heard of before. These words will make your day a little stranger! Try to use one of these wacky words today!
Gobbledygook:
Language that is meaningless or is made unintelligible and is nonsense.
Turophobia:
An irrational or disproportionate fear of cheese.
Ragamuffin:
A person, typically a child, in ragged, dirty clothes.
Cacophony:
Harsh or distressful sounds.
Hullaballoo:
A uproar or commotion.
Kerfuffle:
A fuss or commotion.
Triskaidekaphobia:
Extreme suppression regarding the number thirteen.
Bumfuzzle:
Confuse, perplex, fluster
Cattywampus:
Not lined or not arranged correctly.
Taradiddle:
Small lie or fib, pretentious nonsense.
Widdershins:
In a direction contrary to the sun's course, counter-clockwise.
Spondulicks:
Money, cash.
Spitzenburg:
Any of several red or yellow varieties of apple that ripen in the autumn.
Peacherino:
A person or thing that is especially attractive, liked or enjoyed.
Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia:
The name for the fear of long words.
Works Cited
“Dictionary.com.” Dictionary.com, Dictionary.com, www.dictionary.com/
“Dictionary by Merriam-Webster: America's Most-Trusted Online Dictionary.” Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster, www.merriam-webster.com/.
https://www.fluentu.com/blog/english/weird-strange-english-words/\
Figure 1Sunaina, Biyash. “CurrentKids.” CurrentKids, 2019, currentkids.in/hangout/wacky-words/.
Sunaina, Biyash. “CurrentKids.” CurrentKids, 2019, currentkids.in/hangout/wacky-words/.
Welcome to BAMS, Mrs. Gardner!
Mrs. Gardener is the new math teacher for 6 North! Mrs. Gardner came from Homestead Wakefield Elementary School where she used to create the school’s curriculum! Mrs. Gardner is definitely not your average math teacher. You’ll be surprised by how much you can relate to her!
Q: What made you want to become a teacher?
A: “My mom used to tell me that I used to sit my friends down and tell them what to do. Teaching is natural for me.”
Q: Why have you decided to come to Bel Air Middle School?
A: “I was at HWES last year and my position got cut, I also knew some of the kids coming into BAMS so that was a plus!”
Q: What do you find most frustrating or difficult about teaching?
A: “There is never enough time to get the lesson I want in, never enough time to plan or get the curriculum I want in. There’s just never enough time, I wish I could get more time.”
Q: If you had to teach any other subject in school what would it be and why?
A: “I’m going to say the owl pellet lesson, it’s gross-fun and really interesting. Lots of students get engaged in the lesson!”
Q: If you could own any animal as a pet what would you get?
A: “My dogs, my 2 labradoodles are very smart, and their mission is to make me happy!”
Q: Currently, there is a lot of student debate about this topic… Which do you prefer, Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, or Amazon Prime?
A: “I watch Netflix a lot, currently I am watching the ‘Repair Shop’, the stuff I can watch in front of my kids. I am also watching ‘Weird Wonders of the World’!”
Q: Where did you grow up? Share something special about where you grew up.
A: “Reisterstown, Maryland. I lived next door to the community pool, and my mother would ring a cowbell too call me home!”
Q: What are some things you enjoy on the weekends?
A: “I go to my kid’s sports games, I like to sleep because I never get enough of that, and I like to spend time with my family.”
Q: Other than teaching, what jobs have you done before?
A: “My first job was at 12 years-old, I was babysitting and working for Reisterstown Towing, I would answer the calls and dispatch the tow trucks while babysitting! I worked at Finklestein’s, I did accounting work at 15 too, I coached girls’ basketball, hockey, and lacrosse. I also was a telemarketer raising money.”
Q: Did you like going to school? And who was your favorite teacher and what made them your favorite teacher?
A: “Yes, I loved school. I have two favorite teachers, Mrs. Farber and Mrs. Grant. Mrs. Farber was always well-dressed, strict, but a good teacher. I think she was always tired after lunch and gave everyone a finder word paper, and the first one to finish got a full-size candy bar. My other favorite teacher was Mrs. Grant, she was my high school math teacher, I was in high school 34 years ago and she’s still teaching! I find that amazing. Also, because I was really good at math she would let me teach myself geometry in the back of the room.”
What do you Watch? Netflix vs. Prime Video
We surveyed part of Bel Air Middle school by picking five movies and five shows from Netflix and Amazon Prime to get your feedback on which movie is the most popular. So that we got the most accurate results we sent surveys out to 9 classrooms in total (three from each grade). Once we received the data, we added all the votes together and got results. Our group has concluded that Netflix is more popular compared to Amazon Prime. Thank you to all the students that participated in our voting. We couldn’t have done it without you!
"Again, But Better" Book Review
"Again, But Better" by Cristine Riccio is a book about restarting and finding yourself. Sometimes it is good to restart and do the things you didn’t do before. Change can be good although it may not seem good at first. This story is about a girl, Shane Primaveri, a college student who loves to write. But, she knows she can’t fulfill her dream because her parents want her to become a doctor. We think that this story was an emotional roller coaster. Shane had her ups and downs, but after all of it she had her happy ending. In the beginning she takes a risk. She flies to England to “restart” her college life. Once she gets to her dorm, she meets her roommates, Sahra and Babe. Through the kitchen window a person catches her eye. That person is Pilot Penn. She meets Pilot and Atticus. In the beginning of her adventure everything seems great. Overtime she starts gaining feelings for Pilot. But there is one thing. Pilot has a girlfriend. From there her life has gone downhill. But she has the chance to restart everything. Will she take that offer?
Here are the things that we liked the most in the story: The situations that Shane is put into and how she reacts. We also like a certain red headed lady that you will soon learn about. And finally, we like all the twists and turns that the book throws at us.
Personally, we would rate "Again, But Better" a 4/5 because although it's good, we think that the author Cristine Riccio could have written things differently and maybe given more spotlight to the friends instead of just Shane, Pilot, and Babe because Atticus and Sahra are actually really cool characters in which we feel are left out in the story. Also, the story line was pretty good and when the twist came, it shocked the both of us. Overall, we think that "Again, But Better" is a good book that people should read.
You can find this book in the public library and at Barnes and Noble
WINTER PERKS
Do You Know?: Manga & Anime Review
People have a love, hate relationship with anime and manga. If you don’t know what anime and manga is, manga is a style of Japanese comic books and graphic novels, anime is a style of Japanese film and television animation. Shonen anime and manga is anime and manga targeted towards boys, usually action filled. Shoujo is anime or manga targeted towards girls, and is usually slice of life, school based, or realistic fiction.
Animes you might like:
The most popular manga and anime’s for kids in middle school that you might enjoy are, Shonen animes My Hero Academia ,One Piece, and JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, which is rated 13+, FairyTale, Pokémon (all of the Pokémon series), and Death Note. Sailor Moon a popular Shoujo, Toradora! a slice of life, and I Want to Eat Your Pancreas a sad romance, or Your Lie in April which is another sad romance.
My opinion:
In my opinion, My Hero Academia is a great anime that is really entertaining. It has some great battles and has some very well written twists. The character designs are so unique that you can automatically tell who is who, and the names is are catchy and original. Sailor Moon is quite girly, not really my cup of tea but it’s great for people who like happy slice of life mixed with anime girl battles! Toradora! is an amazingly entertaining slice of life anime that basically was the birth of good tsundere. (A tsundere is a character who is initially cold and even hostile towards their love interest, before gradually showing a warmer side over time, and keep switching between hot and cold.). It has an entertaining story line and is quite easy to follow. Your lie in April, in my opinion was purely beautiful it made me cry in the end, it has a wonderful story with so many twists to it! Death Note is such a purely unique anime which gets you addicted to it in a second, it has a wonderful art style and a story that just draws you to it, and it has a one of a kind story line! Pokémon, one of the most well known animes, and its adorable. While I do agree that the newer episodes in sun and moon weren’t as good as older ones, they are still entertaining, and Pokémon’s are just so cute!
Again, this was my opinion, and if you want to watch or read anime and manga, start with a few of the ones I recommended!
Marvelous Mrs. Briggs
Mrs. Briggs is a 7 North math teacher and excels at her career. She is kind to her students and helps those who are struggling. Mrs. Briggs is very patient with people as well, but knows when to step in. She can make math class a fun place to be! With all her hand motions and sayings to help you remember, this is a teacher you know loves their job. Read more to reveal more about our new addition to the BAMS community!
Q: What school did you teach at previously?
A: “North Harford Middle School.”
Q: Do you have kids? If so, how many? What are their names?
A: “Two boys, Connor and Nathan.”
Q: What collage did you attend?
A: “Richard Stockton Collage of New Jersey.”
Q: What motivates your teaching career?
A: “Helping students become more comfortable in a stressful environment, AKA math class.”
Q: What do you think of BAMS so far?
A: “It’s really nice and really big. Sometimes overwhelmingly big.”
Q: Where is your happy place?
A: “With my family.’’
Q: if you had to do one job that wasn’t teaching, what would it be?
A: ‘’Private counseling for kids.”
Q: What do you like doing with your family the most?
A: “Putting together Lego kits.”
Q: What are some of your hobbies?
A: “Reading, cooking dinner, and playing with my kids.”
Tech Live: Mario Maker 2 Review
Mario Maker 2 is a game that allows you to make courses and share them with the world. You are also able to play other people’s courses online, along with playing other game modes like infinite Mario challenge or multiplayer versus. In the second edition of the 2019 panther print, my friend Pratish Rana analyzed the teaser trailer posted on YouTube by Nintendo (Link: Trailer) and wrote an article on his findings. Since then, the game has come out, and I have done a review on it. Keep in mind that this is only my opinion, and you can have a different opinion than mine.
Course Maker and Making
Course making in Mario Maker 2 is significantly different then in Mario Maker 1. First things first, you have every item in the game when you first get it. The first game made you do tasks or play a certain amount of time before you would get items. This meant that once the game released, there were more courses with unique ideas. The first game doesn’t have this because all the items were unlocked over time. The way you get to items has changed to. Items have been sorted into different categories based on what they are (enemies go in enemies; blocks go in blocks etc.) The items also come in wheels instead of rows, and your recent items will be at the top of your screen. Not only that, but they have added 20 plus items to the game. There is one big thing missing. They have removed the Amibo mushroom. For me, this was one of the biggest things I was looking forward to being in the game, and when I learned it wasn’t going to be in the game, I was honestly super disappointed.
Online Courses
The online world of Super Mario 2 is a very interesting place. You are greeted with thousands of user made courses. You have four options: hot courses, popular courses, new courses and detailed search. Hot courses have courses that could become popular, popular courses have courses that have thousands of plays, new courses have courses that have never been played, and detailed search lets you search for certain courses. I personally like the online layout and the way it’s organized. I do wish that the detailed search would let you search for specific courses, but that’s my only complaint.
Multiplayer Mode
Course world doesn’t only have courses, it has many other things, such as Multiplayer Versus and Multiplayer Co-op. First, lets talk about multiplayer versus. Multiplayer versus is a mode where you and 3 other people battle to finish the given course first. As you beat more courses, your multiplayer rank goes up, which gives you new clothing the customize your character with. Next, there’s multiplayer co-op. Multiplayer co-op is a mode where you and 3 other people try to finish a given course together. Even if you don’t reach the flag first, it counts as a win. I have one big complaint, IF SOME GUYS INTERNET IS A LITERAL POTATO, IT MAKES YOUR INTERNET A LITERAL POTATO TOO, AND YOUR GAME MOVES AT LIKE 4 FRAMES PER SECOND. It ruins the match and has honestly driven me away from the game mode. Sadly, this can’t be fixed. Nintendo wants everyone to have a fair game, so if some guy has bad internet, you do too so that the game is fair.
Story Mode and Special Power-Ups
Mario Maker 2 indeed does have a story mode. I was surprised that Nintendo decided to add this and didn’t think it would work, but after playing through it all, I was delightfully surprised. All 100 courses were different, and the side quest were quirky and fun. You’re able to get clothing and two special power ups from playing story mode. Those two special power ups are the super flower and the super hammer. The super flower can only be used in the Super Mario Bros game mode. It changes Mario into a black and white sprite and allows him to shoot circular pellets that bounce off walls and hurt enemies. This is a reference from Super Mario Land, the 1989 Mario game that was played on the black and white GameBoy. The super flower first appeared in this game. The super hammer is the other special power up. The super hammer can only be used in the Super Mario 3D World game mode. It allows you to create boxes and destroy hard bricks and regular bricks. These power-ups are perfect. There have been so many courses created around these two items. The ideas for the power-ups are great and the way they work is almost flawless.
My Final Review
While it does have it’s flaws, Mario Maker 2 is a great game. The story mode exceeded my expectations. The online layout is visually appealing, and the courses are amazing. The controls don’t feel awkward at all and moving around is easy. The only thing that brings the game down to 4 stars is online multiplayer and its internet problem. The game has received a pretty big update that I didn’t talk about, so if you’re interested in seeing that go here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x66vguSN8Rk.
My final review for Mario Maker 2 is:
STRANGER THINGS FAN THEORIES
There's currently no release date for Stranger Things, Season 4 but that hasn't stopped fans from wildly speculating about what might happen to all their favorite characters.
1. What happened to Jim Hopper?
Though Hopper was assumed dead in Stranger Things 3 after the destruction of the Russians' machine in Starcourt. It's possible he was transported somewhere else. Some assume Hopper is the “American Prisoner” referenced in the post credits scene, but it seems possible that he ended up in the Upside Down instead. Hopper always said, “Keep the door open three inches.”, so, what if he jumped into the Upside Down that was open 3 inches? Also, what if he tries to communicate through the lights like Will? It would be adorable if he communicated with Joyce the very same way that her son Will reached out to her when he was trapped in the Upside Down in the first season. If Hopper truly couldn’t jump in the upside down, then he must’ve gone somewhere because it showed where he was standing before the Russian machine exploded, and he wasn’t standing there. If Hopper didn't make it to the Upside Down, it's also entirely possible that he still escaped, but somehow wound up in Russian captivity. He could have easily run down those stairs to a point below the main landing and wound up in the hands of some of the remaining Russian soldiers.
It could be, then, that Hopper is in fact "the American" that Russian guards refer to in the post credits scene. After everything Hopper did, and all that he learned, he would be a valuable prisoner for Russian scientists.
2. The kids will time travel
Stranger Things is known for its spoilers that the producers sneak into the show. One of the biggest ones was when they made the movie Back to the Future a big thing. Steve and Robin go to see the film after they escape the Russian bunker, and after they left the film, it was all they could talk about. In past seasons, there have been discussions about other dimensions and the ability to travel between them. Time travel has been introduced in the trailer for season 4 through a clock laying in the upside down, and some old newspapers.
3. Will Byers Will Come out as Gay
The hints regarding Will Byers' clear disinterest in all things related to girls and romance have been in the series from the very beginning. Will himself repeatedly reminds the audience about how he never plans to fall in love, how romance grosses him out, and how he'd rather spend time in a world without girls. A heartbreaking confrontation between Will and Mike in the third season even has Mike callously throwing the fact that Will doesn't like girls in Will's face, which clearly truly hurts Will. So, could Season Four finally find Will opening up about his sexuality? Lots of fans seem to think so.
4. Dr. Brenner is “The American”
In the mid-credit scene at the end of "The Battle of Starcourt," Russian guards are taking a prisoner down to be fed to the demogorgon as a sacrifice. Before they find the prisoner, they are looking for, however, they mistakenly stop and nearly open the cell of a prisoner known only as "the American." There are plenty of characters that this could be, but one of the most compelling theories to surface so far involves Dr. Brenner, also known as Papa. Dr. Brenner was presumably killed by the demogorgon at the end of the first season, but viewers never actually saw a body or received real confirmation of his death. Also, at the end of season 2, a scientist whom worked with Dr. Brenner told Eleven that Brenner was still alive.
5. The Upside down is the Future
Our assumptions about the Upside Down are largely shaped by those of the show's characters. We're told it's a parallel dimension and, as this isn't a show that deals much in deception, we're inclined to believe it. But it's important to remember that even the characters in the show who study the Upside Down know very little about it. That's where an interesting theory comes in: The Upside Down isn't a parallel universe. It's the future. The Upside Down is characterized by images of a Hawkins eroded by destruction and decay. The characters assume that the parallel world they're exploring is just the opposite of their world, but what if what they're seeing is a look into Hawkins' future? The Hawkins crew racing to prevent that future from coming true would make for a killer season of Stranger Things.
Cites used:
Dean, Tres. “Stranger Things Fan Theories That Just Might Be True.” Looper.Com, 3 Nov. 2017, https://www.looper.com/94047/stranger-things-fan-theories-just-might-true/.
Mackelden, Amy. “These ‘Stranger Things’ Season 4 Theories Hint That Hopper Will Be Back.” Harper’s BAZAAR, 4 Aug. 2019, https://www.harpersbazaar.com/culture/film-tv/a28374008/stranger-things-season-4-theories/.
Who's New at BAMS?
I wanted to create an interview about Mrs. Reamy to inform you about this new teacher. Mrs. Reamy is a 7 North social studies teacher! She came from Harford Tech and is excited to be with us! Read below to find out more about the amazing Mrs. Reamy!!!
Q: How do you like BAMS so far?
A: “It’s great…I have enjoyed the students and staff here.”
Q: What school did you leave from when you came here and why?
A: “I left Harford Tech due to budget cuts, I was reassigned to a school in my neighborhood.”
Q: Why did you become a teacher?
A: “I always play school when I was little, and I really wanted to have summers off with my kids.”
Q: What do like about teaching, and why?
A: “I like that every day is different. I like working with kids and I think they are funny and important to our future that not many people get to see every day.”
Q: If you could teach another subject other than social studies, what would it be? Why?
A: “I would teach math because I struggled in math as a kid. I want to help kids who struggle in math also.”
Q: What is the most challenging thing about teaching and how do you handle it?
A: “Making it fun. I want kids to enjoy history. I don’t want to just stand around and talk, I want to do fun activities with the students.”
Q: What are your hobbies?
A: “I really like traveling and connecting history. Recently I am trying to learn calligraphy, but I’m not that good at it.”
Q: What is one thing you want you students to know about you?
A: “That I’m willing to work and meet all students where they are in class.”
Q: Where did you go to school when you were a kid, and did you like it there? Share something about your childhood.
A: “I grew up in New York. I graduated in West Islip High School. I really liked my Social Studies teachers. I had one teacher who demonstrated how to get on a camel! I grew up on a small island near New York, and the beach was my backyard. Since, there was nowhere to go I could go around by myself. One time when we went away for the winter, when we came back our fish had frozen (we didn’t have heat).”
Barrett’s On the Pike
Hours:
· Monday-Thursday 11am-10pm
· Friday 11am-11pm
· Saturday 10am-9pm
· Sunday 10am-9pm
Address:
588 Baltimore Pike,
Bel Air, MD 21014
We went for dinner, and we thought that it was really good.
The reviews on google were a 4.4 out of 5, which is pretty good considering it’s new. Our reviews were also good.
Our ratings are based on a 1-10 Scale; 1 being the worst and 10 being the best.
Service: 10
Wait time: 10 (we made reservations)
Busyness: 8
Food taste: 9
Price: 7
Is it worth going back: Yes
Overall Rating: 8.5
We got the blackened pasta and grilled salmon. They were both really great and cooked/made the way we wanted. We tried each other’s meals and would rate the blackened pasta a 9 and the grilled salmon a 10. There were also a variety of appetizers as for desserts. For an appetizer, we got the buffalo calamari. It comes with blue cheese and a buffalo sauce which is kind of spicy. We asked for the sauce on the side, but we dipped the calamari in it and enjoyed. We would rate it a 9.5. We got a desert which was the crème Brule with fruits and whipped cream on the side, with chocolate sauce. The crème Brule was really good and we would rate it a 10.
Calamari
Pasta
Salmon
Fantastic Beasts Movie Review
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them and Fantastic Beasts the Crimes of Grindelwald were amazing new adventures to add to the wizarding world. Fantastic Beasts was written by J K Rowling and directed by David Yates. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them introduces amazing new characters, for example, Newt Scamander, Tina Goldstein, Jacob Kowalski, Quinne Goldstein, and Gellert Grindelwald. Newt is the main character of the series; he is a kindhearted person who never met a monster he couldn’t love. Tina is a hora. A hora is someone who hunts evil wizards. Who works at the ministry for magic? By the end of the movie, her and Newt become very good friends. Jacob Kowalski is a muggle or in Newts words “See you’re a Muggle. See, our physiologies are slightly different.” Jacob can’t do magic.
Finally, there is Quinne she’s Tina’s sister, she has the rare ability to read minds. The first movie was about Newt capturing all the creatures that had escaped his magical suitcase. He and his friends worked together to defeat Percival Graves and Credence barebone. Percival Graves Is a minister of magic worker, he is very powerful and can-do magic without a wand. Credence is an orphan who tries to hide his magical abilities which leads him to become an obscura. An obscura is a wizard who neglects their magic to much until the point it just comes bursting out of them. My favorite part of fantastic beasts and where to find them is every time they use a magical creature; the directors nailed every one of them.
The second movie, The Crimes of Grindelwald, was about Grindelwald escaping prison and creating an army. Grindelwald at the time was the evilest wizard in the entire world. Crimes of Grindelwald also gave us our first look at a very Iconic character Albus Dumbledore! I’m sure you know Dumbledore from the Harry Potter series, but do you know him from Fantastic Beasts? Dumbledore now is much younger than his counterpart and is very worried that he won’t be able to defeat Grindelwald. The crimes of Grindelwald was an incredible film with amazing surprises and some familiar faces, does anybody remember Nagini?
In this movie we got to see a kind side of Nagini and more importantly a human side of her. Another new character you see in this movie is Theseus Scamander. Theseus is newts war hero brother. He is extremely good at magic. The final new character we meet is Leta lestrange. Leta is Newts love interest, she is also very talented with magic.
Finally, we have some very interesting fan theories. I narrowed it down to my 3 favorites. And on that note let’s get started with number 3, Hagrid in Fantastic Beasts. We all know Rubeus Hagrid 9 feet tall big beard lovable oaf yeah him. If you are a Harry Potter fan you know Hagrid was expelled and lost his wand in his 3rd year because he was accused of opening the chamber of secrets. If you didn’t know when you get expelled from Hogwarts, they snap your wand. You Harry Potter fans know that Hagrid carries around a pink umbrella that serves as his wand. But how can this be, Hagrid’s wand was snapped. Well allow me to explain. What if Dumbledore wasn’t just with newt when he dueled Grindelwald what if he also got assistance from Rubeus Hagrid. And when he is finished Dumbledore repairs Hagrid’s wand. You’re probably thinking no wand is powerful enough to repair another wand. That’s where you're wrong. There is a wand powerful enough to repair another wand, the elder wand! We all know that Dumbledore has a famous duel with gellert Grindelwald and wins. At the time Grindelwald is the master of the elder wand but once Dumbledore wins the duel with Grindelwald it’s his. Then Dumbledore can fix Hagrid’s wand. If your still not convinced think about it, I mean Hagrid and Newt both love beasts so I could totally see them working together. And if your still not convinced this is why Dumbledore trusts Hagrid with his life. “I would trust Hagrid with my life.” Dumbledore can trust Hagrid with his life because he already has.
Next up, number 2, Mad Eye Moody in Fantastic Beasts. Now you’re probably thinking wait, Mad Eye is a Harry Potter character not from Fantastic Beasts. True but you know what part of moody could be from Fantastic Beasts, his eye. So, if Moody’s eye did come from Fantastic Beasts than who had it. Well does anyone remember Grindelwald has 2 different colored eyes? Now I know what you’re thinking the eye in Grindelwald’s head doesn’t look like Moody’s strappy eye patch thing. Incorrect, in the movie moody has the strap thing but in the books, it just fits into his empty eye socket. Now we need to find out why Grindelwald needs a glass eye, well what is he hunting down, the deathly hallows witch if you remember in goblet of fire moody could see through Harrys invisibility cloak which is a deathly hallow. That’s a pretty helpful tool when your hunting down those artifacts. And I could totally see Grindelwald replacing one of his eyes for the glass one or in other words changing his appearance witch he does for the entire first movie. Grindelwald having the eye fits pretty well with the plot because we know that he loses a duel against Dumbledore which means Dumbledore could have taken the eye and given it to moody. This actually makes perfect sense because in the beginning of Goblet of fire moody says he’s here as a special favor to Dumbledore as in repaying a favor such as Dumbledore giving Moody an eye. Yet that still leaves the question where did Grindelwald get the eye? Allow me to explain, in Greek mythology there is an eye that belongs to the 3 sisters graae. In Greek mythology Perseus uses the eye to hunt down 3 powerful objects, one of which is wait for it. A cap of invisibility. Yes, I know comparing fantastic beasts to Greek mythology may be a stretch, but they mention it a lot. The most common example is Newts’ brother Theseus who in Greek mythology is famous for slaying the minotaur. So yes, I do think we will see mad eye moody in fantastic beasts.
Finally, number 1, Leta Lestrange’s last words. If you remember at the end of Fantastic Beasts Leta says “I love you.” To either Newt or Theseus. And right after that she dies. Of course, and it was really upsetting because she had the most character development out of any character in the whole movie including quinine who latterly went bad. After she died, I started to think was Leta’s death just like lily potter’s death. Now you’re probably wondering what I mean by that well allow me to explain. On the night of the Potters death Voldemort aka tom riddle comes to the Potter’s house and kill James and lily but before he kills lily, he gives her a choice to move out of the way. Voldemort gives lily this choice because Snape askes Voldemort to spare her. Anyway, lily had the choice to live but she died for Harry witch casted a love protection charm over Harry and that’s why Voldemort lost his powers and Harry survived. Now you’re probably wondering how does this work with Leta’s death? I’ll tell you how before Leta died Grindelwald gave her the choice to live but she chose to die. There is only one flaw with this theory, did the protection go to Theseus or Newt. We all know its Newt 1; he’s the main character 2; does anybody remember Leta’s flashback where she went on a date with Newt. In conclusions that is everything you need to know about Fantastic Beasts.
The Imaginary Audience
Do you ever feel judged, bullied, or ridiculed without anyone saying anything to you? Do you ever just have a hunch that the people passing you in the hallway are making fun of you without hearing them say anything about you? This horrible feeling of judgement is known as the “Imaginary Audience”. Now, what exactly is the Imaginary Audience? The Imaginary Audience is a psychology term coined in 1967 by David Elkind. It is when you have the feeling that everyone is watching you and judging your every move. You feel like nothing you do goes unnoticed and everyone is mocking you behind your back and they never forget any mistakes you make. The Imaginary Audience is most common in adolescents ages 10 through 19. As such, I wanted to see how many middle schoolers have these symptoms or feel like they have fallen victim to The Imaginary Audience, focusing on comparing male and female scores to further prover Elkind’s theory that girls are more likely to feel like this. I sent a survey to four homerooms from each grade to gather data. It’s important for me to mention that while I was collecting data from the homerooms the flu and strep had been going around, especially 7th and 6th grade homerooms. This means that a considerable number of students were absent from certain homerooms. Thank you to all the 12 homerooms that participated!
The graph below proves all the main points of David Elkind’s theory that I had previously mentioned. It proves that girls are, in fact, more common to experience the symptoms of the Imaginary Audience then boys are; not to say that it’s abnormal for boys to feel like this either. Furthermore, if we were to add up the numbers of people affected by the Imaginary audience as appose to those who aren’t you’d find that 138 people in total showed signs while 108 others didn’t. I hope you found this article interesting and that it gave you something to think about. With all this in mind, it’s important to remember that these feelings of insecurity and paranoia are all in your head. You shouldn’t put a lot of importance in other people’s judgement and should instead focus on pleasing yourself.
Too Much and Too Often
Too much and too often our psychological well beings, our psyches are glazed over, they’re neglected. In recent years we’ve become much more aware, concerning the mental illnesses most prominent in middle schoolers. We’re learning about depression and anxieties and better ways to manage stress. And while we still are attaching stigmas to mental illnesses, with the way it’s being portrayed on social media it seems we are also idealizing it and making it a trend, making it a fad to have a cocktail of mental illnesses.
But, maintaining calm and treating yourself every once in a while, are not the only components of a sane mind. They are not the only methods in keeping your mind healthy. That being said, being always positive and constantly bombarding yourself with “You can do it!”, pushing past social barriers, doing so much at once is not always healthy. It is not the best thing to do for your health. Drowning yourself in positive mantras has its drawbacks. In always being positive sometimes you can lose sight of the fact that you have a right to grieve and humans are meant to feel a whole miscellany of emotions.
Your emotions are valid.
What you’re feeling is valid.
It is normal for humans to feel emotions, good or bad. Sadness, grief, anger. They are all normal. There are tons of websites and blogs and posts all about taking care of yourself so you don’t go crazy, so you can continue to put up that outward appearance that everything is just fine, so that you feel fine. Most of them include little notes and messages that you should leave for yourself or to tell yourself later throughout the day that remind you of your self-worth and your importance as a person. Along with that, though, I feel that there is also a basic skill you should have in just allowing yourself to have emotions. Working on being in tune with your emotions, so that you’re in charge of them and your emotional health is secure is essential to living in the world that we live in today.
The internet is an amazing place to get answers, to feel supported, to be educated. Although, frequently, I think several things, several of these emotions are blown out of proportion with the coverage, media and attention mental health is getting these days. We jump to assumptions and worry our butts off about what we see on the internet and what we’re told. Regardless of what you read, an important thing to remember is that you’re human. You are not meant to be perfect.
Not to be cutesy, but the purpose of this ‘article’ was to remind you to be mindful. To remind you that you are valid and not to be so hard on yourself. Every once in a while, people need that reminder regardless of anything else that’s going on or who you are… we are all people.
Teamtrees
What is it?
Teamtrees is a non-profit organization started by “MrBeast” AKA Jimmy Donaldson. He’s been on YouTube since Feb 19, 2012. The Teamtrees project idea started in May 2019, when the internet challenged MrBeast to plant 20 million trees as a celebration of him getting 20 million subscribers. This is in cooperation with Mark Rober, who formerly worked at NASA JPL for 9 years. Donations opened on Oct 25, 2019. Their mission is to plant 20 million trees, before 2020, to show that millennials and gen Z can stand up to save Mother Earth (they have reached the goal).
OK, is it real though?
Yes, otherwise this article wouldn’t have been written. Teamtrees works with the Arbor Day Foundation, who has the same rating as the Red Cross on the Charity Navigator rating. The Arbor Day Foundation was founded in 1972, and so far they have planted 250 million trees (over 43 years), all over the globe. Popular brands and people have donated to the cause too.
Who’s donated? How many have donated?
As of now, almost 20 million dollars have been raised for the trees, and more million dollars need to be donated by the 31st. The highest donor to the project is Tobi Lutke who donated a million and one dollars with the message “For the Lorax”, right after Elon Musk donated a million dollars, this one was for Treebeard. Marc Benioff donated 900,000, “Inspired by Treelon”. The development team of the game “Plants Vs. Zombies” donated 500,000 “In the spirit of Feastivus”. Scott Chacon who donated 250,001 with no message. Those are just the top five donors. To see the rest (or new top donors) visit teamtrees.org! As for how many have donated, those are unknown, but it’s a possibility it will be announced after they close donations and plant the trees. They are currently still letting donations come in, even with 21 million trees and after 2020, reaching their goal long ago.
Calculations Galore! Mrs. Corson Joins the Math Department at BAMS
Mrs. Corson is the new math teacher for 7 South. She is not an average math teacher and you’ll shocked of how much you could have in common with her. Hope you learn something about one of BAMS new teachers.
Q: How do you like BAMS so far?
A: “Awesome. All the teachers are very friendly, and everyone helps out.”
Q: What made you want to become a teacher?
A: “I like helping others and want them to be successful.”
Q: What is your favorite thing about teaching? Why?
A: “When you can tell someone understood something and they were excited about it.”
Q: What is the most frustrating thing about teaching? Why?
A: “I wish we had more time in class to do more activities.”
Q: If you could teach any other subject what would it be?
A: “Science.”
Q: Where did you grow up and what was it like?
A: “Bel Air. I went to Southampton and it was pretty similar to middle school now.”
Q: What is one thing you would want your students to know about you?
A: “Just because I’m a math teacher doesn’t mean I know all the math.”
Q: Have you always been a teacher? If not, what job did you do before?
A: “I’ve always been a teacher.”
Q: What do you do in your free time?
A: “I danced when I was younger and I like crafts.”
Stranger Things Review
“9, 10, Eleven.”
We all have come to know and love the characters on the Netflix original show “Stranger Things.” So, let’s go back to Hawkins Indiana and see a recap of Stranger Things seasons 1-3.
Season 1: The show starts by showing a scene in the Hawkins laboratory. A man runs down a dark hallway, frantically, then, he is pulled away mysteriously. Mike, Dustin, Lucas, and Will, are playing a Dungeons & Dragons game in Mikes basement. Mikes mom tells them to clean up, and to leave. That sends Will and Dustin biking home. When Will pulls over, he finds his way into the same area as the laboratory and crashes his bike. Then Will mysteriously vanishes. The search begins. Joyce Byers, his mother, goes to the chief of police, Hopper, but he just shrugs her away, saying that he probably ran away. But Joyce knows that her Will would never run away. She notices that Will has started communicating with her through the lights, so she buys Christmas lights, and arranges them against the wall in her living room. They start to blink, sending messages to Joyce, so she paints the alphabet on her wall so Will can communicate with her. Will’s best friends, Dustin, Lucas, and Mike are worried about him, they meet a silent and mysterious girl. She has a mark on her wrist and a buzzcut. The mark reads; 011. Mike takes her home, hiding her from his mother. He then realized she had Telekinesis. They then find, in the salter quarry, Wills body. They later find out that the body was fake! Later, Eleven leads them to where Will is. Hopper and Joyce journey through the gate of the Upside down and find will. Hopper has flashbacks of his daughter Sarah’s, death. they save Will. But Eleven, in the process of closing the gate, disappears, saying; “Goodbye Mike.” “The Demogorgon, it got me.”
In Season 2: We start with the 4 main boys, they are going to the arcade, to play their favorite game, “Dragons Lair.” They notice a new high score on the game, that is unbeatable. The player who set the high score was; MADMAX. Will, keeps having flashbacks of his time in the upside down, and throwing up slugs. The boys are suspicious as Will claims he’s fine. Chief Hopper leaves eggos (waffles) in a box, and “someone” keeps eating them. He, one day, catches the “culprit.” Eleven. He takes her as his own, though he had lost his own child years ago. The boys find MADMAX, Max Mayfeild. Max is persisting that Mike should let her in their party. Dustin found a “Demadog.” Its name is Dart. Eleven soon finds out about their blossoming friendship and is not happy about it. Mike is trying to contact her with his walkie talkie. Eleven and Hopper get into a fight, causing Eleven to flee to Mike. But, gets lost in the process. She also finds her brain-dead mother. The mom is only saying “Breathe, sunflower, rainbow, 450, three to the right, four to the left.” Eleven tries to figure out what she means. She soon winds up in New York city with her sister; 008. 008 is trying to convince her to use her powers for her Gang. Eleven questions her. Meanwhile, Hopper, is stuck in the Upside down. Steve has become like a “mother” to the boys. After almost killing a man, Eleven retreated, and sent the demadogs back into the upside down. At the end, Eleven and Mike go to the Dance together. It seems like a happy ending. But is it? “I don’t know how to dance.”
Finally, the long-awaited season three; We open with Mike and Eleven dating. Hopper looks in the room screaming; “THREE INCHES!” Later at the pool, Mrs. Wheeler and her friends are lounging by the pool and waiting to watch Billy come by and go on lifeguard duty. Then, Billy asks Mrs. Wheeler to go to “swimming lessons” with him later that night. Then we cut to the kids enjoying themselves at the new Starcourt Mall. They walk into an ice cream shop called Scoops Ahoy where Steve Harrington now works. He sneaks them into a movie preview ad while watching it, the power mysteriously goes out. Then, we go back to Mrs.Wheeler getting ready for her “swimming lesson”. She then decides to not go because she is committed to her husband. That morning we see Nancy and Jonathan waking up and being late to work. Then, that morning El goes to Max’s house in search for boy advice. Mike had been told to stay away from El, and in result lied to El over the phone. “GET OFF THE PHONE MOM.” Next, we see Dustin coming home from summer camp and when he gets home, he is surprised by the party. Dustin reveals he has a girlfriend and goes up a long, long hike to go communicate with his girlfriend. Dustin gets left all alone and hears Russian communication. He immediately tells Steve. Robin deciphers it; “The Silver cat feeds when blue meets yellow in the west a trip to China sounds nice if you tread lightly” This was a code for the location. Robin, Steve, and Dustin, find the secret Russian lab, and get lost. Eleven dumps Mike. Billy keeps killing people as a result of the possession. The boys are slowly finding signs of the Mind Flayer, and Will can feel it near. Billy attacks Max, and then the boys need to find out how to defeat the beast. Hopper and Joyce find Alexei, and they go to Murray to get a translation for what Alexei was saying. Then, Alexei gets killed by the “Terminator.” After that, Hopper then kills the “Terminator”. After that, Joyce has to flip the switch on the machine that was holding the upside down open, and then Hopper disappears. At the mall, Billy is trying feed Eleven to the monster, and then Eleven reminds Billy of his mother and Billy then sacrifices himself to the monster and dies. Then, Joyce tells Eleven that Hopper disappeared and then the Byer’s move and Eleven goes with them.