I am... (A Social Experiment)

I am strong.  I am physically, mentally and emotionally strong. There are important things that comprehend with being strong. I am strong to know what is the right decision but I am also strong to deal with the consequences if I make the wrong decision. Being strong could bring out the happy side of you, the mad side of you and even the sad side of you. Strength has many different meanings and different people interpret strength in many different ways. Some people think it means how many sports you play and how much muscle you have, others think it means pain and how you deal with pain. For me, it’s the second one.

I am willing.  Willing to take risks, willing to fail. Willing to take the longer path on the twistier road rather than the short, smooth ride. This is important because everybody makes mistakes and we should all learn from our mistakes that we may make down the twisty road. I can build by not only doing what is right, but also by failing.

I am lost.  Although we must take the longer road at times, sometimes that road is a couple miles too long. We get lost along the path, most of us don’t find our way back. When we get lost, the only thing we can do to be found, is fix ourselves. Fix the problems, fix the pain. Fix the tough times we have brewing inside us, fix what we didn’t know were problems.

I am caring.  Deep down I care about what people say to me and I care about how I react to them. I care about people and most of the time the “people” is only me. I care about myself. I care about what I look like, I care about what I wear to school everyday and how I do my hair and how I do my makeup because I care about what people say behind my back that I don’t know about. People say “You can’t let those words tear you down.” But what they should be saying is, “I know how you feel.” Everyone goes through this and everyone cares about what other people say about them. The only thing is, the people talking about others just don’t CARE.

I am emotional.  I cry, I laugh, I fall but I also get back up. I find the hope within myself and I pick myself back up when I fall. Times get tough, I know, but there is always, no matter what, still that spark in you to start your fire back up, even when the wood is wet.

I am determined.  I find the path of life and I take it. Sometimes the path isn’t always lying in front of you, but takes you on a different journey to find it. That’s where determination comes into play. Most do not succeed when finding the path of life, but I work hard to get there. I fall, I lose, I get lost but I find my way back through determination. With determination comes struggle, comes heartbreak for various reasons and most importantly comes the path and finding the path makes all the struggle and heartbreak worth it.

I am knowing.  I know what is right and what is wrong. I know that ‘doing something just because your friend does it’ is most of the time wrong. I know I am loud, I know I get excited too easily. But, I also know that sometimes the only path of life is going to be long and twisty and I know that life will never be perfect. I know I am not perfect, but I also know that I am strong, willing, lost, caring, emotional, determined and knowing. These things that I know that I am make me who I am and I am okay with not being a perfect child living in a perfect world. I know.

Video and reflection by Emily K (submitted by Ms. Pinzl)

The Biggest Loser

[Note to the reader: A narrative is a story, and narratives can take many different forms. In this piece, an 8th grader uses narrative form to explore an important lesson she learned in childhood.]

Growing up, I had a very small house with a sizeable yard. Lucky for us kids, we enjoyed being outside all day long. We were able to amuse ourselves with sports and games, meanwhile keeping out of my mom’s hair. From the moment the sun came up and I finished devouring my breakfast, to the second I was called upon for dinner, I would challenge my siblings in a variety of games. Brooke, only two years older than me, was a close competitor, but ultimately had more skills than me. Griffin, my brother four years older, was like a species of his own. He would taunt us, running slower or showing the ball in front of us. Then, as soon as we would go for it…woosh! He would take off and win the game.

All day we would play soccer, basketball, capture the flag and more fun games. I would always come out on the bottom of the pack. Occasionally, I would go crying into my room because “Griffin wasn’t being fair.” or “Brooke made me fall.” I would lay in my bed with my teary eyes and frowny face shoved into my pillow and I would think of all the reasons why the games weren’t fair. Eventually I would get bored sulking in my bedroom and would mope back outside to play again. Annoyed, my siblings would hold their tongues and let me rejoin.
One roasting hot summer day, my siblings and I decided not to let the heat stop us from having fun. We dusted off the sprinkler and continued our games, only stopping for an occasional leap through the cool water. We decided to play soccer, Griffin’s personal favorite game. Like usual, Griffin cruised through Brooke and me, scoring more goals than we could count. Again. Again and again. Every goal discouraged me more. The mixture of emotions from the scorching heat and my aggravating losing streak caused me to act up and go crying to my room. While whimpering upstairs, I quickly realized that no one cared that I wasn’t playing. No one was upset that I was pouting… except for me.

I decided to wipe my tears away and go back outside. I sluggishly walked back outside and returned to the front yard where Brooke and Griffin were kicking the soccer ball back and forth. I approached them to a close enough distance for them to know I was ready to receive the ball. After 5 times of them passing to each other and ignoring me, I assured myself that if I were to steal the ball, they would have to start playing again. As the ball left Brooke’s foot and progressed towards Griffin, I lunged forward and picked off the ball. Sprinting a couple of yards forward, I only heard silence behind me. Neither of my siblings were falling for my plan. Instead they held their feet to the ground like glue and gave me a dirty look. Then after all of the times I ran away, pouted and complained, Brooke and Griffin discarded all of their emotions. “Are you going to be a baby like always?” Brooke roared. Then Griffin chimed in, “Do you think you can always just come back and act like you weren’t a brat?” As they howled and made fun of me, I started to form a rock in the back of my throat. I just wanted to run away, but I knew they would make fun of me more. Instead I kicked the soccer ball between my feet and pretended to ignore them. As the day went on they let me play again.
From then on, when I wanted to run away and cry, I would stay and hold my ground. I learned that it was okay to lose games, even when the scores aren’t even comparable. The most important thing when playing is not to win (though it does feel nice sometimes). The most important thing is to have fun and be a good sport. Now, no matter what the competition is, I know that I need to have good sportsmanship and keep my cool. Because I was the biggest loser as a kid, I learned to play with fairness, now I am the biggest winner… Even when I lose. - by Vivianne J (submitted by Mrs. Reagles)

Tourette Syndrome Awareness Month

What do soccer players Tim Howard and David Beckham, musical composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and actor Dan Aykroyd have in common?  All were diagnosed with Tourette's Syndrome.

May 15 - June 15 is Tourettes Awareness Month. According to WebMD, Tourettes is "a brain condition that starts in childhood. Children with Tourettes make sounds or movements, such as coughing or twitching, that they can't control. These are called tics. Tics usually start at about age 2, may be at their worst by age 12, and tend to decrease during teenage years. They can continue into adulthood but occur less often and are less severe."

What Tourette Syndrome (TS) is and is not can be as confusing for both those who live with it as those who do not.  Here are a few myths surrounding TS:

1. Swearing: It is a common myth that those with TS swear often and uncontrollably.  In reality, only a small percentage of those with Tourette’s Syndrome have obscenity specific outbursts. In fact, there is a special name for it: coprolalia.
2. They are mentally challenged: Tourette Syndrome is not like Down’s Syndrome or cerebral palsy.  It is a neurological disorder that is characterized by involuntary movement and speech tics.
3. It is extremely rare: It is estimated that every 1 in 100 children suffers from Tourette Syndrome, a higher number than those with autism.  Most of them go undiagnosed and misunderstood.
4. TS is debilitating: Most people with Tourette Syndrome can go on to lead rich, fulfilling lives and take part in just about any activity as anyone else, especially if they are cared for properly.
5. Those with TS can’t do jobs with fine motor functions" Another false truth, famous Canadian surgeon Dr. Matt Doran was able to do complex procedures even though he had Tourette Syndrome.

More information regarding Tourette Syndrome can be accessed by visiting http://tourette.org/Medical/whatists_cov.html
*Sources: http://www.njcts.org/tsparents/top-10-tourette-syndrome-myths, http://www.webmd.com/brain/tourettes-syndrome

(posted by Mr. Pizzo)

Welcome to our blog!

by Patrick, Tea, and Mrs. Larson-Horne

Don't be a "Flaming Troll"

A blog is a venue for self-expression. It is a digital space in which people make their voices heard. If you write with a sense of caution and responsibility—not to mention creativity and enthusiasm— blogging can be a highly rewarding activity. But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t some dangers inherent in blogging. For example, there is the risk of oversharing, of accidentally providing personal information to those who would use it to hurt you, and of exposing yourself to cyberbullying.
Think before you blog. Remember, anything you post remains accessible in cyberspace indefinitely.

When reading blogs like this one, you are invited to share your thoughts in the comments at the bottom of each post. Your thoughtful comments will be moderated and posted if they provide honest and productive feedback to the writers and readers of this blog. Avoid engaging in negative, potentially hurtful comments. People tend to say things on the Internet that they wouldn’t feel comfortable saying in person. They may be more comfortable expressing anger, disgust, or disapproval in written form over the Internet. Leaving rude or insulting comments on someone’s online content is simply not good "netiquette." In fact there's a term for this mean-spirited, cyber-bullying -- it's called flaming, and people who start arguments or deliberately upset people by posting rude or hurtful comments are called trolls.

Don't be a flaming troll ! Keep in mind the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Enjoy this blog and share your constructive feedback with our readers.

Source: http://digitalliteracy.rosendigital.com/

Laptop Care Tips

by Ella, Allison, & Sydney, Advanced Technology Skills (submitted by Mrs. KBD)

Should drones be legal for everyone?

Source: pixabay.com

Have you ever heard of drones? Most likely, as it seems they’ve been the talk of the town lately with everything that is being established about them. Drones have been labeled as dangerous for regular people to use, but why? There have been many things that have gone wrong with drones when everyday people use them. There are rules to follow when you get a drone, but do people really follow them? The research says no. These drones have been putting a lot of people in danger and they are expensive to buy. They can be used for good if they are being used by the right people. Drones really should be restricted to military use.

Drones have been known to help people spy on others, which is an invasion of privacy. No one wants a drone flying over them or their houses, not knowing if someone is watching them. The scariest part is that people actually have used drones to spy on others. It’s not hard either as some drones come with a built-in camera. You can also easily attach cameras to the drones.The drones that do have cameras are expensive but drones without cameras are becoming cheaper to purchase which means more people could buy them to spy which leads to more of an invasion of privacy. Drones could become very dangerous if they are being used to spy on people, One could easily find out personal information such as, social security numbers, passwords and  more. Drones are only getting worse with privacy invasion.

Drones have been causing even more trouble in the sky. Usually when you buy a drone, the safety guide will tell you that drones are only allowed 400 feet up in the air. There have been many reports of drones flying as high where airplanes are flying. Not only is that way above the height they should be flying, it has become extremely dangerous. One pilot reported about 10 drones up in the sky once while he was flying and  he had to dodge them.Pilots shouldn’t be dodging things in the sky with people on the plane. When a pilot it distracted it could cause plane crashes. No crashes have happened yet but there have been very close calls. Not only do drones distract the pilots and almost cause crashes, the drones have been getting too close to airports and they can interfere with the airport technology.

Many people don’t agree with drones being illegal for citizens and have an argument for it. One person said: “if the government has them why can’t we?” Well citizens have been using them irresponsibly. The government has been using  them for good purposes and follows the rules to keep them safe. Another person stated “ We should be able to use drones they could help for things like news reports” Although that is a good idea we already have things that cover news reports like helicopters. Another woman said “This is taking away our freedom!” if people aren’t following the rules; they really shouldn’t have a drone then it ruins it for everyone who wants a drone responsibly The last person said: “Why don’t we just ban the invasion of privacy?” Yes that would be a good ban but it’s not going to stop a person from using it to spy. If they don’t get caught they will continue to do what they are doing. Although most of those things are good  for drones the other bad things outweigh the good.

Drones have been becoming more and more dangerous each time we hear about them. Between them almost crashing planes, invading people’s privacy and terrorists getting access to them to spy on us, drones are still being questioned by most people around the world on whether or not they are safe for us people to use. The only way drones would be used safely is if the military personnel were the only ones using them. It would be much better and safer. We shouldn’t wait around for these drones to cause something terrible to happen. It would be better if citizens didn’t use them at all. That would be better and safer for everyone.

by Sydni O. (submitted by Mrs. Whelan)

Anti-Bullying Project

by Maya & Rebekah, Advanced Technology Skills (submitted by Mrs. KBD)