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The Williston Sun
April/May Volume 1: Spring Edition 6
Our Assistant Principal Knows Williston by: Mikel
This month, we are highlighting our assistant principal Ms. Sheesley. Ms Sheesley has been working at Williston for 7 going on 8 years! I personally think Ms. Sheesley is a great assistant principal. I am in the eighth grade now, and I am glad to say that Ms. Sheesley has been one of the best principals I've had at Williston. She’s kind, Funny and very professional when it comes down to it. We love and thank you, Ms. Sheesley, for everything you do. She is also the head of the Steelersnation at our school. Go Steelers!
Is Easter Planning Tricks for April Fools? By Dae Bracht
Is Easter planning to trick us all on the first of April? There have been multiple occasions when Easter and April Fools have landed on the same day, and it leads me to think that Easter may have a few tricks up its sleeve. All jokes aside, Easter and April Fools have double teamed in the years of 1923, 1934, 1945, 1956, and made an appearance in 2018. This iconic team goes farther than just the 1900’s, as it is reported to have occurred in the 1700’s as well. They may have a few more tricks set aside, as this team plans to make yet another appearance in the year 2029. So keep an eye out for a colorful surprise!
Animal of the Month. By Christopher
Born: May 27, 1999; Gladys Porter Zoo, Brownsville, Texas, Us.
Died: May 28, 2016 (age 17); Cincinnati Zoo and botanical garden, Cincinnati, Ohio, US.
Facts
1. Harambe died the day after celebrating his 17th birthday.
2.He is a western lowland gorilla
3. He was named by Dan Van Coppenolle
4.Harambe Moved to Cincinnati Zoo in 2014 after living in Texas for several years.
Science Olympiad. Written by: Charles Morris
The Science Olympiad was a pretty fun day, we got a lot of time to do hands-on activities at many different events, and despite not winning no more than two medals it was still a good day. Whenever we got on the bus to UNCW, we were already there in like ten or fifteen minutes. When we got there we had to put on little paper bracelets to identify us, and after we put those on we started walking to the basketball court where we sat down. After we got settled in, we were then told where to go and a chaperone took us to our destination. My first event was Experimental Design, the entire event was spent doing experiments with rubber bands and plastic cups. After the event was over I was accompanied by my chaperone again and we walked to my next event which was Crime Busters. Crime Buster was also spent doing experiments but instead of rubber bands and plastic cups, we actually used real chemicals which was way more fun than just plastic cups. Even though doing the experiments was fun we still had to take a test which was boring. After we were done I was taken to my next event Reach for the Stars by Mr Sullivan. Unlike my other event, Reach for the Stars was not that close, so Mr Sullivan and I were walking in the rain for probably only ten at most fifteen minutes but it felt like 30 minutes because the event was all the way across the campus, and besides the walk being long it was also wet, the weather was horridly rainy and by the time we got to Reach for the Stars I was both soaked and five minutes late. Reach for the Stars was basically a big test that was fifty or fifty-two questions long. But after all the events were over we went back to the basketball stadium and ate lunch, after we ate the awards ceremony started, the awards ceremony was long and loud and we only ended up getting medals for two events. After everything was over we all went to Cookout and got milkshakes and we were off to the school where we were greeted by parents picking up their children. We would like to say a Special Thank you to Mrs. Meno for bringing this back to Williston. Now we will present a list of all our Science Olympiad members, coaches, and chaperones who helped us at Competition. For starters, we had Mrs. Meno as our lead coach, and Ms. Moore as our assistant coach. We also had Mr. Holbrook, Mr. Sullivan, Ms. O’Brien, and Mi. Meno as our chaperones on the day of the event. Now for our members we have in 6th grade; Paige Stiles, Theo Ragain ,Kate Mull, Michael Sexton, Maricruz Parada Mende, Christopher Melvin, Julia Perkins, Charles Morris, Edie Ruiz Mateos, Maiya Smith, and Kayla Shufford, then in 7th we have; Kellum Beck, and lastly in 8th we have; Dae Bracht, Andrew Whittington, and Sawyer Burrell.
The Mystery of April's name. By: Evelyn
The 5 W’s of the month of April:
Who created it: the ancient romans
What: The month of April
Where was it created: Roman Republican Calendar
When: around 700 B.C.E (originally made the first month of the year in 450 B.C.E.)
Why: to honor the greek goddess Aphrodite, also known as the goddess Venus
RESOURCES:
This Was Made Possible with: Evelyn M.
National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day. By: Samuel and sawyer
National peanut butter and jelly day is on April 2nd and celebrates a classic food favorite.
Peanut butter used to be a delicacy in the early 1900s and was only served in New York's finest tea rooms.
According to the peanut board, during WW2, both peanut butter and jelly were part of the United states soldiers military ration list.
Today peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are common in schools, homes and even offices as a favorite among americans.
Best April Fools Prank. By: Sam, Victor, Rodney, Maurice, and Dallas
What’s the first thing you think of when you hear April? Maybe you think of spring, or maybe you think of sports. But one thing is for certain. You will think of April Fools and pranks, and one thing has been on our mind is what’s the best April Fools prank. There are many classics, like the fake cracked phone, or the water over the doorway, or the whipped cream in the hand to the face, but one thing that always comes up is the question, “what is the best April Fools Prank ever to happen,” or “what is the best practical prank that I can do for April Fools?” Well we are here to answer that question today at the Williston Sun. We have decided to both interview people and to research on different trusted websites. One prank that you could do is the simple bucket on the door. First you fill up a bucket with water, then set it on a door just right so when someone opens the door, the bucket falls and the person gets soaked. Another great prank is the fake lottery win. You first buy a fake lottery ticket, and then give it to your friend and just wait to see the look on their face. Then just as they are leaving you tell them (also run away faster than Usain Bolt). The next prank is to wake up very early in the morning and turn all the clocks in your home and just wait until everyone else is panicking. Another prank you can do is the chocolate peas prank. First, you get peas and chocolate, then you melt the chocolate and dip the peas till they are completely covered. Finally, offer them to your friends and see their reaction. The final prank is to switch the salt and sugar in the containers and see their reaction as their food and drinks taste completely different.
https://www.rd.com/article/april-fools-pranks/ Reader Digest
Also some were came up by members of our group
Williston Band Shoutout. By-Shelby and Brennaugh
Miabella Howard
Which instrument do you play? Percussion
How long have you been playing? Since the school year started
Do you plan on still playing in high school? I don't know yet
What's your favorite thing about the band? Hanging out with my friends
When did you know you liked Band? When we started it actually play the instruments
Have you ever thought about quitting the band, if so then why? Yes because classmate problems
Why did you join band? Because I thought it would be fun and my brother was in band also
Science is Back. By: Steve ,Danny ,Malah
Science Olympiad is back, thanks to Mrs. Meno, 8th grade science teacher. WE decided to interview Mrs. Meno to learn a bit more about her and her love for science!
I have always loved nature and have remained curious about how things occur in nature. This fostered my love for science. I teach middle school science. The topics we go over include microbiology, biotechnology, earth history, ecosystems, hydrology, and chemistry. 8th graders will build on this knowledge as they move forward in high school and college sciences. I have had several presenters come in to show my students cool science stuff. Once someone brought in a mini-reptile petting zoo. He had really cool organisms that my students were thrilled to see and hold. One of the animals was a Common Basilisk aka a Jesus Christ Lizard. As the presenter was trying to take the lizard out to show us, it escaped and ran down the hallway on its back legs! He also brought in snakes, tarantulas, and bearded dragons. Other times my students have observed science in action out in nature by attending field trips. This year my 8th graders had a chance to go to Masonboro Island. There they were able to ride a boat to the island, build mini-ecosystems in seashells, and fish for small crabs. I was really happy they had a chance to engage in science in such a fun and hands-on way. Students have also brought in cool specimens like fossils, snake skins, bugs, and seashells. had recently moved to the area and applied for a 7th grade science teaching position. I landed the job after the interview and was very happy to start teaching at WMS. It has been a wonderful choice. I love working with my students and I have not taught people science online
Girls in Technology. By:Evelyn
On April 18th, Ms. Ricanek ,who teaches exploring careers, took 6 female students to the competition of Girls in Technology. This team of girls got a robot to move and do challenges using iCode. These girls had no experience with iCode at all. With a bit of instructions on how to code, They coded a robot and also made a poster to reveal many of the things that happened in the competition. They started to make the poster at 9:50am and at 12:10pm the judges started to walk around and look at the posters of the different groups and once all of the judging had finished, they announced the winners. They called third place first, and then… second place went to Williston Middle School. These students went back to school proud of themselves, because finally for once Williston was in the top 3. This shows that with enough concentration and attention to topics, the students in this school can do so much to get this school the recognition it deserves. Way to go Ms. Ricanek and her team!
PBIS Celebration. By: Malah and Danny
The PBIS celebration is a celebration for students that have met the williston R.O.A.R expectations, which consists of a reward day for students from 2:00 to 3:30pm on April 26. This is an opportunity To relax and chill because of their thriving work ethic. PBIS stands for: POSITIVE BEHAVIOR INTERVENTIONS AND SUPPORTS.
As a student, I have attended a PBIS
Celebration and I can say so myself that it is a fun filled experience which gives students the choice of where or what they would like to go or do in that 90 minute timeframe. The options are a Movie Room, Art Room, Chill Room, and the option to play Soccer outside. Students look forward to having something to work for, so there are some expectations to attend this celebration. To meet this criteria, students must have no record of ISS or OSS in the entirety of Quarter 4, pass 2 out of 4 of their core classes, and present to all 3 benchmarks. Happy Reward Day!
-The Newsletter Team.