The Paw Print
Novi Middle School's Student Newspaper
Volume 24/Issue 7 - May 2024
Local Happenings
Ways to take notes in class (requested)
By Satvika Pinnelli
Struggling to take notes in class? Well I have some tips that might help.
I feel like when the teacher is talking, it’s so hard to take notes down at the same time, so I hope this helps the people with the same struggle.
Don’t write down every word. That would help you save time and cut down on the effort to write as much as you can.
If there’s a slideshow that your teacher uses, then you can try asking them to link the presentation for students, if that’s not the case already. Then you can fill in notes in your own time, at your own pace!
Use abbreviations to write down big words. This helps you take less time to write your notes, and you can also understand them.
Practice your handwriting as consistently as you can, so when you go to write you notes, they look legible
If you’re an artsy person… well you might want to decorate your notes. I get it– but you should decorate your notes after you finish writing, and aren’t in class, where you might miss something important.
World's Biggest Bounce House
By: Ruyi Pan
(Shout out to Miles Horne in 7th Grade for requesting this article).
On May 18th, 2024, the (current) world's largest bounce house made its entrance in Fraser, Michigan. Made by “The Big Bounce America”, by purchasing a ticket, you can have 3 hours of unlimited fun! You can explore the five different sections of the park, known as “The World’s Biggest Bounce House, The Giant, Air Space, Sport Slam, and Octo Blast”. “The World’s Biggest Bounce House” lives up to its name, with some amazing attractions. “The Giant” is a long zigzag of over a whopping 900 ft long. The goal of this attraction is to have fun exploring the entire line of the long bounce house. “Air Space” is a space themed play place, dedicated to astronauts and “Out of the world” experiences. As the name suggests, “Sport Slam” is all about exercising with the numerous different sports that can be played in the bounce house. There are tons of different nets and balls at your disposal to be used. Finally, “Octo Blast” is all about an underwater exploration with a disco octopus! You better buy tickets fast to turn a boring saturday into the most memorable saturday of your life! Though they say money can’t buy happiness, it can buy you three hours of a deluxe play place at Steffens park, 33000 Garfield Rd.
(Requested prompt, not sponsored, at the time of writing this article, the bounce house has not actually opened yet. Information may be unreliable.)
Sleep and Don't Count Sheep! (Tips for sleep)
By Jemie Chow
When do you go to sleep? 3am one night? 9pm the other? 10pm every night? Perhaps you pull an all-nighter every so often. If you're in need of an improved sleep schedule, this is the article for you. Having a good sleep schedule can set you up for success in high school, college, and beyond. If we don't get enough sleep, we can't function well(or at all). So, are you ready? To finally set your sleep schedule to your contentment? Sit up, get out of bed, and let's start.
Don't pull an all-nighter.
During the process, you'll end up even more tired than before. And even if you drink coffee and/or energy drinks, its effects eventually wear off and the tiredness you should've felt before will hit you all at once. A small, quick nap won't fix that either; you'll most likely sleep much longer than intended and by the time you wake up, you'll be fully awake - you won't be able to fall asleep when you intended to. And even if you do manage to stay awake, you'll be back to your old sleep schedule within a few weeks.
Consistent Schedule
Go to sleep slightly earlier and wake up slightly earlier every day at the same time. But if you were to do that, for example, 15 minutes earlier, that wouldn't be enough. Since your body is accustomed to a routine, if you slept 15 minutes earlier, then you'd just toss and turn in bed. Rather, you should move your entire schedule slightly earlier to fit your sleep schedule. This tricks your body into thinking what time it is and as a result, you'll be able to sleep 15 minutes earlier since everything else was as well. It takes time, but eventually you'll get your desired bedtime.
Artificial Light
A common issue with sleep that we often don't think about is artificial light. The light from the lightbulb in your room doesn't completely mimic the Sun, but is enough to disrupt your sleep pattern. A good plan is to dim the lights shortly before going to bed(or use candles/weaker bulbs).
Avoid looking at screens before bed.
Yes, you must've heard this a ton before, but it's true. TVs, computers, and phones all emit blue light. As a result, your body produces more cortisol, or the hormone your body produces to be awake. There are apps to block out some of the blue light, however even those are not enough especially if you're serious about fixing your sleep schedule. Screen time should be stopped at least an hour before you go to bed for a consistent sleep schedule.
Following all those tips can help you not only now, but in the future as well(high school, college, jobs, etc). It may not be easy and it's certainly not instant, but if you keep the same habits for a while, you'll get used to it and your sleep quality will be much better than before. So next time, if you're planning to stay up until 3am playing a game, consider changing that. The more sleep you get, the more energetic you'll be in the morning(your test taking skills can be improved as well!).
Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iMfsa7ntJZE
*How to Fix your Sleep Schedule - Reset Your Sleep Pattern...
*Video blocked by NCSD; watch on your own device
Around the World
Met Gala 2024
By: Navya Sonika
The Met Gala 2024 is an annual fundraising event held for the benefit of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in Manhattan..The Met Gala is usually called the world’s most prestigious and glamorous fashion event. This year’s theme was “Sleeping Beauty: Reawakening Fashion” and the dress code was “The Garden Of Time”.
Some popular bands/artists/celebrities that came this year were:
Zendaya
BLACKPINK’S Jennie Kim
Stray Kids
Laufey
Sabrina Carpenter
Nicki Minaj
Ariana Grande
Tyla
Chris Hemsworth
The Vaping Epidemic?
By: Ashwin Vasanthakumar
What are vapes?
Vapes come in many sizes and shapes with a battery, a heating element, and a place to hold a liquid. Vapes produce the aerosol(mist/smoke) by heating a liquid that contains nicotine-the substance used in other tobacco products. The liquid also contains flavorings and other chemicals that can cause cancer. Vapes are made to look like regular cigarettes, cigars, to look familiar, they also have flavorings, which makes it appealing to kids and teens.
Health Consequences
There are many consequences to vaping, Physical consequences include:
Coughing
Headaches
Waking up in the middle of the night craving vape
Nausea
Chest pain
Depression/suicidal thoughts
Smoking later in life
High chances of cancer
Heightened chances of seizures
And more
Social Consequences
Social consequences of Vaping include:
Brain Damage
Mood Disorders
Less involvement in school
Depression
Difficulty remembering things
Constantly thinking about vape and can’t focus drastically smaller attention span
Difficulty maintaining a conversation
And much more
Facts
10 million youth were open to using or have used an E-Cigarette/Vape.
8th graders who vape are 10 times more likely to smoke cigarettes.
In 2023, (89.4%) of the youth using e-cigarettes used flavors.
Among middle and high school students, the most commonly used flavors were fruit (63.4%), candy, desserts, or other sweets (35%), mint (27.8%), and menthol (20.1%).
E-liquids contain 60 chemical compounds and E-cigarettes contains 47 compounds.
Use of disposable e-cigarettes increased about 1000% among high school e-cigarette users in 2020.
Marketing
Because vapes are so harmful, the companies that sell them must advertise, or else no one would buy them. Usually these commercials will depict a attractive person, the person’s unconscious thinks:”That person looks good” this leads them to think:”that vape looks good” So, they buy the vape. They also use tricks like giving scholarships to students who write essays on the potential benefits of vapes.
Thank you for reading! And remember DON’T VAPE.
Citations
About Electronic Cigarettes (E-Cigarettes) | Smoking and Tobacco Use | CDC
Sports & Entertainment
Article
Recurring Series
Wildcat Book Review: When Stars Are Scattered
By: Ashwin Vasanthakumar
Have you ever looked for a good realistic fiction/autobiography/graphic novel that provides hope in the darkest reaches? Well, you’ve come to the right place! The book is called When Stars Are Scattered by Victoria Jamieson and Omar Mohamed. It is about a young Somali orphan refugee named Omar and his nonverbal brother Hassan who live in a refugee camp in Kenya. They are looking for their mom and in the midst of that they get an offer to go to America. Will they find their mom and go to America and find a better life? Thanks for reading! And I hope you will enjoy this book.
Mango Lassi
By: Ashwin Vasanthakumar (Series by Tanishkaa Palanimuthu and Nayana Panicker)
Hi! We are going to be talking about Mango Lassi. It is a very delicious drink and tastes very good. It’s also a very simple drink to make, provided you have mango at your house.
The Recipe
Ingredients
1. 2 (15.25 ounce) cans mango pulp, or mango slices with juice
2. ½ cup plain yogurt
3. ¼ cup milk
4. 2 cups ice cubes
Directions
1. Blend mango pulp, yogurt, milk, and ice in a blender until smooth; pour into tall glasses and serve.
And voila Mango Lassi.
Recipe from: All Recipes
Novi Middle School
Email: jacqueline.kaschyk@novik12.org
Website: https://ms.novi.k12.mi.us/
Location: 49000 West 11 Mile Road, Novi, MI, USA
Phone: (248)-449-1600