Wingspan
May-June 2023 End of School Year Issue
School Year Comes to An End
Another school year has come and gone at Overlook Middle School. We wish the graduating 8th graders much success as they head to high school in the fall. A new group of incoming 6th graders will be joining the Eagles crew also as we get into the end of August. The Wingspan staff wish everyone a happy, healthy and (hopefully long) summer vacation! V-A-C-A-T-I-O-N in the summertime!
Legally Blond JR Wows the Crowd
By Ms. Daigle
Drama Club presented a successful weekend of Legally Blonde JR May 12-13! Students even accomplished their first two-show day, performing twice on Saturday to their enthusiastic friends and family. We had lots of fun sharing Elle Woods’s story of finding your passion.
SOAR DAY
8th grade graduation
SOAR Banquet
Students were honored by staff and parents for their academic excellence over their three years at Overlook Middle School recently. We are very proud of these HIGHEST SOARING EAGLES!
Oakmont Music Department Visit
Overlook students and staff were dazzled by various elements of the Oakmont Marching Spartans, Color Guard, Bands, and Chorus. The 45 minute production showcased their talents and was meant to excite middle school students to join and become part of the action.
Memorial Day
By Lucas LeGrand
Hey, have you ever wondered why we celebrate Memorial Day? Well, I have a few answers to share with you about this special holiday.
Well, to begin, Memorial Day is a national holiday, which means the whole country celebrates it. But why? We celebrate Memorial Day because that day we honor those who have died during their military service to America. It is celebrated on the last Monday in May, and due to the fact that it is a national holiday, we will most likely not have school (fingers crossed). Usually, we celebrate with parades, and cookouts, but then forget the real reason why the day is so important to most families in the USA. Memorial Day formally started after the American Civil War, in the late eighteen hundreds. More than six hundred thousand Americans died during the war, which was a huge loss. Some are not sure where the tradition started, but it began when confederate families decorated the graves of loved ones who had died during the war with flowers, and flags to honor them for their service. Quick fact, in the north, after the Civil war, the holiday was known as decoration day, but later, it was known as Memorial Day in every state at the time, and it brought the people together, to show a common loss. The holiday changed after World War One, where more than one hundred thousand soldiers died in Europe. Once again, it brought people together, and in every state. After the war, the people of America thought of themselves as a great democracy, and after World War Two, it strengthened the belief of sharing honor, and mourning the dead together. And it strengthened a lot too. During World War Two, more than 1 million Americans enlisted to join and defeat the axis, and around four hundred thousand people did not make it back home to their wives and children. But it didn’t become a national holiday until the Vietnam War. Again, many Americans died, and the people were asking, why? The people of America were angry because they not only let you enlist, but you could also be drafted into the war, with no say. They would pick you randomly, and so they were very affected by the deaths of the war. Soon after though, they got rid of the draft, and it became only volunteer, so you could choose if you wanted to or not. But in all, more than one million soldiers have died defending America, and that is what we are celebrating for. That is why we are celebrating Memorial day, and I hope you learned something useful about the holiday. Have a good rest of your day, and remember why you have a day off.
My Sinking Mind
By MJ Peterson
I am furious
Enraged
Ballistic
That they had nothing to say
I try
So hard
To make this work
But they just push me away
I’d kill for this movement
An ounce of improvement
For my deteriorating mind
One little smile
One head nod, meanwhile
I watch them decide to stay blind
I’m not myself
I push off the shelf
A future redefined
An ounce of hope
A sliver of rope
To save my sinking mind
Evelyn and The Starry Surprise
By Emma Barrette
One summer night, there was a girl lying down in a field looking at the stars and wondering. Her name was Evelyn, and she loved the stars, myths and lions. ‘I wonder what it would be like to make a constellation.’ she thought. So she got up and went inside her house to grab some paper.
Evelyn lived alone, in her shack-house. When she was 4, her parents (also loving stars and myths) went on an expedition to find something. (They didn’t tell her, fearing she would follow them) They never came back. Now she is 12, and lives here. In this very tiny, tiny shack. Evelyn sighed. She started to draw a bunch of dots. Then she connected them and made constellations.
“I will name this one ‘Spark’,” she exclaimed, pointing to the one that looked like an explosion. “And this one will be named ‘Bow’ and this one ‘Leo’, and this one…” She continued on for awhile, but her favorite one was Leo, which looked like a lion.
Making constellations was a lot of fun, but it reminded her of her parents. She started to cry, soaking the paper. Evelyn didn’t remember them too well, but she missed them anyway. As the paper got more soggy and started to fall apart, a translucent light started to appear, just above it. It was her constellation, Leo!
Evelyn immediately stopped crying and looked up at the starry form. She gasped and fell backwards, out of her chair. The paper, suddenly dry, floated down onto the table. Now the entire lion was visible, sitting on the table. It purred, a soft vibration thatfilled the whole house. Evelyn, now feeling more brave, had gotten up and reached a hand outwards. The lion sniffed it and went to rub against it. Instead of feeling the soft, warm fur, she felt a cold surface, like a stone left in water for too long.
“A-a-are you my constellation, Leo?” she asked, a little stunned.
The lion nodded, and looked down at the paper. He pawed it, and the paper fell onto the floor. Then he leaped and went right through the wall! Evelyn shot out the door, if only to witness Leo running joyfully across the bright green grass. She dashed after him, glad to be running around again. When Evelyn got close to him, he jumped on her and pinned her to the ground gently. She laughed and jumped back onto her feet. She hadn’t had this much fun since she was little!
Soon, she started to get tired and a little sleepy, so she went to go back to her house. She started walking towards where she thought was home. After about 7 min, she was in some woods, with Leo right on her heels. Evelyn started to get confused, because there were no woods anywhere near her house. She sat down on a rock as the realization hit her. She was lost!
How would she get home? Would she ever see home again? Was this how her parents felt when they got lost? She started to cry again. Leo put his head in her lap and she stopped crying. Then she started to pet him and felt better. Then she got the best idea she had ever had. She would try to find her parents! Though it was unlikely they were still alive, she was going to try anyway.
But first she had to get home. Evelyn stood up, knowing there were woods a couple miles north of her house. But which way was North? Evelyn remembered something her parents taught her. She searched the night sky, looking for the Big Dipper. Once she found it, she went 5 stars to the left…there! The North Star! It’s always north, no matter where you are in the world. She started to go south, and an hour or two later she saw her house in the distance. She started to run, overwhelmed with joy. As soon as she got inside her house, she collapsed on the mattress and fell asleep.
The next morning, she awoke to find Leo was gone. He had just disappeared! ‘That makes sense though,’ she thought, ‘as he was a ghost. And ghosts only appear at night.’ After a small breakfast, Evelyn packed up all her belongings (which were not many) and set out, careful to pack the paper where she could easily get to it. In hand, she had a map her parents left her of where they were going, in case anything like this should happen. In her other hand, she had a compass. On her back was her backpack. Then she set out. Her plan was to follow her parents' map, and see if she could find them.
She traveled north, back towards the forest she was in the night before. When she got there, she continued to go north, like the map said. On the map, it was just a long line that squiggled north and east and west and south and went everywhere! This was going to take a long time. She continued to follow the line, day after day, stopping every night to eat, rest and play with Leo. The most interesting thing she saw was a big river, with salmon jumping out of it. It was exciting because the fish were very cool, (she caught one and ate it) and she refilled her big canteen. Then she took off her shoes and dipped her toes in. It felt so good! Afterwards, she continued on, ever persistent.
Then one sunny day, she got to the end of the line. She didn’t die or get lost, just the line on the map stopped. It stopped in a cave, so she assumed that she had to go inside. It was very dark, so she pulled out her flashlight and put away the map. There were stalactites and stalagmites everywhere. Near the back, there were two tunnels, two ways to go. ‘I don’t think the map has a map of the cave.’ she thought. So, instead of just aimlessly wandering around the tunnels, she put a piece of paper (stabbed onto a stalagmite) in front of each tunnel she went in. Every time there was a dead end, she would turn around, find the paper, and put it on the other floor-spike. Then she would continue. After awhile of trial-and-error, she found a large cavern. Inside the cavern, there were a number of large cages with people in them. And guarding them, standing there was Leo. But he wasn’t starry anymore. He was a real lion.
He jumped on her, pinning her to the ground.
“L-l-eo! It’s me! Evelyn!”
It didn’t matter. He grabbed her by the back of her shirt and threw her in a cage on the floor by herself, where she started to cry.
“Why? Why did you do this Leo??”
He ignored her. The other people in the other cages looked at her like she was crazy. She didn’t care. How was she ever going to find her parents now? She was crying so hard, she didn’t hardly notice the other people.
A couple was talking together in hushed voices. Then the wife looked at her and started talking.
“Did you say your name was Evelyn?”
She stopped crying. “Yes, why?”
“You didn’t happen to have lost your parents when you were little, did you?”
Now Evelyn was getting more excited. “Yes I did!!”
“How?”
“They went on an expedition.”
She looked at her husband and he nodded. “We’re your parents.”
Now Evelyn was incredibly excited. But then she was confused.
“How did you get here?”
“We found the old map buried in our backyard. It spoke of a cave that had tons of treasure in it! Only later did we find out it didn’t have any gold or jewels, but lots and lots of books. And they were very old books too. Then that monster came and took us here and this is where we’ve been ever since. At least he keeps us fed.”
As if to make a point, Leo had left for a couple minutes to grab them some food. He came back with some dried meat, some veggies and some water. He split it evenly between the 7 people in the cages. When he got to Evelyn’s cage though, he only gave her half of what he gave everyone else. She didn’t care. She wasn’t very hungry, but she ate anyway. Then she went to sleep.
It was like this for several weeks or maybe months. The only light in the cave came from the couple torches that were hung on the wall. She chatted with the other people, ate the food offered to her, and slept. Sometimes people would come to rescue them, with swords and bows, but failed and were killed. Eventually, she started getting tired of the daily routine. She started coming up with a plan to escape.
In the cage with her were her canteen, her backpack and the leftover food from the last night. In her backpack were her flashlight, compass, constellation paper, map, some trail mix, extra clothing, and a bunch of paper clips. Why did she have paper clips? Wait. Paper clips can be used for picking locks! She looked for the lock on the cage. There was a small one near the top on the right. Evelyn unfolded the paper clip so there was a point sticking out. She stuck it in the lock, and wiggled it around. Nothing happened. She tried again. Nothing happened. She tried again and again, and each time, nothing happened. So she gave up.
About an hour or two later someone else showed up. He looked very strong and he challenged Leo. Leo jumped on him, claws extended, but the man pushed him to the side and into the cave wall. There was a lot of red suddenly. Evelyn looked away.
She started to cry when she heard a loud SNAP for she knew the man had been killed. But when she looked back, she saw the dead body of Leo. She was instantly overcome with grief. Even though he had treated her badly, she had still loved him. The man took the key and opened all the cages, freeing all the people that were trapped. She immediately went to her parents and gave them a big hug. Then they left the cave and went back to their house where they lived for the rest of their lives.
Prologue
That night, Evelyn went outside and looked up at the stars, just like the night when this all started. She was almost asleep when she saw some movement. The stars were moving! There, now in the sky, was Leo. Evelyn smiled, and remembered how playful he had been when she first met him. Then she grew sad as she thought of how he had been mean to her in these last couple months. And now he was in the sky, so she could see him and remember all the fun they had. Then she fell asleep in the field, where all this had first started.
Recipes
Blueberry Pie
By David Holdbrook Smith
Ingredients
Flaky Pie Pastry
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
5 to 6 tablespoons ice water
Filling
4 cups blueberries
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Directions
Make the Flaky Pie Pastry
Mix flour, sugar, and salt together in a large bowl. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in 5 tablespoons of the water, until just moistened. If dough seems dry, stir in remaining 1 tablespoon water.
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead 3 times. Divide dough into 2 pieces, pat into 6-inch disks, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour.
Roll out flaky pie pastry into two 12-inch rounds 1/8 inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Fit 1 round into a 9-inch glass pie plate. Transfer other round to a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Make the Filling and Pie
Preheat oven to 375°F. Toss berries in a bowl with sugar, flour, lemon juice, and cinnamon. Pour filling into pie crust.
Lightly brush rim of bottom pie crust with water. Drape top crust over filling. Press dough edges together and trim overhang to 1/2 inch; fold overhang under and crimp decoratively. Using a sharp knife, make a 1-inch slash in the center of top crust.
Bake pie for 1 hour, or until filling is bubbling and crust is golden. Transfer pie to a wire rack to cool before serving.
Make Ahead
The pie dough can be refrigerated for 1 day or frozen for up to 1 month.
Ingredients
Flaky Pie Pastry
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
5 to 6 tablespoons ice water
Filling
4 cups blueberries
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Directions
Make the Flaky Pie Pastry
Mix flour, sugar, and salt together in a large bowl. Using a pastry blender, cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in 5 tablespoons of the water, until just moistened. If dough seems dry, stir in remaining 1 tablespoon water.
Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead 3 times. Divide dough into 2 pieces, pat into 6-inch disks, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate until chilled, at least 1 hour.
Roll out flaky pie pastry into two 12-inch rounds 1/8 inch thick on a lightly floured surface. Fit 1 round into a 9-inch glass pie plate. Transfer other round to a baking sheet lined with wax paper. Refrigerate until ready to use.
Make the Filling and Pie
Preheat oven to 375°F. Toss berries in a bowl with sugar, flour, lemon juice, and cinnamon. Pour filling into pie crust.
Lightly brush rim of bottom pie crust with water. Drape top crust over filling. Press dough edges together and trim overhang to 1/2 inch; fold overhang under and crimp decoratively. Using a sharp knife, make a 1-inch slash in the center of top crust.
Bake pie for 1 hour, or until filling is bubbling and crust is golden. Transfer pie to a wire rack to cool before serving.
Make Ahead
The pie dough can be refrigerated for 1 day
Brownie Batter Dip
By Kae Hildreth
Hello! This is the May-June Issue recipe segment! This month’s recipe is Brownie Batter Dip! Very good with apple slices and pretzels.
1 package (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1/3 cup baking cocoa
1/4 cup 2% milk
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
M&M's minis, optional
Animal crackers, pretzels and/or sliced apples
Directions
1. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Beat in confectioners' sugar, cocoa, milk, brown sugar and vanilla until smooth. If desired, sprinkle with M&M's minis. Serve with dippers of your choice.
Enjoy!
Mr. Duncan Celebrates 20th Annual Summer Hot Spots Publication
The Overlook Wingspan
