april 2020 - william j. onahan elementary school

April 2020

CoverDesigned byKayla Cartwright

SpotlightMr. Mauro and Mr. Miller

Lion Leaders

Riddles

Coronavirus

Poems of the Seasons

Different Cultures at Onahan: Somalian

Teachers Traveling

The Little LionsThird and Fourth Grade Survey

Selective Enrollment Options

Every 60 Seconds

Boy Scouts

Comic’s Corner

MissionThe Onahan Echo’s goal is to inform and entertain the Onahan community. This publication strives for objective news reporting and to represent the range of opinions from our students and staff.

StaffEditor in ChiefJojo Rickey and Tsewang Lhamo

ReportersLillian ConleyHalima JanowOlivia SzelcJames FasunaAnnalise TammelingAlivia DeMarriasSophia Valdez-HenkleMax MillerCarl CooleyTsewang LhamoIsabella TammelingAlexa LoxasSophia Gounaris

Graphic DesignersKayla CartwrightHarper HansenIsabella OrtizSophia GounarisAlivia DeMarrias

AdvisersMichelle WitczakAnn FeeneyShelly Pillsbury

Contact InformationThe Onahan Echoc/o Onahan Elementary School6634 West Raven StreetChicago, IL 60631(773) 534-1180mmwitczak@cps.edu

Letters to the EditorLetters may be sent to mmwitczak@cps.edu. All names will be published. Letters must not contain personal attacks against an individual and may be edited for libelous content and/or length.

Mr. Mauro began teaching at Onahan this school year. He is teaching gym in Room 110. The Onahan Echo asked him some questions to get to know him a little better.

Q: How do you like being a gym teacher? A: I love it! I like teaching, sports, and teaching kids sports.

Q: Who are your favorite professional sports athletes? A: My favorite professional sport players are Michael Jordan and Walter Peyton.

Q: What is your favorite sport? A: My favorite sport is to play what I’m currently teaching my students.

Q: What are your hobbies? A: I like to golf and go fishing.

Q: What are the top 3 rules your students have to follow? A: My top 3 rules are… To Be Safe, Come Prepared, and Participate In any Activity.

Mr. Mauro

Mr. MillerIn February we got the chance to interview Mr. Miller, the assistant office clerk. These are the questions and his responses.

Q: How long have you been working in the office?A: I have been working at Onahan since 2019 after spring break in the 3rd quarter.

Q: What do you do in the office?A: I’m in charge of attendance, answering phone calls, and

helping parents with the student portal.

Q:Do you like being able to see your kids at work?A: Yes, it is a very interesting experience.

Q:How many kids do you have and what grade?A: I have Max who is in 5th Grade and Emma who is in 2nd

Grade.

Q:Do you have any jobs outside of school?A: No, just taking care of my kids.

Lion Leaders UpdateBy Alexa Loxas

Members:Alexa Loxas Jojo Rickey Sophia Valdez Henkle Flynn O’ FlahertyFintan O’ Shea Sadie Meeks Maya Kolowski Grace Stadler Illiana Niculescu Maya Michalowicz Ava Novak Azel Tokot

What is a lion leader? The lion leaders are a team of 5th- 8th graders. We organize charity drives, assemblies and events at Onahan. We plan field days and spirit week as well.

What weŕe talking about right now:At our recent meetings, we’ve talked about spirit week, the paper drive and St. Patrick’s day.

We meet once a week every Wednesday during lunch and recess.

CoronavirusBy: Olivia Szelc

The coronavirus started on December 1st. The coronavirus started in Wuhan, China. It has affected about 597,258 citizens and it has taken 27,365 lives. However 133,363 have recovered from the illness.

What are the symptoms of the coronavirus?The coronavirus symptoms include..

~ Fever~ Coughing~ Shortness of breathing

In rare cases the coronavirus can lead to severe respiratory problems, kidney failure or death. The coronavirus is very contagious.

If you have any of the symptoms above call your doctor and explain about your symptoms over the phone. Also tell your doctor if you have traveled on a plane or been to a different country over the 14 days, particularly places that have been affected by the disease. Such as China, Japan, Italy, Iran, and South Korea. Also tell them if you have been close (within 6 f.t) to someone affected by the disease.

What can you do to protect yourself?You can keep yourself safe by…

~Washing your hands frequently, if soap and water aren’t available use hand sanitizer.

~ Cover your coughs and sneezes.~ Avoid touching your mouth, eyes, and nose with unwashed hands.~ Stay home when you’re sick.

Do we need masks and gloves? You should consider wearing a mask if you are sick or in close contact with someone

that’s sick. Dr. Raabe says there isn’t any evidence that masks help you if you’re healthy. Gloves are only needed if you are taking care of an ill child or relative. Some examples are when you are cleaning up vomit or changing a diaper.

Which places have the coronavirus?The coronavirus is in 84 countries and here are some of the places affected.~ China ~ France ~ Italy ~ Australia~ Iran ~ Spain~ South Korea ~ Thailand~ Japan ~Switzerland~ U.S.A

Poems of the Season:Spring

The Ecchoing Green

The sun does arise,And make happy the skies.

The merry bells ringTo welcome the Spring.

The sky-lark and thrush,The birds of the bush,Sing louder around,

To the bells’ cheerful sound. While our sports shall be seen

On the Ecchoing Green.

Old John, with white hair Does laugh away care,Sitting under the oak,Among the old folk,

They laugh at our play, And soon they all say.

‘Such, such were the joys. When we all girls & boys,

In our youth-time were seen, On the Ecchoing Green.’

Till the little ones wearyNo more can be merryThe sun does descend,

And our sports have an end: Round the laps of their mothers,

Many sisters and brothers,Like birds in their nest,

Are ready for rest;And sport no more seen,On the darkening Green.

-William Blake

Chosen by: Malia Akrabawi

Spring

Nothing is so beautiful as Spring – When weeds, in wheels, shoot long and

lovely and lush; Thrush’s eggs look little low heavens,

and thrush Through the echoing timber does so rinse

and wring The ear, it strikes like lightnings to hear

him sing; The glassy peartree leaves and blooms,

they brush The descending blue; that blue is all in a

rush With richness; the racing lambs too have

fair their fling.

What is all this juice and all this joy? A strain of the earth’s sweet being in

the beginningIn Eden garden. – Have, get, before it cloy, Before it cloud, Christ, lord, and sour

with sinning, Innocent mind and Mayday in girl and

boy, Most, O maid’s child, thy choice and

worthy the w

- Gerald Manley Hopkins

Different Cultures at Onahan: Somalian By: Tsewang Lhamo and Sophia Gounaris

Recently, we got the chance to interview a student who wanted to tell us about their culture. We interviewed a fellow sixth grader and asked the following questions.

Q:What is your ethnic background?A:My family is from Somalia.

Q:Are there any specific holidays that you celebrate relating to your culture?A: We celebrate Ramadan.

Q:Are there any specific customs in regards to the clothing you wear?A:I wear a headscarf.

Q:Do you eat any ethnic foods?A:Yes, we eat a lot of rice and meat.

Q:Have you ever visited your home country?A:No, I have not.

Q:Were you born in America? A: Yes I was

Q:Are there limits in your culture?A: There is , we always have to be very modest around the house though we can wear what we want but if we were around other generations then we try to be as modest as possible.

Teachers Traveling By: Olivia Szelc

Have you ever wanted the same teacher for 3 years? Well the six graders have traveled with Ms. Marszalec and Ms. Finnegan for 3 years for 4th, 5th, and now 6th grade. In this article we are going to travel to the 6 grade to find out the pros and cons of being together.

Let's start with the teachers. Here is Ms. Marszalec. “ I loved this class when they were in 4th grade. I am so happy to travel with them through 6th grade. The challenge has been learning a new curriculum, but the benefit is knowing what level kids are at, before they begin the next grade. At the beginning of the school year I knew which kids would be compatible for group work and that made the transition to the next grade much easier. Overall, I have been really happy with their progress. It's been lovely to see them grow and socially and academically.”

Now let’s hear what Ms. Finnegan has to say. “There are many great things about teaching the current 6th grade for 3 years. First of all, I know them better than I ever knew a class of students before. I really feel as if I know their academic strengths and weaknesses. Another bonus is that I have seen them grow in nativity in age and in their learning. It’s unique to be able to watch students grow in so many ways.¨

¨The only challenge that I have had is concerns about some students feeling so familiar, that they would not respond to me in the way I want. There is an expression that goes “familiarity breeds contempt.” I don’t want my students to feel tired of having me as a teacher and as a result start hating my class.¨

¨So far that has not been a problem and our last year together is more than half over! I’m really going to miss them next year!”

Now lets see if students agree! Here is Sydney Wilson's opinion from 117. “ If I got Mrs. Marszalce and Ms. Finnegan for the rest of my time in Onahan, it would be the best 7th and 8th grade ever. In 4th grade, I was nervous about being in Mrs. Marszalce’s class, but as soon as half way mark in the year came, I was happy to come to school and I still am because I love being in her class.”

Here is Fintan O’shea’s opinion from 117. “I feel that it was a good and fun experience. I got to know them better and have fun memories. I wouldn’t mind having them again because I already know that they are great, fun, and amazing teachers.”

Here is Andrew Schmidt’s opinion from 119. “ I like traveling with teachers for 3 years because I get to stick with a teacher that I know and knows me. The teachers are so kind!”

What do you think? Would you like to travel with the same teachers for 3 year?

Little LionsBy: Olivia Szelc and Sarah Miller

Hello, we are the Onahan Echo and we interviewed the 3rd and 4th graders. The question was “ If you could go anywhere where would it be and what would you do there?” Let’s begin with the 3rd graders!

301 3rd Grade

Abby Laveau “Florida! I would go to Disneyland and go on a lot of rides.”

Emily Flores“Michigan! I would most likely see my family and go swimming!”

Jake Aguirre“I would go to Mars and play football there.”

Leon Romanczuk “I would go to Universal Studios in Florida. I would go on roller coasters and have an epic time there!”

Neala Devlin “Colorado! I would go snowboarding.”

Pierce Corter “I would go to Las Vegas and probably play soccer!”

303 3rd Grade

Amy Alanis “ Mexico!!” I would play with my dogs and cats!!”

Alex Castillo “Florida and I would want to go to a waterpark.”

Ella Mendoza“ I would go to Florida. I would go to Legoland.”

Evan Rogers“Minnesota and go to water parks and roller coasters”

Kendall Cartwright “ Disneyland! I would go on a roller coaster and go to a candy store.

304 3rd Grade Bryn Orta

“ Los Angeles! I would look around and explore.”Abby Nicolai

“The world of ice that somehow exists in China.”Justin Semany

“I would go to Florida and swim in a fancy pool.”Alex Trzeciak

“The Median of the Republic and I would swim and go on a boat.”

307 4th Grade Kim Alanis

“I would like to go to Paris. I would look at the Eiffel Tower.” Frankie Mauro

“I would go to France. I would go there because I would want to go there because I would like to learn the language. Nikol Kuzmenkova

“ I would go to Ukraine because my family is there and that is where I was born.” Mitchell Guerra

“ I will probably go to Cincinnati Ohio and I will go to a Banges game.” Jack Haddad

“I would go to the Bahamas. I would slide down slides.” Olivia Biedron

“”I would go to Paris. I would visit the Eiffel Tower and go to a bakery.”

305 4th GradeSophia Polec

“ I would probably go to Mars, I would probably search for aliens.” Conner Tucker

“Florida, because it’s nice and I would go fishing and stuff.”Armani Jenkin

“I would go to Australia. I would try to learn how to speak.”Ava Greco

“ I would go to California. I would go to the beach and collect seashells.”Katie Miller

“London” I would see Big Ben and I would see the Queen of England’s castle.” I would also taste all the different foods there.”

Laymiya Asadova “ Germany! I can taste their food and explore.”

308 4th Grade Ava Laurie “ I would go to Florida. I would go to the beach to make a huge sand castle.” Tommy Vargas

“I would go to Poland. I would go to the World War ll museum.”Celisse Sanchez “ I would want to go to New York, I want to go there to explore and see new stuff.” Edmar Toque

“ I want to go to Australia, I want to go there because I want to see new animals and explore.”Joseph Handey

“Ireland” I would go to Mayo and see the ocean.”Meredith Wennlund

“Paris” I would love to see the Eiffel Tower.”

Selective Enrollment OpinionsBy: Isabela, Harper, and Jojo

As you can see, from this graph we know that Payton is the school that needs the most amount of points to get into. And the school that needs the least amount of points to get into is South Shore high school.

But with any selective enrollment high schools comes the stress of testing to get into one. Students should have found out their scores between the 16th and the 29th of February. We wanted to see what other people’s opinions were of testing into selective enrollment high schools and how they deal with the stress. We have interviewed 7th and 8th-grade students to get their opinions. Here is what they said…

Maya, 7th grader: I did AC (Academic center) testing in both 6th and 7th grade. I have to admit I was a little nervous about the testing but I became calmer when the test actually came. This year I did not want to do it but my mom eventually convinced me because it will help me practice for high school. I eventually told them the reason I didn’t want to test because I was too nervous, but they talked me through it. They told me even if I didn’t get in I would still have opportunities at Onahan and I will have more experience with high-pressure testing for high school. If you ever do testing don’t get worried because when you get into it it gets easier. So do your best and don’t be stressed.

McKenna, 7th grader: I tested for AC in 6th grade, I was pretty stressed when testing came around. But this year I tested again and it wasn’t as stressful as it was the previous year but I was still nervous. What I did to deal with stress is I tried my best to ignore it and would think of things that motivated me. Just try your best in testing and you do you.

Catherine, 8th grader: When it came time to test for selective enrollment it was really hard to not be nervous. Once you thought about not being stressed you would be even more stressed than you were before. My advice is do something crazy the day before to get all your stress and nervousness about the test the next day.

Rosey, 8th grader: It is stressful because it felt like my whole life was depending on these tests and it was going to predict my life. But once you stepped into the testing room all the stress went away after a couple of minutes . My advice is don't stress as much as you think because stress can sometimes push you to do your best.

Every 60 Seconds By:Olivia Szelc

Have you ever wondered what happens every 60 seconds? Here are some things that happen every 60 seconds! Let's get started.

Every 60 seconds.. ~ Apple makes $105,130~ 250 babies are born~ 4,500 hamburgers are eaten at McDonalds~ 4.8 million searchers are typed into google ~ 3 dogs are adopted~ 16 million text are sent~ More than 57,800 photo are posted on instagram ~ You blink 15-20 times~ 6,000 bolts of lightning strikes on earth’s surface ~ More than 5 million pounds of garbage are created~ Your heart pumps 1.5 gallons of blood ~ 694,444 hours of youtube video are watched

.Thank you for reading, but can you imagine what happens every 24 hours. If

you’re interested you can do the math to find out!

Boy Scouts By: Olivia Szelc

The Boy Scouts have been around since February 8, 1910, 110 years ago. They're located all around the U.S.A, our pack (loction) is at Saint Thecla. It’s runned by Mr. Malarski and there are groups for different ages. Now let’s travel to Saint Thecla, to see what they do.

Boy Scouts do fun stuff. One example is the pinewood derby car race. The scouts make the cars from wood and race each other. There are other great events. Pawel Romanczuk is a leader of the Bears troop. I asked him how he feels about being a Cubs Scout Leader. “I enjoy being a Cubs Scout Leader, it’s a lot of fun and it is a challenge to prove yourself with interesting, projects for the boys.”

Here are some scouts that were nice enough to share their opinions with us. First is Michael Aguirre's opinion about boy scouts. “It’s lots of fun, we go camping and sometimes we have competitions. Once I won a trophy, also once my whole group won a trophy. When we go camping, we canoe and ride horses. When we’re hungry we eat hotdogs, but we don’t roast any marshmallows.¨

Here is Sebastian Torres' comment: “It’s amazing!”The scout leader comes up with different ideas to keep the

boys interested in different projects. If you are interested, sign up is in September/ October. Mr. Malarski walks around Onahan every year, giving out information and he always passes out Dairy Queen tokens. The location is also unknown at this time, because Saint Thecla will close. Most importantly please tell your parents!