balitang bamboo (the bamboo news) - issue #1 - september 23, 2015

Middle School ISM September 23, 2015

A Pathway Is Built For MS Journalism: Balitang Bamboo By: Bettina Catoto

Elementary School has Bamboo Shoots, and High School has two publications: Bamboo Telegraph and Newsflash. So, why isnt there a school-wide publication for MS students? For the first time, we will be creating our own MS publication. Inspired by Mr. Burkes Journalism blogs, Mr Willeys Journalism class wanted to expand viewership on the student's work. Bamboo Telegraph, a prominent website edited by ISMs HS students, has received contributions from MS students. Irene Lee, an eighth grader, said, Their articles are interesting, and a good way to keep up in school events. Even if we are starting small, it would be a great way to work our way up! says Liz Sunga, our current editor-in-chief. Bamboo Telegraph started as a semesterly or quarterly printed newsletter, and was upgraded in SY 2012 - 2013, by Daniel Um, Mia Kawazu, and Andie Ayala (Class of 2014) to an online publication.

Middle School ISM 1

Bamboozled

The Bamboozled Column will be a weekly edition to the Balitang Bamboo that includes a collection the weeks best jokes and funnies. The column will also eventually include advice and suggestions for any problems that readers write in about.

Jokes of the Week

Q. What do you call a tiny phsycic that just escaped from prison? A. A small medium at large! - Alicia Forsythe

Q. What should a person get who tells knock-knock jokes? A. A No-Bell Prize! - Bettina Catoto

Q. Why couldnt the bike stand up on its own? A. It was TWO-TIRED! - Max Ritchie

Q. What did the alpaca say when he was getting ready for a journey? A. An adventure? Alpaca my bags! - Lucas Batungbacal

I wondered why the baseball was getting bigger. Then it hit me! - Gregory Pruss

Photo by Natalie Gleyze, Grade 7

BALITANG BAMBOO The Bamboo News


Who Will Kick Off the First Richo Cup? By Gaby Anugraha

September 15 was the start to the first ever Richo Cup in Mr. Richardson B block PE class that took place in the MS gym. This year, the new coming teacher, Mr. Richardson, joined in with the PE fun by creating a tournament. This year, Mr. Richardson kicked o the Richo Cup with Volleyball. The winning team was Team B, which included the following students: Bianca McKeown, Rohan Tulshyan, Ethan Douglas, Maanya Chaturvedi and Gregory Pruss. In an interview with Mr. Richardson, he says that a good strategy, good communication, good teamwork and a high work skill led them to victory. He tried his best to evenly distribute the dierent students into teams, which varied in skill, so that they could work together and use the dierent techniques for the game. From the beginning of the unit, Mr. Richardson could feel the excitement and build-up, so much that it was palpable. The winning team won games with the scores of 20-8, 22-5, 15-10 and 15-9; winning all 4 games.

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The Great Works Concert 2015

By Irene Lee

The Great Works Concert is one of the most anticipated concerts every year. Music performance classes along with individual soloists work together to present significant works of a variety of composers. Opening its curtains on the Tuesday of September 22 at 5:30 pm, students will line up outside; eager to see the performances. Gaby Anugraha, a middle school participant in the concert, says, It is interesting to see how high schoolers and middle schoolers collaborate on a single performance. This year, the groups will be performing two famous pieces: John Rutters Magnificat and George Gershwins Rhapsody in Blue, with guest artists from the Manila Symphony Orchestra. Rhapsody in Blue is a 1924 musical piece that was composed for a jazz band and solo piano. Rutters Magnificat is an extended composition of seven movements based on the biblical canticle, Magnificat. ISM is featuring soloist Lisa Zheng, who is a senior at ISM known as one of the top talents for piano in Manila. Photo by Mr. Richardson

Photo from ISM HS Flickr


Extra Elective: More Choices and Freedom in MS By Max Ritchie

This year ISM replaced 7th and 8th grade COW and Ideas classes with a new elective space for students to engage in. I believe in giving students choice, said Mr. St. Laurent when asked about the change. A survey that had been sent out shows that an overwhelming percentage of students enjoy the new elective space. Mr. St. Laurent says that students are now more motivated and that their enjoyment in class has increased. Based on survey results, over 75 percent of students believe that the new elective space helps them learn more eectively. He also says that ISM has tried to fit the concepts of Ideas and COW into Science and Social Studies curriculums. The ISM program guide places emphasis on giving 7th and 8th graders the opportunity to continue classes that they enjoyed in their earlier middle school years. With the new elective space expansion, Mr. St. Laurent also said that now students wanted to take band or strings but also have an additional elective are no longer missing out.

Middle School ISM 3

Photo from www.tabletennisvic.org.au

Photo from www.clearlypositive.co.uk

Smash and Loop for your Victory By Ian Barton

Students in the school of ISM were at the table tennis court on Friday afternoon. They were practicing doubles strategies for their tournament that would be starting in couple of minutes. After their practice, the coach started the tournament and watched the students battling for their victory, the tournament, and for the prize. To win the tournament, you had to win three of five games. There was brutal rivalry matches, especially between the 7th and 6th graders. In one furious game, a pair of 7th graders battled a pair of 6th graders, ending in a 3-2 win to the 7th grade pair. During the game, the students were smashing with all of their power attempting to save the other teams horrendous smashes and hits. The coach said the players will continue the tournament the next time they meet again, so the


Pokemon GO! By Lucas Batungbacal and Trevor Yu

A new game has struck the internet, Pokemon Go, a virtual reality game that brings our beloved Pokemon series into the real world using state of the art technology that spawns Pokemon randomly on the camera screen of your device, area exclusive, along with the Pokemon Go Plus Watch that alerts you when in the presence of wild Pokemon and other trainers are in your premises. Now, you can see a Magikarp in your local pool, capture a Charizard on the beach, or battle a Mewtwo in Times Square. Contrary to popular belief, this app was made to encourage the young Poke-trainers of our generation to go outside and discover Pokemon while recognizing the beauty of nature outside our doors. The gameplay of this application is eortlessly straightforward. This application is the second of two virtual reality games from the same company, the first AR being Ingress, an alien invasion game for adults. This is basically an open world game that builds friendship and teamwork. The dierent aspects of the game are essentially trading, battling, and capturing Pokemon. This allows children to interact with each other in the real world. Opinions vary on this particular topic, but most suggest that it will be a distraction, or hindrance to normal life, explicitly contradicting the purposes of this game. Also, based on first hand information, most middle school students have played Pokemon, some even playing in class. On the other hand, based on previous observations of past AR games and user forums, this game is predicted to be successful on a worldwide scale. Watch out for its release in 2016, and remember, you gotta catchem all!

Middle School ISM 4

Photo from www.pokemon.com

Get Your Mouth Out of Your Computer

By Maryam Imran, Columnist

I was initially going to set my fingers on my keyboard and write an article advocating strongly against this rule of a device-free lunch. This was until I had spoken to Ms. Pekin. Ms. Pekin, Ms. Harrington, and program leaders felt that our school needed a sacred time in which students leave their screen to spend time with others. Out of a total of 1440 minutes in a day, 45 minutes to leave your computer alone is definitely not too much to ask. As said to me by Ms. Van Der Merwe and Ms. Pekin, students use their devices as blankets to secure themselves in from the outside world. Students find it much easier to communicate with others through the internet, than to do it face to face. Behind their computers, their vulnerability is shielded with a glass screen and if they are not pushed out of their comfort zone soon enough, their ability to interact socially will get even worse. These skills are very important to have and develop, especially in middle school. Overall, I do feel as if this new rule is a necessary one. A reason why people would feel negatively about it is because it was a privilege that we always had but never valued, until it was taken away.In conclusion, I do feel as though we we do need to value this rule because it is much more important than we think.


Do Counselors Care About Kiera Cass? By Alicia Forsythe

On Wednesday morning of September 16th, legendary author Kiera Cass selected ISM to visit. To better understand the audiences perspective on her and her Selection series, I interviewed Mr. St. Laurent and Miss Bliss from the MS Oce.

Alicia: So, how do you feel towards the time we get to spend with visiting authors? Saint Laurent: Good. I feel good. Bliss: Well, I find it so cool. I love the Q and A set up, and its really great to finally put a name to the face. Its absolutely fascinating to see how human they are. Alicia: If the Selections Series became a reality, who in the faculty would you love to see fight for the crown? B: To be honest, I think it would be very interesting to see Mr. Saint Laurent versus anyone. SL: Oh, and definitely Lacson versus everyone. Especially Allen. Alicia: And, how about the ladies? SL: Because theyre fighting for the crown, I think Ms Relf would be best. Shed get us all motivated, wed dominate in everything: from sports to happiness. *Mrs Hagedorn entered the room.* B: Oh, how about this lady? Shes absolutely splendid. Alicia: Perfect!

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Photo by Mr. Hamlin

Photo from www.ronreads.com

8th Grade CWW: A Huge Success By Sang Yun Jee

Eigth grade ISM students recently went on a trip to Caliraya for their CWW. Students say Caliraya and giving back to the community was an amazing experience. Classroom Without Walls, or CWW, is an opportunity for students to get out of the classroom and take time to serve less fortunate communities to show their gratitude for what they have. As one ISM student says, Its like all of us were hit with this Reality Truck that was screaming, Hey, the rest of the world isnt as fortunate as you folks. It was hard for us to say goodbye, says another. The 8th graders spent most of their time participating in two different activities. The first was to teach younger students at a local elementary school. The second was to work with local villagers and experience their daily work, which include painting different crafts. There will be another CWW trip later on on February. Students eagerly wait for this time to come!


Photo of the Issue:

Teambuilding at Lake Taal: Grade 7 CWWBy Henri Milvid

On Thursday, September 17th, Grade 7 students went to Club Balai Isabel in Batangas for their CWW trip. We expect kids to be open minded, and students should get to know each other, get to know themselves better, get to see other parts of the Philippines, make new friends, and build social skills, said Ms. Bliss. Additionally, Ms. Villanueva said that she expects kids to have fun and have a good time. Students left ISM at 8:00am on Thursday and returned the next day at 3:45pm. Some of the activities students did were swimming in the pool, skits for their advisory, kayaking, and slip and slide. Grade 7 students also had an option of going hiking up the Taal Volcano, but there were only 65 slots for hiking students. While everyone was on hiking, other students would do various activities at the resort. Seventh Grader, Ian Barton, said he really enjoyed grade 7 CWW.

Middle School ISM 6

Photo by Mr. Hamlin

Photo by Kimaya Ghoge


CWW: What Did We Learn?By Natalie Gleyze

Shain Poon (8): One thing I learned was that sometimes we don't have to have a plan and prepare every single detail to make something work. Sometimes just having a vague or the bluntest idea of what's to come is better because it leaves room for fun and unexpected surprises that might come along the way. Maybe without a step by step plan, things could go better or have dierent memories that we wouldn't have had if we would have a big plan. Asia Benford (7): I think that CWW taught us how to work as a team even though we do do that in class, this was a more interactive experience. You also find out the true nature of people and how they would act in a normal environment. Victor Theisen (7): I learned how to become more of a social person, which really helped me open up to all the academic aspects of learning in school, which is probably the most important skill. Valeria Rivera (6): I learned how to be more social and how to approach people. I wouldnt have learned this in class because in CWW we were forced to work together with people we usually dont pair up with. Colin Winton (5): I learned that people that aren't as fortunate as us and don't have the things we have can still socialise and make new friends that are from dierent places and from dierent backgrounds. Ling Hung-Le (5): I learned that you can progress more as a team than alone, and that even if people make really bad mistakes, you should always give them a second chance. McElhinney, Joanna : During CWW I learned the importance of communicating with others outside our school. It was a great learning experience to begin to build a relationship with Papaya Academy. Without CWW this never would have transpired. Freeman, Neil : I learned a lot about my students in terms of their interests, personalities, abilities, strengths, friendships and general facts about them. Cargile, Jack: This year at CWW I learned that the grade 7 students LOVE to play Capture the Flag! I was truly surprised with the number of students who told me that playing Capture the Flag was their favorite part of CWW this year. I thought our time at CWW was well-spent because I could see students having fun and interacting with one-another in happy, supportive ways. Meal times were a primary example. When we were having a little fun by doing the fashion runway for returning lost items, the whole grade-level cheered in such a fun and supportive way, it made everyone feel a part of something positive and special. Just thinking about it makesme smile. I am proud to be a part of such a great grade 7 team!

Middle School ISM 7

Top to Bottom: Shain, Victor, Colin, Ling, Mr. Freeman, Mr. Cargile

Photos by Maryam Imran


Do We Need Dating In Our Middle School? Editorial Written by Liz Sunga

Dating, what is it? Ask a 5th grader and maybe theyll say that its having someone to call your girlfriend or boyfriend. Ask an 8th grader and they will probably sco at you or squeal in excitement. The thing is, dating is so overrated. From all the teen chick flicks with perfect high school sweethearts to love stories you hear around the halls, it can seem as if the entire school is love sick. But actually, if you think about it, a lot of us students actually think dating is ridiculous. For the few of us who are dating, sometimes it can seem as if your relationship means the whole world, and thats normal! At this age, its true that our hormones are going wild. Meaning, a lot of our actions are actually being controlled by our emotions rather than our rational thinking. Dating can be fun because it means you have someone to talk to, but dating isnt fun when youre crying over someone who asked you out on Gmail. Dating is unavoidable in Middle School, and its not as if its going to ruin your life, but sometimes we just need to take a step back and assess our lives. Dating is said to be driven not only by hormones, but by peer pressure. If your friends pressure you to have a relationship with someone and date them, you probably will, just from the standpoint that you dont want to disappoint or even lose your friends. Bottom line is, dating is simply an inevitable factor in Middle School drama and how you handle and perceive it will determine how much it will aect you and how you work. Just always remember, just because youre dating someone today, doesnt mean youll be marrying them in the next twenty years--but then again, that could happen!

Middle School ISM 8

Photo from www.projectinspired.com

The Balitang Bamboo Team - Reporters and Board of Editors

Reporters:

Gabriella Anugraha

Aldrin Aujero

Ian Barton

Lucas Batungbacal

Bettina Catoto

Alicia Forsythe

Maryam Imran

Sang Yun Jee

Irene Lee

Henri Milvid

Max Ritchie

Trevor Yu

Editorial Team:

Editor-In Chief: Liz Sunga

Copy Editor: India Stephenson

Design Editor: Elena Dickinson

News Editor: Martina Qua

Feature Editor: Gregory Pruss

Art/Music/Sports Editor: Soung Ill Yang

balitang bamboo (the bamboo news) - issue #1 - september 23, 2015

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