december 2014 december: different people,

December 2014

Mendon Center

Elementary School Pickingoutatree,receivinggifts,havingfamilyoveranddreamingaboutSanta.ThisishowAmericanscelebrateChristmas,butthereareotherholidaysouttheretoo.Somehavesimilartraditionsandsomehavecompletelydifferentones.Forexample,Boxing

DayiscelebratedinAustralia,Canada,EnglandandIreland.It’sthedayafterChristmasandinthepastservantsandtradesmenwouldreceivegiftsknownasa"Christmasbox”fromtheirbossesoremployers.

4thgraderAlanRaskincelebratestheJewishhol-idayHanukkah.Hetalksaboutwhathedoeseveryyear.“Thehelpercandle

lightsupallthecandles,”saidAlan.“Onthe/irstdaywelightthehelpercandle,thenthehelpercandlelightsupthecandlenexttoit.Every

dayyoulightupanothercandle,thenwhenthelastoneislitupyoucelebrate!”Alanandhisfamilydo

differentthingsforeacheightdaysoftheholiday.“ForHanukkahfamily

andclosefriendsgettogetherandeatfoodcalledlatkeswithsourcream.Youalsogivepresents,”Alanexplains.“Everydaywegiveonegifttoourfamilyandfriends.”Inmyhouseat

Christmastimeourtraditioniscuttingdown

#MCE is published by Mendon Center

Elementary students in

grades 3-5, under the

guidance of Mrs. Carpin,

Mrs. Iserson, Mrs. Ford

and Mrs. Bonadio.

Student staff members

select topics, research and

write the content of the

paper. Many thanks to

everyone who contributed

On Your Mark, Get Set, Go! by Kristen Azzara

Haveyoueverrunthe

MCETurkeyTrot?Ifyou

haveoldersiblings,have

theyeverparticipated?If

not,you’reinforatreat!

Inthisarticle,I’lltellyou

allaboutthisracefor3rd,

4th,and5thgraders.

EveryNovember,usual-

lyclosetoThanksgiving

break,thereisachance

for3rd,4th,and5thgraders

toparticipateinarace

aroundtheplayground

andtheblacktop.

Thisyear,the3rdgrade

girls’winnerwasDani.In

the4thgradegirls’race,

Audreywasthe/irstto

crossthe/inishline,and

People 13-15

Holidays 1, 3, 16-17

Food 18-19

Animals 11-12

Technology 4-6

Comics 20-22

Puzzles & Fun

14, 16, 18, 23-25

… plus news and fun

Inside this issue:

December: Different People,

Different Holidays, by Jackson Smith

Continued on Page 2

Continued on Page 3

Issue 2

☺ As you read, look for the ☺. It means you have reached

the end of the article!

#MCE

ourowntree.MymomisfromVietnamandmydad’smomisfromGermany.Wealsoincludefoodanddecorationsfromthesecountries.Ithinkhavingotherculturestogetheriscool.TheJapaneseholidayisOmisoka.

ThiswillbeonDecember31.PeopleinJapancelebratethisholidaybycleaningtheirhousesandeatingabigmealthenat11p.m.theygettogetherandhaveonelastmealoftoshikoshi-soba(noodles).Theybelievethateating

Different People, Different Holidays, continued from Page 1

longnoodleswillgivethemalonglife.AfricanAmericansenjoy

celebratingKwanzaafromDecember26toJanuary1.Itisacelebrationoflife.LiketheJewishholidayHanukkah,candlesareusedtorepresentsevenconceptsofthisweek.ThecolorsofKwanzaared,blackrepresentstheirpeopleandgreenrepresentstheir/lag.EventhoughAlandoesn’t

celebrateChristmas,hedoesn’tfeelbadaboutit.

Alansaid,“Idon’tfeellikeI’mmissingoutonChristmasbecauseitisn’tpartofmyreligionandChristmasEveismymom’sbirthday.IloveHanukkah.”JustliketheChristmassong“We

WishYouaMerryChristmas,”IhopeyouhaveaMerryChristmasoranyotherholidaythatyoucelebrate.☺

Haveyoueverwantedtolearn

anotherlanguage?Well,youthink,

“Ican’tlearnanotherlanguage

becauseitistooexpensive.Eventhe

virtualonesareexpensive!”

WithDuolingoyoucanlearna

languageofyourchoiceforfree!My

dadandIareusingDuolingo

(pronounced:Doo-oh-ling-go)to

learnItalian.IthinkwithDuolingo

you/indlearninganotherlanguage

fun!

AllyouhavetodoisdownloadthefreeDuolingoapporgotowww.duolingo.com.

WhenyougetDuolingoyouwill

beabletodothe/irstlevelbefore

youhavetogetafreeaccountsoyou

canseeifyoulikethelanguagethat

youchose.Therearemanydifferent

languagestochoosefrom.

Thereisalsoawebsitecalled

RosettaStoneandIthinkyouwould

behappywitheitherDuolingoor

RosettaStone.

TogettoRosettaStoneyouhavetogotowww.RosettaStone.com.

Keeplearning!☺

Make Learning Another Language Easy! by Nicholas Salamone

King of The Snow by Cornelia Crumley

Three fluffy white balls

Two black eyes and an orange nose

I’m the king of snow!

coinsyoucanuseanythingthatcan

bedividedequallyandgivento

eachpersonsuchaspennies,

m&m’s,paperclipsandmuchmore.

EachHebrewletterrepresentsa

certainthingyouhavetodowith

yourchocolatecoins.

TheHebrewlettersonthe

dreidelaregimmel( ),hey( ),

nun( )andshin( ).

Nowherearethedirectionsso

youcanplaydreidelathomeand

havealittleexperienceofHanuk-

kahfun.

Duringthistimeofyearthere

aremanyholidays.Oneofthose

holidaysiscalledHanukkah.Itis

celebratedbytheJewishpeopleand

isknownastheFestivalofLights.

DuringHanukkahfamilieslighta9

placecandleholdercalledameno-

rah.Thereare8daysofHanukkah

andyoulightonecandleforeach

day.Thereisanextracandlewhich

isalsoknownastheShamash

candle,a9thcandlethatlightsallof

theothercandles.Alsoonthe8

nightsfamiliesgathertoeatdinner

together,openpresentsandspend

timetogether.Wealsoeat

somethingcalledpotatolatkes.

Theyarelittlepattiesmadewith

potatoesandfriedinoil.People

likedippingtheminapplesauceor

sourcream.

Butoneofthemostexciting

thingsonHanukkahisyougetto

playdreidel.Duringdreidel,you

spinaspecialtopwithHebrew

lettersoneachside.Eachperson

playingthegamehaschocolate

coins.Ifyoudon’thavechocolate

Spinning Dreidels on Hanukkah, by Talia Gutkin

Spin a gimmel and win

everything in the pot!

On Your Mark, Get Set, Go! continued from Page 1

forthe5thgradegirls’race,Danielle

receivedthe1stplaceribbon.

Congratulationstothewinnersof

theboys’races:Ryan(3rdgrade),

Devan(4thgrade),andJohn(5th

grade)!

Whentheraceiscomplete,bagels

andhotchocolaterefreshyouafter

yourunacrossthe/inishline.Then

youwalkinsideandthe1st,2nd,and

3rdplacewinnersareannounced.

Everyonegetsaribbon,andthe

runnersfrom1stplaceto3rdplace

receive2ribbons.

Mrs.Malloyisinchargeofthis

activity.Nextyear,ifyouareold

enoughtoparticipate(3rd,4th,and

5thgrades),shewillgiveyouapiece

ofpapercontaininginformation

abouttheraceandapermissionslip

foryourparentstosign.

Ifyouaregoingtobein3rd,

4th,or5thgradenextyearandyou

wanttobeapartoftheTurkey

Below,theorderoftheTurkey

Trotracesisshown:

Firsteveryoneputsone

chocolatecoinintothemiddle

(calledthepot).Thenyoudecide

whoisgoingtobe/irsttospinthe

dreidel.Yougoinacircletaking

turns.Ateachturneveryoneputs

anotherchocolatecoinintothepot.

Thepersonwhogoes/irsttakesthe

/irstturntospinthedreidel.Once

thedreidelstopsspinningandfalls,

youseewhatHebrewletteris

facingup.Ifitisagimmelyouget

everythinginthepot.Ifyoulandon

heyyougethalfofthepot.Ifyou

landonshinyouputoneinthepot.

Ifyougetnun,yougetnothingand

youdon’tputanythingin.Towin

thegame,youhavetohaveallthe

coinsoryouhavetohavethemost

coinswhenyoudecidetostop

playing.Ihopeyoueventuallyget

theexperienceofplayingthegame

ofdreidel.Eventhoughthedreidel

maylooklikesomethingsmall,it

createsalotoffunandIreallyhope

youenjoyit.☺

Trot,well,ruf/leupyourturkey

feathersandgetreadytorace!☺

Didyouknowwhenkidsgetcancersometimestheylosetheirhair?IfoundoutthatpeoplecandonatetheirhairsowigscanbemadeforthesechildrenandIwantedtodothat.

Therearetwocompaniesthatyoucangothrough.The/irsttimeIchoppedmyhairoffIdonatedittoLocksofLove.ThistimeIdonatedmyhairtoPantene.Whentheyreceivethehairtheywillsendyouathankyoucard.

Oncethehairisintheirpossessionitwillgothroughmanystages.First,theywillpreparethehairandsortit.Second,theywillcollectthesuppliesforweavingthehairintoawig.Third,theyweavethehairintoawig.Forth,theywillsendthewigtoagirloraboythatissick.I'msurethesekidsfeelbetter

andarethankfulforthedonations.Althoughboththesecompanies

dothesamething,thereisadifferencebetweenthecompanies.ThedifferenceisPantenerequires8inchesandgivesthewigoutforfree.LocksofLoverequires10inchesandsellsthewigs.

Youcangetmoreinformation

ontheinternetonhowtodothisifyouareinterested.Rememberyourhairwillalwaysgrowback.

WheneverIdonatemyhair,IfeellikeIdidsomethingkindforothers.IliketobehelpfulsoIthinkdonatingyourhairistherightthingtodo.

AfterreadingthisarticleIhopeyou'reencouragedtodonateyourhairandhelpasadkid,achildinneed.☺

Chop! Chop! I Cut My Hair Off! by Eva Mihalitsas

#MCE

Whenever I donate my hair, I

feel like I did something kind

for others.

Also,youcangettootherplay-

groundsbypressingthebutton

withapictureofaworldonit.You

willhave8playgrounds,andothers

areanin-apppurchase.

Fromtheplayground,youcan

changeyouravatar.Youonlyhavea

fewchoicesofavatars,butyoucan

buymorewithrealmoney.Anyway,

backtotheplayground.

Doyourememberthenotebook

fromthetutorial?Typein“good

hugerainbowdragon,”andtapen-

ter.Next,tapthedragonandtap

“ride.”Togettothedifferentlevels,

press“levelmenu”afteryoupress

“start.”Thenitwillshowyoudiffer-

entworlds.Taponaworld,thena

Haveyoueverheardofagame

calledScribblenauts?Ifyouhave

heardofit,youmightliketheapp,

ScribblenautsRemix!Thatisthe

appI’mgoingtotellyouabout.

First,youneedtoknowwhat

you’redoing.Thereisatutorialthat

willtellyouhowtoworkthegame

whenyouopentheappforthe/irst

time.

Allright,nowyouarereadyfor

sometipsandthingstodo,solet’s

getstarted!Youwill/indyourselfin

theplayground.Theplaygroundisa

littlelikeMinecraft’screativemode,

exceptyoudon’thavemuchroom.

Pressstarttogettothelevels.

Thereismoreaboutthelevelssoon.

App Tricks: Scribblenauts Remix, by Jared Berger

menuwillpopupthathasallthe

levelsthatareinthatspeci/icworld.

Towineachlevel,thegoalisto

solveapuzzletoearnastar.Now

herearesomecheatsforthelevels!

Inworldone,thereisalevelwhere

thestarisonatree.Insteadofcut-

tingitdown,getahelicopterto

reachit!

Inworldtwo,thereisalevel

whereyouputaliontosleep.Get

somemeatanddragittothelion.I

hopedyouenjoyedmyarticle,and

tryoutthisawesomeapp!☺

Is the Google Glass Spectacular, or What?, by Ashaaz Imroz

andyoucanchoosewhatlanguage

youwantittotranslateto.The

“GoogleNow”featurewillprovide

youwithtraf/icnoti/icationssuch

as“Airtraf/ic1hrdelay”.This

wouldbeaveryusefultoolthat

wouldcomeinhandy.

IfyouaskGoogleGlassfora

foodrecipee.g.“OKGlass,/inda

recipeforahotfudgesundae”it

willgiveyoutherecipeandyoucan

startmakingthefood.GoogleGlass

canalsoletyoulistentomusicwith

headphones.Anotherfeaturecalled

LynxFit,whichisapersonal/itness

coach,canhelpyouwithyour

healthgoalsandyoucansubscribe

toaworkoutchallenge.Google

GlasscanalsogiveyouaGPSeither

fordriving,walking,orevenona

train.Itwillgiveyouspeci/icturn

byturndirectionstotakeyou

whereyouneedtogo.

Formoreinformationonthe

Googleglass,simplytypein“Google

Glass”inGoogle’sonlinesearch

engineandclickonthe/irstlink.

ThanksforreadingandIhopeyou

getachancetoeitherseethe

GoogleGlassortryitoutfor

yourself!☺

Didyouseeorhearanything

abouttheGoogleGlass?Wellifyou

havenotthenreadthisarticle.The

GoogleGlassisaneye-wearglass

thathasallsortsoffeaturesthat

candothingslikemakevideos

whileyouarewearingthem!They

alsoprojectthingswithitslittle

prismonthesideoftheglass.

Duringthesummer,Iwentto

Savannahandonatrolleybus,a

manwaswearingtheGoogleGlass!

Itwasthe/irstandonlytimeIhad

everseentheGoogleGlassin

person.Thegreatthingabout

GoogleGlassisthatitdoesnot

actuallyhavealens–butifyou

want,youcanputitonGoogle’s

brandofsunglassesandalsoattach

ittoanormalglasslens.TheGoogle

Glassalsohasnavigationfeatures

soforexample,ifyouareridinga

bikeitwillnavigateyoutoyour

destination.

Forpeoplethatloveplaying

golf,theSwingBytefeaturewill

coachyouandguideyoutoseehow

youareswingingagolfclub.Ittells

youyourclubspeed,clubpath,

tempo,andmore.TheGolfSight

featureisagolfGPSthattellsyou

whatparyouareon,pindistance

andcoursedata.

GoogleGlasshasamicrophone

soifyouspeakclearly,youcanget

ananswertoyourquestions,which

inmyopinionmightalsomakeita

cheatingdeviceifastudenttriesto

look-upanswerstotestquestions

usingGoogleGlass–which

obviouslyshouldnotbedone!The

Glasscanalsomakephonecallsand

keepintouchwithfriendsand

familyonthego.

Ifyouwant,youcanbuy

sunglasslenseswhichwere

speciallymadefortheGoogleGlass

soitcanturnintohightech

sunglasses.TheGoogleGlassusesa

featurecalledWorldLens.(e.g.Say

thatyouareinJapanandyoudon’t

knowANYJapanesebutyouhave

broughtyourGoogleGlassalong

withyou.Youcanthengotoany

sheetoftextwithJapanesetextonit

andsay“OKGlasstranslatethis”

• Winterprecipitationismostly

snow(unlikeinRochester,no

matterwhatscientistsorthe

weatherchannelsays)

• Summersareusuallywarm.In

thewinter,stillputonyour

jackets,becauseitisn’tquite

pleasant.

Whileitperhapswaskindof

long,hopefullyitwasinteresting.If

you’relookingformore

information,goto:

http://www.en.m.wikipedia.org/

wiki/Russia

Goodbye,thankyouforreading.

☺

Russia & the USSR, continued from Page 9

#MCE

Hey,Jammers!Gracehere,and

todayIamreviewingagamecalled

‘’AnimalJam.’’AnimalJam’sfull

nameis,‘’NationalGeographic

AnimalJam.’’Itisagamewhichisa

realistic/ictionbecausetheplayers

(animals)cannot‘’ban’’orblock

peoplewhobullyothersinreallife.

Thetruethingisthatitbelongsto

NationalGeographicandthe

animalsarereal.

Nowlet’stalkaboutthedaily

spin.

Inthedailyspin,youcangetthe

variousobjectswhichare

diamonds,agiftbox,gemsand500

gems.

Nowlet’stalkabouttheDiamond

Shop.

TheDiamondShopisaplace

whereyoucanspenddiamonds.

Here’sadiamondcode.Thecodeis

twelve.Membersgetdiamonds

everyweek.

Youcanalsotradeobjectsin

AnimalJam.

Nowlet’sreviewthejourney

book.

Animal Jam Review, by Grace Biswas

Gotothebeachlookingareaand

lookunderTierney’sAquariumand

clickonit.Youwillgetapictureof

whatitisandinfoaboutit.Ifyou

completeaplaceonthejourney

book,forexample,Icompleted

CoralCanyons,andyouclickedon

thegiftbox,youwouldgetaprize.

Nextlet’sreviewparties.

Inparties,thereisalwaysaplace

whereyoujammersouttherecan

buystuff,butsorryifyouarenota

member.Almosteverythingisfor

members,so,Iamreally,really

sorryguys!!!

Finallyadventures!

Inadventures,youneedtodo

whatitsaysonthescreen.When

youaredone,youchooseachest

fromthe5chestsandclickonthe

chestyoupicked.Youwillgeta

prize.

Afterthat,toleavetheadventure

section,youneedtogointheportal.

Nowyounewjammersknowalittle

aboutAnimalJam.

Becomeamembertodayat

www.animaljam.comandJamOn!☺

Halo in The Halo in The Halo in The Halo in The SnowSnowSnowSnow

by Cornelia Crumley

Lay down in the snow

Arms glide up and legs fall down

Made a snow angel!

Black Holes, by Sophia Albano

veryclosetoblackholesact

differentlythanotherstars.

HOWBIGAREBLACKHOLES?

Blackholescanbebigorsmall.

Scientiststhinkthesmallestblack

holesareassmallasjustoneatom.

Thesearesmallbuttheystillweigh

asmuchasalargemountain.The

largestblackholes,called

“supermassive”havethemassesof1

millionsunstogether.

HOWDOBLACKHOLESFORM?

Scientiststhinkthesmallestblack

holesformedwhentheuniverse

began.Scientiststhink

supermassiveblackholesweremade

atthesametimeasthegalaxythey

arein.

IFBLACKHOLESARE“BLACK”

HOWDOSCIENTISTSKNOWTHEY

ARETHERE?Ablackholecannot

beseenbecausestronggravity

pullsallofthelightintothemiddle

oftheblackhole.Butscientists

canseehowstronggravityaffects

thestarsandgasaroundtheblack

hole.Scientistscanstudystarsto

/indoutiftheyare/lyingaround,

ororbiting,ablackhole.

COULDABLACKHOLE

DESTROYEARTH?Blackholesdo

notgoaroundinspaceeating

stars,moons,andplanets.Earth

willnotfallintoablackhole

becausenoblackholeisclose

enoughtothesolarsystemfor

Earthtodothat.NASAwill

continuetousesatellitesand

telescopestoanswer,andlearn

moreabouttheuniverse.☺

NASAisusingsatellitesand

telescopesthataretraveling

throughspacetolearnaboutblack

holes.Thesespacecrafthelp

scientistsanswerquestionsabout

theuniverse.Hereareafewfacts

aboutblackholes.

WHATISABLACKHOLE?A

blackholeisaplaceinspacewhere

gravitypullssomuchthatnothing,

notevenlightcanescape.The

gravityissostrongbecausematter

hasbeensqueezedintoatiny

space.Thiscanhappenwhenastar

isdying.

Becausenolightcangetout,

peoplecannotseeblackholes.

Theyareinvisible.Space

telescopeswithspecialtoolscan

help/indblackholes.Thespecial

toolscanseehowstarsthatare

Mission to Mars—Update 2014, by Radhika Sarlaskar

Assomemightremember,in

November2013Ihadreported

thatIndiahadlaunchedits/irst

missiontoMarsalsoknownasthe

RedPlanet.Ihadsaidinthatarticle

thatIwouldprovideanupdate

whenthespacecraftreachesthe

Redplanet.ScientistsattheIndian

SpaceResearchOrganization

(ISRO)hadpredictedthatitwould

enterMars'orbitinSeptember

2014,andguesswhat.......

Aspredicted,thespacecraft

enteredMars'orbitonSeptember

24,2014."Indiawillbecomethe

/irstAsiancountrytohave

achievedthis,andifithappensin

themaidenattemptitself,India

couldbecomethe/irstcountryin

theworldtohavereacheddistant

Marsonitsownsteaminthe/irst

attempt,"saidRadhakrishnan,

ChairmanofISRO,asthespacecraft

approachedMars'orbit1.

Thisisabigaccomplishmentfor

India,andgreatnewsforotherswho

wanttolearnmoreaboutMars.

ComparedtoRussia,UnitedStates,

China,andJapan,Indiadidafar

betterjob,becauseallhadfailedin

their/irstattempts.TheChairman

ofISROsaid,"Wewerereallynot

racinganyone,butwithourselves

toreachthenextlevelof

excellence."1.Beingthelastoneto

trythismissionwasn'tabadidea

becausethiswayIndiagotmore

ideaswhichtheywereableto

improveon.

Herearesomeinterestingfacts

aboutthismission:

India'sMarsOrbiterMission

(MOM)isanunmannedspacecraft

ContinuedonPage8

5 Things You Didn’t Know about Frozen, by Ana Blanco

#MCE

Letmetellyouabouttheworld's

greatesthit.....Frozen!Ihavegone

behindthescenesandhavedone

someresearchandfoundsome

amazingthingsIdidn'tknowthey

wereeventhere.Thereare4

differentcharactersfrom4

differentmoviesbutI'mnottelling

whotheyare.You'll/indoutlaterin

thearticle.

1)DidyouknowAriel,Rapunzel,

AnnaandElsaareallconnected?

Accordingtomyresearch,theship

ArielandFlounderwentintowas

thesameshipAnnaandElsa's

parentsdiedon.Also,whenAnna

andElsa'sparentsleftontheship

theyweregoingtoseeRapunzel's

weddingbuttheshipsunk.Finally,

RapunzelandFlynnRiderwentto

seeElsa'scoronation.Yousee?All

thesecharactersconnected.

Okay,okay...I'lltellyouonething

butjustone,Rapunzelisoneofthe

fourcharactersfromothermovies

thatappearinFrozen.You'llhaveto

keepreadingto/indouttheothers.

2)DidyouknowAnnaand

Rapunzelaresupposedtobe

cousins?Theylooksomuchalikeif

youlookveryclosetheyhavethe

sameface!Ithinktheyseriously

lookliketwins.Annawaskindof

supposedtohavethesamefacebut

alittlebitchanged.

3)Hey!Weren'ttherethose4

differentcharactersfromdifferent

Disneymovies?

Well,let'ssee.Wealreadytalked

aboutRapunzel,let'stalkabout

MickeyMouse.Wellyousee,when

Annagoesto"WanderingOaken's

TradingPost",Annapicksupher

dressandbootswhileMickey

Mouseishidingbehindaredmug

ontheshelf.Youcanplayitback

andlookcarefully,I'msureyou'll

/indMickey.

4)Nowlet'ssee,wegotRapunzel

andMickeyMousesowe'vegot

CinderellaandTianaleft.Let's

makethisoneaboutTiana.Okay

Tianashowsup2timesinthe

movieduringthecoronation,and

whileElsaissinging"ForTheFirst

TimeInForever"andlookingout

thewindow.Youcan'tseehervery

wellbecauseshe'sverysmalllike

theotherpeople.

5)Okayyoumightbethinking

weighing1,350kg(2,976lb).

Thenameofthespacecraftis

"Mangalayan"(derivedfromthe

words"Mangal",whichinIndian

languagemeansMars,"Yan"means

vehicle).

Itwaslaunchedontheafternoon

ofNovember5th,2013.

ItreachedtheRedPlanet'sorbit

onSeptember24th,2014.

Costofthismission-thewhole

missioncostlessmoneythanittook

tomakethemovieGravity.Thecost

ofthismissionwas74million

dollarswhileitcost100million

dollarstomakethemovieGravity2.

Isn'tthatincredible?

Inthesenextsixmonthsthe

missionwillstudytheatmosphere

ofMars,lookformethanegas,and

trytoanswerthemostimportant

Mission to Mars, Continued from Page 7 question,"Arewealoneinthe

universe?"

Ifeelweshouldalwayskeep

lookingforanswersandnevergive

up.

References:

1)http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-

india-29307123

2)http://money.cnn.com/2014/09/25/news/

india-mars-cost/

☺

Continued on Page 10.

Russia & the USSR, by Lisa Ponomarev

Manypeoplehaveaskedmeto

tellsomeinformationaboutRussia,

sincemyfamilyoriginallycame

fromtheformerUSSR.Ididn’t

alwayswanttotalkaboutit,

perhapsbecauseIdidn’thavethe

timetoshareallthedetails,orjust

answermultiplequestions.Hope

youwill/indthisarticleinformative

anduseful.

Manyyearsago,several

countriesusedtobeonebig

countryknownastheUSSR.The

USSRstandsfor‘TheUnionof

SovietSocialistRepublics.”This

formercountrynolongerexists,

nowbeingmultiplecountriesafter

itfellapartin1991.Partofthe

USSRbecamesmallercountriesin

Europe,forexampleBelarus(where

myparentscamefrom)and

Ukraine.Thesesmallercountries

maynotbenearlyaswell-knownas

theUSSRlargersuccessor

situatedbothinEuropeandAsia.

Thiscountryisknowntomanyasa

recordholderofthebiggestcountry

inAsia,andtheeasternhemisphere

and,overallthewholeworld.Ladies

andgentlemen,Ipresenttoyou,a

countrythatyouprobablyalready

guessed(it’sinthetitle!),Russia.

Facts, Facts, more Facts, …

Etc.

Thereisalottoshareabout

Russia.Forinstance,animalsand

species,foodsanddrinks,

geography,andclimate.Thisisnot

alltheinformationoneachsubject.

Herearesomegeneralthings,

alongwiththerareanimals.

Thereare266mammalsalone.

Fiveofthecreaturesareextremely

endangered,orindangerof

becomingextinct,ornonexistent.

Herearethreewell-knownrare

mammalsworthmentioning:

Rare Animals

• SiberiantigersarefoundinSi-

beria,theeasternpartofthe

formerUSSR

• Bialowiezanbison,foundonly

intheBilowieziaforest,also

knownasEuropeanbison

• Siberian/lyingsquirrels

Some Endangered Animals

• Beaver*

• Europeanseaotter

• Heron*

• Bobcat,mostlyfoundinthewil-

dernessofSiberia;iflookingfor

aliveone,gomeetTaraatWild

WingsofMendonPondsPark*

• Swans*(randomfact:Ihavea

realfeatherfromacanoeing

trip)

Common

• Europeanredsquirrel,foundin

citiesandwilderness;nogray

fatsquirrels,unlikeintheUS.

• Hedgehog*

• Multiplewolves*(sidecom-

ment;probablylotsofhowling

notasmuchsleeping…)

• Coyotes*

• Manybirdslikeinthisarea:

Owls,Robbin,Nightingale*(5th

graders:BigMamawasacom-

monEuropeanowl)

• EuropeanHare

• Bats*,morecommoninsouth-

ernmostparts

• Racoon*

Some Traditional Foods

• Borscht,soupofbeets(when

usedinMadagascar3for

RussianTiger,mywholefamily

laughedeverytimewewatched

it.)

• Buckwheat,inRussianknown

as‘Kasha’

• EasterKulich,anEasterbread

thatourfamilygetsfrom

‘EuropeanDeli’store

(recommended)thisgoeswell

withPaskha

• Caviar

• Kvass,non-alcoholicbeverage

madefromryebread

• Pirogi,piethatcancontain

sweetorother/illing

Some Geographical Info

(Russia)

• Capital:Moscow

• Largestcity:Moscow

• Language:mostlyRussian

Climate

• Humidclimate

• Severewinters

• Subarcticclimatezone/polar

climate

• BlackSea(darkwaters)

• Sochiisonthebeachesofthe

Blacksea,Sochiwaswherelast

year’swinterOlympicstook

place

• Someareasarehumid

‘subtropical’(likeinRochester)

andmild,wetwinters

Continued on Page 5 *=maybefoundintheUS

EasternHemisphere-theeasternhalfoftheglobe

#MCE

andcollectingthemorgivingthem

asgifts.

I,myself,bought2Jellybears

yesterday;theyareKissesand

Playful.

So,ifyouhaven'tseenoneup

close,comeondowntotheMCE

bookstore,duringstorehoursand

buyone;theyareonly$2per

bear.Come/indoutwhatthe

crazeis,youneverknow,Imay

comeandinterviewyouandyour

collection.

Wellthat'sallfolks.Thisis

CareenaSondhi,your

neighborhoodMCEreporterwith

thehappeningsaroundMCE.☺

Jelly Bear, by Careena Sondhi

Ifyouhaven’tstoppedbytheMCE

Mart,youmightbemissing

something.

Whatisit?

TheMCEMartisMendon

Center’sBookstore.Itsellslittle

toysandpensandotheritems

thatyoumightwant.

What’sthere?

MCEMartsellserasers,locker

buddies,NFLtoys,pens,pencil

lead,JELLYBEARS(theCRAZE)

andmore.

What’sthepricerange?

Theitemscomeinarangeof

$0.75-$2.00.Thingsfromlast

yearareonsaletoo,ranging

from$0.50-$0.75.

Whoworksthere?

TheMCEMart’semployeesare

Mrs.Hosbach,Ms.Egan,anda

groupofMCE’sFifthGraders.

Whereisit?

TheMCEMarthasanew

locationthisyear.It’sdownthe

centerhallway,pasttheof/ice,

ontheleft.

Whenisitopen?

Thestoreisopen8:30–8:45

am,everyWednesday,

Thursday,andFriday.

Haveanotherquestionabout

theMart?StopbyorcontactMrs.

HosbachorMs.Egan.☺

Check Out the MCE Mart By Abby Calabrese

"What?CinderellaisnotinFrozen".

Wellletmetellyousheis.Sheonly

showsuponceinthemovienot

thatfarawayfromTianainthe

coronation,youcan'treallyseeher

aswellbecausesheblendsinvery

wellwiththeotherpeople.

Well,Ihopeyoulikedit!Tolearn

moregotoYouTube.comand

searchupFrozenMovieMistakes

withaparentorguardian’s

permission.☺

Careenahere,theMCEreporter

onalldifferentthings.Movie/

bookreviews,crazenews,

etc...Today'snewswillbeonthe

Jellybearcrazethathastakena

holdofMCEstudents!Haveyou

heardofJellybears?Ofcourse

youhave,everybodyatMCE

knowsaboutthem.Welloneday

onthebusridehome,Iasked

anotherstudenthowmanyJelly

bearsshehas;shesaid

15!!Whoa,that'srightfolks,you

heardit15!!!!!It'salittlebit

surprising,butevenboyshave

beengettingthem(maybea

stockingstufferformom,or

sister)?Anyways,asIwassaying,

tonsofpeoplearebuyingthem

5 Things You Don’t

Know about Frozen, continued from Page 8

Getting Ready

by Cornelia Crumley

My hat and my gloves

Plus my coat and fluffy

boots

Time to go and play!

The Beast of Loch Ness, by Alejandra Blanco

Morethan80yearsago,inthe

year1933,ayoungcouple,Aldie

andJohnMackay,weredrivingby

theLochNessLakeinScotland.All

ofasuddenAldiescreamed…“AH!

Thereisabeastinthelake!”John

stoppedthecar,andlookedata

giantbeastinthemiddleofthelake.

Itwasthesizeofthreeschool

buses.Itlookedlikeamixofa

dinosaurandadragon,withbulging

paleeyes,sharpteeth,anditsback

–longandcurved.Aldiehugged

John…thiswasit,theyweregoing

todie…theydidNOTdie;butthey

justthoughttheyweredeadbe-

causeofhowscaredtheywere.

Anyway,aftertheincidentof

the“LochNessBeast”,you’dexpect

thattheywouldtelleveryonethey

knewbutno…theydidn’t.Theyjust

keptquietbecausetheyknew

nobodywouldbelievethem.Until

oneday,theyjusthadto.Theyhad

totellsomeoneorelsetheywould

burstlikeabubble.So,theydid,

theytoldtheirfriends…whotold

theircousins…whotoldtheir

grandpa…whotolda

cryptozoologist*thatdecidedtogo

onanexpeditiontogolookforthis

“beast.”

Forthepasteightdecades

severalscientistshaveled

hundredsofexpeditionsto/indthis

monster.Andoverathousand

peoplehaveclaimedtohaveseen

theBeastofLochNess.

Somecryptozoologistsdid

/indsomethingstoprovetheLoch

NessBeastwasreal.Oneevengota

picture!Butothersjustlaughed,

andsaidthis“LochNessBeast”was

amyth.

So,nowit’suptoyoutodecide,

doyoubelieveinthebeastlurking

inthelakeofLochNess?Ordoyou

thinkit’sjustamyth?

Here’swhatsomekidsatMCE

said…

NicoleSylvestri:“Idon’tbelieve

initbecause-ifit’sbeenso

long…andnobodyfound

anything,itcan’tbereal.”

AnaBlanco:“YesIdobelievein

it…becauseitcouldhavebeena

dinosaurthatsurvived–

somehow.Oritmighthavebeen

areallyweirdlookingwhale.”

PatrickScharf:“Yes!Idothink

it’sreal!Peoplejustneedto

searchharder!”

AnaPaku:“Idon’tbelieveinthis

‘LochNessMonster’butIkind

ofdo–anywayifitisrealI

wouldNOTwanttoswimin

thatlake.”

MariaNiculescu:“Sure–itshould

exist,whatifitwasadinosaur

andlivedoffhisbodyfat…for

many,manyyears.”

NolanHarrison:“Idon’t.It’snot

real.”

*cryptozoologists–(fromGreek

κρυπτός,kryptos,"hidden"+

zoology;literally,"studyofhidden

animals")isapseudoscience

involvingthesearchforanimals

whoseexistencehasnotbeenproven.

☺

#MCE

Findingaperfectpetisnoteasy.

Whatyouneedtodo/irstisgotoa

localpetshopto/indthepetyou

want,forinstanceLollipopFarm.

Afteryouhavefoundthepet

youwantthenemailorcallthe

placethatyouwenttolookatthe

pet/s.Thenthepersonwhoyou

emailedorcalledwillputthepet/s

thatyouwantedintheholdsection

ofthepetstore.

Afterthestoreputsthepeton

hold,arrangeadatetoseethepet,

andifyouareluckyyouwilltake

thepet/shome.Whenyoutake

yournewpet/shomethenyoucan

nameit/them.Herearesomeideas:

Tanner,Lola,Fluffy,Mittens,or

Muf/in.

Youhavesucceededbuyinga

pet!☺

Finding a

Perfect Pet, by Ashlyn Harrington

Somepeoplewantdogsbutdo

notknowhowtocareforthem,so

herearesometips.

Firstyourdogmaynoteat

chocolate,garbage,grapes,raisins,

houseplants,macadamianuts,

Dogs, by Ella Fessler

mushrooms,onions,toomuchraw

meatorsharpbones.

Secondyourdogshouldsleep

insideeitherwithyouorinadog

bed.

Third,dogsshouldeatdogfood,

Lucyismy“puppy”andsheisabrown,blackandwhitebeagle.ThedayIgotherwasthemostexcitingday!ItwasonedayinApril2012whenIwasstillatdaycare,mydadpickedmeupearlyandsaidhehadasurpriseforme.Iasked“Whatisit?”“Apuppy!”hesaidveryexcitedly.“YEAH!!!Thankyou..thankyou…thankyou”Isaid“thankyou”about10times.IhadalwayswantedadogtoloveandplaywithsinceIwasthreeyearoldandcouldn’twaitfortheendoftheridetowhereweweregettingthepuppy.Whenwegotthere,theownerscameouttomeetusandtoldusthepuppy’snamewasPeanut.TheyshoweduswherePeanutsleptandbroughtustothebackyardtomeether.Thenthebestparthappened!Igottomeetmypuppy!!Peanut,hermomandbrotherwererollingaroundinthedirt,chasingeachotherandnippingeachother’stails.Ihappilywatchedthemplaywhilelisteningtotheownerstellinguswhatkindoffoodtogivetoher.WesaidthankyouandIcarefullycarriedPeanutgettinginthecar.Theridebackhomewasabumpyoneforthepuppyandshethrewuponmylap.WebroughtherhomeandnamedherLucy.

Oneofmyfavoritethingstodo

Lucy, My Playful Puppy, by Tiana Schantz

withLucyisplaywithherinthesnow.OnetimemydadandIbuiltasnowfortandtunnelthesizeofLucyandsheranrightthroughit.AfterI/inishbuildingmysnowmanLucylikestoknockoffthearmsorpullthescarfoffthesnowmanrunningaroundintheyardwithitinhermouth.Whenthereisalotofsnowonmytrampoline,IjumponitandformapilesoLucycanclimbthepileandbounceonthetrampolinewithme.ThatissomuchFUN!

Ialsolikejumpingintheleaveswithherinfall.MydadandIraketheleavesintoareallybigpile.ThenIsprintasfastasIcanandjumpintoit.IwavetoLucyandsheleapsintothepilewithme.Lucycan/indherballquicklyevenifIburyitdeepintotheleafpile.Ilovewatchingherdothatandgiveherabigcheer.

OnLucy’s1stbirthday,shegotaspecialsurprise.MymommadeherabirthdaycakewithmeatballsandIputagreenbeanontopasacandlestickandcucumbersonthesidesfordecoration.Lucy/inisheditinasecond.WeclappedandIsangheraspecialHappyBirthdayindoglanguageRuff,,,ruff…ruff...

ILOVEMYPLAYFULPUPPYLUCY!!!☺

chewrawhidebonesanddrinkwa-

ter.

Lastly,youneedtofeed,water,

andwalkyourdogeverysingleday.

Dogsarealotofwork;however

theyareveryworthit.☺

Who Is Ms. Kokinda? by Emma Berg, Elizabeth Vicks, and Sophia Albano

DoyouknowwhoMissKokindais?SheistheBESTteacherEVER!!!!!BelowaresomequestionsandanswerstohelpyouknowMissKokindaalittlebetter.Q)Howlonghaveyoubeena

teacher?A)Thisismy10th yearteaching.Q)Whatisyourfavoritesubjectto

teach?A)Therearethree:Reading,Math,

andSocialStudies.Q)Howmanystudentsdoyouhave

inyourclassthisyear?A)Ihave13girlsand10boysinmy

3rdgradeclass.Q)Whatisyourfavoriteicecream

/lavorandtopping?A)Abbott’svanillawithrainbow

sprinkles.

Q)WhenisyourB-day?A)August17thQ)Doyouhaveanypets?A)IhaveadognamedEllaand2

catsnamedZandJosie.ILOVEthem.:)

Q)Whatisyourfavoritebook/

story?A)AllDisneystories,Winniethe

Pooh,andTheRabbitisNext.

Q)Doyouhaveanyallergies?A)Iamallergictobeestings,dogs,

cats,andmanyotherani-mals.(Before,IsaidthatIhavecatsandadog...Iactuallytakemedicinetomanagemyallergies.OneofmycatsisnamedZandthat'sbecauseoneofmyallergymedicineiscalledZ).

SonowyouknowwhoMiss

Kokindais.Don'tyouthingsheisCOOL?Well,EmmaBerg,ElizabethVicks,andSophiaAlbanosuredo!☺

Mrs.HigginsisaThirdGrade

TeacheratMCE.Shehasbeen

teachingforsixyearsandthisyear

isherseventhyear.Beforeshe

taughtatMendonCenterMrs.

HigginstaughtatBarkerCentral

School,inNiagaraCounty,along

LakeOntario.“IhavetaughtSecond

GradeforthreeyearsandFourth

Gradeforthreeyears,soIthought

ThirdGradewouldbeperfectfor

me.”Shesaid.Shelovestoteach

becauseshegetstohelpkidslearn

importantskillsforlife.Mrs.

Higginslovesseeingkidsgrow,

mature,andlearntolove

knowledge!“Icometoschool

excited,becauseIknowIwillteach

mykidssomethingnew,”Mrs.

Higginssaid.Shelovesallsubjects

inschool,butmathisherfavorite.

Shelovesteachingkidsneatways

toworkwithnumbers!

SwitchingtoThirdGradeisnot

theonlychangethisyearforMrs.

Higgins.Infact,shejustgotmarried

inthesummertime!Alsoshegota

newpuppy.“HisnameisDudley

andheisaneight-monthold

The Ever-Changing Mrs. Higgins, by Lilly Calabrese

Continued on Page 14

#MCE

The Ever-Changing Mrs. Higgins, Continued from Page 13

Weimenhamer.Dudleyisspunky,

playful,andverycuddly.Sometimes

heisnaughtyandchewsthingslike

shoesandcouchcushions!”laughed

Mrs.Higgins.

IntheupcomingNewYear

thereisalsoanotherbigchangefor

Mrs.Higgins.Sheisgoingtobecome

amother!“Iamveryexcitedto

becomeamom!Ihavethekidsat

schoolandnowIwillhavemyown

childathometoo,”shebeamed.“I

don’tknowifthebabyisaboyor

girlyet.Iamexcitedto/indout

rightbeforewinterbreakin

December,”sheadded.“Mygoalfor

2015willbetobalancebeinga

greatteacherandbecominga

mom,”Mrs.Higginssaid.Seeing

howwellshehasadjustedto

constantchange,I’msureMrs.

Higginswillbegreatatboth.☺

Name and Teacher Word Search, by Elena Lesniak

ContinuedonPage15

CHRISTIAN

ELENA

LEAH

MARY

X C J Y D O M U R S M V C W U L S S

V T H N R Y I E F M S M Q S W P O Y

F U X R Y A G R H L E V Y I F W S E

P X R V I N M Y A B R N X I V O N R

L P C S A S Y G E S W K Y J T K C H

O J E L D P T B L A I H O C I E K P

D N S W U Y Q I F Y H L Q L Z F S M

X R Q L B H P B A S N X L Z Q A D U

M H C U L Z P Z R N H I U E Q R L H

E V L I Z Z J I A N E L E S B W P S

Z N L C F C H M H X Q J H A M S J R

T M U A N I G R M D Q M E U Q Y R M

Y Q Z J T H V S W R R Y A Z W J Z M

W A P H O I L M I N G G D P Z T Y N

J H A M S P J A B U C Y O R L C U Q

C Q U X U M W L F M S K X O J H B C

C G X Q J T P L B T Z E R J D R M A

M S C L A Y T O N W R F A C Z S M Z

O L D I R V A Y Y N S M K S L Q G K

Interview with

Mrs. Humphreys, by Edward Wu, Jack Parrinello and

Spencer Parrinello

(Q=questionA=answer)

Q1.Howmanyyearshaveyou

beenteaching?

A1.Ihavebeenteachingfor

twentysixyears(26years)!

Q2.Wereyouteachingadifferent

gradebeforeandwhydidyou

changegrades?

A2.Ihavebeenteachingalotof

grades.FirstItaught7thand8th

gradeEnglishthenItaught

secondgrade(2ndgrade).After

Itaughtsecondgrade(2nd

grade)Itaughtthirdgrade(3rd

grade)forthirteenyears(13

years).AfterItaughtthird

grade(3rdgrade)Iwentback

tosecondgrade(2ndgrade)

andthat’showIgothere!

Q3.Whatisyourfavoritesportand

whydoyoulikeit?

A3.Iliketriathlon,becauseIcan

run,bike,andswimina

triathlon.

Q4.Whatisyourfavoritepartof

teachingandwhy?

A4.Iliketeachingmystudents

thateverydayisanewadven-

tureandhangingoutwithkids

Q5.Whatisyourfavoritesubject

andcouldyouexplainwhyyou

likeit?

A5.Myfavoritesubjectiswriting,I

likewritingbecauseIlike

seeingmystudentswriting

creativeandartisticideas.

MRSBELLISARIO

MRSHUMPHREYS

MRSLANGER

MRSMALLOY

MSCLAYTON

SRIHITHA

SolutiononPage23

The “Best” Nutcracker Performance, by Abby Calabrese

IinterviewedBriannaBest,aFifthGraderhereatMCE,abouttheNutcrackerballetperformancethatsheisin.HerperformanceiswithNewYorkStateBallet,onDecember20and21,at2:00p.m.intheCallahanTheateratNaza-rethCollegeArtsCenter.“IwantedtodotheNutcrackerperformancebecauseIthoughtitwouldbeagreatexperienceformeandthatitwouldstrengthenmydancingskills.Also,Iwouldgettodancewiththeprofessionals,”Briannasaid.“Ihavedancedforsevenyears.OutsideofdoingballetatBalletPrestige,Iamincompetitiontapandhip-hopandadifferentstudio.”

Briannaisplayingacoupleofrolesintheshow.Sheisaclown,partyboy,andsoldier.Outoftheseroles,herfavoriteisthesoldierpart.“Iwouldsaythisshowismostlyforthewholefamily,”Briannaadded.

Briannarehearsesvarioustimesaweek.“IpracticeforaboutthreehoursonSaturday,withthewholecast,andthenIpracticethedifferentscenesonotherdaysatdifferenttimes,”shetoldme.Shealsosaidshehadtoauditionfortwohours,forallofthepartsinheragegroup.NoneoftheNutcrackerrehearsalschedulesinterferedwithanyofBrianna’sotheractivities.SheisinthisperformancewithhersisterAli,whois13.“Wepracticeathometogetherandit’sjustfuntohaveeachotheratrehearsals,”saidBrianna.

“Briannaandhersister

havebeenworkingreallyhardandthoroughlyenjoyingthewholeexperience.ThishasbeenagreatopportunityforthemtobeabletostudywithprofessionalballerinasandIcan’twaitfortheirperformance,”Mrs.Bestsaid.

“YoucanbuyticketsbygoingtoboxofMice.naz.edu,”informedBrianna.“Wealsodosellticketsatthedoor,butIwouldrecommendbuyingtheminadvancebecausewearesellingoutquickly.”

Ticketsaregeneralseating$15/adultsand$10/children.Ifyougo,pleasetellBriannabecausethecastishavingafriendlycompetitiontoseewhichcastmembercansellthemosttickets.

Briannalearnedacouplethingsduringthisexperience.“Alwayspayattention”and“Knowallthechoreographybeforeyougotorehearsals.”Sheenjoyedtheexperienceandisde/initelydoingitagainnextyear.Butbesuretocatchthe/irst“BestExperience”thisyear!☺

Q6.Canyoutellmewhathappened

inyourchildhood?

A6.Ilikedtocollectbeesinajar

withmyfriendandhisdad

madethejar.Afterwecollected

alotofbees,wewouldcompare

thebeesinthejar.(Nobees

wereharmedanddon’tdothis

athome).

Q7.Whowasyourchildhood

teacher,anddidyoulikehimor

her?Pleaseexplainwhy?

A7.MychildhoodteacherwasSister

Patricia,Ilikedherbecauseshe

taughtmehowtoreadand

write,andsheopenedanew

worldtome.

Q8.Whatwasyourchildhoodschool

name,andwasyourschoolclean

andshinylikeoursordarkand

scary?

A8.MyschoolnamewasSt.Marks,

anditwascleanandshinylike

ourschoolMyfavoritepartwas

clappingtheerasers.

Q9.Howmanyfriendsdidyouhave?

A9.Ihadsixfriends(6friends)and

theywereallboys!Ihadtwo

bullies(2bullies).

Q10.What’syourfavoritebookand

towhomdoyourecommendit?

A10.Myfavoritebookis“Harrisand

Me”,byGaryPaulsen,andI

wouldrecommenditto5thgrade

andupwholikehumor.

Secretfact!Mr.Pumalivedfour

blocksawayfrommeandhewent

tobuypizzawithmeallthetime!

Thanksforreading!Seeyoulaterat

thenextissue!BYE!☺

Interview with Mrs.

Humphreys, Continued from Page 14

#MCE

December Word Search, By Alexa Harrington Top 10 Ways to Have

the Best Holiday

Vacation Ever! By Tess Heffernan

10. Stayuplateandwakeupat

noon.

9. Havehotcocoaatleastonce

aday.**

8. Goiceskating.

7. Watchmoviesalldaywith

popcorn.

6. Buildasnowman.

5. Bakecookies.

4. SLUMBERPARTY!

3. Playwithyourfriends,family

andpets.

2. Playinthesnow.

1. Celebrateaholiday.

**Tips:drinkyourhotcocoawith

minimarshmallowsandwhipped

creamandENJOY!

Holidays Snow Sledding

Snowmen Snowball Fireplace

Cookies Presents Family

Cinnamon Hot Chocolate Decorations

Y H B S I H S Y G L F W U P L

B V A T U K E N F D Z R H L X

W A S L I F I N L U U V A C D

R W D I K M J U O S P B S Z N

E E N M M T Z L G H T L T D O

S G G I I V O L L E Y B A L L

T P W U F N R X K A O Z K G H

L S Y U L K T S J B B J K G T

I T B Z V G A O S K G E J W A

N E A E N B Y L N S O Q S F I

G N A R C H E R Y Y O N W A B

G N U K H I Y B G U R C B N B

Z I K O G R V F L M G O C P Q

J S B H U L L A B T O O F E A

I B S C Y U Z D O V U D X R R

Word Bank for Sports Search:

ARCHERY BADMINTON

BASEBALL BASKETBALL

BIATHLON BOBSLEIGH

FOOTBALL GOLF

LUGE RUGBY

SKIING SOCCER

SWIMMING TENNIS

VOLLEYBALL WRESTLING

Sports Search, by Pratham Bhamare

D E O J H T P R E S E N T S C

E P K F O A O J O G Y V N O L

C K J G T S G V V F G A O X P

O J H O C C N L M F I K G H H

R M G G H H S O J D I E N O T

A B F H O O N O W E E F L L P

T F F J C J O U S C R I B J H

I G A U O R W H U X D B M F J

O H M Y L T B Y H A F G H G H

N J I T A J A T Y S G U U Y O

S U L E T H L S T C H J F J I

G F Y T E B L O G V Y I Y L E

O G L E D D I N G F H K R Y U

J G M M N Z F I R E P L A C E

C I N N A M O N N E M W O N S

It’s Skiing Season, By Noah Mroueh

Therearelotsofplacestoski,

butthere’snoplacelikeHunt

Hollow.Iknowthatmanypeople

havegoneskiingatotherplaces,

buttryHuntHollow.

Thereare20HillsatHunt

Hollow.Iknowthatsoundslittle,

butforaskiplace,that’salot.My

favoriteslopeisFoxRun,because

itconnectstoWhoop-Dee-Doo

AlleyandtheTerrainPark.Fox

Runisagoodhillifyouarean

intermediate(mid-level)skier.The

TerrainParkisagreatplaceto

practicejumps.Ifyouareasnow-

boarder,youcanusethebalance

beamsinthe

terrainpark.Ifyouareaskier,

thenyoucandojumps.Thereis

alsoahalfpipeforskiersand

snowboarders.

Ifyouareadaredevil,thenI

recommendWhoop-Dee-DooAlley.

Youcanjumpoveracreekonyour

waydown.Ifyouareanadvanced

skier,thenyoucandothehill

How Christmas Works, by Cameron Watt

Areyoueverstuckonwhattodointhewinter?Wellifyouarereadthelistbelowoftenthingstodointhewinter.

1. Buildasnowman,youcanuse

acarrotforanoseandputalittlehatonitwithblackcoalfortheeyes.

2. Sled,youcanmakeahillwithsnowatyourhouseorjustgotoasleddinghill.

3. Drinkhotchocolate,withalotofmarshmallows.

4. Snowball/ight,makesuretomakeawallfullofsnowwithsnowballsreadytothrow.

5. Makecookies,IliketoaddchocolatechipsinthecookiesIliketoeat.

6. Watchamovie,amoviethat’sexiting!

7. Getoutallofyourwinterclothes,likehats,gloves,snowpants,coats,andlotsmore.

8. Sitbyaninside/ire,itwillwarmyouupfromthecoldoutside.

9. Wearpajamasallday(forwin-terbreak).

10. Playwithyourneighbors(someoneyourage).☺

Bumps.Bumpshasalotofmoguls.

Thereisatricktogetthrough

Bumps,butitisharder.Youhaveto

gothroughtheforest.

HuntHollowisagreatplace.So,

ifyoulikeskiing,IrecommendHunt

Hollow.☺

10 Things to Do in

the Winter, by Ally Vicks

Christmasisthetimeofyear

whenChristianscelebrateJesus'

birthday.Mostpeoplearehappy

andgiving.

JesuswasbornDecember

25th.Christmasishisbirthday.

Somepeopledon'tbelievein

Christmas.Peopledon'tknow

whattheexactyearJesuswas

born.Maybewewillneverknow.

Littleboysandgirlsbelievein

apersoncalledSantaClaus.They

believeheridesinasleigh.There

are9reindeerthat/lyandthat

steerthesleigh.SantaClauswears

aredjacketwithwhitecotton

spots.Hewearsablackbeltand

blackboots.Hewearsaredhat

andridesinasleighthat/liesat

night.Thereindeersarecalled

Dasher,Dancer,Prancer,Vixen,

Comet,Cupid,Donner,Blitzen,and

Rudolf.Santaonlydelivers

presentstoallthekidsoftheworld

thataregood.Santawillnot

delivertothebadkids.

TheycutdownEvergreensand

callthemChristmastrees.The

treestheycutdownareall

differentshapesandsizes.People

cutdownEvergreensonfarmsand

callthemChristmastrees.They

decoratethetreeswithlights,tin-

selandornaments.OnChristmas

daykidsopenuptherepresents

undertheChristmastreebecause

that'swhereSantaleavesthem.☺

#MCE

Answers to Winter’s Wonderful Words, continued from Page 25

How to Make a

Chocolate Milkshake, By Joy Lee

Roll It Up, by Adelaide Grace

A V E W R O T E V U W N W C

I O E J D U I N G T L G L F

P Y S K N F Y A D D K M S H

R K U Y R R E M S C S I H M

J D L T C C Y W E J V S P P

Q T I M H L C O V R E T M C

M S Z S I M B N O R X L N L

T O H M L T G S L G R E B C

V R A Y L Y T L G I F T S M

F F N Q Y X L E H Q K O Y E

H A T R F O A D N A W E C S

L H G B J W F O I S B A D D

O U Q B U A K Z P N R X G X

E B F L U R R Y J O Q A I T

W L P R V I X N L W F D S E

A F U B D H Q R K D J L I H

C K M G T O I S N O W C O O

V H P E W F Y L S L K J T L

H A P G L O V E S J N E O I

Q T U I X H C D M B H S V D

U Q B F U N G P I T M N X A

F U N T G G S N O W M A N Y

D R F S A S L Z R W Y E I A

Getablender,chocolateicecream,

chocolatesyrup,andmilk.

Firstgettheblenderandputin3

scoopsofchocolateicecream.

Nextputchocolatesyrupandmilk

intheblender.

Thenclosethetopoftheblender.

Nextblenditbypressingthebutton.

FINALLY,haveatastymeal!☺

Sometimesmyfamilylikesto

makesushi.SoIthoughtIcouldtell

youhowtomakesushi.Ilearned

howtomakesushifrommy

Grandma’sfriends,Geiko(Ge-co)

andHajime(Ha-ga-may),wholive

inTokyo.

Firstyoutakearoundbamboo

sushirollingmat.

Nextyouplaceabouttwocups

ofsushiriceinaricecooker,then

rinsethericerepeatedlyuntilthe

ricewaterisnotcloudy.Then/ill

thericepotwithnewfreshwater.

Washsomeveggiesandplace

themonacuttingboardandcut

skinnystrips.

Cutcrabmeatinlittlestrips

andmakesuretheyareprettyeven

inlength.

Checkonyourrice.Ifit’sready,

takeitoutandputitinadish.

Takeabowlandpourinabout

twotablespoonsofricewine

vinegaraddinsugarandsaltand

stiruntilitdissolves.

Placetheseaweedonthe

bamboomatandthenspreadrice

ontheseaweed.Itshouldonly/ill

themiddlethird.Placethestripsof

veggiesandcrabmeatontothe

rice.

Rollthebamboointoalongroll

by/irstfoldingthebottomthirdin,

thenrollitup.Itshouldlooklikea

tubeofsomesort.Nowremovethe

sushirollfromthebambooandcut

aboutaninchapart.Ithinkyou

shouldtrymakingsushi!!!

P.S.OnceIhadtomakesushiwith

hotdogpiecesinsteadofcrabmeat

becausemybrotherdoesnotlike

crabmeat.Hedidnotknowuntilhe

ateit.

☺

Whitechocolatepeanutbutter

crunchesareasweetholidaytreat.

Kidscanmakethembecauseyou

donothavetobakethem.

Sohereistherecipe:

20-24oz.whitechocolate

1cupofcrunchypeanutbutter

(orcreamy)

White Chocolate Peanut Butter Crunches, by Christina Minnigh

2cupsofdryroastedpeanuts

2cupsofminiaturemarshmallows

3cupsofricecrispycereal

Meltwhitechocolateoverlowheat

ormicrowave.Youmightneedan

adulttohelpyouwiththe

microwave.

Stirinpeanutbutter.

Addremainingingredients.

Dropbytablespoonsonwaxor

parchmentpaper,letdry.

Enjoy!☺

Hello.I’mLucyandmeandmyfriendsdidahotchocolatetastetest.Wediditsowecouldtellyouwhathotchocolatewillbegoodforthiscoldwinter.Wehad4kindsofhotchocolate...StarbucksPeppermint,TraderJoe’sOrganicInstant(madewithwater),SwissMissInstant(madewithmilk),andTraderJoe’sSippingChocolate.

Wetriedeachkindofhotchocolatethenwepassedaround

Yum! Hot Chocolate, by Lucy Layton

paperandwrotedownouropinionsandscores.Thesearetheresults.ThePeppermintgota79.TheTraderJoe’sInstantgota69,SwissMissgot87andtheSippingChocolategot59.SothebestonewasSwissMiss.Whenyougethotchocolatemakesuretopickoneofthesekinds.☺

Hot Chocolate Flavor Chocolate-ness Creaminess Total

Starbucks

Peppermint 28 23 28 79

Trader Joe’s Organic

Instant 22 26 21 69

Swiss Miss Instant 33 26 28 87

Trader Joe’s Sipping

Chocolate 15 27 17 59

Bob, by Ethan Bingeman

Granny’s Hot Cocoa, by Carter and Cameron Halpin

I love my hot cocoa

recipe. It’s delicious! Now pour in a bag

of Swiss Miss.

I’ll make some hot

cocoa. Here’s the

recipe

Now add in some hot

water and stir.

First you need a

mug.

Now add salt and

marshmallows. Now give it a stir

and enjoy.

Granny hopes you love it!

Robbery, by Alejandra Blanco

Rat Man, by Alejandra Blanco

In Russia, by Norah Layton

#MCE

A Bowling Life, by Michael Bischopoing and Seth Rosen

Solution to Sports Search, from Page 12

Y H B S I H S Y G L F W U P L

B V A T U K E N F D Z R H L X

W A S L I F I N L U U V A C D

R W D I K M J U O S P B S Z N

E E N M M T Z L G H T L T D O

S G G I I V O L L E Y B A L L

T P W U F N R X K A O Z K G H

L S Y U L K T S J B B J K G T

I T B Z V G A O S K G E J W A

N E A E N B Y L N S O Q S F I

G N A R C H E R Y Y O N W A B

G N U K H I Y B G U R C B N B

Z I K O G R V F L M G O C P Q

J S B H U L L A B T O O F E A

I B S C Y U Z D O V U D X R R

Go...go...

Hi, I’m

Ben!

This is my

life

My life

hurts!

Sometimes it just

hurts them...

I missed it!

Watch

out, Bob!

Hi!

Sorry,

Bob!

My life

hurts! Ow... Say tuned for Life of

a Bowling Pin.

Solution to Name and Teacher Word Search, by Elena Lesniak

C Y O R S

H R I E Y

R A G R H E

I N M A R

A S E S H

L T L I P

S I L M

R A S L U

M R N E H

I A N E L E B S

H M S R

I R R M

T S M

H M

A A

L

L

M S C L A Y T O N

Y

(Over,Down,Direc&on)

CHRISTIAN(2,1,SE)

ELENA(13,10,W)

LEAH(9,6,N)

MARY(7,4,NW)

MRSBELLISARIO(18,13,NW)

MRSHUMPHRYES(18,12,N)

MRSLANGER(1,9,NE)

MRSMALLOY(8,11,S)

MSCLAYTON(1,18,E)

SRIHITHA(10,8,SW)

Winter Coloring Page

#MCE

It’s Word Search Time, by Alejandra Blanco

h e i h j o k i l w s k j s l

j h h o t s i y r q j n d n n

t c d p n w i n t e r k i o s

r g e e f l i y n a k b n w g

e f s l u b v s u a k j a d e

o v n u e y l w o j l d m a d

n f k l j b a q n x k e q y j

s k f s i h r h s q b m j s j

l a u x c h n a j k j k e a k

u i n y w a g a t o m d a p o

s o s e m i h o l i d a y s l

b n v w u h t k p i o c m u z

k o o k j u s n p e i n l n b

h n c w l z n l g r w q u y q

s h h o t c h o c o l a t e w

Find the words listed in the word bank inside the word search!

Word Bank

Winter, fun, holidays, snow, celebration,

snow days, hot chocolate, snowman

HeythereMCE!Haveyouever

wonderedaboutquestionslike:Who

madethe/irstSudoku?OrWhydid

theymakeaSudoku?Oranythingelse

aboutthehistoryoftheSudoku?Well,

ifyoujustkeepreading…youmight,

justmight/indtheanswerstoyour

Sudokuquestions!

WhatisaSudoku?

ASudoku(pronouncedSu-Doe-Ku)

isa9x9squaregridwithsquaresthat

arealreadyfullandsquarestobe/illed

in.ASudokuisalsoknownasa

wordlesscrosswordpuzzle.Eachrow

andcolumnhastohavethenumerals1

-9andyoucan’trepeatadigittwiceor

moreinaroworcolumn.Whenyoudo

aSudokuyouhavetoremembernotto

giveupandtotryhardbecauseifyou

do,yousoonwillhaveananswertothe

Sudoku!

HowdoyouplayaSudoku?

Youshouldprobablygetastrong

start,here’show:tostart,trytolook

forsomesquaresthathavequiteafew

numbersalreadyplacedforyou.You

shouldprobablylookforwhatyou’re

missingintheroworcolumn.Itisnot

aguessinggame.Remember,always

havefun!

Whomadethe$irstSudoku?

The/irstSudokuwasmadebya

Japanesepuzzlecompanycalled

“Nicoli”.TheSudokuwasmadein

1892.ThemodernSudokuwasmade

bya74yearoldretiredarchitect

namedHowardGarnsin1979.Howard

GarnswasborninIndianaontheyear

of1905.

Like to Be Challenged?

Try a Sudoku, by Ella Cheng

WhydidtheynameitaSudoku?

ThewordSudokumeans

SingleNumber.TheSudokuwas

originallynamedNumberPlace.A

Sudokuisafunandexciting

mentalchallenge.

Whatsizewasthe$irstSudoku?

Thesizeofthe/irstSudoku

wasa9x9,whichmeantithad9

downacolumnand9ina

row.The/irstSudokuhad81

squares.Itmayseemlikealot

whenyou/irsthearitbut,when

youseeitinperson,itwillnot

seemlikealotofsquares.

Sudokuisareallygoodgame

becauseinitiallyitisquitehard

but,onceyoureallygetthehang

ofit,theSudokuwillnotbeso

hard.So,giveitatrynexttime

youseeoneinyourlife.OH,and

havefundoingit!☺

Winter’s Wonderful Words! by Cornelia Crumley

Terrific TreesTerrific TreesTerrific TreesTerrific Trees

by Cornelia Crumley

Big, tall, green, spikey

Terrific trees are everywhere

I want this one please!

A V E W R O T E V U W N W C

I O E J D U I N G T L G L F

P Y S K N F Y A D D K M S H

R K U Y R R E M S C S I H M

J D L T C C Y W E J V S P P

Q T I M H L C O V R E T M C

M S Z S I M B N O R X L N L

T O H M L T G S L G R E B C

V R A Y L Y T L G I F T S M

F F N Q Y X L E H Q K O Y E

H A T R F O A D N A W E C S

L H G B J W F O I S B A D D

O U Q B U A K Z P N R X G X

E B F L U R R Y J O Q A I T

W L P R V I X N L W F D S E

Words:

HatSnowman

GlovesGifts

MittensFlurry

SnowFrost

SledMerry

FamilyCarol

ChillyMistletoe

A F U B D H Q R K D J L I H

C K M G T O I S N O W C O O

V H P E W F Y L S L K J T L

H A P G L O V E S J N E O I

Q T U I X H C D M B H S V D

U Q B F U N G P I T M N X A

F U N T G G S N O W M A N Y

D R F S A S L Z R W Y E I A

Words:

Hat Sled

Fun Snowman

Gloves Gifts

Snow Holiday

AnswersonPage18

BYOP!Iwillbereviewingthe

BigHeroSixMovieforall#MCE

readers.Inthismovie,aboy

namedHero,goestoarobot

/ightingcenter.Robot/ightingis

illegalandyouhavetopaymoney

toenter.Thenheandhisolder

brother,Tadashi,goto"anerd

school"(actuallycollege);Hero

callsit"anerdschool."SoonHero

entersacontestforthebest

inventionthatmaygethiminto

Tadashi'scollege.Afteralittle

whileHero,Tadashi,/ivefriends,

andaweirdrobotteamupto/ight

evil.Therobotcanbestbe

describedasalittleweird(inacool

way),andawesome.

Ifyouwantto/indoutwhois

thismysteriousrobotthatIkeep

tellingyouabout,whatevilarethey

teamingupto/ight,doesHeroget

into"nerdschool",orother

questionsthatyouwanttoget

answersto?EASY---haveyour

parentstakeyoutoseethis

movie.Psst,ithasthingsforadults

too!!☺

BYOP! (Bring Your Own Popcorn!) A Review of Big Hero Six by Careena Sondhi

Knock-knock!

Who'sthere?

Jimmy.

Jimmywho?

Jimmyalittlekissonthecheek!

Knock-knock.Who'sthere?Peas.

Peaswho?Peasopenthedoorandletmein.

Knock-knock.Who'sthere?Police.

Policewho?Police,canIhavemoredessert?

Riddle Me This, Riddle Me That, by Lilly Calabrese

Knock-knock.Who'sthere?Abby.

Abbywho?Abbybirthdaytoyou...

Knock-knock.

Who'sthere?

Tock.

Tockwho?Tocktome,I’mlonely.

Knock-knock.Who'sthere?Arthur.

Arthurwho?Arthuranytreatsforme?

Knock-knock.

Who'sthere?

Lettuce.

Lettucewho?Lettucein,we’recold!

Knock-knock.

Who'sthere?Turnip.

Turnipwho?TurniptheT.V.,please.

Knock-knock!Who'sthere?Cows.

Cowswho?Cowsgo"Moo",not"Who"!☺Source:www.bestfamilyadvice.c

om/kids-jokes.html

Have a Wonderful Winter Break!!

Happy New Year!

december 2014 december: different people,

Documents