Boyce Middle School Student Newspaper

Volume 16, Issue 3

May, 2011

Have you ever thought of joining the South Hills Junior Orchestra (SHJO)? SHJO is an orchestra made up of string, band, and percussion instru-ments for musicians of all ages. Most musi-cians are in grades 5-12. The orchestra is con-ducted by Mr. and Mrs. Fox. SHJO meets every Saturday from 10:30AM to 12:30PM at the Upper Saint Clair High School band room. New musicians are welcome to any practice. Please come and have some fun! During orchestra prac-tice, we play many dif-ferent songs. They could be a jazz piece or a classical piece. For example, there is a jazz song called, “Strike up the Band” which is ex-citing to play and there is a classical song called, “Concerto

South Hills Junior Orchestra by James Boston

Busch Gardens 2

Artist’s Corner 3

Technology corner 2/4

Poet’s Corner 5

Staff Photo 6

Inside this issue: Grosso in D Minor” that is challenging to play. SHJO offers a variety of ensembles too. (Ensembles are small groups of musicians that that play together.) SHJO has brass, wood-wind, and string ensem-bles that meet on Saturday morning be-fore the whole orchestra practices. I play the string bass in the orchestra and the trumpet in the brass ensemble. I have different music for each group. I like playing all of it. Please consider joining SHJO. If you would try one practice, I am sure you would like it. Mr. Fox’s teacher page, at the Upper Saint Clair High School website,

Thank you to every-one on the Paw Staff - you all did a great job this year!

has a link for more in-formation about SHJO. Open rehearsals are scheduled for any Satur-day that fits into your

schedule. (There are no practices in June, July, and all holidays.) Come try it! You will have a great time and meet new friends!

James with Mrs. and Mr. Fox, di-rectors of the SHJO.

Page 2 Panther’s Paw

Busch Gardens - Williamsburg By Spencer Miller

If you’re thinking about going to a good theme park, then go to Busch Gardens in Williamsburg, Vir-ginia. It has 4 main coasters and many smaller rides. The Loch Ness Monster is a yellow coaster, which loops twice, goes 60 mph., and pulls you down a 114 ft. drop. Apollo’s Chariot has 4G climbs, 0G drops , and is a very smooth coaster. The Alpengeist has an initial climb of 195 ft., has 6 inver-

sions, and goes 67 mph. I saved the best for last, The Griffon. The Griffon has a staggering 205 ft., 90 degree, 70-mph. drop. There are also rides such as Escape from Pompeii, The Roman Rapids, and Le Scoot. In all, Busch Gardens-Williamsburg theme park is amaz-ing.

The Griffon at Busch Gardens, Williamsburg

Hello! Welcome again to Technol-ogy Corner! This month’s issue is not about video games, but about new spy technology that is being used to make a movie about polar bears in the wild. 60 Minutes reporter Bob Simon visited the ship where they dis-patched ingenious camera vehicles such as a floating “Iceberg Cam-era”, a camera in a self-propelling ball and stationary cameras. They are all painted white and are de-signed by Geoff Bell, the head of the expedition’s creator of the cameras. Bell is a former model airplane designer. Meanwhile, Simon visited an expedition, set-ting up a stationary camera by a whale carcass with some meat on it. A polar bear and her cub visited the site a few minutes later. The

Technology Corner Entry #4 By Daniel Speer

mother dives under water to get a look at the carcass which the ice-berg cam then dispatched films.

On shore, her cub was busy mug-ging for the camera, innocent and beautiful. The mother, who obvi-ously didn’t want a camera, took out her disappointment on the hap-less iceberg camera by swatting it several times. Other experiences include a time when the crew planted a camera in front of a polar bear den. Aston-ishingly the mother bear, after many weeks of hibernation, wiped the snow from the lenses then sent the camera rolling downhill. That’s this issue’s Technology Corner. Bye!

Polar Bear playing with the “Iceberg Camera.”

Volume 16, Issue 3 Page 3

I love this hobby for a lot of reasons. For one, my teenage brother and sister can't ride a unicy-cle, even though they

have tried several times. I also love that it makes people smile when they see a unicyclist in ac-tion. The unicycle club I belong to is another great thing about being able to ride. Ive learned tricks like riding backwards and jumping. At our Wednesday eve-ning meetings, we play basketball on unis or do group rides to mu-sic. Its an all ages club and we all help each other get better.

Full of Wonders by Ethan Bowman

If you went to the Pitts-burgh St. Patrick's Day parade, you might have seen me with my favorite club THE WONDERS UNICYCLE CLUB. Whenever someone sees me riding my unicycle they almost always ask “How did you learn that?” My mom jokes “He couldn't afford the front tire!”. Truth is, I learned to unicycle when I was seven and away at summer camp, I took “Circus” as a “prime” (this is a camp term meaning “daily activ-ity”). I worked very hard for a week, and then found my balance. I liked it so much, that I got a uni-cycle for my eight birthday.

If you are interested in learning to ride, you can come to be “well balanced” too! Look up http://www.thewonders.zoomshare.com/ for more info.

Ethen riding his unicycle in St. Patrick’s Day parade (left) and

the pile of unicycles at The Wonders Club. (above)

Artist’s Corner By Laura Lapham

Somber Laura’s Garden

Volume 16, Issue 3 Page 4

Technology Corner Entry #5 By Daniel Speer

Hello again! This issue of TECH-NOLOGY CORNER [Number 5] is probably my last entry, but it shall be the best one yet! Anyway, let’s start this issue, shall we? My article is about Mario Sports Mix. This game for Wii combines Mario, Luigi, Peach, the Mii, and many oth-ers in four sports: Basketball, Volleyball, Dodgeball, and Hockey. Let me tell you the offensive controls for it if you play with Wii remote/Nunchuk in basketball: Trick move = Rotate the joystick or press Z. Pass/request pass=press A. Jump shot in basketball=Shake remote to jump, shake again in mid-air. To dunk in basket-ball=Shake Wii remote while run-ning towards the basket, though I recommend doing it in mid-air es-pecially with Mario and his Fire-dunk. To do a layup in basketball=Press A while dunking. To do a special move [They differ greatly]= Press A and B at the same time. To do an item shot= Hold B while shak-

world. Note: DO NOT share per-sonal contact info, if you offend another player, your connection will be blocked. Personally, I think that this is a very good game. See you next year! Note: If there is any info I did not mention, look for it in the instruc-tion manual.

ing the remote. To do a combo= Hold and then release A when your team has the ball. Those are the offensive controls for basket-ball with a Wii remote/Nunchuk.

To see basket-ball controls without a Nunchuk, see your instruction book. Defensive con-trols for basket-ball with a Wii remote/

Nunchuk in-clude: Steal= Press A. Smash

Steal=Block for an extended time [I have no idea what that means]. Jump Block=Shake Wii remote. To perform a jump cut=Press A while blocking. Jump attack=Press A while blocking shot. To use an item is B. To see defensive con-trols for just a remote or controls for other games, see the instruction manual. In this game there are also other modes besides the regular sports. There is Party Mode, in which you play minigames like Bob-omb Dodge. Another mode is Wi-fi mode, in which you can connect with people from around the

The game cover of Mario Sports Mix

Page 5 Panther’s Paw

smoke

a wisp escapes my chimney on this bright winter day

a strand of wispy gray

all the shades of gray from white to black

fingers reaching out and clutching at the sky

gripping the light greedily

every tendril

stealing from the others man-made clouds they billow out

flitting across the windy sky only to dissolve

slowly, oh so slowly into the crisp, fresh air

matting the blue with all the gray

a wisp escapes my chimney

on this bright winter day

The Poet’s Corner... By Oceanne Fry

The Fates (Just so you know, the fates are a type of Greek mythical creatures

that cut, spin, and measure the threads of life)

cutting fibers snip,snip, snipping thread

measuring strands pulsing, glowing

strands of life deft, nimble hands

flying through delicate work a bit of love, a bit of guilt

weaving magic into every strand every life, something different

intertwine a bit of hope a dream or two

threats and hatred for balance sitting on their oaken stools

flitting from thread to thread

cutting fibers snip, snip, snipping thread

measuring strands pulsing, glowing

strands of life never missing a beat in the intricate dance

interweaving joy and sorrow childish fancies misery thievery

but enough elation to keep mere mortals living

lacing, twisting, braiding, winding contriving filaments of captivating beauty

all began with a white strand so no matter how many burdens

their duty was to bear a bit of light would eventually dapple through

lace in a whiff of poison and mystery sorcery and strength

cutting fibers

Boyce Middle School Student Newspaper

The Panther’s Paw is a Boyce PTA Committee

whose goal is to work with Boyce students to produce

a school newspaper.

Questions or comments? Please contact committee

chairs: Laura Harrison at

harrison2006@verizon.net or

Susan Rosati at susanrosati@comcast.net

Boyce Students… Have a Great Summer!

And 5th graders… See you in the fall!!

Start your brainstorming over the Summer:

on vacation, at the movies, with friends, at the

library - come up with a few story

ideas for next year!

The Panther’s Paw Staff (in alphabetical order) Amatheon Bohan, James Boston, Ethan Bowman, Connor Byrnes, Liam Carse, Gianna Chimento, Maggie Connors, Lilly Drucis, Gracie Eden, Océanne Fry, Jason Glancy, Katy Hall, Cassie Henricks, Lexie Hill, Chloe Holt, Meghan Johnson, Paige Keith, Sophie Kennedy, Megan Langley, Laura Lapham, Eddie Lawrence, Connor Leavey, Ashley Long, Sarah Martin, Abby Matheny, Susan Mathie, Emily McFerran, Emily Meggonnel, Spencer Miller, Neale Misquitta, Jr., Polina Neft, Caroline Nelson, Lauren O’Keefe, Logan Reynolds, Lexi Riley, Sheb Rosati, Allie Ryave, Hannah Sanner, Olivia Shaffer, Daniel Speer, Samantha Spina, Riley Stevenson, Emma Tarcscon, Mia Taylor, Laura Troutman, Anika Wagner, Elizabeth Walsh, Cassie Wangler, Lexie Wirth, Maddie Yoos.

Great Job, Panther’s Paw Staff, 2010-2011