The Falcon's Quill; Volume 4, Issue 2

The Falcon's Quill

grade Blach students win N holastic Awards

8th

Scholastic Art and Writing Awards in late March.

The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards are the longest running art and writing competitions in the US and Canada for young teens.

Past alumni include Sylvia Plath, Stephen King, Marc Brown, and Amanda Gorman, who have all gone on to influence the world of literature and art tremendously.

Past judges for the competition include Judy Blume, Langston Hughes, and Robert Frost.

won the regional award and silver medal at nationals for her piece "Brown Child" laughingly admitted that she didn’t expect to win at all, but that wasn’t what mattered

2,000 pieces won, shocking both winners and putting them in the top 1%.

After being selected by a panel of the world’s most renowned writers and artists, Anoushka Dugar and Elsa Sapojnikoff won national awards at the

260,000 works of art were submitted for this year’s 2023 competition. Of those, only 2,000 pieces won national awards, shocking both winners and putting them in the top 1%.

Anoushka Dugar, who

She didn’t expect to win at all

Only

Photo by Lara Leon

Courtesy of Anoushka Dugar

Editor-in-Chief

News Editor

Editorial Editor

Feature Editor

Sports Editor

Entertainment

Editor

Photographer Graphics

Copy Editor

Staff Writers

Layout & Design

Adviser

Brooke Cullinane

Arjun Shankar

Eliana Tekie

Jisoo Hur

Colby Liu

Jennifer Liu

Amiya Garg

Sidney Nachman

Chloe Outten

Alisha Ramani

Kjartan Arnarsson Colin Yang

Lara Leon Ellie Katz

Diane Shepherd

Mission Statement

“The Falcon’s Quill” is a forum where Blach students in the journalism class can exercise their right to express their thoughts and opinions.

“The Falcon’s Quill” strives to report news accurately and objectively, clearly distinguishing fact from opinion.

Editorials do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the journalism class, Blach School, or the Los Altos School District.

We vow to cover stories without discrimination toward any group.

Scholastic

From page 1

to her. “I went in feeling like someone had actually read my work.”

Dugar’s piece is about her “experience of growing up as a person of color” and feeling pressured to fit into a certain beauty standard – the white standard. Growing up, the majority of characters Dugar saw in books, TV shows, and media were white. She said, “I never saw TV characters I could relate to.”

However, she thinks that people of color are happy to talk about their experiences once they’re given the chance. Dugar wants people of color to be confident in who they are and the way they look, and she hoped to convey that

message in "Brown Child."

Elsa Sapojnikoff, whose piece "Gordita" won at nationals, also wrote about beauty standards. Sapojnikoff wrote "Gordita" at a time when she was feeling insecure with her body image. As a kid, she was never bothered by her appearance However, as she grew older, she started to feel troubled by the way beauty seemed to come naturally to other girls but not to her.

All her anxiety about her appearance eventually bubbled over into her piece. She says "Gordita" is a "cold hard look at the reality of how people feel about weight.” While she recognizes everyone has insecurities, she hopes all people can eventually accept their appearances.

1.

2.

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I never saw TV characters I could relate to

"Gordita" is a cold hard look at the reality of how people feel about weight.

All people can eventually accept their appearances

Courtesy of Elsa Sapojnikoff

Photo by Sidney Nachman

French pension: Mass protests continue against the rise in retirement age

Chloe Outten

Christine Jagueneau began considering retirement on her 59th birthday She had successfully worked for 38 years but had recently lost her job. Thanks to France’s low pension age, she was free to live her life the way she wanted to, with government benefits that would reward her for years of hard work. Right?

Wrong. The French pension age has been raised, undermining the financial security of millions of people. Jake Cigainero, content strategist and producer for NPR, explains that “...the core of the reforms raises the retirement age from 62 to 64…starting in September, the retirement age to

collect a pension will be raised incrementally by three months every year until the age reaches 64 in 2030.”

The French government stated that the overhaul was conducted in order to preserve the government's monetary fund. They said that the change is a good thing, and that it’s inconsequential to work for another two years. The citizens of France disagreed There have been several peaceful protests, such as people blocking the Lille railway line, or union strikes at SNCF (a national railway company.) Fabien Villediew, head of Sud Rail Union, led a peaceful protest at

Later, the protesters went west of the capital to the business district of La Defense, where they stormed Euronext with flares. “We want to show that the mobilization continues,” she said. “There’s no way we’re going to let this reform pass ”

Other gatherings have resulted in violent clashes with the police. In Paris, Lyon, Bordeaux, and more, people are protesting the reform. They are carrying their objections to the streets to fight back.

Since the age has been raised to 64, older workers are having a difficult time getting

jobs and are struggling to make a living.

Robert Foucart, senior economics lecturer at Lancaster University says, “Government agencies predict massive deficits in the coming years as boomers continue to retire, and they need to make changes very quickly ”

These changes have been made, but the people believe the reforms were made at the cost of senior citizens. Boomers are increasingly unable to find work, and the new law could put them in a bad financial position.

The protests are continuing to heat up, and the only question is how much longer are the people willing to be expended?

Courtesy of Encyclopedia Britannica the Gare de Lyon train station.

Blach’s Honors Orc

Jisoo Hur

Orchestra. Schools who qualify for the festival spend three nights and four days in Chicago to immerse themselves in music and sight see Chicago’s wonders.

Blach’s Honors Orchestra earned its place in the event as the only middle school to take part

Blach Intermediate School’s Honors Orchestra flew out of state to Chicago, Illinois from April 15th to April 18th to perform in the Festival of Gold.

The orchestra had to commit hours to the festival

The Chicago Festival of Gold is an exclusive and unique event held at the acclaimed Chicago Symphony

The opportunity to attend is only presented to orchestras that have demonstrated top level performances. Blach’s Honors Orchestra earned its place in the event, the only middle school to take part, after their concert in the Anaheim Heritage Festival of 2022.

For an event so special, the orchestra had to commit hours into the festival. Mr. Lewis, the music program teacher and director of the trip, had the orchestra practice

the chosen pieces from the beginning of the school year: a piece from Vivaldi, a piece from Mozart, and a piece from Beethoven He also held weekend practices on Saturday and Sunday from 10:30 to 12 Soloists practiced separately a few times as well. Kaitlyn Yoon, the cello soloist, states, “But as the concert became more imminent, the anxiety started to build up. As we waited backstage, all I could think about was how not to mess up. But after the performance, I felt a huge wave of relief.”

Kang, a solo violist said. “I was half asleep during the performance.”

The three classical pieces that the orchestra performed were not easy pieces. Mr. Lewis chose the pieces because he wanted the students “to be challenged” and show the judges that Blach students could understand the music. It was not so shallow as to simply play the notes correctly; they had to learn and apply the different techniques of each piece.

“The last concert took place at night, so all of us were rather

On the other hand, Nishi Viswanathan, one of the two solo violinists, was excited. “It’s a big opportunity to play in a nice concert hall.”

Many of the other orchestras that they were competing against were seniors from private schools, while some even traveled across the US to prepare for the festival.

“As Blach, we were a

As the concert became more imminent, the anxiety started to build up

It [they] was not so shallow as to simply play the notes correctly

performing for nationals

also had some technical issues with our instruments.”

Kaitlyn feels the same way. “Next time, we could definitely do better,” she said.

The festival kicked off on the first day with a four hour flight from the San Jose International Airport on Saturday, April 15 The orchestra arrived at Chicago, checked in to their hotel, enjoyed a nice dinner, and split into rehearsals for the night.

The next day was dedicated to upcoming performances.Morning

public school that’s not as qualified. But I think with the hard work the orchestra and the soloists put in, we were able to do just fine,” said Lara Leon, a violist who attended the festival.

"I feel like if Mr Lewis conducted, we would have done better together, and we wouldn't have rushed ” Nishi commented. “We

With the hard work the orchestra and the soloists put in, we were able to do just fine

rehearsals were held in their host hotels, and later in the day, adjudicators held clinics for different groups.

On performance day, Blach performed in Orchestra Hall, and also had the opportunity to watch other schools

“[It] inspired me as a music player; getting to watch all the orchestras perform from different states was an interesting experience,” Annabel Chaw, another student from the orchestra, said. “[I was] really excited, slightly nervous because I thought I would mess up the performances and stuff, but traveling with your friends is fun ”

the event.

Not only did the time serve as a learning experience, the orchestra was able to create fond memories and bond with more people from other schools. It was a new experience for most and “the festival expanded” their musical and social capabilities.

“We all worked really hard for this festival and it paid off,” Kaitlyn said. “[I’m] also grateful to Mr Lewis who gave us this opportunity and spent

“It was an opportunity to experience new things. It helped me understand the performing aspect of being a musician more clearly and taught me what to do next time,” Kaitlyn said, describing

a lot of time and effort into bringing us all to Chicago.” Mr. Lewis's encouragement and supportive words set them up for success.

It helped me understand the performing aspect of being a musician

[I was] really excited, slightly nervous

[It] inspired me as a music player

All photos courtesy of Brittany Nelsen

Blach's spirit shines

What do you think a fun Spirit Day would be?

Milan Shomers: "Decades Day "

Bauer Lee: "Dress up as a senior citizen day"

Olivia Nam: “Dynamic Duo Day and Meme Day”

Madeline Petersen: “Dress up as a celebrity, future career day, and a mean girls themed day”

Sidney Nachman: “Onesie Day”

Agam Rosenberg: “Dress up like a teacher day”

What have been your favorite spirit days this week?

Madeline Petersen: “Big summer blowout”

Amiya Garg: “I would say big summer since it’s kind of celebrating early summer.”

Dagny Yavitch: “Back to kindergarten day or big summer blowout”

Izelle Bhatnagarid: “ I think I like summer blowout the best.”

Photo by Amiya Garg

Photo b

“Zoom day was interesting. I enjoyed seeing people in suits and pajama pants underneath.”

-David Toaropa

Photo by Amiya Garg

10/10, it was fun and creative

-Lukiana Cherkashina

during spirit week

What’s been your favorite Spirit Day ever?

Amiya Garg: “Pajama day for sure”

Izelle Bhatnagarid: “ 80's day”

Brooke Cullinane: “It was really fun with a lot of really creative ideas that I thought were awesome! My favorite day was definitely zoom day.”

Sabrina Hew: “I liked bringing a stuffed animal to school.”

What would you rate Blach spirit days overall on a scale of 1-10?

Meyer Grisanti: “8 because they’re a nice way of participating, but it is very repetitive. I understand it gets hard to come up with ideas.”

Reksmei Reed: “This week would be a 6/10. And the one with 80's would be 9/10 ”

Chase Nakayama: “10! They’re so good.”

Colin Ching: “8, because lots of people show their school spirit”

William Lint: “7/10. There’s a lot of people that do the spirit week themes and a lot of people cheer on the sports teams.”

by Amiya Garg

Photo by Amiya Garg

Photo by Amiya Garg

“It was a fun time to connect and hangout with peers. Thank you Leadership!”

-Angelina Chun

It was unique and fun to participate in. I had a great time. 8/10

-Emmy Su

Social Media: the

Chloe Outten

She loved life

Fourteen-year-old Adriana Kuch was an average girl, loved by her family. "She loved life,” says her father, Micheal Kuch “She was the happiest kid. Everybody love[d] her."

On February 1, Adriana was involved in a school fight at Central Regional High School in New Jersey. She was attacked by a gang of bullies, but despite several bruises on her body, she was not taken to the hospital

A video of the assault was posted on social media, complete with screenshots and nasty comments. TikTok failed to ban the video or flag it as bully behavior.

Adriana Kuch is a classic case of bullying. Almost. Because without alerting parents of its new nature, bullying has shifted.

It’s more permanent and more invasive in people’s lives. The Merriam-Webster dictionary describes cyberbullying as “the use of electronic communication to bully a person, typically by sending messages of an intimidating or threatening nature.”

Cyberbullying can occur in many different ways and can be done on multiple different platforms

Basically, the internet is a minefield of potentially harmful content, where the platforms themselves take zero accountability. But cyberbullying can take a step further into

cyberharassment or even cyberstalking. Online exploitation is always dangerous, but it is often targeted at one of the most vulnerable groups of people Youth

Children are exploited on the internet from as young as two years old. These people are known as child influencers. Child influencers are a fairly new development but are very similar to child actors. Parents market their children in an attempt to get them a fan base and to make them money. However, unlike actors, there are no laws against how long or how hard child influencers have to work.

Some parents will

Courtesy of (AP

Children are exploited on the internet from as young as two years old.

post pictures and videos of their children practically from the first ultrasound, then follow them with a camera for years to come. Since people under the age of 13 cannot legally have an Instagram or YouTube account, these kids cannot legally make money off of their brand.

Many family “channels” will purposefully try to upset their kids, filming breakdowns or even trips to the

source of trauma

But people need to fight back, for themselves and for their children.

Online platforms should be liable for the content posted on their app.

This includes harassment of minors, stalking, threats, crude language, etc These actions are illegal in real life, so why aren’t they illegal online?

Adriana Kuch was found dead two days after the video was posted. Such a tragedy should never be repeated, but people are bullied everyday on the internet. The rich executives are not lifting a finger to help.

emergency room. Others will post pictures and create brand deals for their babies, content that will exist for the rest of their lives. Savannah LaBrant, mother of the Youtube channel “The LaBrant Fam,” said in regards to a controversial video about her daughter: “We know it’s something that we could have not put out on YouTube, but we film our whole lives… This is what we signed up for.” But who is we? Her 10-year-old daughter, who didn’t give consent to be on camera? Why is that allowed?

The internet exploits people everyday, and it can put some in real danger. In the Supreme Court case

Gonzalez v Google, lawyer Eric Schnapper argued that Google was responsible for recommending videos from terrorists Schnapper believes that these videos lead to the death of his client's daughter, Nohemi Gonzalez. Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act prevents companies like Google from taking responsibility for content posted by third party members

But, for his daughter, Gonzalez fights Big Tech. The case is pending

It is nearly impossible to fight back against social media apps. They are too powerful, too influential, and hold too much weight in our everyday lives.

Teens lives are already hard enough without all of the toxic comments and pictures. That’s permanent, and that will never go away. Unless action is taken to help the future generations and to make the world a safer and happier place That starts with apps like TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat. That

starts with the people responsible stepping in to help fix things. That starts when the industry stops being blind to people like Adriana Kuch, people like all of us.

Adriana Kuch was found dead two days after the video was posted.

/Alex Brandon)

Courtesy of Getty Images

Charter schools are crumbling castles

Alisha Ramani

Time spent in school is quite an influential time in our lives. Schools are where we learn how to survive, if not thrive, in the vigorous marathon called life. Imagine a school that creates educational opportunities for parents, students, and teachers, using its independence to alter its curriculum and improve learning.

It sounds perfect, right? A castle on top of a hill, with a

financial records, hold open meetings, or share how money is spent. Is this lack of transparency unimportant, or is it to hide truths they do not want the public to know?

Charter schools market themselves as non-excluding, but it is often not that simple If more students apply than the capacity of the school, attendance at a charter school is determined at random. However, their policies go against this inclusivity.

immigrant students from attending by requiring social security numbers or proof of citizenship.

white picket fence to guard everyone inside. The reality is, the castle fails to acknowledge the bottom of the hill, where the village of everyone else lies, suffering because of the utopian castle.

This is the effect of charter schools, where one independent school can affect other public and private schools connected by a chain that can never be undone.

The intended purpose of charter schools is to be publicly funded, yet have the freedom and flexibility in their curriculum to promote excellence in academic standards. California charter schools are tuition-free.

The sheer lack of information that charter schools share with the public is unnerving. The vast majority of charter schools, according to the nonprofit organization Public Advocates, chose not to disclose how their money was spent. Even though charter schools are funded by taxpayers, many will not share

According to the ACLU of Southern California, more than 20% of charter schools in California have exclusionary policies, like denying enrollment and expelling pupils who do not have high grades or test scores, do not meet a level of English proficiency, or whose parents do not donate their time and money. In addition, charter schools can have policies whose purpose is to prohibit

Another repercussion of charter schools is that they hurt public schools. A University of Oregon study found that the Oakland School District had lost 57.4 million dollars in a year because of charter schools.

Another study, by political economist Gordon Lafer, found California’s Oakland, San

A once pristine castle now looks discriminatory

the castle fails to acknowledge the bottom of the hill

Charter schools

From page 10

Diego, and East Side Union High School Districts suffer annual losses of $5705, $4914, and $6618 respectively for each student who goes to a charter instead of a public school

Can public schools afford to lose this money? Even before this, a lack of investment existed in the system. Teachers are already undervalued, underpaid, and under-

Guns: the key to mass murder

represented. Certainly, charter schools are not helping this dilemma.

The effect of charter schools on school districts cannot be denied The majority of students go to public schools, making it irresponsible and even reckless to harm them for the small minority of children who go to charter schools.

Going to a charter school does not make someone more worthy than someone who goes to a public school. When discussing charter schools, it all seems satisfactory, until diving deeper.

A once pristine castle now looks discriminatory, guarded against the disgrace of anyone but the perfect “A” student.

But we can fix this The quicker we overthrow the castle, the quicker the village can start to succeed again

School shootings, mass shootings - they’re all over the news. A recent shooting in Nashville left six killed The shooting in Chicago at Benito Juarez High School killed two and injured two. A shooting in Portland at Cleveland High School left one injured. Many of these shootings could have been avoided if we just did one thing: ban guns.

If guns are open to be purchased, people will buy them. If people own and have guns, they are more likely to use them Guns are supposed to be for self defense, but against what? If no one had a gun to

Ban guns

begin with, there would be no need for people to defend themselves from people with guns, therefore eliminating the

need to own them.

The shooter of the recent Nashville shooting, Audrey Hale, was a former student identified by the law enforcement at the school where the shooting took place. ABC news said, “Hale had seven legally purchased guns, three of which were used the day of the shooting.”

Had Hale been denied the guns, four children and three adults could still be living now; instead, their families are grieving their losses.

People plan school shootings, and part of that planning includes where they can purchase a gun. By legally selling guns, our society is putting countless people at risk. If gun sellers do background checks or home checks before giving their buyer a gun, the number of shootings that occur yearly will decrease.

In the words of Sandy Hook Promise, a nonprofitable

Courtesy of nytimes com

where we learn how to survive, if not thrive, in the vigorous marathon called life

ChatGPT: More than just A. I.

Kjartan Arnarsson

ChatGPT, an A.I.chatbot developed by openAI on November 30th 2022 to write responses to any question in a humanlike fashion, has become controversial in the school industry.

A recent survey from BestColleges, published by Forbes.com, found that “ 43% of college students overall say they’ve had experience using AI tools like ChatGPT, and half of those acknowledge turning to those tools to work on assignments or exams.”

Students cheating on essays and other writing assignments is nothing new. There are some problems with trying to control this. However, the real question is: Should ChatGPT be controlled at all?

Banning ChatGPT would not stop students from cheating. There are ways to get around it where kids can use other devices

to access it, making it almost impossible to ban ChatGPT.

A solution to this problem would be if ChatGPT and other A.I. writing sites should leave a watermark so teachers can tell if a student's work is A.I. generated or if it was written personally. But this, too, is a flimsy defense

Currently, ChatGPT is the only A.I. chatbot of its kind, but soon there will be a variety of chatbots to choose from.

Not all chatbots will try to prevent students from using it for assignments or school related work.

Instead of starting an endless game of whack-a-mole against an expanding army of A.I. chatbots, here’s a suggestion: For the rest of the academic year, schools should treat ChatGPT the way they treat calculators allowing it for some assignments, but

not others, and assuming that unless students are being supervised in person with their devices stashed away, they’re probably using one.

N t l Ch tGPT

Guns

From page 11

organization that is motivated to prevent gun violence in schools, “An estimated 4.6 million American children live in a home where at least one gun is kept loaded and unlocked. These improperly stored weapons have contributed to school shootings, suicides, and the deaths of family members, including infants and toddlers.”

Think about it

Having a gun at home is dangerous itself. If a toddler accidentally knocks it down or grabs it, everyone in the household could

Shooting in Nashville left six killed

be in danger.

“More than 500 people die every day because of violence committed with firearms,” says Amnesty international. Guns are threatening to many, including those who have them in their homes.

students’ understanding of the article.

If ChatGPT is a useful tool for teachers and students, why are schools banning it?

People shouldn’t have to live their lives constantly scared that a gun could pop up. Americans shouldn’t let them pop up. Ban guns.

Get to know aspiring artist, Ernest Zhang

take art soon

“I wanted to take both art and architecture, but decided to take art in 8th grade and computer science as my other elective,” he says.

Mrs. Hsuan’s class taught him how to draw in 2-point perspective and how to use the proper architectural drawing implements.

Ernest’s art has not gone unnoticed by his peers He mostly entered Blach's Talon Show because of pressure. “My friends were egging me on,” he says.

He submitted a time lapse of him drawing a beautifully shaded street road, which earned him third place. “I was fairly surprised at that,” he says.

painting, Snow in Toji Temple. He one day hopes to brag to his brother about the painting

“The best part about it [mural club] would be just chatting while painting. It’s fun,” he says.

Being an artist has helped Ernest with developing his creativity “I couldn’t draw anything without

The translucent watercolors flood the paper, controlled by the tip of a paintbrush. The swirls of color may not look like much, but Ernest Zhang, a 7th grader at Blach, can change that.

Translucent watercolors flood the paper

With his artistic eye and attention to detail, the layers of paint slowly merge into a field of flowers overlooking a setting

sun. The final painting was the destination, but the journey has been a much longer road.

Ernest started taking art seriously in first grade, and took art classes from when he was 8 to 10. Art interests him because he “likes things that have to do with design.”

Ernest loves working with ceramics, “though they never actually turned out that great.” His favorite medium is acrylic, which he considers a fun pastime.

Right now, Ernest is taking interior and interior design as an elective but plans to

Another one of Ernest’s activities is the school’s mural club, which meets every Friday

The club is working on recreating a Japanese

a reference for a few years straight.” One skill he could improve on is drawing faces. Other hobbies of his include track and field, piano, reading, and caring for his plants. In two words, he describes himself as perfectionistic and open-minded.

Alisha Ramani

Photo by Brooke Cullinane

a field of flowers overlooking a setting sun

Colin Ching's journey to success

Colby Liu

Colin Ching, 5’11”, is an incredibly athletic 13-year-old who has quickly risen to the top rank in California’s youth volleyball.

Despite playing only 10 months, Colin has been able to play with those with years of experience, joining MVVC’s (Mountain View Volleyball Club) 13 Red team, MVVC’s top level for 13-year-olds.

Though this season is coming to an end, his team's achievements have been astonishing, placing first (gold), second (silver), and third (bronze) in their past three tournaments Placing first in one of the biggest

tournaments in Anaheim quickly led his team to the top ranks.

Colin's team usually practices three times a week but are switching to four practices a week to prepare for the Nationals tournament held in Orlando, Florida.

Next season he hopes to stay on the team and to overall improve to eventually be able to play in the highest leagues. On top of that, he especially looks forward to playing in Nationals and placing well, so they can get a good rank in not only California, but the whole country

Colin, who plays middle

blocker, says his position is sometimes “very tiring…I’m constantly jumping the whole game with no breaks.”

If he could play one other position, it would be opposite hitter. “They have a lot less work and don’t require as much stamina,” he said. However, he would still like to play middle blocker because his favorite things to do in volleyball are blocking and hitting.

For beginners to get better, he recommends learning how to jump higher, gain better body control, and grow taller. “My height and strength is one of my biggest advantages,” he said.

Despite the hard work Colin has put into his achievements, he acknowledges his winnings also come from those who support him.

He especially thanks Bauer Lee, his mentor throughout his volleyball career

“He’s been my mentor ever since I started playing," explains Colin. "Every goal, every win, every achievement comes from the support and love from my mentor. He's been through the ups and downs, and I honestly can't thank him enough.”

Colin emphasizes the idea to never take too much pride in achievements, but instead be aware of those who made it possible.

"Success may take hard work, but if you acknowledge those who are helping you and made it possible, you may soar to greater heights."

The more you miss, the more quickly you lose your skills

Mentor Bauer Lee (left) and athlete Colin Ching (right)

Linda Liu: a piano prodigy

Amiya Garg

Homework, pianist, and talent show winner - 7th grader

Linda Liu can do it all. The secret behind how she balances her school work and music: “I don't, I just try to finish all my school work at school, so I can focus on music

at home,” says Linda. She started playing piano when she was four years old. She would practice everyday, which eventually paid off. Her piano career started off because of her parents, however, as she progressed to harder and more complicated songs, she began to enjoy the complexity of practicing as well as the visible improvement she saw in herself

She soon realized that she could release her anger by slamming the piano keys and finding a song that fit her mood.

Linda tested for level eight. Levels in piano are used to figure out where the pianist is compared to educational standards. She only had half a year to prepare, when others practiced for over a year.

Not only did she pass level eight, but she got a state honor

It was a long journey for Linda, “It took a lot of mental power,“ she states “ I would practice every single day at least 45 minutes, sometimes practicing more than two hours.” Her fingers would hurt and be sore from endless hours of practice, but Linda pushed through the pain in order to achieve her goal, which she did. She was able to go home with her head held high and a state honor.

Linda used her piano talent to win Blach's talent show. However, she put a little twist on the piano and played

blindfolded. On top of that, she played complex and difficult songs. “For that specific [talent show] song , yes, I had a lot of practice with it ” She had to practice a lot in order to get it right. The video that was submitted was

a week and gets paid for it too.

A struggle she faces throughout her lessons is, “When I teach Justin [her brother], he still doesn’t fully respect me as a teacher.”

They often get into fights, and when it happens, Justin threatens to make sure she doesn’t get paid.

definitely not her first attempt.

In addition to learning and practicing piano herself, she also teaches her ten-yearold brother five days

Even after they fight, and they go back to their lesson, there are a few minutes of awkward silence. However, as time goes on, they easily make up and continue their lesson.

Linda Liu balances school work and music perfectly to be the talented piano performer she is.

I would practice every single day

Linda Liu can do it all

Courtesy of Linda Liu

Blach’s undefeated track and field team crushes rival Egan, continuing the tradition

Athletes continued the 20+ year old tradition of crushing their rivals

Blach’s track and field team, composed of around 100 athletes, continued the 20+ year old tradition of crushing their rivals, Egan in the final dual meet of the season.

A co-ed 7th and 8th grade team, the Blach track and field team has historically been one of the top-ranking teams in the LASD league.

Jasper Lee, who placed well in the track and field gym unit, is competing in the 4x100s (which is his

favorite event), 4x400s, and high jump. He says that he enjoys “the thrill of running.”

Jasper also said that the sand track is difficult to get a good start on, as the runner often slips off the starting block because of how gravely and sandy the track is.

Long jumper Rhys Kellet echoed this sentiment saying that it was hard to get a good start when beginning a race.

Blach’s team started off their season versus Lawson on May 2nd. They crushed Lawson with a wonderful start to their season.

The track and field scoring system is a complicated process, with athletes competing individually

while earning points for their team. This fosters a great sense of personal goals and work ethic, while still competing with teammates and working together as a school.

Eighth grader Le Richardson started track last year as a 7th grader and is competing in both relay events (the 4x100s and 4x400s) as well as triple jump and

long jump.

He says that the best thing about track and field is “competing in

Brooke Cullinane

Photo by Amiya Garg

He enjoys the "thrill of running"

The best thing about track and field is “competing in meets, talking, and working with friends.”

There needs to be more individual people commenting on what you’re doing

Photo by Brooke Cullinane

Photo by Brooke Cullinane

Track & Field

From page 16

Definitely do it next year

meets, talking, and working with friends.”

Something that many enjoy about track and field is the flexible practices. After a brief but effective warm up as a team, all the athletes can divide up and work on the events that they want to focus on, such as shot put, discus, long jump, hurdles etc. They can all work on the events that they want to improve on, while not having to practice the ones they aren’t participating in. This appeals to many competing for Blach’s track and field team

Anya Zennooz, who competes in the discus, long jump, and triple jump events says, “There needs to be more individual people commenting on what you’re doing.” Many agree with this, as there are only around 2-5 coaches at each practice for over 100 athletes. Nonetheless, she loves track, saying that she’ll definitely do it next year."

The girls’ soccer team shoots high and lands in second place

Kjartan Arnarsson

Samhitha Bellamkonda dribbles down the field. Between her legs is the blackand-white ball crucial to winning the game. The goal looms in front of her, defenders sliding behind her She draws back her leg, preparing for her shot, and kicks it. The patchwork ball rockets towards the goal The swoosh of the ball rippling through the net can be heard across the field.

A member of the seventh grade girls soccer team, Samhitha said, “It was fun and exciting, because our team went from a group of people to a well-bonded team who knows each other very well. It's good to learn about other people while playing sports, so you know their strengths and weaknesses.”

She also said that their toughest opponent was Kennedy They tied the first time, and the in the semifinals got scored on in the first five minutes. Around the last five minutes, they tied it up, and they felt like they had a mental

advantage In overtime, they scored to make it 2-1.

Samhitha felt like their best game of the season was their first game. Even though they had not played with each other a lot, they understood how to win. They got a goal in the first few minutes and they became a team instead of a bunch of individual soccer players Their team is good at shooting and finishing. They had good free kicks and people who could get the ball in the corners. In most of the games, they took every opportunity that came their way to score.

The team had good sportsmanship They build each other up instead of putting each other down. However, she felt like their communication was not great and that would have improved the overall team’s performance.

The team had an amazing season, winning seven games, tying two games and losing only one game! They finished in a proud spot and loved every minute on the field.

Photo courtesy of Mr Kane

Photo courtesy of Mrs Hickman

Shatter Me: A series that

Ellie Katz

“I spent my life folded between the pages of books. In the absence of human

experienced adolescence by association My world is one interwoven web of words, stringing limb to limb, bone to sinew, thoughts and images all together. I am a being composed of letters, a character created by sentences, a figment of imagination formed through fiction.” From the Shatter Me series, a series that will shatter

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your heart and then piece it back together. It follows a scared young girl with a powerful ability and her journey from a cell to fame.

The Shatter Me series will make you feel all types of emotions. It will sweep you off your feet, make you want to throw the book, and make you feel at home. As you read, time will become nothing, and the only thing that will matter

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will be the characters, who quickly become so much more than just fictional characters in a book.

“I’ve been locked up for 264 days. I have nothing but a

small notebook and a broken pen and the numbers in my head to keep me company. 1 window. 4 walls. 144 square

I spent my life folded between the pages of books

Photo by Sidney Nachman

I’ve been locked up for 264 days

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will shatter your heart

secret Juliette Ferrars has a touch that can kill, and no one knows why.

The Reestablishment, the people who locked Juliette up, have changed their minds. They want her to be their weapon. Will the girl who has had no connection to the outside world for 264 days choose to help the people who locked her up? And when two boys fall head over heels for her, which one will she choose? The sweet boy she’s known for years, or the one filled to the brim with secrets and a traumatic past?

feet of space. 26 letters in an alphabet I haven’t spoken in 264 days of isolation.” The world is falling apart.

Birds don’t fly anymore, clouds are the wrong color, and the population is starting

to die off People are revolting and there are whispers of war. Everyone’s forgotten the seventeenyear-old girl with a lethal

Shatter Me is a series of 11 books, six of which are novels and five are novellas. This young-adult dystopian-thriller written by Tahereh Mafi has a review of 3.89 stars on Goodreads and almost every book of the series has been nominated for the Goodreads Choice Awards for Best YoungAdult Fantasy and Science Fiction. The Shatter Me series is a set of books you cannot put down after you start reading and is a series everyone should read at least once in their lives.

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I am a being composed of letters

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Entertainment Eragon: An amazing book for all ages

Arjun Shankar

“Wind howled through the night, carrying a scent that would change the world. A tall Shade lifted his head and said icily, ‘Spread out; hide behind trees and bushes. Stop whoever is coming or die ’”

That excerpt was from the beginning of one of my favorite books, Eragon by Christopher Paolini. This high fantasy story is full of rich descriptions and unique characters The characters and the plot are seamlessly integrated, and the ending of the book is extremely satisfying.

First, here is some background information on Eragon Christopher Paolini, the author, wrote his first draft of Eragon when he was 16 However, he was too scared to share it with anyone until much later, when he happened to find it. When he told his parents, they helped him publish the book Today, there are over 24.55 million copies sold around the globe.

Eragon follows the plot of a 15-year-old boy named, you guessed it, Eragon. Over the

Courtesy of Wikipedia.org

course of the book, he picks up the legacy of the Riders, longforgotten heroes from past ages Growing stronger and stronger, he learns dark secrets and completes feats of heroism.

The backstory of the series is that there used to be a golden age of peace and prosperity. The Riders kept the land safe, but they could not keep it safe from themselves A young Rider, called Galbatorix, went mad and took down the order, becoming stronger with each victory.

24.55 million copies sold around the globe

Eventually, he took the entire world in his iron fist of dominance.

There are three more books in

the series - Eldest, Brisingr, and Inheritance. Throughout the books, Eragon learns of the deepest mysteries of the world and eventually brings down Galbatorix with a method I certainly did not expect. The ending is full of melancholy but also makes me want more to read.

Another thing I love about the series is that it is nice and long. In total, there are over 2,200 pages in the series. But don’t be discouraged. All of the writing is laden with description and action.

I first read the book in fifth grade Although it took me a couple of weeks to read, it gave me something to do and look forward to I encourage you to read the book, no matter your age, for it is a great book and transports you into the world of Eragon.

In conclusion, the entire series is great, and you should definitely read it. Trust me; you will not regret it.

2023 YAGP wraps up with beautiful performances and a magnificent gala

Jennifer Liu

For ballet dancers, YAGP must be a familiar name It stands for Youth American Grand Prix, the world's largest ballet competition, where dancers from all over the world compete together in hopes of pursuing

The winners get a chance to attend summer intensive programs at the top ballet schools, such as San Francisco City Ballet, Bolshoi Ballet, Colorado Ballet Academy, the Harid Conservatory, and more. The elite dancers will spend their whole summer at the academy, enjoying premier ballet training from renowned masters.

their passion for a dance career. This year's global finals were held in early April in Tampa, Florida.

As a competition with the mission of "ensuring the future of dance by providing scholarships to the world's leading dance institutions," YAGP gives out over $500,000 worth of scholarships each year.

YAGP had over 30 regional semi-finals around North America The winners went on to the finals, where they were separated into the precompetitive, junior, and senior categories Each performed one classical ballet variation and one

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contemporary piece, presenting both technical skills and emotions delivered by the movements and the music.

This year, the finals were held over three days at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts in Tampa, Florida. Over 1,700 dancers made it there this year, the most in over five years.

Additionally, the diversity of YAGP is a massive part of what makes it unique. No matter your nationality or your ethnicity, whether you dance as a student or as a hobby, you can get invited as long as you show your professionalism

As an example, this year's final winners came from a total of 13 different countries. Since YAGP reached its 25th-anniversary milestone this year, a grand gala occurred in Lincoln Center, New York City in mid-April It was themed "The Stars of Today Meet the Stars of Tomorrow" to inspire every star dancer from different generations to follow their path towards their dreams. Classical ballet pieces were performed by the former competition winners and new-coming teenage ballerinas together, presenting the art's inclusive culture and overall elegance

The former competitors of YAGP are currently working in different highly prestigious ballet theaters worldwide, from the American Ballet Theatre to the Paris Opera. It is a gala of inheritance, passing down a legacy of perseverance and courage to young, talented ballet dancers.

Courtesy of Emeraldballetacademy.com

a legacy of perseverance and courage

The Lunar Chronicles:

Brooke Cullinane

The Lunar Chronicles is a gripping series that perfectly weaves elements of darkness, action, romance and fractured fairy tales into one beautiful tale. Marissa Meyer has sold around 5 million copies of her books, with many other popular hits such as the Renegades series and the standalone, Heartless, a twist on the classic story of the Queen of Hearts.

from the very first line. As you’re reading it, you can tell that it’s setting up an epic series and only made me want to grab the second book more. The romance isn’t the main focal point of the story; instead, it only complements the true themes and meanings of this monumental first book.

we all know and love. Scarlet is a strong, independent woman who isn’t afraid to speak her mind and advocate for those who can’t.

Following the hit novels of Scarlet and Cinder came Cress. This book was the fractured tale of Rapunzel. Cress has spent her whole life on a

The first book in the series, Cinder, was published January 3rd, 2012. It paints the story of a cyborg teen who is abused by her stepmother and stepsisters. She works as a mechanic and is revered as one of the best. When prince Kai himself comes to visit her with an unexpected request, she slowly starts falling for him and her life only gets more complicated from there As you can probably tell, this was Marissa’s own take on the classic tale of Cinderella.

I really enjoyed Cinder and felt that it had me hooked

Following Cinder was another hit book that I enjoyed even more, which is typically rare for the second books of a series. Scarlet was a twist on the story of Little Red Riding Hood, with many elements of the classic story included in the more modern one (such as the grandmother, a form of a wolf, and her signature red coat) Cinder doesn’t play a direct role in this book, but some chapters focus on her story, while still developing a second character of Scarlet, resulting in a perfect sequel.

A gripping series

This book was interesting to read, and I loved the way that Marissa included the paths of both Cinder and Scarlet in the book, developing two different plot lines that will no doubt merge later in the series. I felt that she did a great job of writing a new twist on the classic tale

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satellite, with minimal contact with the outside world She’s innocent and caring, absorbed in her screens and developing her hacking skills.

In Cress, we learn more about the threat in this series, the distant planet of Lunar ruled by a malicious queen and where the people have mind manipulation abilities, creating a dangerous and fake atmosphere.

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She slowly starts falling for him

does it deserve fame?

Cress is the stepdaughter of the queen of Lunar, the antagonist in the series, and has spent her entire childhood and life on a satellite circling Lunar. Until she manages to send out a distress signal. From there, her life becomes much more interesting. Although I felt that Cress was a little slower-paced than its predecessors, I still enjoyed

hearing the story of this sweet teenager and her determination to make a difference in the way her life was trending.

The three books set up a great stage for an epic finale, if only Marissa Meyer could fill it… which she definitely did. Winter, the finale to the Lunar Chronicles, was absolutely my favorite of the four books. This book is about the daughter of

the queen who is a take on Snow White. She is strong and moral by not using her abilities. Despite driving her insane, she stayed true to what she knew was right. All four paths merged and it was

Her vanity and pride drove her to be malicious

a wonderful end to the saga. I don’t want to reveal too much, but it ended in a satisfying and final way that I loved.

After the fourth book, I only wanted more of the stories from the iconic characters that I’d grown to love Thankfully, there were two more books!

Stars Above is a collection of short stories that take place right after Winter, zoomed in on each of the characters one last time to show what they were doing and

what was happening right after the firework finale of Winter. It was short and perfect, not to mention loved by many.

Your

Marissa Meyer also wrote

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a second “extra” book called Fairest, which delved deeper into the story of the queen of Lunar. Her vanity and pride drove her to be malicious and showed her other sides. Marissa miraculously wrote Fairest in only nine days! She said the story just “poured out of her”.

The Lunar Chronicles is an incredible series that I absolutely loved and definitely recommend.

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Mario and Luigi: the ultimate duo

The Super Mario Bros. Movie has grossed over $1 billion worldwide since its release on April 5th. It’s the highestgrossing movie of 2023 and the highest-grossing video game movie ever made.

The movie is produced by Illumination and Nintendo and is distributed by Universal Pictures. It’s an hour and 32 minutes long and stars Chris Pratt as Mario, Anya Taylor-Joy as Princess Peach, Jack Black as Bowser, Keegan-Michael Key as Toad, Charlie Day as Luigi, and Seth Rogen as Donkey Kong.

The plot is that Mario and Luigi are plumbers who are accidentally sent to an alternate universe. Luigi gets captured by Bowser, and Mario tries to save him.

It has an audience score of 96%. It has a lot of references to Mario games, and it has a few funny parts. It’s fast-paced and entertaining to watch, and the graphics are much more detailed than most animated movies.

Even though it has a high

audience score, critic scores are much lower. It has a 59% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 46% on Metacritic Critics complain about the lack of character development and

end. For me, the lack of character development is not that much of an issue The characters aren’t complicated because they don’t need to be. People came to see a movie about an Italian plumber who punches floating boxes, and that’s exactly what it is. The story is plain, but it’s worth watching if you like Mario or have a sibling who does

the basic story.

I know that the Mario games aren’t exactly known for their complex storylines, but it seems like they spent the whole $100 million budget on animation and about $1 on the plot. The entire movie is Mario trying to save Luigi, and that’s it He doesn’t do anything else, and all of the problems are solved in the

Colin Yang

An audience score of 96%