Middle School Magazine
Looking To The Future
MS Magazine Team 2013-2014 Trimester 1
From Left to Right: Ben Faulkner, Bennet Wahlers, Marcus Cope, Michel Knaff, Braden Davila, Colton Summers, Gray Barrett -2-
MS Magazine Team 2013-2014 Trimester 1
Middle School Magazine
Table of Contents
t
Grif e Van Der
: Christin PIcture By
MS Magazine Team 2013-2014 Trimester 1 — 2 Middle School CASCADE Programme — 4 Braden Davila
Our School in Numbers — 6 Michel Knaff
Leading a Moral Life on Facebook... — 7 Middle School CASCADE - Philosophy
Interview with Visiting Author Benjamin Zephaniah — 8 Gray Barrett, Michel Knaff, Marcus Cope
Benjamin Zephaniah — 9 Katie Swesey
Visiting Author Chris Bradford — 9 Katie Swesey
My First Time in the Atacama — 10 Lucas Frank
Grade 8 Trip to Plaine — 11
line Wagner
é PIcture By: C
Colton Summers
7th Grade International Forum — 12 Kyla White
Malala Yousafzai — 14 Danica Torrens
The Love for Green Paper — 15 Maria Diss
Upper School Winter Band and Choir Concert — 16 Ian Kearns
Children of War — 17 Song written by 7C
Mandala Project: Learning About Myself — 18 Derek Mohos
The Running Birds — 18 Maria Diss
Mandala`s Message — 19 Nina Valenbreder
Picture b
y: Ashley
The Man Who Sailed Around the World in 11 Months — 20 Ian Kearns
Sailing Blog — 21
Brownle
e
Rakel Sveinsdottir
Model United Nations — 23 William Painter
Word Splash: English Journal Creative Writing — 23 Emmanuel Diss
U14 Boys Soccer NECIS 2013 — 24 Ron Schickendantz
U14 Volleyball NECIS 2013 — 25 Elena Perticucci
U14 Cross Country NECIS — 26 Bennet Wahlers and Emmanuel Diss
Events in Luxembourg — 28 Braden Davila
Impossible Questions — 29 Marcus Cope
Jokes — 30
PIcture B
y: Cara O
’Sullivan
Marcus Cope
Puzzles — 32 Ben Faulkner
Puzzle Solutions — 34 Ben Faulkner
December 2013
Table of Contents
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Braden Davila
Middle School CASCADE Prog ramme This is the first year that the Middle School has done the CASCADE Programme. This programme allows the 6th - 8th Grade students to pick an activity to do twice a cycle and for the 8th Grade to pick an activity to do once a cycle. There are many exciting activities for students to choose.
Creativ Action ity Service Commu Awaren nity Discove ess Explora ry tion
( * = Activity offered in Trimester 2) Below is a list of the exploratory activities which are part of the CASCADE Programme:
6th to 8th Grade Activities (B and F Days) *Middle School Magazine *Discovering the Celts
*Yoga
*Mandarin for Beginners *Design, Build and Fly Your Own Kite
*Wonders and Mega Structures of Our Industrial World
*Strength and Conditioning, Circuit Fitness and Nutrition
Yearbook *Tea and Talk with Jane Austen
Music Theatre
*YTC! (Film Making)
*Horrible Histories *Middle School Student Council
*Do It Yourself Arts and Crafts *Beginner Luxembourgish
Mock Trials 1 *Chess Master Moves
*Beginner Spanish
*Outdoor Skills -4-
Middle School CASCADE Program
Middle School Magazine
8th Grade Activities (D Days) *Mandarin for Beginners
Middle School M agazine
Science Today The BIG Questions: An Intro to Philosophy *Horrible Histories *Cook Up A Storm! Making Elegant Meals. *Chess Master Moves *Outdoor Skills *Yoga
als ant Me g e l E g akin torm! M S A p Cook U
*Recycled Art *Model United Nations *Ceramics
Scien ce To d
December 2013
ay
Middle School CASCADE Program
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Our School in Numbers Michel Knaff
1192 Number of students enrolled in school 47 Nationalities represented 32 Languages spoken US 82+ LS 66 Number of classrooms 238 Number of staff (not including cooks and security) 29 Nationalities represented 24299 Number of books in the Upper School Library 925 Number of lost books in the system -6-
Our School in Numbers
Middle School Magazine
Leading a Moral Life on Facebook... Middle School CASCADE - Philosophy The Middle School Philosophy CASCADE group examined the themes of privacy, democracy and identity through philosophers such as Heidegger and Aristotle. They came up with some general rules for leading a moral life on facebook. Here are a few of them...
-Don’t set up or endorse hate groups/messages
-Check with friends before posting photos of them
-If an event is public, feel free to share information about it
-If an event is private, check with participants before sharing
-‘It’s complicated’ is not a viable relationship status: attentionseeking! -Avoid political messages, show-off and feeling-sorry-for-myself statuses: also attention-seeking! -Think about whether the general public of your facebook friends actually care about what you are sharing -Remember that technology is a supplement to - not a replacement of - real-life contact with friends
December 2013
Leading a Moral life on Facebook
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Interview with Visiting Author Benjamin Zephaniah Gray Barrett, Michel Knaff, Marcus Cope
What was your childhood like? Well, I was born in Birmingham, in England. My mother came from Jamaica, a Caribbean island, and my father came from Barbados, which is another Caribbean island. And we lived in this part of Birmingham, called Aston, and it was like a really, really poor area. Houses in those days didn’t really have inside bathrooms or inside toilets. The toilets were in the garden and the bath you had a tin thing and you put water from the kettle in there and then put cold water in and you know the houses were full of mice and stuff like that. But to be honest I thought everybody lived like this, you know if you don’t know anything different then you just think it’s all the same. So, you know looking back at it now, people analyse it and they say it was really poor. But I thought that everybody was like that. What I do remember, I think it was really different from the kids nowadays. Nearly all the toys that we had we made ourselves. My first bicycle, made it myself. Got the frame, got some wheels, got some brakes, and you know just made it up. Go-karts we made them myself. And if my parents bought me something and it broke, we fixed it. We didn’t just go and throw it away and [say] ‘Can I have another one.’ I remember sitting in the house one day and just fixing radios and fixing stuff like this. So that’s a major difference from today, but obviously there weren’t any computer games and all that stuff. So it was a hard time but I didn’t really remember it as that hard at that time but just looking back at it now and thinking how easy it is for people now. Basically you had to make your own fun. One of the greatest things a boy of like 10, 11, 12 could do was like climb trees. I mean we used to do an adventure we couldn’t do now in England, we used to leave our house and say right what we gonna do today: we gonna get lost. That was it. And that was what we were doing. We’d leave the house and try and get lost and then when we were lost, we’d try and find our way back. Do that now, and your parents will be calling the police and it would just be impossible. But there wasn’t all the worries and all the gun crimes and child abusers that everybody was worrying about on the streets. We’d get lost for hours and if we didn’t find the way
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Visiting Authors
home we’d just go to the police station [and say] “Please take us home.” And they would take us home. So I remember it was really creative and really playful. At the same time I loved poetry, but I didn’t call myself a poet. I just made up rhymes in my head… One of my favourite pastimes was just going up to girls and saying “What’s your name?” and making up a poem with their names. And they would go “Wow that guy is cool.” It’s the kind of childhood I remember. If you weren’t a poet what would you want to be? I’d like to be a Kung Fu teacher. I’m Kung Fu crazy. Every morning I get up and do Kung Fu. I have a gym at home and people that I teach already but just informally. I’d love to have my own Kung Fu school and teach properly. But it’s not gonna happen. I go to China every year and study with my teacher but I’m just Kung Fu crazy. I love pushing the body to the limit when you’re training it. I love the accuracy that you learn with Kung Fu. It’s all about the discipline and I love the control that you have… It’s not about the fighting. Kung Fu when you translate it from Chinese it doesn’t mean fighting, it means hard work, it means dedication, it means discipline, self-control. And so when I teach people Kung Fu, you’re not teaching people how to fight. You’re really teaching them how to control yourself, control your anger and control their body.
Middle School Magazine
Visiting Author Chris Bradford Katie Swesey Chris Bradford came to ISL to speak to us about his books and what he does to write his books. Bradford showed us tricks with his samurai sword and many different moves. He was born on the 23rd of June in 1974 and is 39 years old. He is an author, was a famous musician and a black belt martial artist. He comes from Aylesbury, United Kingdom. The genre of his books are adventure and thriller. He is best known for his children’s fictional series, Young Samurai. His first book, The Way of the Warrior, was published by Puffin books in 2008. Chris Bradford joined the judo club when he was eight years old. He has written fifteen fiction books, they have been published in more than twenty languages and he has been nominated for over eighteen book awards. He was the winner of the Northern Ireland book awards in 2011. It was an honour to have Chris Bradford come to our school. All the children had a blast and would like for him to come again sometime.
Benjamin Zephaniah Katie Swesey A few weeks ago we had world famous author, Benjamin Zephaniah, come to our school and tell us about his life. Benjamin’s full name is Benjamin Obadiah Iqbal Zephaniah. Benjamin was born and raised in Birmingham, England. His first public performance was in a church when he was 10 years old. Benjamin writes poems, books and songs. One of his most famous poems is called Talking Turkeys. Most of Benjamin’s poems are rather fast. He writes poems or novels in any genre. When he writes his novels or his poems he looks for the very simple things in life. Benjamin is a vegan (that means that he does not eat any dairy products or meat at all). He is a twin and even though his sister was supposed to be born first, he was born first. Benjamin is dyslexic and he memorizes his poems to compensate for this. Benjamin Zephaniah became a writer because he wants to speak for himself, he does not want anyone helping him with what he has to say. At the age of 22, Benjamin published his first book.
December 2013
Visiting Authors
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Picture taken by: Miguel Frank
My First Time in the Atacama My First Time in the Atacama Lucas Frank
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My First Time in the Atacama
Picture taken by: Miguel Frank
The year was 2007. I was in the Atacama, the driest place on earth, on a bus that should have died two decades ago. It was a piece of scrap metal with no air con and hard plastic seats. This was the last day of the week long trip. I was staring out the window, looking at the harsh bleak landscape. The desert, cracked earth and a bit of sand went on as far as I could see, with some foothills and snow-capped mountains poking out at the end. There wasn’t any sign of life, not even a shrub. The sky was a cloudless forget-me not blue. Two hours later, when the sun was at its zenith, I stepped off the bus and into the blazing heat. The floor was rocky with a light carpet of sand being whipped up by the light breeze. The back of my throat was coated in minutes. I unslung my pack and guzzled down some water, noting that that was all I had. This was the starting point of the trek. Tall sandstone walls surrounded me and I was struck by the colours. Deep, vibrant red and hues of orange covered each surface. The guide blew a shrill, sharp whistle, signalling for the 10 km trek to start. The guide led us into a small, open cave with rock formations that reminded me of the Grand Canyon, smooth and wavy, carved out by water, wind and sand over millions of years. It was eerily quiet, save the echo of our footsteps. I tripped, my body teetering and put my left hand on the wall to steady myself. I looked back and saw a large piece of stone jutting out were I tripped. We exited the cool cave and continued down the canyon at a steady decline. Suddenly
the walls retreated and we were looking out at miles and miles of dunes, some 50 metres high. The group continued down a worn path (the same route had obviously been used before), the ground turning to sand. We came to the base of one of the dunes. I bent down and scooped up some of the sand in my right hand. Surprisingly the sand wasn’t hot. It was warm and super smooth. I uncurled my fingers, letting the grains race back to the ground. The group started walking up the dune. I took a swig of water before running after them. Scrambling up the dune was an ordeal because the sand sucked at my feet as if it was trying to swallow me. After a lot of stumbling and grumbling I made it to the top panting for breath. The sun was just peeking over the sandy horizon, sending rays of musty orange and pink across the sky, the edges already a dark purple. I sat there as the sun bid the world goodbye and the moon greeted it, bringing along with it, the stars. And the onyx sky didn’t seem so lonely nor empty, but full of life. We were off again walking in the starlight and when we reached the bus I stumbled up the steps and fell into the seat. Despite its hardness and the rugged road I had no trouble drifting off to sleep.
Middle School Magazine
Grade 8 Trip to Plaine Colton Summers Starting on the 18 of September, the grade 8 travelled to Plaine, France. We went for 3 days that were full of adventure and excitement. However the highlight for me was the 3 hour hike up to the top of a mountain. This was because the view at the very top was spectacular, you could see the entire town and there was an ancient roman structure. Unfortunately for the half of the grade that hiked in the morning it was too foggy to see five feet in front of you. Luckily for me, I was able to see the incredible view.
Picture Taken by: Marcus Cope
Picture Taken by: Braden Davila
December 2013
Grade 8 Trip to Plaine
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7th Grade International Forum Kyla White In the seventh grade, students at ISL get to participate in the 7th grade International Forum. This has been happening for about 5 years now. I have just recently been involved in the Forum and it was a great experience. Being a part of the International Forum gives you a great view on what the United Nations goes through and their amazing effort for world peace. For about 6 weeks, the seventh grade, as a whole, was split up into four committees, Nuclear Non-Proliferation; Women’s Rights; Water Scarcity; and Drug Trafficking -- all very different topics of the world but all very important -- and then were assigned partners and countries they would be defending. Each committee also had a teacher in charge that would teach you the things you needed to know in order to complete your research expectations, the country’s five facts, the questions you were to ask other countries in your committee, the speech of your country, the resolutions from the country you represent, etc. They were also there for support and guidance as to where to find the information while you were working on your packets at home or anything else you need help with. The teachers who were involved in the Forum and were in charge of the committees were Mrs. Cain, Mrs. Northrop, Mr. Vermuelin, and Mrs. St-Amand. Also, each committee had a “chair” that led the conference; some eighth graders who had already been involved with this were the chairs. I was in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation committee. Mrs. Cain was in charge of this committee and two sharp eighth graders were the “chairs”and my partner Johan Behmer and I were defending the United Kingdom and its view upon Nuclear weapons and energy. It was a great opportunity to be able to research and study about the spread of nuclear weapons and the harm they can do to the earth and its citizens, and also speaking from the UK’s perspective. When the actual day of the Forum comes, you feel relieved and yet very nervous. You feel accomplished of the all the work and studying and the practice you put into this project…however, -12-
you also feel it’s not enough. I was told many times by teachers and eighth graders who had participated in the International Forum the year before that once you start that morning, it all comes together and you have a great time. Although I did not believe them at the time, they were right in the end. That morning, you are supposed to wear nice and business-like clothes to the Forum as if you were going to a real United Nations meeting. Then, we kick off the event by having an opening assembly and this year we had a guest speaker who was a diplomat. After, we went back to our committees and each country gave their speech by alphabetical order. After the speeches was the debate. You could ask any country in your committee questions and they would have to answer. You could then ask for a “follow up question” or agree and sit back down. For the chair to call on the countries, the countries had to raise the placard with their country’s name on it, then, the chair could call upon that delegation or choose someone else. Following the debate, there was a lunch break. This does not happen every year but this year we had the Middle School Lunch on the same day as our Forum. Following the international lunch was the Resolution Writing. Countries were to get together with their allies and prepare their thoughts on what solutions could there be based on the views of those countries and the committee they were in. One team member then spoke the resolutions for each group of allies. Each committee was to vote on a resolution that ALL delegations could agree on. This winning resolution was spoken at the assembly to conclude the conference. After all resolutions were spoken the chairs of each committee chose a “Best Delegate.” The Best Delegate was someone who worked hard, showed they did their research, used no personal pronouns etc. Four Best Delegates were chosen. Those who were given this award were Juan Moreno, myself-Kyla White, Georgie Brockelhurst, and Tom Verlaque. However, all students did a great job with the Forum and were congratulated for their success. The day was done and so was the forum. It lasted all day but most students wished for more time! It was an amazing time to work together and see the many different points of view of various countries with a variety of cultures. I’m glad I got to be a part of this event and I know other students thought the same.
7th Grade International Forum
Middle School Magazine
FINAL RESOLUTION NAME OF COMMITTEE: Drug Trafficking TOPIC: Drug trafficking around the world. SUBMITTER: Thailand, Sweden, Netherlands and Mexico. Preambulatory Clauses: 1. Is alarmed by how many drugs are produced in the world as of today 2. Noting with Deep concern that the amount of drugs consumed and dealt with is increasing. Operative Clauses: 1. Proposes that all UN donate a small portion of their yearly income to help set up drug addiction clinics around the world. 2. Requests an increase of security in major airports, train stations, and harbours. 3. Refuses to buy goods from countries that have major drug trafficking issues. 4. Strongly recommends for a punishment in jail to take place, depending on the amount of drugs trafficked.
December 2013
7th Grade International Forum
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Malala Yousafzai - YOUNGEST EVER RECIPIENT OF THE SAKHAROV PRIZE FOR FREEDOM OF THOUGHT Danica Torrens
“There is poverty, lack of freedom, fear and terrorism, but there is hope, because we are all here together united to help these children, to speak for them, to take action.” On the 20th of November 2013, Malala Yousafzai became the youngest ever recipient of the Sakharov human rights prize, awarded by the European Parliament. Malala Yousafzai was born in the beautiful Swat Valley in Pakistan. Her father, unlike most others in her region, was happy about having a girl. When Malala was born he asked friends and family to give her their blessing, something usually given only to boys. Her father is a liberal and had been fighting for girls’ right to education and established a girls’ school in their village when Malala was very young. Malala followed in her father’s footsteps and started campaigning for girls’ education at a very young age. Malala and her father became progressively better known in Swat and throughout Pakistan because of their fight for girls’ education and fearlessly speaking out against the Taliban. Because of this, BBC radio correspondent, Abdul Hai Kakar, asked her to write a blog about how life was for a girl under the rule of the Taliban. With her father’s encouragement, she agreed. Writing the blog was very dangerous and risky even though she had a pen name, Gul Makai. On Tuesday the 9th of October 2012, Malala’s life changed forever. She was on the usual bus ride home from school, talking to her friends. The bus was stopped, as was usual at the checkpoints. The -14-
Malala Yousafzai
students on the bus could tell by the look of the man, who was talking to the bus driver, that he was a Talib. Another Talib boarded the bus. “Who is Malala?” he demanded. The whole bus went silent and a few of her friends looked at her. He followed their gaze and lifted his gun. He fired three shots. One went right into Malala’s left eye socket. The other two hit her friends who were sitting next to her. When she woke up, she was in a hospital in Birmingham. She didn’t know where she was. She had no idea where her family was. She was unable to talk because of the tube in her throat. Nobody would tell her anything, in fear she would go into shock. Malala had to undergo a series of operations. In the course of the past year, her life and the life of her family have been changed drastically and irrevocably. Malala, her father, her mother and her two brothers now live in Birmingham. Malala continues to fight, even from afar, for the right of all girls to go to school. She dreams of returning to her home in Swat some day.
SAKHAROV PRIZE The Sakharov prize is a human rights prize awarded to people and organisations who fight for human rights. Previous winners include Nelson Mandela and Aung San Suu Kyi. On the 20th of November 2013, Malala Yousafzai became the youngest ever recipient of the Sakharov Prize. It was awarded to her in Strasbourg, with her father present, by the European Parliament. In her acceptance speech, she asked the European countries to support the suffering countries. She expressed that she found it unfair that, in Pakistan and many other countries, some children weren’t going to school because they couldn’t afford it. She believes that all children should go to school free of charge. She believes education is a superpower and that a country’s strength should be measured not by its army, but by the number of educated people. Middle School Magazine
The Love for Green Paper Maria Diss Cracks profound on the surface brown, Printed before by rested palms, Though the sphere can barely hold, Its breaths short ragged, All shaken soul. Melting in to water’s high, Breaking by their every blow, He takes a gasp, Though losing hope.
Photos taken by: Danica Torrens
The mortal warmth is burning heat,
“One child, one teacher, one book, one pen, can change the world.”
Through the broken lines of deep, Our palms are sinking fast in snow, Summer clouds in torment show. Skies of same in every place, Faces locked in eternal embrace, Taking in the far off sound, Of dying light for life around, They drop the keys of favored cars, And tightly hold last family bars. The tinkle of metal on concrete ground, The women spared, The men all proud, But day will come despite postponed, And hope they plan to drop the coins.
December 2013
The Love for Green Paper
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Upper School Winter Band and Choir Concert Ian Kearns On December 3rd, the MS and HS parents had the opportunity to listen to a range of music in a collection of performances from all the MS and HS bands and choirs. The music ranged from early 70s funk (“Philadelphia Funk Train”) to early 40s jazz (“Tuxedo Junction”). “It was absolutely fantastic to hear every band to play their music that…in short was AWESOME!” says MS jazz band keyboardist Robert Stok. The things that added to the smooth tanginess of the music was art by a twelfth grade IB student, and a bake sale that included hot chocolate and flowers for charity. “The songs were sometimes smooth, like Oasis, or sometimes explosive, like my band’s song, “Any Way You Want It”. I am sure all of the parents enjoyed this concert. Mr Bowman was present at the concert, along with Mrs Crush and Mr Keech. The concert was broadcasted live all the way through, and most probably is floating around on YouTube. Robert had one last thing to say. “I say a great job to all who played at the concert and thanks to the conductors who made this possible!”
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Upper School Winter Band and Choir Concert
Middle School Magazine
Children of War Song written by 7C Family torn apart This is how it starts War destroys the nation No more education The ones who are affected Need to be protected Chorus Children of war what are they all for Torn from their home, left all alone Tears run down their face, they need a better place Options there are none, so soldiers they become
PIcture by: Maiko Omaru
These kids don’t go to school You probably think that’s cool But what if they can’t learn, What will they then earn? Chorus Children of war what are they all for Torn from their home, left all alone Tears run down their face, they need a better place Options there are none, so soldiers they become Homelessness starvation Bullying and fights This must not continue These children all have rights A life like you and I, is what these children need All of this trouble was caused by other’s greed Chorus Children of war what are they all for Torn from their home, left all alone Tears run down their face, they need a better place Options there are none, so soldiers they become
December 2013
Grade 6 Commons Area A creative team of Grade 6 students is currently working on improving their Commons Area. Plans are in progress to transform their 2nd floor area into a lively and interactive relaxation zone. The Space Invaders hope that the space, now being referred to as “The Pod”, will display seasonal decorations. They also plan to make some more long-term changes relating to seating, homeroom communication and entertainment. Watch this space!
Children of War
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Mandala Project: Learning About Myself Derek Mohos
Mandala Project
etz
Mandala Project
ouis Steinm
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PIcture by: L
A Mandala is a tool used by Tibetan monks to tell what they are sentimentally feeling. It is a representation of a person’s personality, made with colors and symbols. Recently, our class made Mandalas for the same reason as the monks. The Mandala helped me learn about myself, and I found out more than I knew before. A person is made of their positive aspects, negative aspects, the places they’ve been and what they like to do. Working with my own feelings helped shape me and my self awareness. Because of this, I believe that Mandalas are simple but effective to help teach people about themselves. My Mandala is made of different colors, as I have different sides of myself. Red represents being energetic (at times) and lively (possibly angry too). Blue represents calmness (again, at times) and relaxed. Yellow represents happiness and joy, and green means a combination of blue and yellow. The colors were placed close together, because I can quickly go from one feeling to the other. The small colors in between are how I am once in a while. The outside layer can be how I look at different times on the surface, but the inner layer shows how other people see me. My ideas for symbols first took me to what I liked, then my bad side, then to my good aspects. The symbols of what I like are the plane, because I like traveling, the video game remote control, to show that I like electronics, and the book, symbolizing I like to read. The symbols that depict the dark side of my emotions include the eye, which tells that I am easily provoked and will be mean to lots of people once I get angry. The vortex means that I can be selfish at times and want only what is in my own best interests, and the rock means I can be very stubborn. The positive symbols in my Mandala are the ice cube, to signify I am normally calm, the Mexican revolutionary with the gun, who is Emiliano Zapata, who symbolizes two things: that I am proud of the Mexican half of my heritage and that I fight for what I think is right. The light bulb means creativity, and the smile signifies that I have a sense of humor. The green arrow is my future symbol, and that means that I want to change the world when I am older. The Ohio flag symbolizes home; it was where
I was born and lived the first six years of my life. Mandalas are great for visiting the area of one’s own heart, and all of the good and bad things about it. My Mandala sparked my spark of selfawareness, and it has kindled a small flame in the caverns of my feelings. The Mandala, at first, confused me, and I only saw the easier things to see. But as I progressed further, the Mandala showed me more of myself and my feelings. How one goes further is up to them, but to achieve knowledge of one as a person, a person must be prepared to map out his whole heart.
The Running Birds Maria Diss
I’ve seen a walking bird, They taught themselves to run, They catch up with the flying birds, Looking longingly at the sun. I’ve seen a flying bird, That landed near a walking bird… So if you see a running bird, give it a wing
Middle School Magazine
Mandala`s Message Nina Valenbreder Have you ever wanted to let yourself loose, and just go crazy? Well you could always make a Mandala. The right way to express yourself is to draw the real you. But that can only show if you take some time to think about what is inside of you. Then you can paint a portrait of your soul. Making this Mandala helped me express these feelings, and helped me acknowledge the real me. Throughout my journey to express the real me, I discovered a good side, a bad side, and who I would like to be. The light side shows what I have accomplished, my expectations, and what I like about myself. The colors in my Mandala represent the lively, and creative part of me, they are the piece of me that I am proud to say, and keep me happy. The blues and purples are the colors that represent the ocean. The ocean means a calm happy place, but the ocean is also unpredictable, which I love about it. The ocean is my life symbol, it keeps my family together, (in fact, many people said that our old house in New York, smelled like the ocean). There are also a lot of other colors in my Mandala that represent creativity, like neon green, or orange, and pink. My Mandala also shows many symbols that represent me. For instance, the fireworks represent creativity because they remind me of bursts of life and energy. The surfboard also represents the sea, but in a different way. The surfboard represents my heart (in this case, the surfboard) is leading me into the right direction, and will have me ride the wave. The stage represents bravery, because getting up on a stage is not an easy thing to do, and for many people it is scary at first, but once you get into it feels really magnificent. Last but no least the half-moon halfsun represents balance, because if you don’t have a balance of good and bad, you become tired of yourself. I chose the seashell outline for my Mandala because to me the seashell represents luck and protection. As I have said before, the ocean is also unpredictable. Keep your hats on, because a storm is coming! The light side of my Mandala may be very pretty, but that doesn’t mean everything about my inside is pretty and joyful! But this Mandela project gave me enough courage to continue, and December 2013
tell you about my…. DARK SIDE! The colors in my Mandala are also black and gloomy. For example, the color yellow might represent warning (like on those yellow pedestrian crossing signs). I used those colors to draw a “Dead End” symbol. This symbol is showing how sometimes I am afraid to make the wrong decisions, and then I hit the dead end sign “smack in the face”. Another dark sign that I drew was a row of clean organized trees. You might think this is funny because they actually represent the process in which I get stressed. I am a little of an organize freak and when something is out of place I freak out a little bit because I am scared that something will mess-up. Another piece of my bad side is the flower that surrounds the world. They start out as yellow, then to orange, and at the very tips they are red. I drew the flower as an example of my grumpiness. My “phases” can be yellow (don’t make me mad), to red (talk to me and I will get angry!!!). On a happier note I do think about the way I want to be in the future. Some people dream of going to a great college, and getting a job that will pay for more than their rent, but instead of dreaming, I draw. The goldfish in my Mandala represents peace and fortune, and I hope that this will show you how I hope to be not rich, but to live a wholesome life. The world in the center represents how changing the world in any way is my top priority. I want to change something greater than me. Even if it is being eco friendly one day, everything helps. I am now going to talk about the man that inspires me, Nelson Mandela. His quote, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” His words inspire me because of his actions in life. He lived a wholesome, full life, even if most of it was in prison (because of doing something he believed in). He became a stronger person, and is still living as former president of South Africa. This Mandala has shown me that if you try really hard, you can change the way you think about yourself, and become a better person. A Mandala lets you express the real you, and makes it easier to see yourself from the inside, different than from the outside. Lastly, Mandalas can help us express our soul, they let us open up our hearts to a piece of paper. Furthermore, I have noticed that it helped with my drawing skills too!
Mandala’s Message
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The Man Who Sailed Around the World in 11 Months
his Sailboat Ian Kearns in
Ian Kearns
09-08-2011, 4:56 pm - Newport, Rhode Island,U.S.A. Today was the day I finally set sail around the world. After what felt like hours (but was really only minutes) of checking, re-checking, and triple-checking the rudder and daggerboard, I was relieved to finally get into the boat. I made sure that I had ample provisions of food and water even if I was delayed getting to another port. Additionally, I had my safety equipment secured: flares, matches, thermal blankets, etc. The Coast Guard led me out for a couple miles to sea. All the while, my excitement was building. The first few hours passed quietly and easily, and I settled down and enjoyed the sail. However, once I had gotten comfortable, dark clouds began to build out of nowhere and grow in size above me until they looked like they would fall out of the sky on top of me. Within moments, the sky opened up, and rain began pouring down, gluing the flimsy jacket I had on to my body. The wind began blowing so fiercely that I was almost thrown off the boat! I caught the handholds just in time as the wind dragged me across the boat. The waves were overpowering the boat and before I knew it, I was ankle deep in water. It felt like an amusement park ride as the boat swung widely from side to side. Then, the sky opened and a bright flash caught me in the chest, knocking me against the wall of the cabin. Dizziness and blackness were all I could sense as I conked out while propped up against the wall. 10-08-2011 - Atlantic Ocean I woke up to the smell of the sausages my mother used to make for me when I was a kid. I could not identify where the scent was coming from but it was definitely making my stomach rumble. The first thing I felt was an extreme pain in my chest, like I was rammed by a horn at the running of the bulls in Pamplona. I was starving, since several hours had passed since I went unconscious. I raised myself to a sitting position and suddenly felt sick to my stomach. I threw up overboard repeatedly as I tried to figure out what exactly happened last night. I looked out into sea and suddenly had a flashback. The light, the roar of the ocean as I passed out, and the yell of the radio through the roar, screaming over and over, “We are sending a cutter through, repeat, send out a flare.” I looked to see if there was any sign of another boat. There was none. The sun was so bright, it was blinding, which was a drastic contrast to the darkness I had been in. As I pulled myself up the wall of the cabin to lean against it,
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I saw that lightning struck the mast more than once. I painfully turned my head to look at the damage caused by the storm. The cabin had a dent where my head was and a burn mark where I was slumped when I was struck by lightning. I took myself into a standing position and limped into the cabin. Once inside, I felt my way along the inside wall and plopped myself into the computer chair. I noticed there was a long burn on my torso. When I finished bandadging my wound, which was 3 inches long, with supplies from my emergency medical kit, I sat at the computer and started typing… 11-08-2011 - Unmapped location I limped onto the deck just as land came into view. I rushed as quickly as I could inside and grabbed my binoculars. It was an island for sure. The boat was coming toward it slowly but surely. I thought about my provisions downstairs and decided to check levels a couple minutes later. I had about 80% of the food I started with at the beginning of the trip. Idiot. Such an idiot for not protecting the food. Only three days in and 20% of the food was washed away. I hoped that there would be more provisions on the island, like tropical fruit and fresh water. As the boat neared the island, I saw there were many trees that I hoped might be mango trees and possibly a few with bananas. As the boat approached the island, I lowered anchor and used my dinghy to reach shore, with a bag in my pocket to load the supplies to carry back. Once on land, I started to run to the trees and shake them, causing the mangoes to fall to the ground and I quickly gathered them into the bag. It took me three trips in the dinghy to the boat to fully load the food. After the food was secured, I decided I could spend
The Man Who Sailed Around the World in 11 Months
Middle School Magazine
the day there. I rowed one last time to shore. Using my guide to plant life, I identified some red bananas along with the yellow ones, and found that they were AMAZING. The fruit was so fresh and flavorful, and I had a fantastic meal. When I finished, I walked inland into the island to see what I could discover. Inland was a thick jungle at first, but then a clearing appeared. I stumbled through the vines and trees, still hurting from my lightning strike, when I saw a huge mass. It seemed to be an airplane. I ran to investigate, and most definetly the tail markings indicated it was an American plane. It looked WW2-ish, and I scrambled up to see if there were any clues to what had happened. I could not figure out what brought the plane here and what had happened to the crew. After several more hours of exploring the plane and finding radio parts and maps, I continued to explore the island, but only found more jungle. Eventually, I went back to the dinghy. I suddenly remembered some paper I had found in the plane and had folded in my pocket. I scrawled IAN WAS HERE on a sheet, and I stuck it in the ground. I left the island before night fell, and sailed on to the next stop I was scheduled to make.
Sailing Blog Sailing Blog Rakel Sveinsdottir
25/4/13 My name is Rakel and I am 11 years old. So far everything is going well. I just stopped on an island called Rhodes, Greece. Here I can relax and think of nothing. You can’t believe this but I saw a whale. It was so huge!! I think it was a killer whale. I was a little bit scared that it would attack my boat, but luckily it did not. The killer whale was beautiful; it jumped up in the air as if it was flying. I love it on the boat because I feel like I am free and out in the open. The worst part about living on a boat is that once in a while I get seasick and my stomach starts hurting, but I feel better once I’ve stopped on an island. As I was saying, the island and the view is beautiful. I can’t wait until I get back on the sea. 1/5/13 Hi! There are so many things I have to tell you and so many things that have happened (don’t worry I mean good things). I saw a dolphin jumping out of the water. It was really beautiful. I loved it so December 2013
much that I gave her a name. She’s called Beauty!! I called her that because of course she was gorgeous. Last but not least, on April 27 at seven o’clock, I was heading down to my cabin when I saw this wonderful sunset. The colours were red, yellow and orange. I cannot write to you every day because there is not always an internet connection on the boat, but when I have the chance I will try to write to you. 5/5/13 You won’t believe what happened during the voyage. There was a huge storm and my boat was covered with water. I was so scared, but when the storm was finished I used a bucket and scooped out the water. After that I was a little bit relieved. I miss you guys so much. I wish that you could be here to share my experience. In about 10 days I might stop in Malta (an island). I heard that Malta is a very pretty place. I have to tell you some important information – MY BIRTHDAY IS IN 12 DAYS!!!! I’m so excited but I wish I could spend my birthday with you. I’ll write to you in about 2-3 days. Bye 8/5/13 Only 9 more days until my birthday. Yay!! I’ve planned that in 7 days I’ll stop in Malta and I’m going to stay there in a tent for 3 nights. On the 17th I’ll celebrate my birthday on the beach. Is that a good idea or what? Do you know what I miss? I miss cooked food in restaurants. I also miss shopping and having a great time with my friends. 12/5/13 So basically what I’ve been doing on this boat is sailing and exploring the world. It’s quite fun when you have good weather. You can sunbathe and relax, but when it’s raining then you get wet and sometimes have to take care of the floods on the boat. But so far it has been good weather and I have been exploring, sailing and having a great time. As always, I wish you guys were here to see what I’m doing and having a great time, rather than going to school or work. In about 4 days I’m stopping in Malta. While writing this blog I have been going through the Mediterranean Sea. 14/5/13 I can see land! It’s about 5 o’clock now, but at 7 in the morning (tomorrow) I will reach land about 50 kilometres away (I did the math). I am so ex-
Sailiing Blog
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cited because my birthday is in 3 days! I changed my mind a little bit. I might just sleep in the cabin because I am a bit scared of spiders if I sleep in my tent. I also feel a little bit safer in the cabin because I am used to it. I’ll write to you in 2 days. Bye! 16/5/13 Two exciting pieces of information I have to tell you. First of all it’s my birthday tomorrow!! And second of all, it’s beautiful here. The beach is awesome and the weather is amazing. I cannot wait to spend my birthday in this place. 17/5/13 Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me, happy birthday dear Rakel, happy birthday to me!! It’s my birthday. I am so happy because the weather turned out to be brilliant!! It is about 20 degrees now (10 o’clock) but it’s hopefully going to be hotter as the day progresses. I’ve made my decision on what country to go to next. It is Spain! I am excited to try the food over there. When I was younger I always wanted to go to Spain. I might see some Spanish girls dancing in a show like senoritas. I’m going to the beach, so I will write to you later. 20/5/13 I am back on my boat, sailing around the world. It was fun in Malta, but I am excited to go to Spain. I think it will take about 10 days. I don’t know what else to do but steer the boat and take care of the sails. Before I left Malta I bought some soup and crackers, and soap. I also bought some clean water and toilet paper – you know basic needs! Nothing fun happening at the moment, so I will write to you later. 24/5/13 You know what? I was washing my hands with soap and it was raining. I was scared the steering would go crazy, so I ran out of the bathroom, and the soap slipped out of my hand and into the sea! It of course sank. So from now on I have to dip my hands in the sea to clean them. I should have bought two of them!
so I’m always scared that I might get sick, but I have been trying to be really careful. I calculated wrong; it’s going to take fifteen days to sail to Spain. I need soap now. I hope a miracle is going to happen, a bar of soap dropping from the sky. 1/6/13 It’s 1st June and I have been living on a boat for two and a half months! I am a great survivor. I have celebrated today by giving myself a little treat, two more crackers than usual (usually I eat at least 3 a day). Of course the crackers aren’t chocolatey! They are whole grain, so it’s healthier. I also made myself soup and I am trying to do the best I can with only a little. 4/6/13 There is a big storm coming. I can see the clouds in view. I’m going to head down to the cabin and take cover there. I have taken everything that is valuable and brought it down. Once I get there I am going to make a cosy bed and get to sleep. 4/6/13 I just heard a noise coming from the deck ... like a thumping noise. I walked up the stairs and there, standing right in front of me, was a pirate with a hook in his arm, a red hat and a filthy patched eye. I froze just standing there. As the wind blew, he took me by the arm and pulled me up the stairs. Not only was there one pirate, his crew were there, ready to attack me. The captain said, “walk the plank”. I looked over his shoulder and I saw that there was a plank ready for me. He pushed me nearer and nearer. Now I was at that point where I was 1 centimetre away from his face. I stood on the plank, not knowing what to do. Suddenly the captain’s mate pushed me into the water. Was that the end of my life or was I going to survive?
28/5/13 There is nothing going on so far. Nothing but sailing. There is nothing new and amazing. Unfortunately my hands haven’t been clean for a while, -22-
Sailiing Blog
Middle School Magazine
Model United Nations William Painter
Model United Nations
This year in November 2013, ISL sent eighth and ninth graders to go to Istanbul for an MUN conference, but before I explain about the amazing trip, I will explain what the MUN actually is. MUN is a simulation of the UN. The UN is a place where all the countries come together and look at world conflicts and try to bring peace to these conflicts. This year the topic at Istanbul was peace and security. I was in the Historical Committee and we tried to resolve the Korean War that took place in 1950s. The resolution was that we bring North Korea and South Korea into one country. However I did not agree with the resolution as I thought problems would arise. This is a great trip and I recommend all students next year to try it out as it is worth it. Sadly, the weather was not as we expected it to be, but it was still warmer than here in cold Luxembourg. This is the most organised trips out of all Middle School MUN trips and it was my favourite one by far.
Word Splash: English Journal Creative Writing Emmanuel Diss The sun was beating on my back, its invisible vibrations rattling my body like the beating of a thousand drums. My eyes, half crossed, couldn’t guide me now. Only the internal compass Oxam knew rested in me kept my subconscious counting the steps to freedom, trying desperately with every half meter to bring it to reality. Sweat swept through me like salty flames flinging sparks into my eyes, and at the voices beside me and at the crack of the gun resounding behind my bare negro back, I knew the rebel from the Sudan was no more.
December 2013
Model United Nations
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s t r o p S NECIS U14 Boys Soccer NECIS 2013 Ron Schickendantz U14 Boys Soccer NECIS 2013
First of all, on behalf of our team, I would like to thank Coach Sam and Coach Kasey for making the whole season enjoyable for those who made the team and for those who didn’t. This year, the U14 Boys had an amazing time in The Hague and we can all agree that it was an experience that we won’t forget. Despite coming in 6th place, we all agree that with a bit of good luck we could have easily made the Top 3. Once again, Coach Sam was the best coach we could have ever asked for and also a good friend for all of us. Thank you Coach. – Ron Schickendantz and the U14 Boys
“Although we were the ones playing we couldn’t have done it without our helpful and always smiling coach!” – Lucas Browne
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U14 Boys Soccer NECIS 2013
Middle School Magazine
U14 Volleyball NECIS 2013 Elena Perticucci As many will agree, the volleyball season flew by, but in just a few small weeks of training, our team improved immensely. Enough girls had tried out to make two full teams, and with the courts filled, there was a variety of different skills throughout. The season started off with matches against Amsterdam and Dusseldorf. Although we lost, we kept our hopes high, tried harder and worked better together as a team. Our coach, Coach Murray, continued to remind us, that all she would ask of us was that we tried our best, and that the score was only a number. As we continued to play, our team evolved, our serves went over, and our hits became stronger. We knew that to be successful, we had to work together as a team. We tried to work our best in training, knowing those extra wall sits and suicide running drills would only help us improve. Our practices had consisted of running round the court, volleying, serving, and spiking exercises, and sometimes a few too many push-ups. If we were not concentrated, or in some cases, let the ball drop in front of us, the whole team was on the floor, doing 20 push ups, and with each time 5 more if it happened again. Although volleyball requires only a small court, our practices meant that we were consistently running. When we lost closely to Antwerp and won our match against Bonn and St. George’s, we began to find confidence within the team. We knew though, however, that even if we won or lost, we went on and off court as a team, and that the improvement was an achievement by itself. There was always a little competition on the bus rides to and from matches with the boy football players. Who was better? Who would place higher? As NECIS began to approach, our nerves began to kick in, and we couldn’t help ourselves by predicting and talking about where we would place, who we would be playing, and what we would do. We told each other, “Okay, this practice we really have to concentrate and work even harder, we only have a week until NECIS!”. Eventually, the tournament did approach. Our bags were packed, and on Wednesday, the first week back after the holidays, we were on the bus, making our way to The Hague. The first day had been a tough one, with 2 losses against Amsterdam and Dusseldorf. We knew that we had to work together better as a team. When the second day brought a loss against Hamburg, but a win against Bonn, our hopes remained high. We would be playing for the plate, 5th place. The final day definitely was the most nerve-racking. The footballers would be watching, and we were going to be playing Hamburg, who had previously beaten us at the last set. The pressure was definitely on, but proved to work, as it was a win. We may not have placed in the top three, but we were proud of how we had worked together and improved so much. We all thoroughly enjoyed the experience, and would like to give a huge thank you to our coaches, Coach Murray, Coach Fernandez, and Coach Amanda, who put in a huge amount of work into our training. We can’t wait to play again next year!
December 2013
U14 Volleyball NECIS 2013
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U14 Cross Country NECIS Bennet Wahlers and Emmanuel Diss The first thing anyone would have noticed was the weather. None of us could see within a radius of five meters and the nerves in a deadly combination with the cold rattled our bodies like the beating of a thousand drums. The second thing would have been the music, the third a rugged animal like costume with the words GRIFFIN painted in italics, and the fourth the unbelievable amount of mud. The sharp turns, the sweat sweeping through us like the river that did the same to our feet, it was all part of the process (that in itself was obvious), the same rugged sliding and repositioning that happened to us every year. We loved it. And we’ll never forget it.
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U14 Cross Counry NECIS
Middle School Magazine
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Pic Grade 6 Pumpkins Creative work
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Pictu
PIcture by: Matteo Giusto
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December 2013
Creative work
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Events in Luxembourg December 2013 – March 2014 Braden Davila
December 2013 “Winterlights” Luxembourg City Dates: November 23 - December 31 Festival of Lights and Animation at sites around the city, featuring Christmas markets, parades, rides, shows and concerts.
Buergbrennen Towns outside Luxembourg City Date: Evening of March 9 On Bonfire Day, bonfires in many towns around the city are lit with a large wooden cross in the middle. The signifies “burn the winter.”
Christmas Market Luxembourg City Dates: November 23 - December 24 Annual market that sells candles, toys, decorations, sweets, hot drinks and food.
December 2013 - March 2014
January 2014 Tourism Fair Luxembourg City Dates: January 17-19 This fair offers over 200 tourist specialists.
February 2014 Luxembourg City Film Festival Luxembourg City Dates: February 28 – March 9 Festival that aims towards films made in/with Luxembourg, offering feature and short films, documentaries and fiction films.
March 2014 Carnival Parade Diekirch Diekirch Date: March 2 Traditional parade featuring up to 50 floats and groups. Stréimännchen / Stréifrächen Remich Date: Evening of March 5 Marks the end or Carnival by marching down in a procession down to the Moselle river bridge, with a straw “man.” They then light the scarecrow on fire and push the scarecrow into the river. This signifies the end of Carnival. -28-
Information and pictures taken from the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg National Tourist Board Website. More Information can be found at: www.visitluxembourg.com
Events in Luxembourg December 2013 - March 2014
Middle School Magazine
Imposs ible Marcus Cope
Questio ns
What is the colour of nowhere? The colour of nowhere is both the blackness of nothing and something, it is the pale neither black nor white colour that shifts through realities separating the nothing of the desert, and the nowhere of the ocean. It is the black of the clear space and the colour of the things both seen and unseen. It is so dark, but too bright, too pale, yet so divine. - Emmanuel Diss What does silence sound like? An everlasting empty hallway full of the darkest and most abandoned dreams. -Marcus Cope Who is now? Einstein’s inventions flying through the wind. -Afonso Carvalho What does an echo look like? It looks like ghosts, flying through the air. -Alex Starck What does silence sound like? Silence sounds like the mind of a sail, never talking. -Jesper Miquel What is the second biggest number? I think the second biggest number is a google -Francoise Betzen What does air feel like? Air feels like a bubble of security, waiting like a time bomb to be popped. -Emilie Bergling What is the second biggest number? The second biggest number is a grumpy competitive number because it’s never coming first. -Anonymous
Enjoy! December 2013
Impossible Questions
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Question Joke
f l e s r u o y e r a p e r P
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Answers on the bo ttom
Jokes 1. What do you call a deer with no eyes? Marcus Cope
2. What do you call a deer with no eyes and no legs? 3. What did NASA think of their party? 4. What did one Snowman say to the other? 5. What is England’s most friendly motorway? 6. Why did the paranoid guy quit Twitter?
1. No Idea 2. Still no Idea 3. It was a blast 4. Do you smell carrots? 5.M8 6.He thought he was being followed -30-
Jokes
By Marcus Cope Middle School Magazine
Jokes
f l e s r u o y e r a p e r P
By Marcus Cope
You are on a horse, galloping at a constant speed. On your right side is sharp drop off, and on your left side is an elephant traveling at the same speed as you. Directly in front of you is a galloping kangaroo and your horse is unable to overtake it. Behind you is a lion running at the same speed as you and the kangaroo. What must you do to safely get out of this highly dangerous situation? Get off the merry-go-round, they are normally for children only!
December 2013
Jokes
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Ben Faulkner
Puzzles Sudoku Sudoku is a number puzzle that require s logical thinking. The aim of this puzzle is to fill in the squares with numbers 1 to 9, how ever every column, row, and 3x3 section, must contain all the digits 1-9. Sudoku puz zles are rated on a scale of 1 to 5 stars. This sec tion has a puzzle of each difficulty, plus a puzzle that is off the charts at 11 stars, for you to try!
Tips
rners of mbers in the co nu l al sm t pu - You can possibilities. squares, to show ctions, and ber 1 in all 9 se m nu r fo g in ok . -Start off by lo 2, 3, 4, and so on then progress to lumn, row, number in a co ng si is m e on t which -If there is ation to find ou in im el e us n, or sectio number it is.
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Puzzles
Middle School Magazine
Puzzles s
Word Problem 1.
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December 2013
Puzzles
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Ben Faulkner
Puzzle Solutio
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Sudoku
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Sources: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/
science-news/9359579/Worlds-hardest-sudoku-canyou-crack-it.html , http://www.4puz.com
Puzzle Solutions
Middle School Magazine
Puzzle Solutio
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Word Problem
Source: http://www.ukmt.org.uk/individual-competitions/junior-challenge/
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December 2013
Puzzle Solutions
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Obviously You Like To Start From The Back Inside This Issue
Exclusive Benjamin Zephaniah Interview
... and More!
Mind-boggling puzzles