Author: Pereira, Susan

The Mirror
New Paltz Middle School Student Newspaper
Edition III Spring 2012

School News

The Middle School Presents
Mulan Jr.
By Jacob Sirof
On Friday, March 14, 2012 the Middle School premiered the fantastic musical masterpiece, Mulan Jr.! The play was a smash hit thanks to Ms. Holmes, the director of the play. Approximately 150 kids participated! Ms. Holmes took a tremendous amount of time out of her schedule to help kids give their all and do their best.
The story is about a young girl named Mulan who goes to the military to save her father from having to go again. This captivated the audience when they witnessed her attempting the things the other male soldiers were doing while trying not to have the other men see that she is a girl. If they find out she is a girl, “The penalty is… death!” said Luke Sturgis, who played Mushu the dragon.
Mulan was played by Lia Natzle while Shang was played by Ben Kaufman. Both did an outstanding job performing in their roles.
Yao, Ling, and Quan Po, three soldier brothers, were played by Seamus Trzewick, Brennan McEntee, and Philip Jones.
The play was also a huge social experience for all of the kids who joined in. On the last dress rehearsal, everybody stayed until seven o’clock and there was potluck and pizza. Audience and performers alike enjoyed the performance.

Table of Contents
Page 1-3, 9 School News
Page 4 Student Travels
Page 5-6 Reviews
Page 7 Fun Page
Page 8 Club News

The Box Top Program
By Nicholas Zaccheo
The box top program is a program to raise money for the PTA. The PTA uses the money for school events and scholarships for students. You can find box tops on food boxes like cereal boxes, and fruit snack boxes. Students can bring box tops to the main office and put them in a box. Support the school and the PTA by cutting off the box tops.
No Name Calling Week at the Middle School
By Sophie Constable
No Name Calling Week was inspired by the book The Misfits by James Howe. In this book a group of bullied seventh graders started a No Name Calling Day at their school. A national group called the No Name Calling Week Coalition then organized a real No Name Calling Week in schools across the United States. The idea is for schools to encourage students to be nice and respect each other.
New Paltz Middle School participated between Monday, January 30th and Friday, February 3rd. Students made short videos to promote No Name Calling Week. These videos were shown on the morning announcements. There were also posters hung up all around the school reminding students to be nice to each other.

Students Recognized for Good Deeds
By Alexa Stropoli
“Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out.” This quote was used in the program for New Paltz Middle School’s second Recognition Breakfast held on February 16, 2012. This event was held to recognize the many small, thoughtful efforts of some Middle School students.
When students and parents arrived, they ate breakfast which included fruit, muffins, bagels, tea, coffee and juice.
The program was introduced by Dr. Wiesenthal, the principal; guest speaker was Ms. Debora Banner, the assistant superintendent of schools; and closing comments were by Mrs. Katie Tracz, the school’s counselor.
The students who received the awards are: Serena Brandt, Joseph Canelos, Olivia Casa, Gabriel Christiana, Jonathan Dejoy, Dylan Dellay, Katelyn Demskie, Meghan Fisher, Noelani Fixler, Ruby Gold, Kyle Jansen, William Kay, Iman Khan, Sara Lutz, Amanda Mele, Yesenia Melendez, Jessica Merten, Timothy Mihalics, Grace Morrissey, Orchidia Mumford, Lia Natzle, Patrick Palcic, Charlie Perez, Angelica Plaza, Rich Ricci, Robert Rivera, Angel Rodriguez, Deanna Savelson, Steven Scribani, and Nicholas Thompson.
The recognition breakfast was an opportunity for the school to reward students for their kind efforts. Keep up the good work.

Sixth Grade New Paltz Middle School Concert
By Megan Geher, Ginger Baur and Hailey Newell
On Tuesday, January 31st, the sixth grade chorus and band performed at the New Paltz High School at 7:00 pm.
The band played first. They started with “Megaforce,” then “A Classic Overture,. Any Way You Want It,” and the band ended with its booming “Liberty March.” The Chorus performed next. They started with the song “Takadamu,” then “Winter Wonderland,” followed by “Beyond the Sea,” and ended with “Hakuna Matata,” featuring Philip Jones. Then, the School of Rock danced their way on stage and started to play several songs including “I Heard it Through the Grapevine”.
The sixth grade band and chorus would like to thank Mr. Seymour and Mr. Milici for all of their hard work. Marta Pankowska said, “The concert was amazing!!!It was obvious to tell that we worked very hard on it.” The audience loved it!
Batman: Arkham City
By Eric Lasko
“Twinkle, twinkle, little bat. Watch me kill your favorite cat.”- The Joker talking about Catwoman
Arkham City, the sprawling Super-prison is a portion of Gotham City that has been hollowed out just to accommodate the scum of the city. But when Hugo Strange, warden of Arkham, captures Bruce Wayne and throws him into Arkham City, Bruce Wayne becomes Batman. Using an innovative combat system and a series of gadgets, Batman must stop Hugo Strange in 10 Hours to prevent Hugo Strange’s “Protocol Ten” from bringing dark days to Gotham. During the game players encounter a number of famous Batman villains including: The Joker, The Riddler, Hush, Two-Face, The Mad-Hatter, Bane and more! Players can play as Batman as well as Catwoman. Downloadable content to play as Nightwing and Robin is also available. (Some copies sold at Best Buy include a free copy of the Robin DLC). Skins for Batman are also available as DLC including: Year One Batman, Batman Beyond, Animated Series Batman, Sinestro Corps Batman and More!
I would give this game a 10 out of 10 because it has plenty to do during and after the main story, and the combat system is unlike anything I’ve ever seen before!
(Image found at: http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Cqkhe86y7E8/TvVauOzV_yI/AAAAAAAAAq4/TMwcjQ4F-D4/s1600/batman_arkham_city_wallpaper-4.jp)
Jeans for Teens
By Serena Brandt
Student Council organized a fund raiser called “Jeans for Teens.” They did it because Alexis Garcia, a student, brought the idea to student council as a worthwhile cause. Student Council made the posters and announcements, but the students and teachers participated. They received nearly 100 jeans. They were brought to Aeropostale. When asked if she felt good about this project, Ms. Hicks said, “Yes. It is always a great feeling to help others.”
Socks for Afghanistan
Why would kids in Afghanistan need socks? That's what the students in Mrs. Naclerio's reading and language arts class wanted to find out. Through their pen pals in the Netherlands, students found out that their pen pals were collecting and donating socks to needy Afghanistan children through a U.S. soldier named Mark DiPaolo.
First thing students did was to research some background information about Afghanistan and why children there might need socks. They learned about the history and culture of life in Afghanistan and the conflicts that have occurred. Then they blogged about their feelings about the sock program on Mrs. Naclerio's website so they could decide if they should participate. All students were supportive of filling a box with new socks for a young child in Afghanistan and sending it to the soldier's APO address so that the box could be handed out. The exciting part was to check the soldier's blog and actually find out that the box was received! The program has ended, but you can check out the details at http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/1lQXRY/givemesocks.wordpress.com.

Student Travels
All About Greece
By Alexa Stropoli and Melanie Grau
Athina Giogakis is a sixth grader in NPMS. Over the holiday break she visited Ancient Corentos, Greece. Athina left on Christmas Eve and came back on January 20th, 2011. Athina went with her mom, dad, and brother. The reason for her trip was to visit her family which still lives in Greece.
The main food there is gyros. She told us that the gyros were very interesting. Her favorite part of the trip was to see the ancient artifacts. Her favorite artifact is the temple of Pollo, and the things around it. “It was exciting to visit my family. I have not seen them in six years,” she said. Athina was a very lucky person to visit Greece and visit the ancient artifacts.
Bonjour
By Megan Geher
I went to Paris, France over February break with my grandparents and cousin. I departed from Newark at 6:00pm. I finally arrived in France (coming through Portugal) at around 11:00am France time. We got out of customs and in the taxi by 12:00, just in time to go to the market and get fresh crêpes! Crêpes are thin pancakes that are folded with some kind of treat in the center.
For dinner we had fresh food straight from the market. After dinner we watched the Eiffel Tower change colors and sparkle from our apartment and fell asleep. The next morning we went out to the Eiffel Tower to see it in person. On the way there, we passed a small playground. There was a lady and man who tried to play a famous scam on us. They pretended they just found a valuable ring and offered to “send” us the ring in an envelope if we gave them half the money. Some “scammers” do this differently so when this trick was played other times, near the Opera house which inspired the set of “Phantom of the Opera,” it was different.
The Eiffel Tower had a two hour wait so we decided to reserve a spot in the tour a different day. We went to lunch, and then headed out to see the Arc de Triomphe. It was very impressive, with all of the patterns and names. The most impressive thing was the fire (called the eternal flame in order to honor unknown soldiers who died) that was still burning. That concluded our day.
Over the course of the trip, we saw Notre Dame, Sacre Coeur, the Catacombs, the Louvre, the science museum and the Opera House. The Notre Dame had everything from great ceilings to flying buttresses. The most amazing thing was the stained glass windows. Right near the Notre Dame, there were many stores and a great river.
The Sacre Coeur was similar to the Notre Dame. There were also great ceilings and stained glass windows. One interesting thing about the Sacre Coeur was the silence that was required in the building. Near the Sacre Coeur were artists who did caricatures and portraits. My cousin and I each got a portrait.
The Catacombs were tunnels with tons of bones also known as “The Empire of the Dead.” In the 1700’s, a graveyard had to be dug up and all of the bones moved. They ended up moving the bones into underground tunnels.
The Louvre is the art museum that used to be a castle. Some famous masterpieces are:
Winged Victory, the Venus de Milo and the Mona Lisa. You go in through clear pyramids and end up in an amazing underground world. At the Louvre, my cousin and I discovered some potato chips that couldn’t be found in America. They were Roasted Chicken and Thyme flavored. They were amazing and tasted 100% like chicken!
The science museum had exhibits on everything from genes to animation. We watched a planetarium show that was in French, but we had separate headphones to hear it in English. Also, we got to make a scene in the animation section. We got to put a certain percent of water in a rocket and see how high it went. Finally, there was a machine that guessed your mood, gender and age. Only sometimes was it correct; it said I was in my twenties and my cousin Christopher was a girl!
The Opera House was the inspiration for the “Phantom of the Opera.” Its giant golden walls and large velvet couches definitely set the scene for a creepy movie. There were all sorts of small sculptures and shadows that the Phantom could be lurking in or behind.
On Saturday, it was time to go home. We had to get up at 3:00 am to catch our plane. When we landed in Newark again, we had tons of fun stories and souvenirs to share. I was happy to be back in my own bed, (especially because I had had strep throat the entire trip which I didn’t find out until Sunday) but I missed the yummy French food and amazing sights. I really hope others will be able to experience the masterpiece called Paris!

Movie review THE HUNGER GAMES
REVIEW
By Alec Sciandra
The Hunger Games is a movie based on Suzanne Collins’ best-selling book of the same name. But reading the book isn’t necessary to fully enjoy the movie.
The story is science fiction and takes place in Panem, the future America. After war and uprising, Panem is divided into 12 districts and the Capitol. Every year one boy and one girl between the ages of 12 and 18 are selected at random from each district. These kids are known as “tributes” who are forced to participate in an event called the Hunger Games.
The Hunger Games is a fight to the death until one person remains. The winner is bathed in riches, brings honor to their district and has the opportunity to move to the Capitol.
The story follows a 16-year-old girl named Katniss Everdeen from District 12 and her journey through the Hunger Games while the government fears yet another uprising. I would recommend this film and book to anyone who enjoys science fiction and suspenseful drama.
The Hunger Games is rated PG-13. Many times PG-13 ratings are suitable for kids 10 to 12 years old, but because this film is about kids killing other kids, I recommend The Hunger Games to viewers under 13 only if they are not easily upset by violence.
The Hunger Games is paced quickly and has many scenes of action, suspense and violence. I give The Hunger Games a rating of 4.5 out of 5.

App review
Cut The Rope
By Tori Felter
Cut the Rope is an app available on the app store. There are many versions you can get such asCut the Rope Experiments, Cut the Rope or Cut the Rope free. To play Cut the Rope, you select a level and start. To beat the level you must cut the rope so that the candy lands in the OmNom’s mouth. The OmNom is the little green animal thingy that is a pet on your doorstep, according to the mini-story at the beginning of the game. Cut the Rope is an amazingly fun game that will have you hooked for hours. On a rating of 1-5, I give Cut the Rope a 4!!
Book review
A Dog's Purpose
By Molly Litton
I read A Dog's Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron. This book is about a dog living many lives and just trying to figure out what his purpose is. In many ways the dog (whose name by the way changes many times) goes through more adventures and revelations than any human will experience in his or her lifetime. At the end of the book the dog understands that there are many bumps and potholes in the road to the end, but soon enough it will all even out. Lastly, that the world has something that is needed for the dog to be done.
This book is set in the present in America, and it has a number of small stories that are the journeys the dog takes. The book has a great hook at the beginning and that sort of thing really has a way of drawing people in. This is an amazing book and I really do recommend this book to kids of all ages. It is heartwarming and loving, and a definite family book. I know some dog books and animal books can be sad but this book is touching. I really hope you do read it and love it as much as I did.

Movie Review:
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
By Eric Lasko
Ethan Hunt is an agent in the government agency called the IMF or the Impossible Missions Force. After being broken out of a Russian prison by Agents Carter and Dunn, he finds out that his mission, should he choose to accept itis to stop a terrorist called Cobalt from inciting thermonuclear war. In order to do this his team must break into the Kremlin, the Russian capital, in order to find Cobalt’s identity. But when this goes awry, the President initiates Ghost Protocol which disbands the IMF, and should any agent be captured or killed, they will be branded as terrorists. With only his team and an IMF analyst, agent Hunt must bring down Cobalt once and for all.
This is a very good film and I would give it a 9.5 out of 10, because it is well written and action packed. This movie will leave a viewer on the edge of his or her seat until the last second.
Book review
Unwind
by Megan Geher
I read the book Unwind by Neil Shusterman. It was about a world where children between the ages of 13 and 18 can be unwound, which means all of their organs are transplanted while they are alive. Technically, they are 99.9% (excluding the appendix) still alive, just in other people. The story focuses in on 3 kids who are set to be unwound.
Connor, Risa and Levi (or Lev) try to escape being unwound. They meet many other unwinds along the way and go through many different places. But with police chases and “kidnapping” they might just get unwound….
I give this book 10 out of 10 stars because it kept me excited the whole time. I would strongly recommend this book to anyone who likes adventure and horror. If you love cliff-hangers, this book is for you!

App review
Angry Birds
By Caleb Sheedy
This article is dedicated to Steve Jobs, who recently passed away. He was the creator of all Apple products and some apps. He inspired all of the app creators and mobile devices.
Angry Birds is a game available on Apple mobile devices. It’s a great game for testing your skills on the brain and your hand-eye coordination. Many people love it and can’t put it down.
The game is about birds who are minding their own business when a bunch of green pigs take their eggs. They go into war! There are seven birds. There’s a red, yellow, orange, green, light blue, black and white one. There’s also a special bird called The American Eagle. You only buy him once and he has unlimited use. He beats the level for you!
To play the game, you tap the level you want to play. There is a set up of some pigs protected by wood, glass, or stone. They give you a certain amount of birds and what types they are. You are not allowed to change the types of birds.
You have to use the sling shot to shoot the bird toward the elements protecting the pigs. To beat a level, you have to kill all of the pigs. Each pig may or may not be protected by headwear that makes them even harder to beat. Each bird has its own special power.
You can either buy the short version for free or the full version for 99 cents. They also recently came out with Angry Birds Rio and Angry Birds Space. Buy the app to find out more and have fun!
Riddles from Arkam City:
1.“The more of me there is, the less you can see? What Am I?”
2.“Name an instrument from witch the music comes from the HEART.”
3.“If you share me, I’ll no longer exist. What am I?”
4.“I have a head, a tail and no legs. What Am I?”

Student Council is meeting every other Wednesday in room 45. Some of our events are Red Ribbon Week and the Thanksgiving Food Drive. We are always looking for students who have ideas on how to improve the Middle School community. Students have met several times so far but new members are always welcome.
Middle School Drama Club performed Disney's Mulan jr this year.
Reflections: NPMS's literary and art magazine is open to all 6th, 7th, 8th graders interested in helping to put the magazine together. Students can submit their artwork and creative writing to the magazine. They meet in room 38 on Wednesdays, about once a month. Listen to the announcements or ask Ms. Rosen for details.
Students who just wish to submit work and not be on the staff can give it to Ms. Rosen or leave it in her mailbox.
Art Club meets on Mondays in room 36. It is presently open to interested students. Projects will be designed weekly, and are mostly crafts. See Mrs. Sturgis for more information.
Wonderful Wednesday Social Group meets in the art room after school. (It is NOT a club; it is a "group".) We welcome some new 6th grade members this year. Looking forward to seeing you there. Advisors are
Ms. Ibrahim, Mr. Scarpati and Ms. O'Brien.
New Paltz School of Rock is a brand new group meeting after school a few times a week. This group, which is co-directed by Mr. Milici and Mr. Seymour, is a pop music group that held auditions. The top 20 singers were selected in the school to form a rock choir which will be backed up by a small, 10 piece all-star band consisting of some of our school's best instrumentalists. Everyone will soon have a chance to hear this group! We look forward to giving you our best!
The Mirror (this newspaper):
Meetings are held on Wednesdays in room 3. The advisor is Ms. Pereira. All students are welcome. See you there!
Way to Go, Mason!
Congratulations to Mason Secky-Koebel for being a three-time National Geographic Bee school champion! The school Geography Bee competition is an annual event sponsored by the National Geographic Society and held through the Geography Bee Club run by Ms. Naclerio. They meet every Thursday in room 1.
There are three levels of possible competition: school, state, and national. For three years straight, Mason has been able to successfully advance through the preliminary, final, and championship rounds to win the school title.
This year, Mason qualified to represent the New Paltz Middle School and participated at the state level of the National Geographic Bee. Although he did not advance to the national level, he almost received nearly a perfect score in the first round.
Way to go, Mason!

Riddles from Arkam City Answers:
1.Darkness
2. An Organ
3. A secret
4. A penny/coin
Greek Plays
By Marta Pankowska
Students in sixth grade performed Greek plays. Ms. Sage’s class performed The Sea Monster’s Rage and Ms. Pereira’s class did Prometheus Bound. The Sea Monster,s Rage was about a girl named Cassiopeia who thought she was prettier than the goddess of beauty, Aphrodite, so she had to sacrifice her daughter. A sea monster was trying to attack her, and then Perseus came and killed the sea monster and married the daughter. The second play was Prometheus Bound. In the play Prometheus stole fire from Zeus to give to the humans. For that Prometheus was bound to a rock and suffered. A lot of people came to help but he denied them. Then Prometheus was saved by Hercules.
Students learned a lot about ancient Greece by performing these plays.
New Paltz Middle School’s
softball team
New Paltz Middle School green classroom

The Mirror
Staff
Ginger Baur, Hannah Benenati, Serena Brandt, Sophie Constable, Lillian DePuy, Rebecca Dugatkin, Tori Felter, Megan Geher, Melanie Grau, Eric Lasko, Josie LaPolt, Molly Litton, Samantha Musso, Hailey Newell,
Marta Pankowska,
Janelle Schneider, Alec Sciandra, Augie Scoppa, Caleb Sheedy, Jacob Sirof, Alexa Stropoli, and Nicholas Zaccheo
Advisor
Susan Pereira
A special thanks to Fran Lamb
for all of her help and expertise, and
Jeff Lipton for all his editing help.
Meetings for The Mirror are held once a week in room 3.
Thanks for reading The Mirror!
Look for our next edition
around the end on the year

*Important: If your club, organization or sports team is having an upcoming event, please let a Mirror staff member know so that he or she can cover the event.

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