Five Minutes of Fear

Five Minutes of Fear

A paper masked zombie, a serial killer with a love for flashing lights, and a guy on a phone who likes to creep on teenage girls, these are some of the fantastic, scary, and sometimes funny shenanigans that go on in these gruesome, and very awesome short movies. But be Warned, these are not for the faint of heart!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4id7hFvCS34&feature=channel_video_title

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7HjVuDEqW4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SacSnf7lD40

We Day

We Day

Written by Julia Pinnock, Gr. 10

Who’s ready to make a change? We are!
Who’s ready to make a difference? We are!!
Who’s ready to change the world? WE ARE!!!

These were the electrifying words spoken by Marc and Craig Keilberger at the closing of We Day, appropriately dubbed, ‘the Youth Leadership Movement of our Time’. With eighteen thousand youth and educators filling Rogers Arena, it truly was an awe-inspiring experience. With guest speakers such as former leader of the USSR, Mikhail Gorbachev, actress-turned-political-activist Mia Farrow, and of course the incredible Keilberger brothers, founders of Free the Children, it was a line-up of icons, the likes of which many of the attendees had never seen before.               

 It all began when Craig was twelve years old. He read about a boy who was the same age named Iqbal Masih, who was murdered for speaking out against child labour. Iqbal had been forced to work in a carpet bonding factory since the age of four. Enraged by what he had read, Craig decided that he wanted to make a difference, and prevent hearing more stories like that of Iqbal. This was the beginning of what would become Free the Children, and the cornerstone for WeDay. If they could do it, why can’t we? Well, WeDay showed us that we can; we can make a difference, and we can change the world. We’re doing it right now. They call us the Hero Generation, because these are the deciding years. These are the years where we find out if we can reverse the mark we’ve made on the planet, and humanity, and try to fix our old mistakes with new solutions. We are the leaders of tomorrow, and WeDay was the beginning of our steps forward today.

http://www.weday.com/

Endangered Species

Endangered Species

Written by Michael Redmond, Gr. 8

There are six hundred and thirty one endangered species in Canada right now but I shall be highlighting 4 of them.

White-headed Woodpecker

There are less than one hundred of these birds in the southern pine forests of British Columbia. The forests are being destroyed by fires, beetle infestations and for use of their wood for furniture making.  

Sage Thrasher

There are only 7 to 36 of these birds left in Canada. There are so few of these birds in Canada because they have lost their nesting homes. As there are so few, we aren’t sure what type of trees they nest in and we can’t help to maintain their habitat.

Atlantic Salmon

This popular salmon used for farming has suffered declines. In fact, there are so few that in Lake Ontario, they are now considered extinct.

Dolly Varden

The Dolly Varden trout is becoming extinct due to the effects of climate change. This has hugely impacted fisherman because it is a very popular fish.

Scientists believe that the loss of endangered species is greater now than in any time in history. Animals face extinction due to humans 75% of the time.

Think about what you can do to help. Check out Hinterland Who’s Who at http://www.hww.ca/index_e.asp to find out how.

The Care and Keeping of Your T.O.C.

The Care and Keeping of Your T.O.C.

Written by Emma Markus, Gr. 10

                Sometimes, for whatever reason, your teacher is absent from class. Oh dear! Whatever will you do? But fear not, for your absentee teacher will have called in a "T.O.C." (A.K.A. Teacher On Call). T.O.C.'s are renegade teachers, with no classroom to call their own. They must spend each work day in a different classroom with different rules, taught to them by a ragtag bunch of say thirty kids, all of whom expect the T.O.C. to have memorized their names by the end of class. One would assume that this would command a certain degree of respect, but evidently not. Why? It is a complete mystery.

                Second grade tricks are all well and fine - when you're in second grade. This teacher on call has to learn the names of about four classes of thirty or so children a day. That is one hundred and twenty kids a day, or eight hundred and forty kids a week. So changing names and switching seats with your best buddy in order to completely trip up the T.O.C. whenever he or she calls you by the wrong name (by laughing loudly, no less!)? Not cool. Show a little respect, huh guys?

                I cannot quite imagine why anyone who went through high school would possibly want to teach it. I mean, having experienced firsthand how horrible high schoolers can be to teachers. But to each her own; I'm not here to criticize. But I am here to talk about T.O.C. appreciation (or lack thereof) so let's roll with that instead. A teacher with their very own classroom can at least establish respect; they have to teach you all year, and can in fact follow misbehaviour through with punishment. So why not act like complete jerks to the substitute, it isn't like they can reprimand you! Isn't that a great idea? No, you fool, haven't you been listening? They have to deal with this nonsense every day, from different kids nonetheless! Why not dare to be different? Be polite and respectful; renew the teacher's faith in the next generation. Go on, I dare you. Oh, and T.O.C.'s leave something called "notes", perhaps you have heard of them? They are like texts, written down in pen on a piece of paper. Revolutionary. These are for your regular teacher, detailing the classes’ behaviour. Yes children, the teacher's know what you did. Run!
               
                 Perhaps you have merely been taking your anger out on the poor substitute, anger stemming from the fact that your regular teacher remembered to call in a sub at all. No free block for you, oh the humanity! Get over it. Have you ever thought that the T.O.C. may be more susceptible to, say, a nice game of thumbs up seven up (Do high schoolers still get to play that, or is it just for elementary school?) if you treated them with respect? I can see from the look on your face that I have given you a lot to think about. It's okay, don't hurt yourself. I know, thinking is hard.

                So please, next time you have a T.O.C. in the classroom, try putting yourself in her (a statistical probability) or his (less likely but still plausible) shoes. These people are here to share their "wisdom" with you, for one block only. They might never see you again, but will remember you forever as "That One Kid With The Stupid Shoes" or something. I'm quite sure you'll agree that that is something nobody wants. So prevent it. Only you can stop T.O.C. under appreciation.

Loss of Real Beauty

Loss of Real Beauty

Written By Darien Horwood, Gr. 10

            In today’s society, we don’t care if we lose our sky, our air, or our forests. How many of us know what real beauty is? I find that it is those starry nights when the moon is full, the crickets are chirping and there isn’t a soul in sight. True beauty encompasses all the colours of the world, like the beautiful rainbow, when the sun and rain are in perfect harmony and it seems nothing can disrupt that tranquility.

            But pollution has started to destroy that natural beauty. Soon, we won’t have any starry nights, or rainbows, or a full moon to gaze upon. All these will be hidden by the smog and gases we put into our skies. Soon, even the air we breathe won’t be safe.

            Modern society is to blame for all this, with its construction and cars, factories and tall buildings reaching for the stars we say we will one day reach, but will we reach them soon enough? Will we be able to find another planet such as this one, one to sustain the greedy human race?

            We need to stop and look at what we are doing. Yes, progress and a better future are two things that we all want, but the way we are going, a better future is not what we will have.

Book Review

This Week’s Book Review

Written By Colleen Worger, Gr.10

The book that I have chosen to review is “Before I Fall” written by Lauren Oliver. The plot line of this story is very simple, yet very intriguing. The main character is a teenager named Samantha Kingston, and the book is about an ordinary day in her life, which turns out to be her last. Samantha ends up getting seven chances to relive her last day and discover the true value of everything that she is in danger of losing. The story follows Samantha and her three best friends on Valentine’s Day at their school. Throughout the story, learns new things about people that she had never talked to before and even things about herself that she never noticed.

          I enjoyed every page of this book, and was hooked from the first chapter. I wasn’t too sure that it would be enjoyable at first, seeing as it entailed reading about the same day seven times, but I loved it. None of the days were the same; there was always something that made each one more interesting than the last. Lauren Oliver did a great job when it came to adding certain amazing aspects that contributed to enhancing everything in the story. The details and explanations were so descriptive that I felt like I was watching everything happen and I could understand what emotions the characters were feeling. I think that Lauren Oliver did a good job of sending a message to the reader about loving life and cherishing everyone and everything in it. The message was delivered by the main character as she discovered she could lose everything; all the wonderful things in life that she had just taken for granted. Two of my favorite quotes from the book are:

“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goals.”, and “Hope keeps you alive. Even when you’re dead, it’s the only thing that keeps you alive.”

          Overall, I really enjoyed this book and would give it a 10/10.

          ~Colleen Worger