Photo at Niagara Falls, “Frozen in Time” by Hana Saleemi, 701 Hillfield Strathallan College—Middle School Student Newspaper
New Year The Super Bowl is the most-watched television event in America. It is also the second-biggest eating event in America after Thanksgiving. But many Canadians also watch the Super Bowl every year. This year is a tight race with many teams still in the hunt, some of which have never won a Super Bowl. For example, the Cincinnati Bengals, Buffalo Bills, and Tennessee Titans have all been serious contenders and have never won a Super Bowl. My pick to take home the Lombardi trophy this year was the Buffalo Bills after their blowout win over the New England Patriots. But now, we’ll just have to see! Who do you think is going to win the Super Bowl?
Click her e by Jordan Campbell and Tyler Clifford (701)
by Anivit Sah (701) and Devyn Pavic (704) We can all agree that last year was quite a rollercoaster. Now it's time to inhale 2022 and exhale 2021. As soon as we thought we were leaving the dark woods, we came upon another thick forest. So it's important to stay on track and make goals for ourselves.
The history of the New Year’s celebration is that it was first invented roughly 4000 years ago in an ancient land named Babylon. Did you know that, in an average year, about fortyfive percent of Americans make New Year's resolutions? Another fun fact is that the most popular activities on New Year’s Eve are watching the Times Square Ball Drop, lighting sparklers, banging pots and pans, and making some noise.
Joke: At the beginning of this year, I made a New Year's resolution to lose 10 pounds - Only New Year's resolutions are helpful in making us better peo- 15 more to go! ple, but they can be hard to keep going. The most famous Source: https://www.history.com/topics New Year’s goals are about personal growth (living better, /holidays/new-years getting cheerful, shedding pounds).
Coming Soon: Montessori and Junior School Green Team!
The plan is to present a short slideshow to the Montessori and Junior students and then to ask for volunteers who may want to join the Green Team.
that new projects can begin.
We will continue to follow this story as it develops. If you have a younger sibling in Montessori or the Junior School, by Ahana Kulkarni, 604 While it is too early to say the ask them if they are interested in specifics of the plan, such as who potentially joining soon. As you may already know, the will volunteer for the role of staff Green Team is a team of students supervisor of this group, we are Stay tuned! who are committed to protecting certain that the project will hapthe environment, and they are in pen this year. The role of the charge of creating plans for Montessori and Junior School events, projects, fundraisers, etc. Green Team is to formulate plans that will help the environment and brainstorm suggestions that around HSC. can then be communicated to the Middle School Green Team so @theHelm ~ page 2
Pet Corner
Bunnies in December 2021
by Maria Titov, 705
10 Health Facts You Might Not Know! by Nischal Amin, 703
Hello everyone, and welcome to the bunny world!
1. The smallest bone in the human body is the Stapes.
We got our bunnies in the summer from somewhere in Port Colborne. When they were five months old, they got separated from their brother. When the bunnies got home, they were scared to get out of their cage or even let us touch them. Eventually, they got used to their home and let us pet them. The bunnies are ten months old now. First, I want you to meet Mochi. Mochi is a tuxedo dwarf bunny with silver eyes and a white and black fur coat. The second bunny, Greyle or Grey, is a lionhead dwarf rabbit and Mochi’s sister. She has black eyes and a grey fur coat.
2. Tooth enamel is the only thing in the human body that can’t heal itself. 3. Ectomy in medicine means to “take out.” 4. You can’t live without your liver, but you can live without parts of it. You can live with half a liver and the other half will grow back.
like to give them cabbage, carrots, lettuce, and a slice of apple. When I give my bunnies food, Mochi and Grey start to fight over it, and whoever wins gets the food.
My bunnies need 20 minutes of exerThe bunnies eat grass pellets, hay or cise because they don’t get to do whatever they want in the cage. Grey dried grass, and drink lots of water. Sometimes I like to give the bunnies likes to go up the stairs and just sit at treats if they behave well. For treats, I the top while Mochi likes to hop around at the bottom of the stairs. Bunnies in July 2021 The bunnies go to sleep at 5:00pm every day and wake up at 1:00-2:00am and they start to do whatever bunnies do while I sleep. I hope you enjoyed reading about my two bunnies! @theHelm ~ page 3
5. Itis means inflammation in medical terms. 6. The strongest bone in the human body is the femur. 7. The first successful transplant ever performed was a kidney transplant. 8. The heart can beat outside of the human body as long as it’s supplied with a proper oxygen source. 9. Blood cells are actually produced and created inside your bone marrow. 10. Chest compressions are only effective if you push down 2 inches. This has a chance of breaking 12 ribs. Thanks to Doctor Mike for the information!
Fabulous (Horrific) Dad Jokes (Yes, it’s a trilogy now) by Sophia Liu, 804 I know that everybody is ecstatic that we have even more dad jokes. Of course, as always, they are in alphabetical order. I hope that these get some laughter out of you during these tough times. A: What did the baker say when she won an award? “It was a piece of cake.”
H: Why would doors do well on social media? Everyone looks for their handles. I: How does a penguin build his house? Igloos it together.
R: Want to know why nurses like red crayons? Sometimes they have to draw blood.
J: Did you hear about the guy who invented the knock-knock joke? He won the “no-bell” prize.
S: Sundays are always a little sad, but the day before is a sadder day.
K: What do you call someone with T: The wedding was so beautiful, no body and no nose? Nobody even the cake was in tiers. knows. U: What street do unicorns live L: Where was the dripping comon? Mane Street. ing from in the fridge? The leeks. V: I decided to sell my vacuum cleaner—it was just gathering dust! W: If you see a crime at an Apple Store, does that make you an iWitness?
B: Why shouldn’t you write with a broken pencil? Because it's pointless.
X: Had to wait ages for my X-ray today at the hospital. There was only a skeleton staff working.
C: What kind of music do chiropractors listen to? Hip pop. D: How can you tell it's a dogwood tree? By its bark.
Q: Why did the coach go to the bank? To get his quarterback.
M: What animals are the best to call if you get locked out of your house? Monkeys.
E: Why do people take an extra pair of socks when they go golfing? In case they get a hole in one!
N: Do you wanna box for your leftovers? No, but I'll wrestle you for them.
F: What’s the most patriotic sport? Flag football.
O: What kind of bird is always getting hurt? The owl.
G: What did the sapphire’s best friend tell her? “You’re a real gem.”
P: Why was the hockey player given a new cap? He was known for his hat tricks.
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Y: What kind of car does an egg drive? A yolkswagen. Z: What did the zero say to the eight? Nice belt.
Bell Let’s Talk Day 2022 On Wed. Jan. 26, the Middle School will participate in special wellbeing activities that focus on mental health awareness, wrapping up a month of GLOW. Especially during these pandemic times, it’s good to know where to turn for an understanding conversation and how to take care of your own physical and mental wellness.
How to Be a Good Online Learner
Some of the activities at HSC on Jan. 26 include: the Bell Let’s Talk Chatterbox Mandala Art Self care activity
Mental health is important all the time! Try this amazing @home Walking Curriculum Challenge from Mr. Hannah any (every) day of the week!
Always Look And Refer To My HSC For All Updates
Always look and refer to my HSC because there are links to your teacher's by Oliver Wojciechowski, 601 Zoom rooms, and each teacher has their subject page that has lessons Always Keep Your Camera On and homework posted. It is a great Turn your camera on right away when tool! you log on to your classes so that the teacher knows you are listening and ready to work. Do not play Roblox or other games. If everyone has their camera on, you can see all your friends, which is a bonus. Remember to look into the camera.
Stay Active! The most important thing to do online is to be active because you will not play with your friends and get easy exercise at recess. So when you get a break at lunch, go for a walk or go swimming in the summer for 20 minutes. Also, try to maintain a good posture when sitting in front of the computer.
Set-Up Your Work Space Please make sure your working space is clean because it is easier to be organized and find things very quickly for each subject. Unfortunately, I had to Be Polite learn this the hard way. A quiet space Remember to mute your microphone is required for better studying so that there are no disruptions. Do not join before you enter the Zoom room. from your bed with your pajamas on Always virtually raise your hand and and hair not combed because that is wait for the teacher to pick you. There can only be one person speak- not appropriate. ing at a time. Try to be an active participant! Do not yell out answers for someone else because that is not polite, and give others a chance to speak!
Don't Be Late A tip for not being late for class is to set up a timer on your phone for each class. So when it's time for the class your phone will ring. Make sure to have your phone on do not disturb. Make sure to be three minutes early and wait patiently for the teacher.
Source:
https://www.hsc.on.ca/hschome/hscho me-learning-tips @theHelm ~ page 5
Holiday DoorDecorating
surprises. Your class brings in materials to decorate with and you work as a team to decorate your classroom door.
by Willow Norman (705) and Saejin
This holiday season, the Middle School did things a little differentDoor decorating is a favourite ac- ly. Instead of pitting class against tivity for many HSC students. It is a class, we went grade against grade. This was exciting for many fun, friendly competition to see whose door is the best decorated people and provided some excelwith different kinds of themes and lent leadership opportunities, as Yoon (703)
@theHelm ~ page 6
each grade had to choose one coherent theme for all of its doors. This year, Grade 5 won (not many people were surprised!). They set up pretty lavish decorations. Congratulations to Grade 5! Not only do they get bragging rights, but they also got a dress-down day. Here are some featured doors...
Exploring the World of 3D Printing by Liam McKnight, 703
stored on the 3D printer, which was to print a dog, but there was one problem—every time we got the printer going, it would mess up, and we were left with a pile of plastic.
I first found out about 3D printing in a After that, my dad and I figured out summer camp at McMaster Universi- we needed to level the printer. The first step was to set the nozzle to ty in which we received some 3Dprinted Pikachus. They had been printed in one of their labs. I thought that was pretty cool, so every Christmas, I secretly hoped that I would get a 3D printer. This recent Christmas, I got my wish!
What is a 3D printer? What is a 3D printer? A 3D printer prints 3D models. Okay, we’re done. Goodbye. Just kidding! A 3D printer is a printing machine that shoots out molten plastic onto a heated surface, which after a while turns into a 3D object. It builds up from the bottom over multiple layers. You may be asking, what can 3D printing be used for? 3D printing can be used for many things, but the most common use is to make pieces for a model or design. Other uses are for prototyping new ideas or for manufacturing larger items.
The Maiden Voyage of my 3D Printer
home and disable the stepper, which would allow us to move the nozzle. We had to check the space between the nozzle and the bed (the spot where the 3D print would be printed) with a sticky note a few times so the bed would be leveled and tweaked a little. We attempted the 3D printer again, and it worked. After an hour, a dog appeared. However, we wanted to print different things, not just a dog.
I learned that there was a website called “Thingiverse” where I could I was very excited when I saw my new download designs for my printer for 3D printer under the tree. My dad and free, so we checked it out. We found I set up the printer and started printa lot of different “ready to print” 3D ing right away. We first used the data @theHelm ~ page 7
objects on this website, and I decided to go with Iron Man. I had to download the file and process it using an application called PrusaSlicer. Then I downloaded the finished product with a USB and chip which I inserted into the printer. Finally, I selected Iron Man and within 2 hours I had a mini Iron Man.
The Future of 3D Printing The future of 3D printing is right around the corner with attempts being made at making 3D-printed houses. Yes, you read that right: houses! Quite recently on YouTube, I saw that engineers have started 3D printing houses using a larger 3D printer that shoots out concrete. Public safety and health have recently allowed them to start printing houses for people. Now you are probably wondering how long it takes to print a house, and you might be surprised to hear it takes only 24 hours. If you would like to learn more about 3D printing houses, please visit this link: https://www.thezebra.com/resources /home/3d-printed-homes/
Looking Ahead Once you learn how to use your printer, you can begin learning how to design your own 3D-printed models. Tinkercad is a great beginner website for getting started with 3D designing. There are lots of tutorials to get you started, too. Lastly, if you want to learn more about 3D printing at HSC, please contact Mr. Scichilone!
HSC INTERVIEW with Mrs. Setzkorn by Saejin Yoon (703) and Willow Norman (705)
Q: Do you have an interesting story about something that happened while you were teaching? A: The best experience teaching at HSC is to take students on fun trips (St Donat, Ottawa, E-week) and College events, like Relay for Life. It is nice to see students come together.
Q: When did you start working at HSC Q: What do you like about your job? and what subject did A: I love the school life part because you teach? I get to organize all of the activities, and I like teaching HPE because I like A: In Sep- seeing my students physically active tember, 2006. I was a grade 5 home and devoted in my class. form teacher and I taught grade 5 math, English, social studies, HPE. Q: What challenges do you face with Q: Why did you decide to start teaching HPE?
dents are participating. Q: Do you notice any changes in behaviour when students are online? A: They are very quiet and less likely to participate because they are very tired. Q: What are some positive things about being online? A: It‘s easier to collaborate with other teachers. Also, getting guest speakers is easier because they can’t come in person, but they can meet us on Zoom. It’s nice to be able to gather as a whole school online, which is something we can’t do in person right now.
your job? Q: What are some challenging things about being online?
A: Balancing school life with academics and trying to be considerate A: I did a kinesiology course in uniof teachers—also trying to get A: For me, it’s hard to balance workversity, so I knew a lot about HPE. through the curriculum while also ing and being a mom at the same planning fun events. time. The students need me to Q: Did you always want to be a teach, but my kids also need me. teacher or did you want to be some- Q: How do you manage being both thing else when you were younger? the Vice Principal of School Life as Q: Where do you find the creativity Why did you choose to be a teacher? well as an HPE teacher? Do you ever in planning online lessons vs. in perstruggle to keep up with both roles? son lessons? A: I didn't always want to be a teacher. When I was younger, I wanted to A: It comes from collaboration. All be a pediatrician, and in university I A: Yes, there is always a kind of the HPE teachers work together to was a health promoter for a while. struggle, but for me, trying to dedi- create lessons. At McMaster, I did some kinesiology cate the time that I need with the studies, but my heart was in teach- HPE teaching, so when I’m teaching Q: Do you think you are treated ing. I taught kids gymnastics when I HPE, I needs to focus on HPE, and differently as the Vice Principal of was younger and loved connecting for School Life, I need to focus on with the kids and teaching them. School Life. Q: Do you feel like you are appreciat- Q: What has changed about your job ed by students for what you do? while being online? A: Yes! I received many letters around Christmastime. Someone also wrote a thank you note for me when we were doing thank you notes in our health unit.
A: Engagement. It‘s hard to keep students engaged online. There were some House challenges last year, but not many students did them. I organized some GLOW activities, but I don’t know if many stu@theHelm ~ page 8
School Life? If so, how?
happen causing me to move.
A: I don’t think so.
Q: Who do you look up to at HSC? Or do you have other role models in Q: If you had to change anything your life? about your life, what would it be?
Q: Do you think that you will be teaching at HSC until you retire?
A: When I first started teaching, Ms A: I hope so! I don't see going any- Rocca was my mentor. She helped where else unless some big changes me a lot for my first 10 years as a
Geography Corner by James Li, 704 (Try your best to guess and try not to use the internet!)
Which country has the largest economy in Europe? Which country has the most territorial waters? What is the deepest freshwater lake in the world?
What is the capital of Saskatchewan?
Hard Level:
Which mountain range is located in Banff National Park ?
What is the capital city of Samoa?
Which country has the largest economy?
Which country has the most salt water crocodiles?
Which country owns the Galapagos Island?
Medium Level: What is the capital city of Lithuania?
A: I would like to try to travel more with my children. I want to let them see the world.
Which countries share the biggest mountain range in the world?
Easy Level:
What is the difference between a cyclone, a hurricane, and a typhoon?
teacher, and I am very grateful for her help.
Which country has the third longest river in the world? How many countries border the Mediterranean Sea? What is the largest city in the world that is above the Arctic Circle? (hint: It is further north than Yellowknife or Iqaluit.)
@theHelm ~ page 9
by Juliet Finley, 705
Sketches by Nicole Guzman, 503
@theHelm ~ page 10
Podcasts
are from like ancient mythology. Yes, yeah.
Learn about the World with Abdullah
EPISODE 2: India and Kenya Abdullah Al Sheikhly’s interview with Meera Ghani (804)
Anyways, where are you from? I’m from India and Kenya. That’s so cool! So you’re like half-Indian, half-Kenyan? Yes.
Intro music
Ok so, yeah, I love Indian culture and Kenyan. I actually don’t know a lot about Kenyan but…
Welcome to my podcast! Let’s start off with the simplest question: what’s your name? I obviously know it but our listeners might not.
Yeah um, it’s kind of a mix of both, like the languages that I speak are influenced by Swahili which is an African language, and um yeah!
My name is Meera.
So, what are the majority languages in each country?
Black: Abdullah
Blue: Meera
That’s such a cool name. What does it mean? It doesn’t really have a meaning. It’s more of the name of a person from my mythology and legends and stuff.
Well, the language I speak is Gujarati and that’s from the place of Gujarat, and Hindi is kind of the main language in India, and then yeah like I said, Swahili is an African language.
Oh that’s really cool! So it’s a person from I’ve heard there is like a lot of languages in India. Right, there’s also like Punjabi your mythology? and Sanskrit, I believe. Yes. Yeah, Sanskrit is more like an ancient lanSo, what are some other common names guage, but it’s still kind of used a little bit. in your culture? So where is the region you’re from in India? Some common names are Rajesh, and my brother’s name which is Arjun. Yeah, a lot of names that mean hope or just significant Yeah, it’s Gujrat. words. Yeah and lots of people form myLike is it in the north or south? thology as well. Yeah, that’s really interesting! So like some words have meaning while others
I think it’s north. Hmm, interesting. So where in the world is… Yeah India…
believe is South Africa. So yeah. Cool. It’s okay if you don’t know the history, but how did those countries come to be? Were there any big, notable events or movements that formed your country? Was your country ever invaded by another country? Yes, actually India was colonized by England for a very long time, and I believe they gained independence in the 1940s; actually, my grandma was born a couple of months before India gained independence. She was born in March and they gained independence in August the same year. So yeah that’s pretty cool. That’s pretty cool. So my next question is what does traditional dress look like for Indian and Kenyan people? It’s a lot of bright colours and patterns. For India? Yeah, for India and I think for Kenya. I think our traditional dress is mostly based around Indian dress, so yeah there’s a lot of reds and oranges and like really vibrant colours. Do those colours symbolize anything or is it just like happy colours?
India is in like South Asia and then Kenya, where in Africa?
I think they just symbolize good luck and stuff. We don’t wear a lot of black or grey stuff, it’s mostly just reds and stuff.
I don’t exactly know where Kenya is, but yeah my dad was born in Uganda which I
Ok so like what about like decor styles,
@theHelm ~ page 11
like is there common things that you see in traditional Indian households?
Anyways, so I was wondering what religions are like popular in India?
A lot of things include mostly around notable holidays and stuff. So like around Diwali, you’ll see a lot of candles and little clay candle holders.
Religions, um I’m gonna say Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism is really big I think. Yeah, I’m Yeah well, that was actually my last quespretty sure those are a couple of the main I tion. I hope you had a fun time! I sure did! could think of. It was so fun learning about Indian culture and a bit about Kenyan and UganMhm, so that’s really cool! There are a lot dan culture! I hope anybody listening has of religions. an amazing time! See you in the next episode of Learn About the World With AbYes, there are a lot. dullah!
That sounds so pretty! Haha, yeah it is. There’s a lot of flowers as well, and a lot of gold decor and stuff.
Yeah, I’m pretty sure it’s a little bit more accurate. There’s like 30 days per month, instead of like 31 some months
Ok, that’s great! Now let’s move on to theee most important question. This is literally the most important question for me. FOOD! I love food. Food is my life. Food is my everything. Food makes me happy. So tell me what are your favourite Indian foods and then what are your favourite Kenyan/Ugandan/African foods.
So what are some holidays and notable Bye! events in Indian culture? Oh wait sorry um is there any religions in Kenya? Outro music
Yeah, so my favourite Indian foods are definitely the sweets. The desserts are absolutely amazing. I think my favourite would have to be like this rice pudding, we call it kheer and it has saffron and nutmeg, and it’s just really warm and it’s great in the winter.
So I think you know more about India.
Um, I don’t really know. I think my culture is more based around Indian culture and then the languages and stuff are more based around African stuff.
Yeah… Ok, so I’ll try to focus more on India. Ok so what are some holidays and notable events in Indian culture
Episode 1: The Cruel Prince Meera Ghani (806) with Isuri Fernando (804) *intro music*
Diwali is definitely I think the biggest one in Meera: Hi Bookies! Welcome to Overbooked. EPISODE 2! India. Yeah, it’s really widely celebrated. It’s the Festival of Lights?
Yeah, it’s the Festival of Lights, yeah and Sounds really good! lots of family gatherings, and it’s kind of like thanksgiving but yeah I can’t think of Aha yeah, and my favourite African/Kenyan any others. There’s the new year. So actualfood I guess would be cassava. Cassava is ly Diwali is more like Christmas and a couple this like vegetable. And we basically just of days after is the new year which is kind chop it up and cook it and then you can of less known in Canada and stuff. have it with a bunch of like spices and like sauces and stuff like that and yeah it’s really It’s not related to the Canadian New good. Year, right?
Isuri: Welcome back! Meera: We are both so glad that you guys were able to join us for this episode. Isuri: This will be our first book review! *title music* Meera: For this episode, we will be reviewing The cruel prince Isuri: This book was actually read by both of us!
No Like there’s a different calendar? Yeah, there’s a different calendar and the Indian calendar actually goes off of the Lunar New Year. So I think it‘s the time it takes for the moon to go around the Earth. Yeah, there are a lot of countries that use the lunar calendar.
@theHelm ~ page 12
Meera: Yep! It’s really good. The writing style really brings the characters to life. Isuri: I love this book! It has such an amazing plot! Ok so, how this is going to work is that we have gathered questions from the internet which we will be answering. This way we should be able to explain most of
the book without missing any key points. Meera: Sounds fun! Let’s get started. Isuri: Okay so first question. What is the main plot of this book?
Cardan relentlessly bully Jude and her twin sister Taryn throughout the entire book. There was never a real reason towards why he was doing this, other than the obvious, which is her being mortal. We don’t get to know much about Cardans past in the first book, but we unlock more as we dive into the other books of this trilogy.
Meera: The main plot of the book is about Jude, a human girl living among faeries. She wants to fit in, but her stubbornness and determination cause her to Isuri: If I am going to be completely honstand out among the royal family, where est, I hated his personality at the start of she aspires to become a knight. the book.
Isuri: One quote that really grabbed my Meera: Yes, he definitely improves as a attention was, “If I cannot be better than person later on. them, then I will become so much worse.” Which explains Jude’s aspiration Isuri: Definitely! towards succeeding and being better than her enemies. Meera: Ok, let’s talk about what we liked about this book. The thing I liked about Meera: I love that quote so much. True this book was that it was a very detailed words spoken by Jude herself. journey on each of the characters point Moving on, the second question is, who of view and emotions. The author put a are the main characters in this book. lot into that aspect of the book. What do you think, Isuri? Isuri: I would say that the two main characters in this book are Cardan and Jude. Isuri: Personally for me, I thoroughly enThe book revolves around their character joyed the plot twist that Holly Black incordevelopment. Jude has had a pretty trau- porated. There were two major plot matic childhood, her parents were killed twists that I enjoyed. One of them by a man named Madoc and she and her (SPOILER ALERT) was when Jude siblings were pretty much forced into crowned Cardan. He definitely did not see faerie. She started a whole new life in a it coming. She manipulated him into place where no one accepted mortals crowning himself which I thought was a (humans). genius move. Another part I liked about this book was the character designs and Meera: Speaking of a traumatic childhow the characters behaved. Holly Black hood, let's talk about Cardan. We can see wrote great character descriptions and
my favorite character would have to be Cardan, now that I have finished reading the trilogy. The characters coexisting with each whilst still having such different lifestyles was what made this book a 100 times more enjoyable. Meera: Wow, you really have in-depth thoughts about this book! Would you want to read another book by this author? I know you mentioned that you have read the rest of the trilogy. Isuri: Yes I have! I would definitely recommend reading the rest of it if you have already finished the first one. Meera: Actually, The Wicked King is currently on my to be read shelf. I can’t wait...! Isuri: Alright guys so this is where this month's episode wraps up. Meera: Please feel free to email either Isuri or I if you guys have any questions or any ideas on what books we should read and review next. We are all ears when it comes to book recommendations. Isuri: Thank you so much for tuning in for our latest episode. We hope to see you for our next one, and as always enjoy reading! *ending music*
Keep sending your recipes! You can share a letter of thanks and some of your own recipes to Narelle and Scott—they would love to hear from you!
Click here to share your own recipes! “Thank you for sending these through and all the nice comments. We look forward to trying them for lunch.” - Narelle Smith, Manager of Food Services at HSC
@theHelm ~ page 13
Photos by Elly Chen, 803
Winter photos by Abdullah Al-Sheikhly, 804
“Snow Castle” by Marcus Chen, 702
Photo by Abi Guy, 604 @theHelm ~ page 14
Digital Art tips: Highlight
layer but the strokes you made will stay inside the strand of hair.
by Elly Chen, 803
Step 2:
And then you draw. Dark to light colIn this article, you’ll learn some pretty easy but useful art ours. Hair highlights are usually brighttips and instructions on how to draw highlights on some- est in the middle. thing. The most common example is hair highlights because people add highlights to hair all the time. (App used: ibisPaint X. Even though you don’t use this app, you can find most of the “tools” you need in the app you’re using. Such as Procreate.)
“Tools”:
Smudge Paint brush (of course) Alpha Lock
#1: most common way to draw highlights
(“Smudge”) Step 3: Next, use the smudge tool and smudge the colours.
#2: Another way Tools: Same thing and blur tool Repeat step 1-2, but this time make sure the smudge brush is not too big.
Let’s say this is a random strand of hair, and you ‘re going to add highlights to it.
Use “blur” to blur the highlights so it looks softer.
#3: Easiest way Tools:
Blur Smudge Eyedropper Brush
Step 1: Now, go to “layers” and make sure the Alpha Lock is “on” (I know it’s Chinese, but it means “Alpha Lock”). If the Alpha Lock is “on”, you can make random strokes on this
Add “Normal”
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special layer type is for drawing highlights.
Step 1:
Add a new layer, press the “Normal” button to select the type of layer, and then select “add” (stay on this second Step 3: layer). You don’t have to draw something like the first step of the first way to Step 2: draw highlights. All you have to do is make one stroke, and that’s it. Use “Eyedropper”
Step 4: ”Eyedropper” You don’t have to press this button in order to use eyedropper. Just use your finger and press-and-hold the screen. Eyedropper can pick colours from any layer. It activates a magnifying glass that looks like an upside down teardrop. Release your finger after you pick the colour. No need to turn on the Alpha Lock because this
Use smudge and blur again. All these ways to draw highlights are not only for hair! You can use these ways to draw furballs (even though they don’t have highlights) or grass to make them look better.
Photo by Marcus Chen, 702 “A Polish Winter” by Niko Gladysz, 705 @theHelm ~ page 16
Photo by Oscar Chen, 801
Ongoing call for Photography Send your photo for publication via the:
Google Submission Form
Photos by Darya Midia, 604 @theHelm ~ page 17
Nicole Guzman, 503
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Daniel Dolgy 603
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Grade 7—Holly Yates-Krull, 702
Grade 8—Oscar Chen, 801
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Sibling by Radha Maria Vargas-Saravanamuttu, 705 He kicks the plastic cube aside Bang! echoes in his ears as he finds a place to hide. He shrieks for distraction and then zips away The thrill is so great that he must shriek again. Exhilaration bounds through his sight Shimmering, bubbling, soaring to heights Unknown before - now he just has to dance Though he knows he’s taking a dangerous chance. And as he slips through the hall, delicate, alive Slippery consciousness snakes through his mind Should he really be trying? It’s clearly forbidden. Is it worth all the noise or the trying to stay hidden? Inside, the gnawing guilt is igniting But… that “not allowed” is what makes it exciting. So he runs past it all and into the black Of the unlit room. Now there’s no turning back. No amount of pleading “stop!” Will control this whirlwind or cause him to flop Back down to the floor, across which he slides He zips through the door, electricity subsides. She’s left, just staring, feet limp on cold ground… Conspicuous spot screaming “look at me now!” And, oh, There on the wall, where the painting used to be A purple-red disaster-scene, “You can’t catch me!”
Congratulations to Radha Maria for placing third overall in the Poetry In Voice 2022 junior recitation competition! Radha Maria is one of nine students named Canada’s top junior reciters, receiving $100, and the HSC Learning Commons will receive $200 for the purchase of poetry books. She will also receive a certificate that celebrates her achievement of representing HSC in this national contest. CLICK HERE for the full list of national champions CLICK HERE to listen to Radha Maria recite “Enigma” by Andrea Thompson
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Writing Prompt Poems Thank you for all the poems that you submitted! We will feature some in this issue and the next.
Blizzard Ballroom by Viann Whatley, 604
Blissful dancing, filled with the tips and clicks of ice touching each other.
Poem by Abi Guy, 604
Snow surrounded in a danceful place of music, built in a blizzard, yet so calm. Not a care for what the outside might bring in. Just hearing the tips and clicks of ice touching each other. With Dancers of ice, In this Ballroom built in a Blizzard. A Blizzard Ballroom
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A Chant for Peace
Haiku and photo
by Taj Blasse, 603
by Meleesa Hamzehian, 601
The frozen pond keeps
Powdery snow falls slowly,
Secret moonlit swims and sighs Snowy Owls hoot in the distance
Locked in silent ice
Snow covers where people are chanting For peace and love and no more violence Everyday lives are taken, Leaving the souls of many broken. When will it end?
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Poem by Abdullah Tahir, 602
Poem by Amelia Costello, 602 A tree with no leaves stands cold and alone. A heart half empty No one to hug, no one to hold. Just all alone with the feeling of cold. Children pass by at least twice a day. As the tree watches the children that are filled with glee, The tree's heart becomes less empty. The feeling of cold slowly fades away. As the glee and kindness quickly grow up the tree. As the children decide to plant a tree. And the lonely cold tree is now filled with happiness and glee.
by Nicholas Szpakowski, 601
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A Lost Fog Horn Story by Juliet Finley, 705
(Updated version—previously shared in May 2021) Peter sat up in bed suddenly, scared. He heard a noise coming from outside his window beside the ocean. The waves were crashing everywhere, and there wasn’t much of a moon. The dark water crashed up again and again, but Peter didn’t care about the water. He wanted to know what that noise was, so he scanned the beach. When he saw nothing, he shut the window and crawled back in bed. The sound of the water was quiet, but Peter could still hear it. He found this strange because when the window was closed, he could never hear the water. He decided he must have chipped the glass and lay down in bed, tired. He fell asleep before he had thought about the noise he heard. Three hours later, Peter woke up again with the same noise: a scream. Peter ran to his window and immediately knew something was wrong; the window he had bolted shut was now wide open. Peter stared at the window and was about to head back to bed when the scream came again and he saw something in the distance. The light from the old lighthouse was on. That’s impossible, Peter thought, that light hasn’t worked in years. Before I continue, I should probably tell you about Peter's past. His parents got divorced when he was three, and neither of them wanted to have him or his brother because they didn’t want to remember the life they’d lost. So his aunt and uncle took Peter in, and so did his grandparents to his little brother, Mike. Peter’s aunt and uncle didn’t really like him, so he’d never had a parent figure. Peter rarely got to see Mike since he lived far away, and his grandparents didn’t care much for Peter. Peter missed Mike more than he missed his parents though because he and his father argued a lot, and he was furious at his mother for not wanting him
to live with her. So whenever his parents called his aunt and uncle (which wasn’t often because they didn’t want to hear about Peter), he went down to the beach, and that was how he met Brian: a boy who was fifteen years old (three years older than Peter). Together they had made a lot of mischief. Peter normally was very obedient and wouldn’t get up to trouble, but with Brian, he was always in trouble. They egged Brian’s older brother’s car, they set Peter’s aunt’s oven to maximum heat so the food was ruined, they made prank calls, they spray-painted the sides of buildings, and once or twice Brian even shoplifted. Now, about the lighthouse... Brian had told Peter all he knew about the lighthouse—how it had once been in good shape and had a light housekeeper to keep the light running. Then one night, a ship called the R.M.S. Montana full of valuables had been coming to the harbour, but the lighthouse keeper had been sleeping on the job and hadn’t turned the light on, so the ship had sunk. Only one person had survived, and it was the lookout. He was furious with the keeper, for his brother (the first mate) had drowned in the accident. So, he climbed the stairs to the top, and when he got there, he found the lighthouse keeper still sleeping on the ground. The man searched his pockets but failed to find anything that would kill. Then he tackled the keeper to the ground and began to choke him. The lighthouse keeper woke up and began to fight the man on him. The lighthouse keeper was much bigger than the lookout, so he began to tear him off, but they were so busy rolling around on the ground that they didn’t see the drop off the lighthouse. They both rolled right off it, still trying to kill each other. When everyone discovered what happened, no one wanted to take the job as lighthouse keeper, so the lighthouse became unkempt, and when the light broke, no ships would come and dock at night. Peter knew this story @theHelm ~ page 25
because Brian often told it to little kids to scare them, so he knew quite well that the light shouldn’t be on. He quickly went downstairs but made sure he was quiet, knowing he would be scolded by his uncle for being out so early in the morning. He was successful in not being heard. Next, he pulled on his shoes and grabbed his coat. He knew it would be cold. Peter ran down the beach, heading towards the point where the lighthouse was. After running for half an hour, Peter had arrived at the little point that held the lighthouse. He went inside slowly, not knowing what to expect. He searched every floor and found nothing out of the ordinary, but then he had to search the top floor where the light was. He flicked the switch, and to his enormous surprise, the light went on. Suddenly, the world started to spin. He heard a foghorn, and mist began to come into the room from the light. Peter was thrown onto his back and suddenly felt very sleepy. When Peter woke up he was no longer in the lighthouse. He was on the deck of a mighty ship. There were men in uniforms running everywhere. People saw him but didn’t seem to notice he didn’t belong. “Hey, you, assistant lookout!” A person shouted at Peter. “Get to the crow’s nest! It’s really rocky tonight and we can’t be bumping into any rocks!” Peter stared at the man who looked very official. Why was this man calling him as-
Art by Daniel Dolgy, 603
sistant lookout? He looked at his body to see if he was wearing anything funny and he was! He was wearing a uniform that looked like the lookouts’, and he had a sailor’s cap on. The man in front of him must be the captain.
keep your job as a lookout, shut your mouth and go to the crow’s nest!” He pointed to a basket on top of the ship. The ladder was rickety, and the basket moved in the furious wind. There was a man at the top looking around.
“Yes sir!” Peter squeaked.
“No!” Peter said aloud before he could stop himself. He managed to not say, “it’s the person the one who fights the lighthouse keeper.”
“You’re the new boy aren’t you?” the captain asked. “We’re on a voyage and we’re making two stops. We just stopped at one today. I heard our lookout had to “Boy, what are you doing standing quit. Are you the replacement?” around?” the captain asked. “Get up there!” Peter decided this would be a good reason why all these people never saw him Reluctantly, Peter climbed up the ladder. before, so he replied, “Yes, I’m the reIt was shaking the whole time, and he felt placement.” certain he would be tossed into the cold water. When he reached the top, he “Well, then come with me!” The captain looked at the person who was already said “here on the R.M.S. Montana, we there. He was the wettest person Peter have no time for daydreaming! We have a had ever seen—his uniform was sopping, big delivery that must happen soon!” and his hat was on the ground. “Little boy,” the man said, “take your cap off Peter didn’t hear the captain talking and put it on the ground if you don’t about daydreaming because the moment want it blown right off!” Peter took off his Peter heard R.M.S Montana, he froze. He cap and put it at the bottom of the lookknew this boat, but how could he be on it out basket. Just then, the basket jerked when it had sunk more than two hundred from a big gust of wind, and Peter slipped years ago? on the wet floor and nearly fell. “Careful kid,” the lookout said. He reached into his “How is this the Montana?” Peter asked pocket and pulled out a periscope and as he hurried along. “Didn’t it sink?” handed it to Peter. “Ok boy, start looking. If you see anything wrong, shout out! Got The captain was not happy to hear this. it?” “Boy look around you!” he exclaimed “Nothing here is sunk! Now if you want to “Got it!” Peter told him.
boat was going to sink and he knew what was going to happen when it sunk. He didn’t know how close he was to the time it sunk, and he couldn’t go down and ask because he was supposed to be on watch. Peter decided he would wait until someone came to take his place, and then he would try to find a way to escape from the boat. What seemed like ten hours later, the lookout came up the ladder and told him he could have a break. “Go and ask someone to show you to the boy’s cabin. In the room there are four bunks. Take one of the unoccupied ones. When you hear a bell ringing three times, come back here. When you hear the bell ringing once, go and find the cafeteria. Any questions?” “What's your name?” Peter asked. “Paul!” the man replied. “Now get a move on, and don’t forget your hat.” Peter grabbed his hat and went down the ladder. When he reached the bottom, he was extremely cold and wet. He saw a man walking across the deck, so Peter ran to him. “Excuse me, sir,” he said in a small voice. “Do you know where the Boy’s cabin is?” “Go down the stairs to the last door on the left!” the man told him.
Peter found the stairs and ran down them. He found a lot of hallways, but he saw one on his left that said Boy’s Room. “Good,” Peter opened the door and walked in. It said the was an okay room. It had four bunk beds, look out as two against each wall; six of the bunks he began to were messy, and one had a person sleepclimb down ing on it. Peter saw a bunk that had no the ladder. one on it, so he went to it and opened the box on it. Inside were two uniforms Peter that looked like his and a canteen. The stared at best part of the room was the open portthe man hole, which meant the room was all wet descending with sea spray. Peter ran to the porthole down the and closed it. He then looked around the ladder and wet room. He shivered and decided to go he was inand put on some dry clothes. He went to stantly the box on his bed and he changed into a scared, he dry outfit and hung up his old one. It was knew this nice to have a dry outfit on. Next, he
Photo by Kerrington Johnston, 804 @theHelm ~ page 26
meal!”
ladder, and Peter was left alone in the crow’s nest.
Peter nodded and took a big slug from the canteen. He immediately spit it all out and gagged. “What is that?” he asked. “Lemon juice,” a man told Peter gruffly, “so you don’t get scurvy!” Peter nodded and took a small sip. It was sour and tasted terrible, but Peter had heard about what happened if you got scurvy, so he finsqueezed out his hat and put it on his ished the canteen, shaking. He then head. Just then, a bell sounded. looked in his bag and nearly spit all the lemon juice out—the fish looked gross. Peter grabbed his canteen, went to the He reached into the bag and took out the door, opened it, and walked out. He chunk of bread and took a bite. It was found a door that said cafeteria on it. The stale and incredibly hard to chew, but door opened into a room with a few taPeter didn’t think these people would like bles and benches. There was a pile of it if he took the bread out of his mouth, paper bags sitting on one table and a so he kept on chewing. When he had fingroup of people sitting and a table eatished it, he looked at the fish and wanted ing. Peter walked over to the table with to barf. The fish was grey and lumpy, and the food on it and grabbed a bag. He as- Peter was nearly certain that it was raw. sumed that it would be okay for him to sit with some of the other people, so he “Do you want this?” he asked a man. walked over to the table where there was a big group. He found a spot that was The man grabbed the fish and chewed it, empty and sat down. then spit out the bones on the table. Peter gulped and stood up and walked to Peter looked at the group and realized his cabin. He put his canteen down on the that these people probably wouldn't bed and was about to lie down when the want to talk with the assistant lookout, bell sounded three times in a row. Peter so he remained silent. Then, a tall man knew he had to go back on lookout—he looked at Peter and said, “I haven’t seen didn’t want his dry you around here before! When did you clothes to get start?” wet, so he quickly changed into his Peter nearly choked, and he hadn’t even wet ones and ran started eating. All he could do was mutout to the lookout ter, “Oh, this is my first trip. I used to hide post. As he from other sailors because I didn’t want climbed, Peter to get in the way!” The man seemed to wanted to wake accept the excuse because he shrugged up. He wanted to and continued eating. Peter opened the wake up and realbag and almost gagged. Inside was a ize that he was in small fish and a chunk of bread. bed. When he got to the top of the “Be careful with that canteen, boy!” ladder, the man someone told him, pointing to the canstanding there teen Peter had put on the table. “It’s the started descendonly one you get. But you fill it up every ing down the
Peter was getting more and more scared the more time he spent on the boat. He knew it was a death sentence and wanted to get back to his time. He decided that he needed to find out how and why he was stuck in this time on this boat. Peter stood in the crow’s nest thinking for hours when suddenly, the lookout came. “Go, boy. You have five hours of sleep, don’t waste them!” Peter grinned and began to climb down the ladder, but it was slippery from the rain, and before Peter knew what was happening, his foot slipped and he began to fall. (to be continued…)
Recesses at HSC just got SNOW much more fun!
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A creative “reporting” piece from 702, inspired by Salman Rushdie’s novel, Haroun and the Sea of Stories.
Elkins
Lam
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MATH CHALLENGE Grade 7 & 8 December answers
Answer (for December Christmas Bonus Question): The cheapest items in each of the first three stores are: Snow Pants ($100), iPhone Case ($25), and ‘Happy Holidays’ Sign ($8) That amount of money plus the $24 of the globe he already paid would make the price of the globe to be: 100 + 25 + 8 + 24 = $157 So the answer is 157 dollars. Adding all the things he bought and the $24 of the globe he paid, the sum would be: 100 + 150 + 202 + 6 + 50 + 25 + 600 + 150 + 8 + 50 + 50 + 24 = $1415 The money he brought would be 1415 dollars.
Grade 5 & 6 December answers Example of student response: The bar graph illustrating the number of games won, drawn or lost over a 1212-month period best suggests this. This graph indicates that Wales have won all games except 11 in the last 1212 months. Whilst New Zealand have won the same amount of games, they have lost and drawn more games. Wales have won a greater proportion of their games.
“Red Berries” photos by Elly Chen, 803 @theHelm ~ page 29
Fruit Word Search by Sophia Liu, 804
@theHelm is the HSC Middle School paper If you would like to be featured in the next issue, please submit original work via the Google Submission Form Please make sure to edit your work and include citations for any external sources you use!
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