Le baguette

Le Baguette JUNE 1, 2015 - VOLUME 1 ISSUE1

A LOOK AT RUBIK’S CUBE RECORD HOLDER CALE SCHOON ‘18

Table of Contents

3 4-5 6 7-9 10-11

12-13 14

Opinion

An Error in Communication

Should schools start teaching foreign languages earlier?

Feature

Teaching

Teachers give thier opinion on the behavior of their classes

Sports

Runs in the Family

Generations of different athletes form one family

Feature

Schoon to be a Star

West freshman holds world record for Rubik’s Cube solving

Feature

Sleep

Students reflect on their own sleep habits

Entertainment

What College Are You?

Which college should you attend? Find out by taking the quiz

Entertainment

Meet the Staff

Don’t talk to us in person; we are awkward

Le Baguette

Opinion R AN E

U M OM

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N O I T A C I N

IN R O R

BY MADDIE MORIYAMA

maddiemoriyama21@gmail.com

So, I’m sitting in Spanish class doing my homework when I have this revelation: I have been taking a foreign language class for two years and I have no idea how to speak it.

Why is this? Is it because I don’t pay enough attention in class? Am I just linguistically impaired?

The answer is no, and no. Students all over the world, and especially in Europe start learning a language when they’re much younger than their American counterparts.

In our school district, seventh grade Spanish has recently been cut due to budget issues so students can only start learning this language at 13 years old, at the earliest. However, not all students choose to take it in eighth grade, so some with start learning at 14 years old.

According to a report by the European Union, students living in the EU can start learning a foreign language as early as three and as old as nine. In European education, upwards of 90% of their students are being taught English. As if that isn’t impressive enough, 60% of the European Union’s students are being taught two languages.

If I was being taught a foreign language starting at age three, I would more than likely be fluent in it by my age of 15.

Students in the United States are at a high disadvantage than those in Europe and parts of Easern Asia,. While most students around the world

must take a foreign language class for a couple of years, what’s the point if I’m already two years in to the four year requirement and still have no idea how to speak it?

Many Europeans and Asians, by the time they reach adulthood, are at least bilingual. Being bilingual in the United States could open up so many more opportunities; companies value people who speak more than one language, colleges take note of bilingual prospective students.

While the U.S. is on the right track by requiring many students to take two years of a foreign language, and many U.S. colleges require four years, there is a flaw in the system, and that is timing. If timed correctly, students could learn know two, possibly three languages by the time they graduate high school.

The world is a big place with a lot of people.

The language barrier proves to be the hardest to overcome, but if our public education system changes its methods to teaching foregin languages earlier on, this barrier can be overcome.

JUNE 2015 OPINION 3

A Teachers’ Life

BY CONOR ZIELINSKI cjzielinski14@gmail.com

Teachers, what do they do with their lives? Probably the weirdest profession, right? They spend seven hours a day around kids, and then after it they grade homework, quizzes, tests, etc.. But how do they think of you and your class.

I went around and asked some teachers to give me their schedule and tell me what they think of the class periods they teach. Take a look it might turn out that they think of your class in a way you never thought.

For a fun fact video with the teachers type in this URL http://youtu.be/rlJQt9xh-0I

4 FEATURE JUNE 2015

“Grading is harder for English teachers because a normal essay takes about 20-30 minutes to grade”-Darci Witthoft

Karen Meyer Wake up at 6 2, Smart, fun, collaborative, inspiring, good atmosphere, personalities are great.

4, calm, right after lunch so I consider them to be in a food coma. A lot of athletes in the class, so oftentimes they get off task by talking about athletics.

5, Most focused class of the day, a smaller class, really inciteful and usually go a step beyond.

6, like second, lots of characters, people who bring the class together.

Darci Witthoft 5 A.M.-7 A.M.-grade and do school work get kids ready at seven and take them to school by eight.

3rd, Fun, my guinea pigs-I test runs my 10H class with them, I feel for them sometimes because it’s harder to please them all because of that.

4th, Great class, diverse in ability and passion.

5th, easier to teach, and calmer than third, More strong personalities.

7th, A little challenging, they want to get out of school, it’s kind of like a race to the parking lot is what they think of during class. They have their phones out more than my other classes, but that is because it is the end of the day.

Maureen Head 4:30 A.M. wake up.

Work out at 5:15 A.M. Go to school after working out.

1st, Quiet, focused, a couple of the kids kind of like science.

3rd, Pretty good class, a blurting student who gets off task and rambles.

4th, The class after lunch, constant disruption, lots of friends, rowdy.

5th, Good, down from the lunch high, students are usually in a food coma.

7th, The students are pretty much done with the day already. I like them as people but they distract each other.

3:30-5:30 coach throwing.

6:00 come back to office and do work.

7:30-8:00 go home.

JUNE 2015 FEATURE 5

Sports

Runs in the Family

BY KAVIR RAMOS

kavirramos42@gmail.com

Running through the 6 with my family!!!

As you grow up, your parents can set a path for you to follow. Parents try to do what they think is best for their children, but when your family’s interests differ from yours, you are stuck with Antonio Sanchez ’16 the dilemma of whether to please your parents or do what you love.

Antonio Sanchez ’16 has a very interesting family, from the history in the family of the variety of sports they have played you would never guess he is the one who started playing soccer. His father (Eugene Sanchez) was a baseball player, his uncle (Raul Sanchez) was a potential NFL player, and his grandpa (George Trudell) was a tennis player. The only similarities between the four of them is that they were athletes with huge potential. Having a history of athletes like Sanchez does, it makes sense why he pursues to be the best. Sanchez plays on the regional team which includes many of the states surrounding Iowa. His team made it to the finals at nationals.

Although they didn’t win a national title, Sanchez won experience. He looks to use his experience to go to college and play soccer. Sanchez doesn’t know what

Antonio heading a ball away from the Washington High School defender two years ago.

6 SPORTS JUNE 2015

college to choose from the many already contacting him.

“If I work hard enough and practice on my weakness,” Sanchez said.

Sanchez believes hard work pays off with perseverance and patience.

“I am proud of Antonio’s success but I think he can push himself to do more and get better” Eugene Sanchez said.

Eugene supports most of the decisions that his son has made but will continue to encourage him to do what he truly loves.

His family is a great source of fuel as to why Sanchez should continue Sanchez passing a ball through a defenders legs in match against Johnston High School at state finals last year. to follow his dreams. Antonio’s uncle was drafted to the Buffalo Bills but his career ended because of an injury that ruined his career.

His father started playing baseball at the young age of five., and he continued playing baseball until a decision between whether he wanted to go pro with baseball or have a normal childhood. He was told by his coach to play at an important tournament but his friends invited him to florida. He chose to go with his friends and the coach didn’t want him on the team anymore.

The lesson Sanchez took from the history in his past is not to give up an opportunity or be ready to face the consequences with no regrets.

DESIGN BY MADDIE MORIYAMA

SCHOON TO BE A STAR West freshman Cale Schoon ‘18 becomes second in the world at blindfolded Rubik’s cube

BY CONOR ZIELINSKI cjzielinski14@gmail.com

From under the box he takes the Rubik’s cube, looking at it for the first time.. He memorizes the order of the colors with an algorithm. He pulls the blindfold over his head and just, well, goes. All of this is a daily routine for Cale Schoon, 9th grader at Iowa City West High. Cale is the current North American record holder and 2nd in the world for the 4 by 4 blindfold Rubik’s cube solve.

Hearing the results of Cale’s extraordinary accomplishments, one would think that he has been around the Rubik’s cube for years. “In seventh grade there seemed like there was a day when people started doing it, and they knew how to solve it, so I thought it would be cool if I knew how to solve it. Then I went online and searched how to do it, and then over time I learned how to do it, and I really liked it,” said Schoon.

It’s amazing to think that after only 2 to 3 years of solving rubik’s cubes he could become globally recognized as a Rubik’s cube solver.

It is clear to see that one of Schoon’s many natural talents is solving a Rubik’s cube. But the most amazing part of this talent is his ability to gain knowledge very quickly. Cale does not have a teacher nor a club that he goes to for practice.

“I just practice at home, there are lots of videos online that help you learn how to solve it.”

At home is where Schoon feels comfortable with the Rubik’s cube. “At home for practice

I just practice solves and learn more advanced techniques and methods to solve it.” Cale has a very supporting family consisting of him and his four other siblings.

Schoon’s gift of solving Rubik’s Cale Schoon ‘18 cubes is allowing him to travel around the country. ‘The farthest I’ve gone was to Michigan which was a seven hour drive, and then at the end of July I’m going to the National Championships which is in South Carolina.” One thing that helps Schoon travel and do well at these competitions is the support of his family. “My family doesn’t really know how to solve the Rubik’s cube, but my dad takes me to all of the competitions that I go to, and he enjoys it.”

JUNE 2015 FEATURE 8

So how does Schoon do it?

First, he starts by memorizing the cubes by using a formula using numbers and letters in connection with the color of the tile. “You learn patterns for different cases that show up, and you practice to get those patterns moving faster,”said Schoon. While watching Schoon, you can see that he buzzes over the Rubik’s cube moving the tiles at an alarmingly fast rate.

“I usually know that I will complete the cube, it’s just a matter of how fast I am able to do it,’’ said Schoon. For any regular person, they’ probably be worried about forgetting what the cube looks like, but not Schoon, as he almost always remembers.

A question I was very curious about was if Schoon had ever met the number on rubik’s cube solver for his competition type. “He lives in the U.K. so I am not able to meet him in person, but I have talked to him in a couple of online forums before.”

Having the record for second in the world is

extraordinary, for anyone. But what Schoon is second in the world for is unbelievable: the 4X4X4 blindfolded. Not only is Schoon not doing the 3x3x3, which is the most common Rubik’s cube, he doubles the tile count and some more, then to make it harder for himself, he goes blindfolded.

When watching anyone of his numerous videos on Youtube, you’ll find that Schoon usually isn’t in a professional looking environment, but that’s due to the fact that all the best Rubik’s cube solvers live all over the world.

No doubt as Schoon enters the National Championships he will have support from his family and friends under the eyes of the nation. Schoon will do well, because at 15 he is already entering the competition as second in the world.

On the bottom of the page is a link where you can find a video of Cale solving a three by three Rubik’s cube.

Cale solving a Rubik’s cube video. http://youtu.be/IqF6QDYP3bM 9 FEATURE JUNE 2015

Feature

Sleep Deprivation in Teens

The research behind sleep and how it affects your body and school performance

BY MADDIE MORIYAMA

maddiemoriyama21@gmail.com DESIGN BY MADDIE MORIYAMA

10 FEATURE JUNE 2015

We’ve all heard it before: teens need around eight to 10 hours of sleep a day. But why do we need that much sleep? The answer is simple--proper sleep is vital for growth and brain development in teens.

Ethan Seylar ‘18 says he gets “on average six hours of sleep a night.” Tommy Duffy ‘16 and Bridget McKenna ‘17 share similar stories, all reporting getting anywhere from six to seven hours of sleep each night, and they’re not alone. So who’s to blame?

Well, this question isn’t so easy to answer.

Sleep deprivation can be caused by a number of things, anywhere from being kept up late due for school work to spending too much time on cell phones before bedtime. Chronic sleep loss can lead to depression, suicidal ideation, and Ethan Seylar ‘18 obesity. Long-term sleep loss is thought to be a culprit of lower standardised test scores, decreased attention span, a higher likeliness to be tardy for school, and a drop in overall academic performance.

Seylar ‘18 believes that school is to blame for his lack of sleep. “I don’t get enough sleep because schoolwork often takes up a lot of my free time.”

However, there are two sides to every story, as Duffy ‘16 states. “ I don’t really blame school for my lack of sleep. I always

have enough time to do homework and stuff, but it depends on the day.”

With differing opinions on who’s responsible, one thing remains the same: students Bridget McKenna ‘17 don’t feel prepared for school.

“I do not feel prepared for school. I’m very lucky to have study hall first period. I feel bad for students without study halls because I would be up way later doing homework or studying if I didn’t have study hall,” said McKenna ‘17.

“I feel like my brain isn’t prepared for major cognitive functions at eight in the morning,” said Seylar ‘18. What are the best ways to get more sleep? Experts agree that going to sleep and waking at the same time everyday can lead to an easier transition on your body rather than staying and waking up very late one day, and very early the next. Also, avoiding exercise three hours prior to bedtime can lead to a more comfortable sleep.

Caffeine shouldn’t be Tommy Duffy ‘16 consumed after two in the afternoon, and phones should be turned off or left untouched. The light from the screen can signal the brain to wake up, as the light resembles the sun.

sleep by the numbers

15 58 73

percent of teens who report getting 8 1/2 hours of sleep on average on school nights percent of 15-18 years old who report receiving less than seven hours of sleep on a regular basis percent of teens who report reported feeling continuous negative emotion accompanied with sleep deprivation

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FOR MORE COVERAGE, GO TO WSSPAPER.COM JUNE 2015 FEATURE 11

WHAT COLLEG

BY CONOR ZIELINSKI cjzielinski14@gmail.com

START

Bird pe cat per Bird

Engineering or Healthcare Engineering

Health

Blue or Red

Red or Yellow Iowa State

I

12 ENTERTAINMENT MAY 2015 WSSPAPER.COM

o

w

a

Air Force

Boston College

GE ARE YOU?

erson or rson Cat

Engineering or healthcare Engineering

Health

Purple Blue LSU

or

Kentucky

Orange or Blue Clemson

Villinova

WSSPAPER.COM MAY 2015 ENTERTAINMENT 13

2 1

Kavir Ramos ‘16 Favorite Sport: Cricket Favorite Food: Wasabi Favorite Music: Punk Hobby: Smelling Cats Favorite Class:

Maddie Moriyama ‘18 Favorite Sport: Belly Dancing Favorite Food: Baguettes Favorite Music: Sound of kids crying Hobby: Not sharing food >:(

3 Conor Zielinski ’17 Favorite Sport: Quidditch Favorite Food: Wonder Bread Favorite Music: Portuguese Chanting Hobby: Taking awkward pictures

Meet the Staff