Volume 3, Issue 1
16 October 2018
The Middle School Newspaper at King’s Academy How to Get Over Self-Consciousness by Lara Abuali Self-consciousness is a tough river to cross. It affects almost all of us in the middle school. For most, there is a point where they stop caring what other people think; this usually happens in the ten years between ages 16 and 26; however, the sooner you defeat self-consciousness, the better your life will be. For most of us, self-consciousness is often caring what people think of the way you look, the way you speak, and your general intelligence. It stems out of the fear that others will judge and ridicule you if you do anything awkward or uncool. When you’re purchasing clothing, you may often worry more about whether you’ll be fashionable more than whether you like the clothing. The key to getting over self-consciousness is understanding this: people don’t care about what you look like. The only time someone will judge you for what you wear or how good you look is when you’re a fashion designer, a model, or attending a wedding in a T-shirt and jeans. People won’t judge you for being unintelligent or bad at a certain subject— in fact, more often than not, they’ll help you with it. If you’re having trouble with something— like a stutter, or spelling— people will help, instead of mocking you. If they do mock you, disconnect from them; they’re not worth being in your life. There are certain steps you must take, in no particular order. You must scrutinize yourself in the mirror from head to toe, pinpoint everything you think is wrong, then say to yourself, “I don’t care about these flaws. I’m amazing no matter what.” You must wear that uncool shirt to that popular kid’s birthday party. You must post that picture on Instagram, no matter how much you think that zit on your head stands out. You must wear those glasses to school, even if you feel like a grandma doing it. Finally, you must disregard every standard of ‘awkward’, ‘cringe’, or ‘cool’. Understand that
people, no matter how popular, are just people. Live life for what you enjoy. Remember that you are living your life for yourself, not for other people. Now that you no longer care about what others think, it’s time to start loving yourself. The key to doing so is taking care of yourself and others. Giving to and empathizing with others releases chemicals in the body like dopamine, serotonin, and oxytocin, dubbed the ‘happy trifecta’ by certain psychologists. Taking care of yourself is good for you, too-- exercising produces endorphins in the brain, which reduce pain and make you feel positive. Exercising also reduces cortisol, which is a chemical produced when you are anxious or stressed. Clear away everything that makes you feel bad: that ill-fitting pair of shorts, that friend that makes you feel bad with their snarky comments or that old pair of scissors you still have in your room that irritate you because they’re so blunt. If, for example, your mother keeps on making rude comments about your appearance, tell her how you feel, and she’ll improve. Getting rid of these bothersome parts of your life contribute to your wellbeing. You’ll feel much better. Once you’ve terminated all of the negatives that you can, it’s time to create positives. If you’re bad at science, for example, you can either work to get better at science or understand that it’s not the end of the world if you just don’t understand those pesky Lewis structures. If you hate the way your hair flops over your eyebrows and makes you look like you’re always wearing a brown helmet, ask if you can have a haircut. Chip off the old parts of you that you don’t like and replace them with things you do like. Improving yourself is not the same as completely changing yourself. It may take a few months to make a habit out of being better, but once you have the hang of it, liking yourself will come easy.
Introducing the New Faculty
Volume 3, Issue 1 by Saad AlSaraf
Japan Earthquake
Mr. George Morganis
by Yon-Su Hwang
Hometown: Boston, Massachusetts Favorite dessert: Cheesecake Why did you join King’s? I joined King’s after learning about the mission of the school. His Majesty’s goal for the school — to foster independent, creative, and responsible citizens who will go on to solve the world’s more pressing problems — is inspirational and unique among international schools. When I finished graduate school and started looking for teaching positions, King’s and its mission stood out.
Mr. Adam Liebow
Hometown: Brentwood, California Favorite dessert: Anything chocolate (except cupcakes). Why did you join King’s? Life is an adventure and living in a different country furthers that adventure. After teaching in the same place for the last 8 years, I needed to continue my adventure, and this was the job that was offered.
Ms. Rebecca Kurish
Hometown: Sharon, Connecticut Favorite desert: Gluten-free chocolate chip cookies. Mmmmm đ&#x;™‚ Why did you join King’s? I came to King’s Academy for many reasons. One of them was the chance to be abroad. I love languages, so getting to speak English, teach French and Spanish and learn Arabic seemed like a great combination!
Mr. Jamie Meader
Hometown: South Berwick, Maine Favorite dessert: My favorite dessert is apple pie! Or chocolate chip cookies. I love desserts! Why did you join King’s? I joined King’s for a number of reasons: my desire to travel, live, and work in the Middle East, my excitement about the curriculum offered in the Middle School, and my eagerness to continue studying and improving my Arabic!
On September 6, an earthquake with the magnitude of 6.7 struck Japan in Hokkaido. According to the country's Fire and Disaster Management Agency, 39 people died, and the numbers keep rising, and at least 641 people were injured. Two people are still missing and there are over 2500 people in the evacuation centers. Before this earthquake, there were a lot of natural disasters such as floods, typhoons, landslides and heatwaves. In the early morning on September 6, powerful tremors broke roads and caused landslides. Many houses and other buildings were buried. Public transport services were suspended. 3 million houses lost power in the beginning and half of them had power back on the next day. Although electricity has been restored, an unnamed government official said that there was a possibility of a blackout. In Hokkaido’s main city, there were huge cracks in the street, so it buried houses. 22,000 soldiers have helped the rescue efforts. The prime minister said that the people that in need of rescue could increase to 25,000. The mountain regions got reshaped in landslides of the earthquake. Satellite photographs are showing that the landslides were caused by the strong tremors. The time when there were a lot of visitors in Hokkaido before the earthquake struck. The Japanese are concerned their visitors and citizens will decrease because of the strongest earthquake recorded in Hokkaido. Now, large number of people have canceled hotel reservations and vacations. In the Onsen hot spring resort around Lake Akanko in Kushiro, eastern Hokkaido, they have accepted cancellations from about 8,000 people in September and 2,000 people for October. Takanori Matsuoka, who is a secretarygeneral of the hot spring said, “We are receiving a number of cancellations although there are no problems at all with the buildings and hot springs.� In September 2017, about 140,000 people, or 4,467 people a day on average, visited the zoo, which is in the central Hokkaido. But, in 7 September 2018, the
Volume 3, Issue 1 visitors had decreased to about 2,000 people after the earthquake struck. Japan is involved in the "Ring of Fire" arc of volcanoes. The arc account is for 20 percent of the world's earthquakes of magnitude 6 or greater.
Battle for Idlib by Yasmeen Abuelezam Idlib is the largest province in Syria which is still not under the control of President Bashar alAssad. Idlib is going through an increase of violence every single day. It is the major opposition and rebel stronghold in Syria. Countries like Russia and Iran have stepped up attacks on Idlib because they want it gone and destroyed. Every day an attack is headed for it and innocent people are dying. Children are suffering. Lives are taken, and we are just watching. However, Idlib citizens won’t just watch their city being destroyed and taken away from them, they will fight and won’t surrender until they have victory although they may not succeed. But the question is, is it worth the try?
They drafted Isaiah Wynn a T from Georgia. They also drafted Sony Michel a RB from Georgia, he got an A+ for his instant draft grade. They might get to the semi-finals, but I don’t think it will be their year to take it all. They also lost to the Lions. The Packers lost to the Redskins, tied with the Vikings, and won against the Bears. They drafted Jaire Alexander a CB from Louisville, he receives an A for his instant draft grade. He is a great defensive player making him a good pick. With him I think the Packers will do good. These are my predictions for this year.
Cartoons and Comics by Selina AlHalaseh Cartoons are non-realistic or unexpected characters in a funny style. They are colored moving images that first captured children’s attention. In 1908, the first animated movie was published; it was an animated French film for children named Fantasmagorie by Emile Cohl.
NFL 2018 Draft and Predictions by Samir Tawasha The NFL season has just started, and everyone is excited to see how got drafted and who got traded. Let’s start with the Browns they drafted Baker Mayfield (QB) and Denzel Ward (CB). Baker Mayfield came from Oklahoma and he got a B for his Instant Draft Grade, he is a must have for the Browns. Denzel Ward is another must have for the Browns coming from Ohio state he is another must have for the Browns. I have a feeling that the Browns might a better job then last season. The Cardinals on the other hand have had a rough start losing the Redskins and again in the second week to the Rams 34-0, what a loss. They drafted Josh Rosen a QB from UCLA who received an A+ for the Instant Draft Grade. The Redskins won against the Cardinals and lost to the Colts. They drafted a DT from Alabama. A great defensive player, he is fast and strong. Due to their start I think they will do good, but not make it the semi-finals. The Patriots are off to an okay start, winning against the Texans and losing to the Jaguars.
Today, we will be interviewing Ms. Laila Demashqieh, from King’s Academy. She is the art teacher at the middle school. We will be asking her some questions about cartoon art, and what does she think about it. Do you think Cartoons are art? And why?
Volume 3, Issue 1 Yes, I definitely believe they are. They are after all complex visual expressions that require both skill and talent, and they can be as profound as their creator desires them to be. More importantly, they can communicate strong messages in visual form that can have substantial impact on the viewer regardless of their age or background. Today, cartoons are contributing substantially to defining entire generations, often shaping perceptions on critical social concepts such as race, gender, the struggle of good vs. evil, justice and retribution, relationships, among others. Would you prefer a cartoon strip to be black and white or to be with colors? As in all art, it really depends on the core message and the visual palette the artist is going for. I find both approaches have their merits and would be hardpressed to choose. Thank you so much Ms. Laila Demashqieh for your time to answer my questions, I really appreciate that.
Fact Facts by Samir Tawasha There are many facts in the world, but I bet that you haven’t seen any as fun and cool as these. They will be listed from most fun to least fun. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.
The Sahara Desert is not the largest desert, Antarctica is. Armadillo shells are bulletproof. Kleenex tissues were intentionally made for gas masks. The small pocket in jeans were made to hold pocket watches. Peanuts aren’t nuts. Neither are walnuts, almonds, cashews, and pistachios. The longest English word is 189,819 letters long and it takes three hours to say. Mercedes invented a car controlled by a joystick. The longest English word is 189,819 letters long.
9. Your nose and your ears never stop growing. 10. Scotland has 421 words for snow. 11. Movie trailers were originally played after the movie. 12. Giraffe tongues can be 20 inches long. 13. Europeans were scared to eat tomatoes when they were discovered. 14. Humans aren’t the only animals that dream. 15. The Eiffel Tower can grow six inches during the summer. 16. Blue whales can eat half a million calories in one mouthful. 17. Octopi lay 56,000 eggs at one time. 18. Bananas grow upside-down 19. No number before 1,000 contains the letter “A”. 20. Cows don’t have upper front teeth.
Volume 3, Issue 1