ms magazine december 2013

8/13/2019 MS Magazine December 2013

1/36

Magazine

Middle School

Looking To

The Future


2/36Middle School Magazine-2- MS Magazine eam 2013-2014 rimester 1

MS Magazine Team 2013-2014 Trimester 1

From Left to Right: Ben Faulkner, Bennet Wahlers, Marcus Cope, Michel Kna, Braden Davila,Colton Summers, Gray Barrett


3/36December 2013 -3-able of Contents

Table of Contents

MS Magazine Team 2013-2014 Trimester 1 2Middle School CASCADE Programme 4Braden Davila

Our School in Numbers 6Michel Knaf

Leading a Moral Life on Facebook... 7Middle School CASCADE - PhilosophyInterview with Visiting Author Benjamin Zephaniah 8Gray Barre, Michel Knaf, Marcus Cope

Benjamin Zephaniah 9Kae Swesey

Visiting Author Chris Bradford 9Kae Swesey

My First Time in the Atacama 10Lucas Frank

Grade 8 Trip to Plaine 11Colton Summers

7th Grade International Forum 12Kyla White

Malala Yousafzai 14

Danica TorrensThe Love for Green Paper 15Maria Diss

Upper School Winter Band and ChoirConcert 16Ian Kearns

Children of War 17Song wrien by 7C

Mandala Project:Learning About Myself 18Derek Mohos

The Running Birds 18Maria Diss

Mandala`s Message 19Nina Valenbreder

The Man Who Sailed Around the World in 11 Months 20Ian KearnsSailing Blog 21Rakel Sveinsdor

Model United Nations 23William Painter

Word Splash: English Journal Creative Writing 23Emmanuel Diss

U14 Boys Soccer NECIS 2013 24Ron Schickendantz

U14 Volleyball NECIS 2013 25Elena Percucci

U14 Cross Country NECIS 26Bennet Wahlers and Emmanuel Diss

Events in Luxembourg 28Braden Davila

Impossible Questions 29Marcus Cope

Jokes 30Marcus Cope

Puzzles 32Ben Faulkner

Puzzle Solutions 34Ben Faulkner

Pictureby:AshleyBrownlee

PIctureBy:CaraOSullivan

PIctureBy:Christine

VanDerGrift

PIctureBy:ClineWagn

er


4/36Middle School Magazine-4- Middle School CASCADE Program

MiddleSchoolCASCADEProgramme

This is the rst year that the Middle School hasdone the CASCADE Programme. This programmeallows the 6th - 8th Grade students to pick an ac-tivity to do twice a cycle and for the 8th Grade topick an activity to do once a cycle. There are manyexciting activities for students to choose.

( * = Activity oered in Trimester 2)

Below is a list of the exploratory activities whichare part of the CASCADE Programme:

6th to 8th Grade Activities(B and F Days)

*Middle School Magazine

*Discovering the Celts

*Mandarin for Beginners

*Design, Build and Fly Your Own Kite

*Strength and Conditioning, Circuit Fitnessand Nutrition

Music Theatre

*Horrible Histories

*Middle School Student Council

Mock Trials 1

*Chess Master Moves

*Outdoor Skills

*Yoga

*Wonders and Mega Structures of OurIndustrial World

Yearbook

*Tea and Talk with Jane Austen

*YTC! (Film Making)

*Do It Yourself Arts and Crafts

*Beginner Luxembourgish

*Beginner Spanish

CreativityActionServiceCommunityAwarenessDiscoveryExploration

Braden Davila


5/36December 2013 -5-Middle School CASCADE Program

8th Grade Activities (D Days)

*Mandarin for Beginners

Science Today

The BIG Questions: An Intro to Philosophy

*Horrible Histories

*Cook Up A Storm! Making Elegant Meals.

*Chess Master Moves

*Outdoor Skills

*Yoga

*Recycled Art

*Model United Nations

*Ceramics

MiddleSchoolMagazine

CookUpASto

rm!MakingEle

gantMeals

ScienceToday


6/36Middle School Magazine-6- Our School in Numbers

Our School in NumbersMichel Knaf

1192Number of students enrolled in school

47Nationalities represented

32Languages spoken

US 82+ LS 66Number of classrooms

238Number of sta (not including cooks and security)

29

Nationalities represented

24299Number of books in the Upper School Library

925Number of lost books in the system


7/36December 2013 -7-Leading a Moral life on Facebook

Leading a Moral Life on Facebook...

Middle School CASCADE - Philosophy

The Middle School Philosophy CASCADE group examined thethemes of privacy, democracy and identity through philosopherssuch as Heidegger and Aristotle. They came up with some generalrules for leading a moral life on facebook. Here are a few of them...

-Dont set up or endorse hate groups/messages

-Check with friends before posting photos of them

-If an event is public, feel free to share information about it

-If an event is private, check with participants before sharing

-Its complicated is not a viable relationship status: attention-seeking!

-Avoid political messages, show-o and feeling-sorry-for-my-self statuses: also attention-seeking!

-Think about whether the general public of your facebook

friends actually care about what you are sharing

-Remember that technology is a supplement to - not a replace-ment of - real-life contact with friends


8/36Middle School Magazine-8- Visiting Authors

Interview with Visiting Author

Benjamin ZephaniahGray Barre, Michel Knaf, Marcus Cope

What was your childhood like?

Well, I was born in Birmingham, in England. Mymother came from Jamaica, a Caribbean island, andmy father came from Barbados, which is another Ca-ribbean island. And we lived in this part of Birming-ham, called Aston, and it was like a really, really poorarea. Houses in those days didnt really have insidebathrooms or inside toilets. The toilets were in thegarden and the bath you had a tin thing and you putwater from the kettle in there and then put cold wa-ter in and you know the houses were full of miceand stu like that.

But to be honest I thought everybody lived like this,you know if you dont know anything dierent thenyou just think its all the same. So, you know lookingback at it now, people analyse it and they say it wasreally poor. But I thought that everybody was likethat. What I do remember, I think it was really dier-ent from the kids nowadays. Nearly all the toys thatwe had we made ourselves. My rst bicycle,made it

myself. Got the frame, got some wheels, got somebrakes, and you know just made it up. Go-karts wemade them myself. And if my parents bought mesomething and it broke, we xed it. We didnt justgo and throw it away and [say] Can I have anotherone. I remember sitting in the house one day andjust xing radios and xing stu like this. So thatsa major dierence from today, but obviously therewerent any computer games and all that stu. Soit was a hard time but I didnt really remember it asthat hard at that time but just looking back at it now

and thinking how easy it is for people now. Basicallyyou had to make your own fun. One of the greatestthings a boy of like 10, 11, 12 could do was like climbtrees.

I mean we used to do an adventure we couldnt donow inEngland, we used to leave our house and sayright what we gonna do today: we gonna get lost.That was it. And that was what we were doing. Wedleave the house and try and get lost and then whenwe were lost, wed try and nd our way back. Do

that now, and your parents will be calling the policeand it would just be impossible. But there wasnt allthe worries and all the gun crimes and child abusersthat everybody was worrying about on the streets.Wed get lost for hours and if we didnt nd the way

home wed just go to the police station [and say]Please take us home. And they would take ushome. So I remember it was really creative and re-ally playful. At the same time I loved poetry, but Ididnt call myself a poet. I just made up rhymes inmy head One of my favourite pastimes was justgoing up to girls and saying Whats your name?and making up a poem with their names. And theywould go Wow that guy is cool. Its the kind ofchildhood I remember.

If you werent a poet what would you want to be?

Id like to be a Kung Fu teacher. Im Kung Fu crazy.Every morning I get up and do Kung Fu. I have a gymat home and people that I teach already but just in-formally. Id love to have my own Kung Fu schooland teach properly. But its not gonna happen. I go

to China every year and study with my teacher butIm just Kung Fu crazy. I love pushing the body tothe limit when youre training it. I love the accuracythat you learn with Kung Fu. Its all about the dis-cipline and I love the control that you have Itsnot about the ghting. Kung Fu when you translateit from Chinese it doesnt mean ghting, it meanshard work, it means dedication, it means discipline,self-control. And so when I teach people Kung Fu,youre not teaching people how to ght. Youre re-ally teaching them how to control yourself, control

your anger and control their body.


9/36December 2013 -9-Visiting Authors

Visiting Author Chris BradfordKae Swesey

Chris Bradford came to ISL to speak to us about hisbooks and what he does to write his books. Brad-ford showed us tricks with his samurai sword and

many dierent moves. He was born on the 23rd ofJune in 1974 and is 39 years old. He is an author,was a famous musician and a black belt martialartist. He comes from Aylesbury, United Kingdom.

The genre of his books are adventure and thrill -er. He is best known for his childrens ctionalseries, Young Samurai. His rst book, The Wayof the Warrior, was published by Pun books in2008. Chris Bradford joined the judo club when

he was eight years old. He has written fteenction books, they have been published in morethan twenty languages and he has been nomi-nated for over eighteen book awards. He wasthe winner of the Northern Ireland book awardsin 2011. It was an honour to have Chris Bradfordcome to our school. All the children had a blastand would like for him to come again sometime.

Benjamin Zephaniah

Kae Swesey

A few weeks ago we had world famous author,Benjamin Zephaniah, come to our school and tellus about his life. Benjamins full name is BenjaminObadiah Iqbal Zephaniah. Benjamin was born andraised in Birmingham, England. His rst public per-formance was in a church when he was 10 yearsold. Benjamin writes poems, books and songs. Oneof his most famous poems is called Talking Turkeys.

Most of Benjamins poems are rather fast. He writespoems or novels in any genre. When he writes hisnovels or his poems he looks for the very simplethings in life. Benjamin is a vegan (that means thathe does not eat any dairy products or meat at all).He is a twin and even though his sister was sup -posed to be born rst, he was born rst. Benjaminis dyslexic and he memorizes his poems to compen-sate for this. Benjamin Zephaniah became a writerbecause he wants to speak for himself, he does notwant anyone helping him with what he has to say.At the age of 22, Benjamin published his rst book.


10/36


11/36December 2013 -11-Grade 8 rip to Plaine

Grade 8 Trip to Plaine

Colton Summers

Starting on the 18 of September, the grade 8 travelled to Plaine, France. We went for 3 days that werefull of adventure and excitement. However the highlight for me was the 3 hour hike up to the top of amountain. This was because the view at the very top was spectacular, you could see the entire townand there was an ancient roman structure. Unfortunately for the half of the grade that hiked in themorning it was too foggy to see ve feet in front of you. Luckily for me, I was able to see the incred-ible view.

Picture aken by: Marcus Cope

Picture aken by: Braden Davila


12/36Middle School Magazine-12- 7th Grade International Forum

you also feel its not enough. I was told many timesby teachers and eighth graders who had partici-pated in the International Forum the year beforethat once you start that morning, it all comes to-gether and you have a great time. Although I didnot believe them at the time, they were right inthe end. That morning, you are supposed to wearnice and business-like clothes to the Forum as ifyou were going to a real United Nations meeting.Then, we kick o the event by having an openingassembly and this year we had a guest speakerwho was a diplomat. After, we went back to ourcommittees and each country gave their speechby alphabetical order. After the speeches was thedebate. You could ask any country in your com-mittee questions and they would have to answer.You could then ask for a follow up question oragree and sit back down. For the chair to call on

the countries, the countries had to raise the plac-ard with their countrys name on it, then, the chaircould call upon that delegation or choose some-one else. Following the debate, there was a lunchbreak. This does not happen every year but thisyear we had the Middle School Lunch on the sameday as our Forum. Following the internationallunch was the Resolution Writing. Countries wereto get together with their allies and prepare theirthoughts on what solutions could there be based

on the views of those countries and the commit-tee they were in. One team member then spokethe resolutions for each group of allies. Each com-mittee was to vote on a resolution that ALLdel-egations could agree on. This winning resolutionwas spoken at the assembly to conclude the con-ference.

After all resolutions were spoken the chairsof each committee chose a Best Delegate. The

Best Delegate was someone who worked hard,showed they did their research, used no per-sonal pronouns etc. Four Best Delegates werechosen. Those who were given this award wereJuan Moreno, myself-Kyla White, Georgie Brock-elhurst, and Tom Verlaque. However, all studentsdid a great job with the Forum and were congrat-ulated for their success. The day was done and sowas the forum. It lasted all day but most studentswished for more time! It was an amazing time towork together and see the many dierent points

of view of various countries with a variety of cul-tures. Im glad I got to be a part of this event and Iknow other students thought the same.

7th Grade International Forum

Kyla White

In the seventh grade, students at ISL getto participate in the 7thgrade International Forum.

This has been happening for about 5 years now. Ihave just recently been involved in the Forum andit was a great experience. Being a part of the In-ternational Forum gives you a great view on whatthe United Nations goes through and their amaz-ing eort for world peace.

For about 6 weeks, the seventh grade, asa whole, was split up into four committees, Nu-clear Non-Proliferation; Womens Rights; Water

Scarcity; and Drug Tracking -- all very dierenttopics of the world but all very important -- andthen were assigned partners and countries theywould be defending. Each committee also had ateacher in charge that would teach you the thingsyou needed to know in order to complete yourresearch expectations, the countrys ve facts,the questions you were to ask other countries inyour committee, the speech of your country, theresolutions from the country you represent, etc.

They were also there for support and guidance asto where to nd the information while you wereworking on your packets at home or anythingelse you need help with. The teachers who wereinvolved in the Forum and were in charge of thecommittees were Mrs. Cain, Mrs. Northrop, Mr.Vermuelin, and Mrs. St-Amand. Also, each com-mittee had a chair that led the conference;some eighth graders who had already been in-volved with this were the chairs.

I was in the Nuclear Non-Proliferation com-mittee. Mrs. Cain was in charge of this committeeand two sharp eighth graders were the chairs-and my partner Johan Behmer and I were defend-ing the United Kingdom and its view upon Nuclearweapons and energy. It was a great opportunityto be able to research and study about the spreadof nuclear weapons and the harm they can do tothe earth and its citizens, and also speaking fromthe UKs perspective.

When the actual day of the Forum comes,you feel relieved and yet very nervous. You feelaccomplished of the all the work and studying andthe practice you put into this projecthowever,


13/36December 2013 -13-7th Grade International Forum

FINAL RESOLUTION

NAME OF COMMITTEE:Drug TrackingTOPIC:Drug tracking around the world.SUBMITTER:Thailand, Sweden, Netherlands andMexico.

Preambulatory Clauses:

1. Is alarmed by how many drugs are produced inthe world as of today2. Noting with Deep concern that the amount ofdrugs consumed and dealt with is increasing.

Operative Clauses:

1. Proposes that all UN donate a small portion oftheir yearly income to help set up drug addictionclinics around the world.

2. Requests an increase of security in major air-ports, train stations, and harbours.

3. Refuses to buy goods from countries thathave major drug tracking issues.

4. Strongly recommends for a punishment in jailto take place, depending on the amount of drugstracked.


14/36Middle School Magazine-14- Malala Yousafzai

Malala Yousafzai

- YOUNGEST EVER RECIPIENT OF THESAKHAROV PRIZE FOR FREEDOM OF

THOUGHT

Danica Torrens

There is poverty, lack of freedom, fear and ter-

rorism, but there is hope, because we are allhere together united to help these children, tospeak for them, to take action.

On the 20th of November 2013, Malala

Yousafzai became the youngest ever recipientof the Sakharov human rights prize, awardedby the European Parliament.

Malala Yousafzai was born in the beautifulSwat Valley in Pakistan. Her father, unlike mostothers in her region, was happy about havinga girl. When Malala was born he asked friendsand family to give her their blessing, some-thing usually given only to boys. Her father is

a liberal and had been ghting for girls rightto education and established a girls schoolin their village when Malala was very young.Malala followed in her fathers footsteps andstarted campaigning for girls education at avery young age.

Malala and her father became progressivelybetter known in Swat and throughout Pakistanbecause of their ght for girls education andfearlessly speaking out against the Taliban. Be-cause of this, BBC radio correspondent, AbdulHai Kakar, asked her to write a blog about howlife was for a girl under the rule of the Taliban.With her fathers encouragement, she agreed.Writing the blog was very dangerous and riskyeven though she had a pen name, Gul Makai.

On Tuesday the 9th of October 2012, Malalas

life changed forever.

She was on the usual bus ride home fromschool, talking to her friends. The bus wasstopped, as was usual at the checkpoints. The

students on the bus could tell by the look ofthe man, who was talking to the bus driver,that he was a Talib. Another Talib boardedthe bus. Who is Malala? he demanded. Thewhole bus went silent and a few of her friendslooked at her. He followed their gaze and liftedhis gun. He red three shots. One went right

into Malalas left eye socket. The other two hither friends who were sitting next to her.

When she woke up, she was in a hospital in Bir-mingham. She didnt know where she was. Shehad no idea where her family was. She was un-able to talk because of the tube in her throat.Nobody would tell her anything, in fear shewould go into shock. Malala had to undergo aseries of operations.

In the course of the past year, her life and thelife of her family have been changed drasticallyand irrevocably. Malala, her father, her motherand her two brothers now live in Birmingham.Malala continues to ght, even from afar, forthe right of all girls to go to school. She dreamsof returning to her home in Swat some day.

SAKHAROV PRIZE

The Sakharov prize is a human rights prizeawarded to people and organisations whoght for human rights. Previous winners in-clude Nelson Mandela and Aung San SuuKyi. On the 20th of November 2013, MalalaYousafzai became the youngest ever recipient

of the Sakharov Prize. It was awarded to her inStrasbourg, with her father present, by the Eu-ropean Parliament. In her acceptance speech,she asked the European countries to supportthe suering countries. She expressed thatshe found it unfair that, in Pakistan and manyother countries, some children werent goingto school because they couldnt aord it. Shebelieves that all children should go to schoolfree of charge. She believes education is a su-

perpower and that a countrys strength shouldbe measured not by its army, but by the num-ber of educated people.


15/36December 2013 -15-Te Love for Green Paper

Photos taken by: Danica Torrens

One child, one teacher, one book, onepen, can change the world.

The Love for Green PaperMaria Diss

Cracks profound on the surface brown,

Printed before by rested palms,

Though the sphere can barely hold,

Its breaths short ragged,

All shaken soul.

Melting in to waters high,

Breaking by their every blow,

He takes a gasp,

Though losing hope.

The mortal warmth is burning heat,

Through the broken lines of deep,

Our palms are sinking fast in snow,

Summer clouds in torment show.

Skies of same in every place,

Faces locked in eternal embrace,

Taking in the far o sound,

Of dying light for life around,

They drop the keys of favored cars,

And tightly hold last family bars.

The tinkle of metal on concrete ground,

The women spared,

The men all proud,

But day will come despite postponed,

And hope they plan to drop the coins.


16/36Middle School Magazine-16- Upper School Winter Band and Choir Concert

Upper School Winter Band and ChoirConcertIan Kearns

On December 3rd, the MS and HS parents had the opportunity to listen to a range of music in a collec-tion of performances from all the MS and HS bands and choirs. The music ranged from early 70s funk(Philadelphia Funk Train) to early 40s jazz (Tuxedo Junction). It was absolutely fantastic to hearevery band to play their music thatin short was AWESOME! says MS jazz band keyboardist RobertStok. The things that added to the smooth tanginess of the music was art by a twelfth grade IB stu-dent, and a bake sale that included hot chocolate and owers for charity. The songs were sometimessmooth, like Oasis, or sometimes explosive, like my bands song, Any Way You Want It. I am sure allof the parents enjoyed this concert. Mr Bowman was present at the concert, along with Mrs Crush andMr Keech. The concert was broadcasted live all the way through, and most probably is oating aroundon YouTube. Robert had one last thing to say. I say a great job to all who played at the concert andthanks to the conductors who made this possible!


17/36December 2013 -17-Children of War

Children of WarSong wrien by 7C

Family torn apartThis is how it startsWar destroys the nation

No more educationThe ones who are aectedNeed to be protected

ChorusChildren of war what are they all forTorn from their home, left all aloneTears run down their face, they need a betterplaceOptions there are none, so soldiers they become

These kids dont go to schoolYou probably think thats coolBut what if they cant learn,What will they then earn?

ChorusChildren of war what are they all forTorn from their home, left all aloneTears run down their face, they need a betterplace

Options there are none, so soldiers they become

Homelessness starvationBullying and ghtsThis must not continueThese children all have rightsA life like you and I, is what these children needAll of this trouble was caused by others greed

Chorus

Children of war what are they all forTorn from their home, left all aloneTears run down their face, they need a betterplaceOptions there are none, so soldiers they become

Grade 6 Commons Area

A creative team of Grade 6 students is currentlyworking on improving their Commons Area. Plansare in progress to transform their 2nd oor area intoa lively and interactive relaxation zone. The SpaceInvaders hope that the space, now being referredto as The Pod, will display seasonal decorations.They also plan to make some more long-termchanges relating to seating, homeroom commu-nication and entertainment. Watch this space!

PIctureby:MaikoO

maru


18/36Middle School Magazine-18- Mandala Project

Mandala Project:

Learning About MyselfDerek Mohos

Mandala ProjectA Mandala is a tool used by Tibetan monks to tellwhat they are sentimentally feeling. It is a repre-sentation of a persons personality, made withcolors and symbols. Recently, our class madeMandalas for the same reason as the monks.The Mandala helped me learn about myself, andI found out more than I knew before. A personis made of their positive aspects, negative as-pects, the places theyve been and what theylike to do. Working with my own feelings helpedshape me and my self awareness. Because ofthis, I believe that Mandalas are simple but ef-

fective to help teach people about themselves.My Mandala is made of dierent colors, as I havedierent sides of myself. Red represents beingenergetic (at times) and lively (possibly angrytoo). Blue represents calmness (again, at times)and relaxed. Yellow represents happiness andjoy, and green means a combination of blue andyellow. The colors were placed close together,because I can quickly go from one feeling tothe other. The small colors in between are how

I am once in a while. The outside layer can behow I look at dierent times on the surface, butthe inner layer shows how other people see me.My ideas for symbols rst took me to what Iliked, then my bad side, then to my good as-pects. The symbols of what I like are the plane,because I like traveling, the video game remotecontrol, to show that I like electronics, and thebook, symbolizing I like to read. The symbols thatdepict the dark side of my emotions include theeye, which tells that I am easily provoked andwill be mean to lots of people once I get angry.The vortex means that I can be selsh at timesand want only what is in my own best inter-ests, and the rock means I can be very stubborn.The positive symbols in my Mandala are the icecube, to signify I am normally calm, the Mexicanrevolutionary with the gun, who is Emiliano Zapa-ta, who symbolizes two things: that I am proud ofthe Mexican half of my heritage and that I ght forwhat I think is right. The light bulb means creativi-

ty, and the smile signies that I have a sense of hu-mor. The green arrow is my future symbol, and thatmeans that I want to change the world when I amolder. The Ohio ag symbolizes home; it was where

I was born and lived the rst six years of my life.Mandalas are great for visiting the area of onesown heart, and all of the good and bad thingsabout it. My Mandala sparked my spark of self-awareness, and it has kindled a small ame inthe caverns of my feelings. The Mandala, at rst,confused me, and I only saw the easier thingsto see. But as I progressed further, the Man-dala showed me more of myself and my feel-ings. How one goes further is up to them, but toachieve knowledge of one as a person, a personmust be prepared to map out his whole heart.

PIctureby:LouisSteinme

tz

The Running BirdsMaria Diss

Ive seen a walking bird,

They taught themselves to run,

They catch up with the ying birds,

Looking longingly at the sun.

Ive seen a ying bird,

That landed near a walking bird

So if you see a running bird, give it a wing


19/36December 2013 -19-Mandalas Message

Mandala`s MessageNina Valenbreder

Have you ever wanted to let yourself loose,and just go crazy? Well you could always make aMandala. The right way to express yourself is to

draw the real you. But that can only show if youtake some time to think about what is inside ofyou. Then you can paint a portrait of your soul.Making this Mandala helped me express thesefeelings, and helped me acknowledge the realme. Throughout my journey to express the realme, I discovered a good side, a bad side, and whoI would like to be.

The light side shows what I have accom-

plished, my expectations, and what I like aboutmyself. The colors in my Mandala represent thelively, and creative part of me, they are the pieceof me that I am proud to say, and keep me happy.The blues and purples are the colors that repre-sent the ocean. The ocean means a calm happyplace, but the ocean is also unpredictable, which Ilove about it. The ocean is my life symbol, it keepsmy family together, (in fact, many people saidthat our old house in New York, smelled like theocean). There are also a lot of other colors in myMandala that represent creativity, like neon green,or orange, and pink. My Mandala also shows manysymbols that represent me. For instance, the re-works represent creativity because they remindme of bursts of life and energy. The suroardalso represents the sea, but in a dierent way.The suroard represents my heart (in this case,the suroard) is leading me into the right direc-tion, and will have me ride the wave. The stagerepresents bravery, because getting up on a stage

is not an easy thing to do, and for many people itis scary at rst, but once you get into it feels reallymagnicent. Last but no least the half-moon half-sun represents balance, because if you dont havea balance of good and bad, you become tired ofyourself. I chose the seashell outline for my Man-dala because to me the seashell represents luckand protection. As I have said before, the ocean isalso unpredictable. Keep your hats on, because astorm is coming!

The light side of my Mandala may be verypretty, but that doesnt mean everything aboutmy inside is pretty and joyful! But this Mandelaproject gave me enough courage to continue, and

tell you about my. DARK SIDE! The colors in myMandala are also black and gloomy. For example,the color yellow might represent warning (like onthose yellow pedestrian crossing signs). I usedthose colors to draw a Dead End symbol. Thissymbol is showing how sometimes I am afraid tomake the wrong decisions, and then I hit the deadend sign smack in the face. Another dark signthat I drew was a row of clean organized trees.You might think this is funny because they actu -ally represent the process in which I get stressed.I am a little of an organize freak and when some-thing is out of place I freak out a little bit becauseI am scared that something will mess-up. An-other piece of my bad side is the ower that sur-rounds the world. They start out as yellow, thento orange, and at the very tips they are red. I drewthe ower as an example of my grumpiness. My

phases can be yellow (dont make me mad), tored (talk to me and I will get angry!!!). On a hap-pier note I do think about the way I want to be inthe future.

Some people dream of going to a greatcollege, and getting a job that will pay for morethan their rent, but instead of dreaming, I draw.The goldsh in my Mandala represents peace andfortune, and I hope that this will show you how I

hope to be not rich, but to live a wholesome life.The world in the center represents how chang-ing the world in any way is my top priority. I wantto change something greater than me. Even if itis being eco friendly one day, everything helps. Iam now going to talk about the man that inspiresme, Nelson Mandela. His quote, Education isthe most powerful weapon which you can useto change the world. His words inspire me be-cause of his actions in life. He lived a wholesome,

full life, even if most of it was in prison (becauseof doing something he believed in). He became astronger person, and is still living as former presi-dent of South Africa. This Mandala has shown methat if you try really hard, you can change the wayyou think about yourself, and become a betterperson.

A Mandala lets you express the real you,and makes it easier to see yourself from the inside,dierent than from the outside. Lastly, Manda-

las can help us express our soul, they let us openup our hearts to a piece of paper. Furthermore, Ihave noticed that it helped with my drawing skillstoo!


20/36Middle School Magazine-20- Te Man Who Sailed Around the World in 11 Months

The Man Who Sailed Around the

World in 11 MonthsIan Kearns

09-08-2011, 4:56 pm - Newport, Rhode Island,U.S.A.

Today was the day I nally set sail around the world.After what felt like hours (but was really only minutes)of checking, re-checking, and triple-checking the rud-der and daggerboard, I was relieved to nally get intothe boat. I made sure that I had ample provisions offood and water even if I was delayed getting to an -other port. Additionally, I had my safety equipmentsecured: ares, matches, thermal blankets, etc. TheCoast Guard led me out for a couple miles to sea. Allthe while, my excitement was building.

The rst few hours passed quietly and easily, and Isettled down and enjoyed the sail. However, once Ihad gotten comfortable, dark clouds began to buildout of nowhere and grow in size above me until theylooked like they would fall out of the sky on top of me.Within moments, the sky opened up, and rain beganpouring down, gluing the imsy jacket I had on to mybody. The wind began blowing so ercely that I was al-most thrown o the boat! I caught the handholds justin time as the wind dragged me across the boat. Thewaves were overpowering the boat and before I knew

it, I was ankle deep in water. It felt like an amusementpark ride as the boat swung widely from side to side.Then, the sky opened and a bright ash caught me inthe chest, knocking me against the wall of the cabin.Dizziness and blackness were all I could sense as Iconked out while propped up against the wall.

10-08-2011 - Atlantic Ocean

I woke up to the smell of the sausages my mother usedto make for me when I was a kid. I could not identifywhere the scent was coming from but it was denitely

making my stomach rumble. The rst thing I felt wasan extreme pain in my chest, like I was rammed by ahorn at the running of the bulls in Pamplona. I wasstarving, since several hours had passed since I wentunconscious. I raised myself to a sitting position andsuddenly felt sick to my stomach. I threw up over-board repeatedly as I tried to gure out what exactlyhappened last night. I looked out into sea and sud-denly had a ashback. The light, the roar of the oceanas I passed out, and the yell of the radio through theroar, screaming over and over, We are sending a cut-

ter through, repeat, send out a are. I looked to seeif there was any sign of another boat. There was none.The sun was so bright, it was blinding, which wasa drastic contrast to the darkness I had been in. As Ipulled myself up the wall of the cabin to lean against it,

I saw that lightning struck the mast more than once. Ipainfully turned my head to look at the damage causedby the storm. The cabin had a dent where my headwas and a burn mark where I was slumped when I wasstruck by lightning. I took myself into a standing posi-tion and limped into the cabin. Once inside, I felt myway along the inside wall and plopped myself into thecomputer chair. I noticed there was a long burn on mytorso. When I nished bandadging my wound, whichwas 3 inches long, with supplies from my emergencymedical kit, I sat at the computer and started typing

11-08-2011 - Unmapped location

I limped onto the deck just as land came into view. Irushed as quickly as I could inside and grabbed my bin-oculars. It was an island for sure. The boat was comingtoward it slowly but surely. I thought about my provi-sions downstairs and decided to check levels a couple

minutes later. I had about 80% of the food I startedwith at the beginning of the trip. Idiot. Such an idiotfor not protecting the food. Only three days in and20% of the food was washed away. I hoped that therewould be more provisions on the island, like tropicalfruit and fresh water. As the boat neared the island, Isaw there were many trees that I hoped might be man-go trees and possibly a few with bananas. As the boatapproached the island, I lowered anchor and used mydinghy to reach shore, with a bag in my pocket to loadthe supplies to carry back.

Once on land, I started to run to the trees and shakethem, causing the mangoes to fall to the ground and Iquickly gathered them into the bag. It took me threetrips in the dinghy to the boat to fully load the food.After the food was secured, I decided I could spend

IanKearnsinhisSa

ilboat


21/36December 2013 -21-

Sailing Blog

Sailing BlogRakel Sveinsdor

25/4/13My name is Rakel and I am 11 years old. So fareverything is going well. I just stopped on an is-land called Rhodes, Greece. Here I can relax andthink of nothing. You cant believe this but I saw awhale. It was so huge!! I think it was a killer whale.I was a little bit scared that it would attack my

boat, but luckily it did not. The killer whale wasbeautiful; it jumped up in the air as if it was ying.I love it on the boat because I feel like I am freeand out in the open. The worst part about livingon a boat is that once in a while I get seasick andmy stomach starts hurting, but I feel better onceIve stopped on an island. As I was saying, the is-land and the view is beautiful. I cant wait until Iget back on the sea.

1/5/13Hi! There are so many things I have to tell you andso many things that have happened (dont worryI mean good things). I saw a dolphin jumping outof the water. It was really beautiful. I loved it so

much that I gave her a name. Shes called Beauty!!I called her that because of course she was gor-geous. Last but not least, on April 27 at sevenoclock, I was heading down to my cabin when Isaw this wonderful sunset. The colours were red,yellow and orange. I cannot write to you everyday because there is not always an internet con-nection on the boat, but when I have the chance Iwill try to write to you.

5/5/13You wont believe what happened during the voy-age. There was a huge storm and my boat wascovered with water. I was so scared, but when thestorm was nished I used a bucket and scoopedout the water. After that I was a little bit relieved.I miss you guys so much. I wish that you could behere to share my experience. In about 10 days I

might stop in Malta (an island). I heard that Mal -ta is a very pretty place. I have to tell you someimportant information MY BIRTHDAY IS IN 12DAYS!!!! Im so excited but I wish I could spend mybirthday with you.Ill write to you in about 2-3 days.Bye8/5/13Only 9 more days until my birthday. Yay!! Ive

planned that in 7 days Ill stop in Malta and Im go-ing to stay there in a tent for 3 nights. On the 17thIll celebrate my birthday on the beach. Is that agood idea or what? Do you know what I miss? Imiss cooked food in restaurants. I also miss shop-ping and having a great time with my friends.

12/5/13So basically what Ive been doing on this boatis sailing and exploring the world. Its quite fun

when you have good weather. You can sunbatheand relax, but when its raining then you get wetand sometimes have to take care of the oods onthe boat. But so far it has been good weather andI have been exploring, sailing and having a greattime. As always, I wish you guys were here to seewhat Im doing and having a great time, ratherthan going to school or work. In about 4 days Imstopping in Malta. While writing this blog I havebeen going through the Mediterranean Sea.

14/5/13I can see land! Its about 5 oclock now, but at 7 inthe morning (tomorrow) I will reach land about50 kilometres away (I did the math). I amso ex-

the day there. I rowed one last time to shore. Usingmy guide to plant life, I identied some red bananasalong with the yellow ones, and found that they wereAMAZING. The fruit was so fresh and avorful, and Ihad a fantastic meal. When I nished, I walked inlandinto the island to see what I could discover.Inland was a thick jungle at rst, but then a clearingappeared. I stumbled through the vines and trees, still

hurting from my lightning strike, when I saw a hugemass. It seemed to be an airplane. I ran to investigate,and most denetly the tail markings indicated it was anAmerican plane. It looked WW2-ish, and I scrambled upto see if there were any clues to what had happened. Icould not gure out what brought the plane here andwhat had happened to the crew. After several morehours of exploring the plane and nding radio partsand maps, I continued to explore the island, but onlyfound more jungle. Eventually, I went back to the din-ghy. I suddenly remembered some paper I had found

in the plane and had folded in my pocket. I scrawledIAN WAS HERE on a sheet, and I stuck it in the ground.I left the island before night fell, and sailed on to thenext stop I was scheduled to make.

Sailiing Blog


22/36Middle School Magazine-22- Sailiing Blog

cited because my birthday is in 3 days! I changedmy mind a little bit. I might just sleep in the cabinbecause I am a bit scared of spiders if I sleep inmy tent. I also feel a little bit safer in the cabin be-cause I am used to it.Ill write to you in 2 days.Bye!

16/5/13Two exciting pieces of information I have to tellyou. First of all its my birthday tomorrow!! Andsecond of all, its beautiful here. The beach is awe-some and the weather is amazing. I cannot wait tospend my birthday in this place.

17/5/13Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me, hap-py birthday dear Rakel, happy birthday to me!! Its

my birthday. I am so happy because the weatherturned out to be brilliant!! It is about 20 degreesnow (10 oclock) but its hopefully going to be hot-ter as the day progresses. Ive made my decisionon what country to go to next. It is Spain! I amexcited to try the food over there. When I wasyounger I always wanted to go to Spain. I mightsee some Spanish girls dancing in a show like se-noritas. Im going to the beach, so I will write toyou later.

20/5/13I am back on my boat, sailing around the world. Itwas fun in Malta, but I am excited to go to Spain. Ithink it will take about 10 days. I dont know whatelse to do but steer the boat and take care of thesails. Before I left Malta I bought some soup andcrackers, and soap. I also bought some clean wa-ter and toilet paper you know basic needs! Noth-ing fun happening at the moment, so I will write

to you later.

24/5/13You know what? I was washing my hands withsoap and it was raining. I was scared the steeringwould go crazy, so I ran out of the bathroom, andthe soap slipped out of my hand and into the sea!It of course sank. So from now on I have to dipmy hands in the sea to clean them. I should havebought two of them!

28/5/13There is nothing going on so far. Nothing but sail-ing. There is nothing new and amazing. Unfortu-nately my hands havent been clean for a while,

so Im always scared that I might get sick, but Ihave been trying to be really careful. I calculatedwrong; its going to take fteen days to sail toSpain. I need soap now. I hope a miracle is goingto happen, a bar of soap dropping from the sky.

1/6/13Its 1st June and I have been living on a boat fortwo and a half months! I am a great survivor. Ihave celebrated today by giving myself a littletreat, two more crackers than usual (usually I eatat least 3 a day). Of course the crackers arentchocolatey! They are whole grain, so its healthier.I also made myself soup and I am trying to do thebest I can with only a little.4/6/13There is a big storm coming. I can see the clouds

in view. Im going to head down to the cabin andtake cover there. I have taken everything that isvaluable and brought it down. Once I get there Iam going to make a cosy bed and get to sleep.

4/6/13I just heard a noise coming from the deck ... like athumping noise. I walked up the stairs and there,standing right in front of me, was a pirate with ahook in his arm, a red hat and a lthy patched eye.

I froze just standing there. As the wind blew, hetook me by the arm and pulled me up the stairs.Not only was there one pirate, his crew werethere, ready to attack me. The captain said, walkthe plank. I looked over his shoulder and I sawthat there was a plank ready for me. He pushedme nearer and nearer. Now I was at that pointwhere I was 1 centimetre away from his face. Istood on the plank, not knowing what to do. Sud-denly the captains mate pushed me into the wa-

ter. Was that the end of my life or was I going tosurvive?


23/36December 2013 -23-Model United Nations

Model United NationsWilliam Painter

Model United NationsThis year in November 2013, ISL sent eighth and ninth graders to go to Istanbul for an MUNconference, but before I explain about the amazing trip, I will explain what the MUN actually is.

MUN is a simulation of the UN. The UN is a place where all the countries come together and lookat world conicts and try to bring peace to these conicts. This year the topic at Istanbul waspeace and security. I was in the Historical Committee and we tried to resolve the Korean Warthat took place in 1950s. The resolution was that we bring North Korea and South Korea into onecountry. However I did not agree with the resolution as I thought problems would arise. This is agreat trip and I recommend all students next year to try it out as it is worth it. Sadly, the weatherwas not as we expected it to be, but it was still warmer than here in cold Luxembourg. This is themost organised trips out of all Middle School MUN trips and it was my favourite one by far.

Word Splash: English Journal Creative WritingEmmanuel Diss

Te sun was beating on my back, its invisible vibrations rattling my body like the beating of a thou-sand drums. My eyes, half crossed, couldnt guide me now. Only the internal compass Oxam knewrested in me kept my subconscious counting the steps to freedom, trying desperately with every halfmeter to bring it to reality. Sweat swept through me like salty flames flinging sparks into my eyes,and at the voices beside me and at the crack of the gun resounding behind my bare negro back, Iknew the rebel from the Sudan was no more.


24/36


25/36December 2013 -25-U14 Volleyball NECIS 2013

U14 Volleyball NECIS 2013Elena Percucci

As many will agree, the volleyball season ew by, but in just a few small weeks of training, ourteam improved immensely. Enough girls had tried out to make two full teams, and with the courtslled, there was a variety of dierent skills throughout. The season started o with matches against

Amsterdam and Dusseldorf. Although we lost, we kept our hopes high, tried harder and worked bettertogether as a team. Our coach, Coach Murray, continued to remind us, that all she would ask of us wasthat we tried our best, and that the score was only a number. As we continued to play, our team evolved, our serves went over, and our hits became stronger.We knew that to be successful, we had to work together as a team. We tried to work our best in train-ing, knowing those extra wall sits and suicide running drills would only help us improve. Our practiceshad consisted of running round the court, volleying, serving, and spiking exercises, and sometimes afew too many push-ups. If we were not concentrated, or in some cases, let the ball drop in front of us,the whole team was on the oor, doing 20 push ups, and with each time 5 more if it happened again.Although volleyball requires only a small court, our practices meant that we were consistently running.

When we lost closely to Antwerp and won our match against Bonn and St. Georges, we began to ndcondence within the team. We knew though, however, that even if we won or lost, we went on ando court as a team, and that the improvement was an achievement by itself.

There was always a little competition on the bus rides to and from matches with the boy foot -ball players. Who was better? Who would place higher? As NECIS began to approach, our nerves beganto kick in, and we couldnt help ourselves by predicting and talking about where we would place, whowe would be playing, and what we would do. We told each other, Okay, this practice we really have toconcentrate and work even harder, we only have a week until NECIS!. Eventually, the tournament didapproach. Our bags were packed, and on Wednesday, the rst week back after the holidays, we wereon the bus, making our way to The Hague.

The rst day had been a tough one, with 2 losses against Amsterdam and Dusseldorf. We knewthat we had to work together better as a team. When the second day brought a loss against Hamburg,but a win against Bonn, our hopes remained high. We would be playing for the plate, 5th place. The nalday denitely was the most nerve-racking. The footballers would be watching, and we were going tobe playing Hamburg, who had previously beaten us at the last set. The pressure was denitely on, butproved to work, as it was a win. We may not have placed in the top three, but we were proud of howwe had worked together and improved so much. We all thoroughly enjoyed the experience, and wouldlike to give a huge thank you to our coaches, Coach Murray, Coach Fernandez, and Coach Amanda, whoput in a huge amount of work into our training. We cant wait to play again next year!


26/36Middle School Magazine-26- U14 Cross Counry NECIS

U14 Cross Country NECISBennet Wahlers and Emmanuel Diss

The rst thing anyone would have noticed was the weather. None of us could see within a radius ofve meters and the nerves in a deadly combination with the cold rattled our bodies like the beating ofa thousand drums. The second thing would have been the music, the third a rugged animal like cos-tume with the words GRIFFIN painted in italics, and the fourth the unbelievable amount of mud. The

sharp turns, the sweat sweeping through us like the river that did the same to our feet, it was all partof the process (that in itself was obvious), the same rugged sliding and repositioning that happenedto us every year. We loved it. And well never forget it.


27/36December 2013 -27-Creative work

Pictureby:KaterinaBroc

klehurst

Pictureby:EthanRog

ers

Pictureby:Sh

aojunChen

PIctureby:MatteoGiusto

Grade 6 PumpkinsCreative work


28/36Middle School Magazine-28- Events in Luxembourg December 2013 - March 2014

Events in LuxembourgDecember 2013 March 2014

Braden Davila

December 2013

WinterlightsLuxembourg City

Dates: November 23 - December 31Festival of Lights and Animation at sites aroundthe city, featuring Christmas markets, parades,

rides, shows and concerts.

Christmas MarketLuxembourg City

Dates: November 23 - December 24

Annual market that sells candles, toys, decora-tions, sweets, hot drinks and food.

January 2014

Tourism FairLuxembourg City

Dates: January 17-19This fair oers over 200 tourist specialists.

February 2014

Luxembourg City Film FestivalLuxembourg City

Dates: February 28 March 9Festival that aims towards lms made in/with Lux-embourg, oering feature and short lms, docu-

mentaries and ction lms.

March 2014

Carnival Parade DiekirchDiekirch

Date: March 2Traditional parade featuring up to 50 oats and

groups.

Strimnnchen / StrifrchenRemich

Date: Evening of March 5Marks the end or Carnival by marching down in aprocession down to the Moselle river bridge, witha straw man. They then light the scarecrow on

re and push the scarecrow into the river. This sig-nies the end of Carnival.

BuergbrennenTowns outside Luxembourg City

Date: Evening of March 9On Bonre Day, bonres in many towns around thecity are lit with a large wooden cross in the middle.

The signies burn the winter.

December 2013 - March

2014

Information and pictures taken from the GrandDuchy of Luxembourg National Tourist BoardWebsite. More Information can be found at:www.visitluxembourg.com


29/36December 2013 -29-Impossible Questions

What is the colour of nowhere?The colour of nowhere is both the blackness of nothing and something, it is the pale neitherblack nor white colour that shifts through realities separating the nothing of the desert, andthe nowhere of the ocean. It is the black of the clear space and the colour of the things bothseen and unseen. It is so dark, but too bright, too pale, yet so divine.- Emmanuel Diss

What does silence sound like?

An everlasting empty hallway full of the darkest and most abandoned dreams.-Marcus Cope

Who is now?Einsteins inventions ying through the wind.-Afonso Carvalho

What does an echo look like?It looks like ghosts, ying through the air.-Alex Starck

What does silence sound like?Silence sounds like the mind of a sail, never talking.-Jesper Miquel

What is the second biggest number?I think the second biggest number is a google-Francoise Betzen

What does air feel like?Air feels like a bubble of security, waiting like a time bomb to be popped.-Emilie Bergling

What is the second biggest number?The second biggest number is a grumpy competitive number because its never coming rst.

-Anonymous

ImpossibleQuestions

Enjoy!

Marcus Cope


30/36Middle School Magazine-30- Jokes

QuestionJokes

Prepareyourself

1. What do you call a deer with no eyes?

2. What do you call a deer with no eyes and nolegs?

3. What did NASA think of their party?

4. What did one Snowman say to the other?

5. What is Englands most friendly motorway?

6. Why did the paranoid guy quit Twitter?

Answersonthebottom

1.NoIdea2.StillnoIdea

3.Itwasablast

4.Doyousmellcarrots?

5.M86.Hethoughthewasbeingfol-

lowed

ByMarcusCope

Jokes Marcus Cope


31/36December 2013 -31-Jokes

Jokes

Prepareyourself ByMarcusCope

You are on a horse, galloping at a con-stant speed.

On your right side is sharp drop o, andon your left side is an elephant travelingat the same speed as you.Directly in front of you is a galloping kan-

garoo and your horse is unable to over-take it.Behind you is a lion running at the samespeed as you and the kangaroo.

What must you do to safely get out ofthis highly dangerous situation?Get o the merry-go-round, they arenormally for children only!


32/36Middle School Magazine-32- Puzzles

Puzzles

Sudoku

Tips

-Youcanputsmallnumbe

rsinthecornersof

squares,toshowpossibilities.

-Startoffbylookingfornumbe

r1inall9sections,and

thenprogressto2,3,4,andso

on.

-Ifthereisonemissingnumb

erinacolumn,row,

orsection,useeliminationto

findoutwhich

numberitis.

Sudokuisanumberpuzzlethatrequireslogi-calthinking.Teaimofthispuzzleistofillinthesquareswithnumbers1to9,howevereverycolumn, row,and3x3section,must

containallthedigits1-9.Sudokupuzzlesareratedonascaleof1to5stars.Tissection

hasapuzzleofeachdifficulty,plusapuzzlethatisoffthechartsat11stars,foryoutotry!

Ben Faulkner


33/36December 2013 -33-Puzzles

Puzzles

WordProblems

1.

2.

3.

4.


34/36Middle School Magazine-34- Puzzle Solutions

PuzzleSolutions

Sudoku Sources:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/science-news/9359579/Worlds-hardest-sudoku-can-you-crack-it.html , http://www.4puz.com

Ben Faulkner


35/36December 2013 -35-Puzzle Solutions

PuzzleSolutions

WordProblems

Source: http://www.ukmt.org.uk/indi-vidual-competitions/junior-challenge/

1.

2.

3.

4.


36/36

Obviously You Like To

Start From The Back

Exclusive Benjamin Zephaniah Interview

Inside This Issue

Mind-boggling puzzles

and More!

ms magazine december 2013

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