Inside 15000 January Edition

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Inside

“A RAPE ON

CAMPUS”

HITS CLOSE

TO HOME

A university's reputation

unravels and with it,

students' dreams

pages 8-9

Battlefield High School student news maga zine

Volume 2, Issue 4 January 2 014

1 Inside 15000 Battlefield High School news magazine

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“A RAPE ON

CAMPUS”

HITS CLOSE

TO HOME

After a scandalous Rolling Stone

article, Bobcats think twice about

the University of Virginia

Bobcats weigh in on the popular

social media trend... and share

their own

IS YOUR

TEACHER

GRADE A?

Might the “perfect teacher”

really exist?

WHO IS YOUR

#MCM OR

#WCW?

MAKE WAY FOR

SNOW DAYS

p.8-9

p.11

p.14

p.5

DIVING IN

A brand-new sports team breaks into

the world of Battlefield athletics

p.12

PHOTO Sophomore Alie Paoli executes a back

dive at a recent dive team “mock meet”

photo by Audrey Schroeder

COVER PHOTO

Model: Emma Boyd, senior

Photo by Jayne Ross

cover story

So much snow, so little time...

what to do on a day off

2 Inside 15000 Battlefield High School News Magazine

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QUIZ: WINTER

MADNESS

p.4

A NEW

SOMETHING

FOR A NEW

YEAR

p.6

POLL- NEW

YEAR'S

RESOLUTIONS

NATIONAL SELF-

LOVE MONTH

MUSIC &

GAMING

FESTIVITIES

p.6

p.7

p. 10

PURPLE &

BLACK

INTRASQUAD

MEET

SENIORITIS

p.13

p.15

p.5

p.14

p.7

RIVALRY AT

ITS FINEST

p.13

STAFF

2014-2015

EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Jayne Ross, McKenna Roper

DESIGN EDITOR Justin Michna

BUSINESS MANAGER Lauren Ainslie

SECTION EDITORS Kelsey Ainslie, Shelby Cesario,

Kirsten DeZeeuw, Grant Donaldson, Lily Korpella,

Jessica Kronzer, Alie Paoli, Catie Villavicencio

STAFF WRITERS Marissa Alessi, Claudia Almeda, Inez Asiama, Emily Balog, Lily Bartone, Lauren Bennett, Sidney Brooks IV, Allison Brown, Regan Buckley, Kayla Coleman, Becca Davis, Jake Dedekind, Alyssa Estrellado, Jordan Fleming, Kiwi Franklin,

Megan Guthrie, Sydney Guyton, Charis Hadgikinitas, Danielle Harrington, Brandon Hoagland, Emma Hummer, Thomas Kelly,Theo Key, Gyu Ri Kim, Cassidy Lee, Emily McCauley, Kyleigh McGinnis, Lauren Milloy, Simon Moon, Ashley Osuna, Zach Plaster, Bryan

Plonk, Alexis Radun, Jordan Richardson, Mary Riley, Maggie Ryan, Sam Scott, Cheyenne Shifflett, Madison Southwick, Heather

Trobridge, Zoe Voettiner, Megan Wagoner

STAFF ADVISOR Charlotte Peyton

Publisher: Herff Jones

Software: eDesign

Paper type: 80# Gloss

SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR PATRONS

Maureen Castellano - Kirsten DeZeeuw - Ms. Dumm -

Flashpoint Internet Solutions - Jennifer Guyton - Sydney

Guyton - Linda Hadgikinitas - Susan Mephatter - Mr.

Metts - Simon Moon - Janet Richards - Paula Scalo -

The Scotts - Sabrina Thistle - Amy Voettiner - Otto

Voettiner - 7-Eleven

3

Inside 15000 Battlefield High School News Magazine

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Make way for snow days

According to the

Farmer's Almanac, Virginia is supposed to get a lot of snow this winter, and the students could not be more excited. So, how do the students at Battlefield occupy themselves on these snow days?

Freshman Nick Chaky says, “...when it snows this winter, I will have a lot of fun building snow castles.” While

some students pine for summer, Chaky says, “I like colder weather more [than warm weather] because you can control it by wearing warm clothes, like a nice winter coat and some long johns.”

“I cannot wait for snow this year because we won’t have school,” says sophomore Andy Gobbi. “On snow days, I like to make hot

chocolate and go outside in the snow to make igloos.”

Junior Jack Ritter says that he is “ excited for the snow this year because we get off school. When I get off school, I usually go to my friends' houses.” Ritter agrees with Chaky by saying that “winter weather is better than summer, because I can wear a lot of layers to stay warm, but in the summer, no

matter what, I’m hot.”

Many students, like Chaky and Gobbi, enjoy going outside and building igloos, or snow forts, but others such as Ritter prefer going to a friend's house and hanging out. Others, however, don't want to deal with the snow at all, “I don’t like the snow, so I just stay in bed all day” says freshman Caitlin Denniston.

Battlefield students speak on the upcoming winter weather

By Alexis Radun and Allison Brown

By Lauren Bennett

Photo courtesy of flickr.com

Facts courtesy of kids.lovetoknow.com

5


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People often say they

will work out next year, or they will not eat McDonalds, or maybe they will not give their little brother a wedgie. Unfortunately, very few actually stick to their resolutions. According to statisticbrain.com, only eight percent of people who make New Year’s resolutions carry them out throughout the entire year. 25 percent of people drop out after week one; 36 percent drop out after a month. At the six- month mark, over half of the people who made a resolution had ended their streaks.

Freshman Cole Swingle is familiar with the concept of New Year’s resolutions. Swingle made a New Year’s resolution when he was younger. “It was about a month until I just stopped

caring,” he says, an example of how most people tend to stray away from their yearly commitments. In 2015, Swingle says, “I am determined to grow three inches,” and while that may be up to nature, Swingle seems pretty motivated.

Even teachers have New Year’s goals. Although she has not decided upon her resolution this coming year, Mrs. Esteban has made resolutions in years past. Her resolutions usually had to do with the same thing: “generally to exercise more; it lasts about six weeks.”

Sophomore Marion Richard has also made resolutions in the past. When she was younger, Marion pledged to “eat less candy and junk food.” However, as a child, she only lasted two weeks. Richard will not be

A new something for a new year

By Sam Scott and Heather

Trobridge

Bobcats trying to improve in the upcoming year

having a New Year's resolution this year. “I never stick to it,” Richard stated. “It's hard to keep up with.” This rings true for many people: setting a long term goal and having a difficult time keeping up with it.

Overall, Swingle thinks that “they’re dumb. If you have one, then why not just

do it for the rest of the year? Why start it then?” He thinks that New Year’s resolutions can be a good thing; however, he also believes that they can be set at any time throughout the year. New Year’s resolutions are a great way to set long-term goals, but are also a great way to achieve short term goals.

Photo by Charis Hadginikitas

Students in Journalism embrace the new year with a big celebration.

Infographic by Kelsey Ainslie and Jessica Kronzer


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National Self-Love

Month is a holiday held during the first month of every year. It is basically a self-praising celebration. With the rise of social media obscuring what self esteem really is from teens, National Self-Love Month is meant to

help teenagers to gain confidence in themselves. Because the annual holiday is held in the beginning of the year, many are finding that setting “achieving self- love” as a New Year’s resolution is a good way to slip the holiday into their New Year's routine.

One thing that can affect a teenager's self- esteem is social media. Many think social media is okay in small amounts but dangerous if overused. “Social media is a great thing, but it can be taken too far, “ stated an anonymous freshman. “Cyber bullying is something that happens to teens all the time. You see some rude comments on a picture and sometimes just

pure hate. All those negative words can put a heavy weight on a person’s shoulders.” A social media site that has caused a drastic change in self confidence is Ask.fm. The social media site is a way for people to leave anonymous messages and

By Gyu Ri Kim

questions on someone’s personalized confessions page that has already caused nine suicides. “Situations at ask.fm could get so severe that people just cannot handle it and can lead to suicide or destroy their self esteem.”“ added the anonymous freshman.

Ask.fm has the option to keep a person’s identity hidden, and many people use this to their advantage to leave hate messages on even their closest friends' pages to degrade their self-esteem. Not only does Ask.fm allow this, but so do sites like Facebook, Twitter, and even Instagram. Though there are ways to ‘report’ or ‘block’ a cyberbully, no one can forget a harmful comment and

Sophomore Christina High holds up a heart to represent the month.

Photo by Kelsey Ainslie

The official pledge of Self Commitment.

Photo cpurtesy of Tumblr

National self-l ve month

One whole month devoted to loving yourself?

undo its effect on someone’s confidence.

Almost all suicides have to do with the amount of self- love someone has, whether the reason is “I feel like I’m not good enough” or “everyone seems so much better than me.” This leaves people to think that they are useless, as if nothing matters to them anymore. Lack of self esteem can lead to suicide very easily. “That’ll cause you to pick at every little thing about you that you may not like,” said freshman Hazel Kim, talking about how suicide is not a necessary way to fix self esteem.

The Self-Love Movement is a program run by howdoiloveme.com, and it is dedicated to raising a

person’s self confidence. The site offers a ‘31 Days of Self Commitment” challenge, as well as a pledge (“I commit to do my best to do something loving for myself, however big or small, for the next 31 days.”), a free eBook, and an online forum for people to leave comments

about how they raised their self esteem.

Also offered on the site are the so-called10 Commitments of Self-Love: “I shall lovingly accept myself as I am right now, I shall appreciate all the beauty that makes me who I am, I shall regularly give thanks for all of my blessings, I shall trust in my ability to take care of myself, I shall not criticize myself, I shall not criticize others, I shall forgive myself when I make a mistake, I shall be kind to others, without sacrificing my own needs, I shall take responsibility for my life, and I shall love myself to the best of my ability.”

Take the quiz at self- esteem-experts.com/self-

esteem-quiz to evaluate how much self-esteem you hold for yourself, as well as an explanation and theory as to how to raise your confidence in a specific area in which you struggle. And in the meantime, teens nationwide are encouraged to truly celebrate themselves.


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As scandal rocks the University of Virginia,

Bobcats start to think twice about its virtues By McKenna Roper and Jayne Ross

The University of Virginia, more commonly called UVA, is well known at Battlefield High School. It seems that not a school day passes without seeing countless Bobcats sporting apparel that bears the university’s famed navy-and- orange logo— for many, attending the Charlottesville university has been their dream since childhood. In the past month, however, some have watched that dream seemingly crumble before their eyes.

On November 19, 2014, nationally syndicated pop culture magazine Rolling Stone published a story called “A Rape on Campus.” The article documents then- freshman Jackie’s account of a brutal gang rape at a 2012 Phi Kappa Psi fraternity party. Soon after its publication, the story went viral. People cried out against the university’s “rape culture,” expressing outrage at campus faculty for

“A Rape on Campus ”

hits close to home

Most large schools have this

problem, and they all need

to change.”

university they once held in such high esteem.

“[The scandal] definitely makes it a lot more likely that I wouldn’t want to go there,” says junior Aimee Trettel, who once had her sights set on the university. “I want to be able to feel safe at my college.”

Local students at other

high schools are feeling the article’s repercussions as well. Pegah Moradi, a senior at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science & Technology in nearby Fairfax, is also starting to have second thoughts about attending UVA. Moradi’s

brother, Piam, graduated from Battlefield in 2011 and currently goes to UVA, but the Haymarket teen now doubts that she will follow in his footsteps.

“UVA had always been on my list, but after the allegations of sexual assault, my parents are second-

guessing letting me go if I get accepted,” she says. “To be honest, I am not a very big fan of UVA anymore, either.”

On the other hand, there are some refusing to let the recent scandal affect their own views of the school. Battlefield senior

allegedly providing little support to sexual assault victims and preferring instead to sweep criminal charges under the rug, letting the accused get by without so much as a disciplinary scrape. “In what world do you get kicked out for cheating [in class],” says UVA mom Susan Russell in the article, “but if you rape someone, you can stay?”

As the weeks have passed, however, people have begun to point out holes in Jackie’s story. Now, the magazine is under fire in addition to the university, with fellow journalists from other publications claiming that the magazine violated basic journalistic principles when it took Jackie’s story at face value and failed to contact her alleged rapists. Still, it seems that the damage has already been done. UVA’s stellar reputation has been publicly tarnished, and some Bobcats are beginning to doubt the

-Kaitlyn Ford, BHS graduate

The University of Virginia's main lawn in Charlottesville, Va. photo courtesy of wikipedia.org


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As scandal rocks the University of Virginia,

Bobcats start to think twice about its virtues

“A Rape on Campus ”

hits close to home

Emma Boyd has had her heart set on being a UVA Cavalier since she was old enough to remember, and in wake of the Rolling Stone fiasco, she says her dreams have not changed a bit.

“I have been brainwashed since I was like, this high,” confesses Boyd, laughingly holding her hand at waist-level. “There’d have to be mass destruction or something [for me to not go].” For her, the appeal of the school still lies in its strong business and pre- medical programs, in addition to her family’s Cavalier ties. “I love the atmosphere,” she says. “I was a little [uncertain] about the rape thing, but you have to be smart. I don’t think I’d be alone; I think I’d definitely use the buddy system after [hearing about the alleged rape].”

Boyd also points out that the issue of sexual assault goes far beyond UVA’s campus alone. “It’s not a problem with colleges, per

board,” she says. “If I walked alone at a city at night, I’d be nervous too. I think it’s a problem with society as a whole.”

Kaitlin Ford, a former Bobcat who graduated last year, agrees with Boyd. “Most large schools have this problem, and they all need to change,” says Ford. “It is really important that these concerns and problems have been put front and center, and it has given UVA the chance to make some big improvements and be a leader.”

Ford is now one semester into her freshman year at UVA. Thrilled to join the Cavaliers in the fall, the

last thing she expected to meet there after mere months of attendance was the tumult of “protests and reporters and new information every day.” The general idea of rape occurring at college campuses, however, “was unfortunately not a surprise.” Still, she says it is important for outsiders to look past the whirlwind of controversy surrounding the university and to realize that it remains a fine choice for prospective college students.

“It can be difficult to see hatred and anger thrown at something you love every day. It really saddens me to think that people… are

reconsidering UVA,” she says. “I think it is unfortunate that we had to take such a large hit in order to make these changes. We took a hit for the college community as a whole in that article.” Nevertheless, Ford wants people to know that the university indeed is trying to change.

“Overall, the reaction here has been pretty positive,” Ford says. “Most people are open and supportive of the idea that mistakes have been made, and we need to change some things.”

-Kaitlyn Ford, BHS graduate

DO YOU THINK YOU'LL BE

SAFE TO WALK ALONE ON

YOUR FUTURE COLLEGE

CAMPUS?*

YES

NO

58.4%

41.6%

Of those who said “no,”

86.7% were girls

*255 students from all grades were surveyed by Lily

Korpella and Catie Villavicencio


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MAGfest fun. Consoles are set up around the event, from Wii to the Atari; anything goes, including games. If one wants to play Mario Kart on a Wii but it's set to Spyro, the staff will happily change out any game that is wanted for a console.

It would not be a Music and Gaming Festival without music. Many people are looking forward to listening to the live music, which will take place in the variety of areas. Mathews said, “The music that I’m most looking forward

t o is listening to Y uu

M iyake

d oin g some

l ive DJ-ing. H e’s the

composer of a lot of games, including the game called Katamari Damacy, which is amazing, and has one of the most unique and interesting soundtracks I’ve ever heard in my life.” The main stages will naturally hold the most attention-grabbing music, while the Jamspace will be more of an “open mic” type of room. People can come in

event is for fun, unlike many other conventions where people (o rather, creatures like rainbow foxes named Lana from the planet Raydon) actually compete for the title of greatest and bravest of all the cosplayers.

Gaming is a big part of MAGfest and there are various areas where Local Area Network (LAN) games, arcade games, tabletop games, and even console games are set up and can be played by anyone who wishes to get their game on. For LAN gaming, participants must bring

their own computer and set it up according to the rules and regulations that are on the MAGfest website. “I probably will [play some games] because I’m staying for all four days, and I know several indie game producers will be there. A lot of developers will be showing off their games and demos,” Mathews says. Tournaments can be set up either officially or off of the books for a bit of

By Lily Bartone &

Megan Guthrie

M usic & G aming

F estivities

clipart from: flikr.com and pixabay.com

The Music and Gaming

Festival (MAGfest) takes place on January 23-26, 2015. It is a festival that takes place every year at the Gaylord Hotel in National Harbor, Maryland. It started in 2002 as the Mid-Atlantic Gaming Festival and has grown into quite a popular event. Classic and unique crafts can be bought at the event at any hour. MAGfest features all kinds of games, that can be played from an electronic console to traditional board games, and music surrounds the event from the two main stages, “The Jamspace,” and “The Hallway.” There are a multitude of options to partake in every hour all day, making sure that the weekend is jam-packed with excitement.

There are miles of merchandise options at “The Marketplace,” which is open all day, every day. There is everything from custom art and old games to unique creations featured in this bazaar. Cosplaying supplies are to be sold at the marketplace, as well as handmade or graphic art to take home and cherish.

Senior Eve Mathews says, “Plenty of independent artists are showcased there every year, with plenty of unique and beautiful merchandise that I’d love to purchase. The marketplace provides such a wide variety of merchandise that anyone can find at least one thing that they’d like. Even if you don’t buy anything, it’s really fun to go and see all of the pieces that people are selling.” The cosplaying at the

and play what they want, as opposed to what their audience requires. The Hallway is where people can bring their own instruments and play them in the hallways around the venue.

MAGfest is filled with activities to partake in, but anyone can sign up to become a cog of the machine that is the Music and Gaming Festival. Those who have crafty aspects of themselves can sign up early in the season and become a vendor to the Marketplace.

Those with musical abilities waiting to shine through can sign up to perform as a band with their group. There are indeed places at MAGfest for those who are not yet at a professional level to perform for a crowd.

Anyone with large arcade games who wants to get into MAGfest for free can cart their arcade game up to the Gaylord Hotel and get a free four-day pass for letting people play with their game. For the general public, tickets can be purchased at the event but due to the popularity and pricing of tickets, it may be easier to buy online from MAGfest.org, the official website of the festival. To buy tickets, scroll to the bottom of the page or search in the tool bar for tickets; they will pop up alongside a few smart-alecky remarks from the creators of the event.

MAGfest is full of a wide variety of fantastic opportunities. So much will be happening that anyone attending is essentially guaranteed fun.

Photo by Thomas Kelly

Sophomore Michael Kelly


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Who is

#WCW or

YOUR

#MCM?

Bobcats choose their

celebrity crush

Scrolling through an

Instagram feed is usually a way to pass someone's downtime, especially when waiting for Snapchat or Twitter replies, but most typically on Mondays and Wednesdays, it becomes a way to show off one's significant other. Picking their most adorable “couple”

photograph, students post their relationship for the whole world to see. However, some students would rather have a celebrity crush than a realistic one. “I graduated in '79, but I wouldn't mind seeing those posts.. My 'Man Crush Monday' would be Robert Redford,” Mrs. Ruth Johnson jokingly comments about her teenage heartthrob.

Photo by Grace Kaminski

Photo by Theodore Key

Quizzes by Kyleigh McGinnis

Photo by Emily Fowler

Photo by Lexi Redding

By Shelby Cesario

Infographic by Shelby Cesario from piktochart.com

Zac Efron

Shailene Woodley

Jennifer Lawrence

Ariana Grande

Channing

Tatum

Dylan

O'Brien

From left to right, students' reactions to a posted crush picture

were: get annoyed (22%), ignore (52%), or like (26%).


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DIVING

IN

Getting the inside scoop on the school's

first ever dive team

Q.

Q.

Q.

Q.

Q.

A.

A.

A.

A.

A.

How did you hear about dive team?

I heard it from a friend, it was a spur of the

moment idea. Have you been doing dive for a while?

No it’s a walk on team, so we are all learning

together.

Alie Paoli

Mohammad

Mohsen

Practices? We are learning pretty quickly and there are

five types of dives and so far we have learned two. It is kind of hard but you get used to it.

How do you like being the only guy on the

team? I don't mind it actually, it's kind of fun. I'm like

the captain of the guys team.

Why did you try out? Just for fun because you can learn it while

you do it.

Jada Ho

Q & A

This year, Battlefield has

a new winter sport: the dive team. In past years, Battlefield has had no divers interested in competing for their school, but this year is different. Most people are unaware that the school has added a dive team, but when senior Leah Turner discovered the team she “thought it would be great to initiate a dive team for Battlefield...and... was [hoping to] make other[s] spark an interest in the sport.”

There are currently five divers on the team: sophomores Allie Paoli, Jada Ho, Tori Penton and seniors Turner and Mohammad Mohsen. Ho decided to try out, “just for fun, because you can learn while you do it.”

Mohsen discovered the team while searching bobcatsathletics.org and decided to try out because

he had previous experience and really enjoyed it. Paoli says, “I heard it from a friend; it was a spur-of-the- moment idea.”

Dive team is a part of the swim team; they compete halfway through the swim meet. Each diver gets a warm up session and then they start the competition. During meets, all divers have a six dive set, meaning they do six different dives each. While competing, the divers each complete one dive at a time, one after the other, until they have performed all of their dives. Divers are judged on their starting position, approach, takeoff, flight, and entry. Each score is based off of the average judges’ scores on a scale of one to ten. Their score is affected by the difficulty of the dive.

The dive team puts much effort into practicing.

Turner explains the motivation necessary to be a diver, but also believes it can be just as rewarding as it is tough. “It is actually a fun sport, but it takes a lot of practice and hard work,” she says. “But if you try your best you can do it.”

Being a diver takes a lot of strength and discipline, she says. “Training is tough; I go four days a week for three hours.” Although diving is a lot of hard work, “that does not mean we do not make time for fun,” she adds.

Dive team can be very rewarding as well. “ I love learning new skills and dives,” Mohsen explains. “We are learning pretty quickly. It’s kind of hard but you get used to it.”

They may be new, but with all their hard work, Battlefield’s dive team hopes be successful this year.

Photos by Audrey Schroeder

By Marissa Alessi and Sydney Guyton

Sophomore Alie Paoli does a back dive at a 'mock meet'.


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IN

The best part

about the

rivalry is

winning. I love

that Patriot

cannot say

anything

afterwards.

Something many

Bobcats are looking forward to this month is Battlefield’s rivalry basketball game against Patriot on the ninth of January. This will be a game not only on the court, but also all over social media, making it a game not to miss.

Junior Brendan Hogan became known for his “REDNATION DISS TRACK,” a trash-talking rap about how Battlefield would win the football game and it worked. Hogan says, “Twitter posts create a lot of buzz for the rivalry, definitely making it more exciting to cheer on for school. The best part about the rivalry is winning. I love that Patriot cannot say anything afterwards.” Hogan adds, “when both schools are going back and forth, arguing over whose school is better via social media, it makes the game that much more important.”

Junior Colin Parker, who is on the Boys' Varsity

Basketball Team says, “rivalries are always a little extra motivation to play harder and earn more bragging rights.” With all the twitter “beef” between Battlefield and Patriot, Parker states, “seeing all the trash talk fires us up, and we feel we should come out and beat them by at

l east 30.” Senior

S eth Walker i s excited for t he game b ecause “The D en and Red N ation will be s creaming at e ach other.” I n the p ast,the s tudent s ections had a chant-off, a dding to the

intensity of the game. Walker continues, “our team is obviously better. We have more experience and a strong leadership. The young fellas will be learning and playing hard. It’s going to be a complete blow out.”

This is one of the most highly anticipated games of the basketball season. It’s definitely one for which the team hopes to see a huge turnout.

Rivalry at its

finest

Battlefield vs. Patriot

A team- vs.-

team water

battle

The Battlefield High School Swim Team kicked off its

season on December 3, 2014 with the first ever Purple and Black Intrasquad Meet. The team was split up into the Purple and Black Teams, and the two teams competed against each other in a regular high school swim meet. The Purple Team was led by seniors Lauren Reheuser, Juan Segura, Heather Macintosh, Alan Pak, Alex Medovar, and Thomas Kelly. The Black Team was led by seniors Daniel Zlatev, Camilo Arango, Natalie Morrow, Tony Medovar, and Andrew Arlint. The dive team was also encouraged to attend to support the two teams in their battle for superiority. The meet was run using Virginia High School League (VHSL) events, rules, and scoring.

The Intrasquad Meet was designed to be a fun way for the swimmers to kick off the season. Head coach Jay Thorpe described the meet as a useful way to help the swimmers understand the way the meets work and how fast they run. “This was useful for the freshmen, because this is a different kind of meet style that they are not used to,” says Thorpe. The meets run with nine individual events and three relays; each event has a single heat for each gender.

The Intrasquad Meet was definitely a new experience for the swim team members. “The meet was an interesting way for me to get to know the other team mates,” said freshman Kyle Bodemar, “it also helped me understand the way that the meets run.”

Upperclassmen on the team also found the meet to be a new experience. Junior Nihar Bhat says, “high school meets run much faster than club meets, so it helped me ‘get used to’ the way the meets run.” Bhat swims with Nation's Capital Swim Club, a team that competes in the Potomac Valley Swim League, which attends meets that have five, ten, or twenty heat events versus the single- heat events in VHSL.

The Intrasquad meet gave a great perspective to the coaches and team members on what to expect at the regular season meets. The team hopes to perform strongly throughout the season and take the trophy at the Conference Championship on January 30, 2015.

By Thomas Kelly

Senior Corey Parker faces a Patriot High School player at a game from last season.

Photo by McKenna Roper

By Becca Davis and Claudia Almeda

Battlefield simmers prepare to dive in.

Photo by Thomas Kell y

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Is your teacher Grade

The perfect teacher may not be what

students expect

By Inez Asiama, Charis Hadginikitas, and Cassidy Lee

“She never gives homework, I can sit by my friends, I can play on my phone whenever I want, and she helps me on tests so I never have to study!” Kids may think this is the kind of teacher they want, but in reality, they probably would not learn much. Really, students benefit most from teachers who offer a structured learning environment where kids can focus on material without much distraction. That being said, everyone is different and all students learn in different ways. What should a teacher really do to help students learn the most they can?

People learn differently and enjoy different styles of teaching, so teachers learn to use different techniques to help their students. Note- taking, for example, is an unavoidable part of every class. Freshman Mary Cate Walsh says, “I like open notes; then you can write down what you need, but if you have a note packet then you might have to write things that you don’t need.”

On the other hand, freshman Grace Cutsinger states, “The fill-in-the-blank notes are the easiest, because if you aren’t paying attention, you can get them from a friend or online.”

Says freshman Taylor Fricke, “I like writing [notes] down because I feel like it helps me memorize them better.” These are some of the ways actively taking

notes in class can keep a student on top of their education.

Senior Corey Parker says, “I like visual aids because I like seeing what I’m learning. It just helps me absorb the information better.” According to Specific Diagnostic Studies, there are three different learning styles: visual, auditory, and kinesthetic. SDS conducted a study in 2001 and found that 29 percent of students are visual, 34 percent are auditory, and 37 percent are kinesthetic. Music, skits, and pictures help the majority of people learn more than with only lectures and power points. Even if a child learns best with auditory and PowerPoint presentations, they may still get bored.

Students also often

working with others for their projects. “I like working with other people because then you get to get a feel of all the ideas. You can pick the best one and have a great project,” says freshman Zoey Nichols. Fricke agrees, saying, “I like collaborating with other students because they might know something that I don’t.”

Even if students pick their own groups, it still helps them because, “You can get more opinions and if you don’t understand something, then maybe someone else can help you out,” says Parker.

Students’ abilities to learn also depend on the teacher’s attitude. Sophomore Tyler Solomon says “My favorite class is CIS [Computer Information

Systems], because Mr. proctor gives us all our work for the week then we choose what pace we want to go.”

Cutsinger says, “IT Graphic Design is my favorite class, because the teacher is really chill, and the projects are really fun. I have Mrs. Graham. Mrs. Graham’s my favorite [teacher].”

Semmingly. if students have fun teachers, they will enjoy the class more and want to do better. Nichols states, “I like World History because it’s a lot of fun, and Mr. Fair is really nice, and he gives good lectures. I’m doing better in that class this year.”

Most agree that students learn different ways, and that is something teachers should keep in mind as they plan their lessons.

Photo by Kirsten DeZeeuw


Danielle Boufford, Ethan Beach, Ms. Kloepfer, and Neil Doshi laugh over a “blonde moment” in sociology class.



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Senioritis

Seniors struggle to survive the year

By Zach Plaster

Senioritis [seen-yer-itis] (n): a progressive

illness that affects thousands of high school

seniors worldwide.

If you or anyone you know is suffering from senioritis, call a doctor. Actually, do not call a doctor. They have real problems to worry about.

Senior year. The

conclusion of a state- provided education. The culmination of over a decade of studying. Senior year is a turn of the page, a doorway to a new beginning. The only problem is the crippling disease known to students and doctors as senioritis .

From the Latin “sen-,” and the Greek “-itis,” the term “senioritis” most literally translates to “swelling of the senior.” While images of inflated high schoolers going about their daily business might seem funny, the disease is certainly no laughing matter. Though no

correlation between severe inflammation and senioritis has been found to date, there is still an extensive list of symptoms, ranging from mild to severe. Signs of senioritis include, but are not limited to:

-Lack of motivation -Disinterest in classes -Extreme aversion to homework -Chronic daydreaming -Failure to hear alarms -Varying degrees of immobility

-A general disinterest in anything related to high school.

As the list above suggests, senioritis is no joke, and must be taken seriously. Senior Maggie Gough is one of many Battlefield students suffering from severe Type B senioritis. “I have asked to skip school every day this week”, she said in a strained voice. “Ever since I got accepted into college, it’s hard to even think about doing schoolwork.” Based on her appearance and general demeanor, it is surprising that senioritis has not had an even worse effect on her.

There are no known cures to this devastating illness, despite the efforts of top physicians. Senioritis can strike anyone at any time, and the best way to combat it is to be prepared. It can be

hard to ignore the symptoms, but it is important to try to fight through it. Senior year can be difficult, even painful, but succumbing to senioritis will not make it any easier, and it could end up causing problems later on.

To anyone battling senioritis, know that you are not alone. Reach out to your friends and family for advice. They care about you. I care about you. Do not let this debilitating disease win.


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