CIVIL WAR DAY BRINGS THE PAST TO LIFE…Page 9

SALK VACCINE JSMS Band & Chorus Bring

Home the Wins! By Dominic Tenebruso

SPRING 2016 T h e O f f i c i a l N e w s p a p e r o f J o n a s S a l k M i d d l e S c h o o l

- Salk Track – pg. 2 - Summer Studies – pg. 3 - STARS trip pics – pg. 3 - Boys Basketball - pg. 3 - ZOOTOPIA – pg. 5 - Graduation Awards – pg. 6 - Lacrosse – pg. 7 - Sound Off! – pg. 8

In this Issue:

Salk Students stand in front of the White House on the STARS trip last May with a photo-bomb by a Secret Service dog!

On May 21st, the Jonas Salk Middle School's Select Chorus, Jazz Band, Marching Band, and Wind Ensemble competed in the annual "Music in the Parks" competition at Dorney Park. After weeks of practicing and preparation for the competition, both the band and chorus were determined to come home with a trophy. The day started with the bands performing their pieces of music as judges listened to, scrutinized and scored each piece. Each musical group performed two pieces and one warm-up, with the exception of the marching band, which had the added challenge of marching through an obstacle course. Once the performances were complete, the chorus and band traveled waited for the results at Dorney Park. There, they happily distracted themselves from the results of the competition with some amusement park fun and excitement. Then, around 5 o'clock, it was time to see if all of the hard work paid off. The awards (continued pg. 4...)

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Salk Track By Palak Gulati

Salk Vaccine Staff

Mr. Mazzella – Editor in Chief Daria  Akselrod  Adam  Belkacemi  Jamie  Costeira  Palak  Gulati  Arya  Goyal  

Joey  Grotkopf  Kelly  Higgins  

Pragathi  Kallampunathil  Emily  Medina  Stuti  Mohan  Youshaw  Rizvi  

Lauren  Rosenberg  Amanda  Rosenblatt  David  Sherman  Justin  Sherman  

Dominic  Tenebruso  Rocco  Tropea  

Brandford  Wallace  Alisha  Wasim

STU

DENT OF THE

YEAR

Track is a sport that is enjoyed by many at Salk full of diverse events and hardworking athletes. Track and Field includes running, throwing, and jumping. Further, those events include the hurdles, long distance, short distance, shot put, discus, long jump, and high jump. Relay is also one of the events that are taken part in at the meets. Many of the students try to focus on one part of track like throwing or running. The sport is coached by Mr. Wheeler and Mr. Quinn. When looking for new athletes, they try to look for those who are driven to succeed and who showed genuine excitement for the sport. Mr. Wheeler has coached the track team for about 16 years now and is happy to see improvements over the year. The top 22 athletes are chosen to be on the A team, which are which demands certain qualities in its runners. “Hard work, dedication, and skill,” is what the coaches look for in an A team member, according to Wheeler. Qualities the team has shown all of those qualities over the course of the year. The B-team is made up of dedicated athletes striving to improve. This team is made up mostly of the 6th graders. Since the 6th graders are improving the coaches want to see them become more skilled over the years, so they can be chosen to be on the A team. The difference between the A team and B team is that the A team get to go to all the meets and the B team can go to only the home meets. The boys’ track team has done very well over the year by being undefeated. They are going to the Greater Middlesex County (GMC) meet on May 24th, which is what they work hard for. The GMC’s is the largest and most challenging meet of the season. The team has done very well and will continue to improve each and every year.

CONGRATS STUTI MOHAN!!!!

ALLAIRE VI LLAGE

2 TIME WINNER

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WOOHOO! School is almost over and everyone is getting ready for summer vacation. You won’t have to worry about homework, projects, or schoolwork for a while. Still, we all know a new school year starts every September. Between then and now you will have to keep your skills sharp. Therefore you have to maintain them during the summer. It’s not as hard as it seems when you follow these brilliant tips. To begin with, reading is essential to maintaining grades, says Mrs. Rose, the sixth grade guidance counselor, who is very enthusiastic about reading. “Create a reading challenge for yourself. Try to read for about half an hour or maybe start a book club with friends,” she suggests. Rose also suggested creating a checklist that includes the places and people you would want to read with for the reading challenge. For example, your list might include Read under a tree with a sibling, or Read with a grandparent or in a car. Mrs. Lasky agreed. “Pick up a book and read,” she said. “Every time you read it increases your vocabulary.” And if you are wondering if Old Bridge offers reading anything special, you need not look far, according to Mrs. Hopf “The Old Bridge Public Library has great opportunities [for readers],” she said. And don’t be afraid to read something below a certain grade level. It won’t hurt! In addition to reading, there are other things to think about this summer. For instance, it would be a good idea to look over your previous work. (continued on page 4...)

SUMMER STUDY By

Alisha Wasim & Saria Akselrod

STARS TRIP 2016 WASHINGTON, D.C. &

BALTIMORE, MD

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Mrs. Orecchio, teacher of 6-3 Science, thinks it’s a good idea for students to, “keep [their] science books for some of the 8th grade Science NJ ASK, along with their current notes and vocabulary.” Mrs. Lasky agreed.

“Keep your study guides! When I first became a teacher, I looked at my middle school notes,” she said. Still, she added that you should still discard the work you feel will not be useful in the future. You should also keep the things you worked really hard on and are happy with. They will create good memories and will influence you to do even better work next year. If you prefer doing online study, a few teachers recommended some amazing websites. “Some good websites you can go to include Study Island, GrammarOpolis, NeoK12, Story Jumper, and Freerice.com,” said Hopf. Hopf’s examples are for all grades, not only for the sixth graders she teaches. They offer ways to keep your skills sharp. For instance, FreeRice is a website that incorporates reading skills and for every question you get right, 12 grams of rice is donated to the needy. Also, Study Island is great for math and ELA skills. There are many topics that can be practiced to help you succeed in the school years ahead. Another tip many teachers recommend is to use your skills of organization. “Maintain all academic areas by staying organized,” said Mrs. Samson. (continued on page 7…)

Study cont…

Illustration by Brett Allen 8-1-D

(…band/chorus continued) ceremony was about to begin. Confidence rang high as the results came it. Salk did it. The band and chorus won in every single category. The Jazz Band won 1st place with an "excellent" rating. The Marching Band came in first place with a "superior" rating, breaking their previous record in 2013. The chorus also placed first with an "excellent" rating and the Wind Ensemble placed 2nd with an "excellent" rating. Both the band and chorus worked very hard for this competition and together brought home four trophies. It would be a complete understatement to say that they performed great in this competition. They performed amazing and definitely earned all of the rewards that they were awarded. Correction: In the Winter issue, writer Dominic Tenebruso should have been listed as a co-writer for the article “Band’s Winter Concert a Holiday Blast!”

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We often see movies that are so focused on action or drama that they forget to give us something more. This “something more” could be a quick joke here and there, character development, or even a life message. Zootopia is a movie that doesn’t forget about what the audience deserves. It is a charming and unique family film that has an interesting story, funny jokes, a good message, and so much more! It has the perfect balance of all the important components of a good film, making it an unforgettable one that I’m sure you’ll enjoy! The story takes place in a world of human-like mammals and is focused on a rabbit named Judy Hopps who, after growing up on a farm for some time, is motivated to become a police officer in the city of Zootopia. This, however, is no easy goal. A rabbit cop is something completely unheard of. Bigger predators, such as elephants and rhinos, are the animals normally considered for that field, but Judy does not stay discouraged. Through training and dedication, she succeeds in her goal, but she is still treated like she doesn’t fit in and is stuck with the lowly job of parking duty. Things seem bad for Judy, but then she stumbles upon a case where it appears that certain animals have disappeared. Despite discouragement from others, Judy decides to investigate along with the help of her new acquaintance Nick Wilde, a scheming fox with a depressing past of mistreatment and bullying. They come across many characters along the way, such as Mr. Big, a mole who is a well-known mobster (and really isn’t so “big” after all), and Flash, a sloth working at the DMV. Eventually, they discover that the missing animals (who are predators) are being turned into beasts by a group of prey that want to turn the tables on predators and rise to power. With quick wits and plenty of

courage, Judy and Nick are able to beat the bad guys and restore peace. Overall, I found this movie very enjoyable. The story was simple, yet very enticing at the same time. In addition, the characters went through many changes and became fully developed, making the film very dramatic at certain points. There were also enough jokes to keep the film fun and family-friendly, but the one thing I loved most of all was the film’s message. In a world where animals big and small must live with each other, there will inevitably be hardships for certain animals. Both Judy and Nick experience this, and, in the end, the film shows us that it is always important to strive to do what you want to do and be who you want to be no matter what is considered to be “normal” or what other people think. This is a very important message to teach both kids and adults alike, especially in this day and age. I feel that Zootopia was able to get this message across while also keeping itself amusing and fun. To conclude, I give Zootopia a 9.5/10 for its colorful atmosphere, interesting plot, memorable characters, and message that we can all learn from. [Zootopia is now available on DVD, Blu-Ray, Streaming, etc.]

ALL PHOTOS ARE THE PROPERTY OF WALT DISNEY ANIMATION STUDIOS

ZOOTOPIA MOVIE REVIEW

By

Rocco

Tropea

WARNING: SPOILERS

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6th & 7th GRADERS: LIKE TO WRITE? LIKE TO REPORT

NEWS & EVENTS? JOIN THE SALK VACCINE TEAM

NEXT YEAR!

CLASS OF 2016 GRADUATION AWARDS

ART CORNER

(STUDY, continued…) “Maintain all academic areas by staying organized,” said Mrs. Samson. Organization unlocks the door to success! When you stay organized it is much easier to find your work. Make sure you put your work in a safe place where it can be found. Teachers also offered some personal advice. “Be a good person and respect your teachers,” said Mrs. Lasky. “Follow the golden rule,” Mrs. Samson said. “Find yourself and keep true to yourself.” The general message is to never give up and have faith in your ability to accomplish anything you put your mind to. Follow your inspirations. Have fun this summer, but also find time to mix in some studying. The tips above help ensure a successful start to the school year in September. Always be a good person and strive to reach your full potential. Always try your best on tests and quizzes. Remember you have to EARN good grades, not just “get” them. As Nelson Mandela once said, “Education is the most powerful weapon for changing the world.”

Nirali Parikh 7-1-B Roxanne Pascual 6-3-C

According to lacrosse coach Mr. Phillips, “Lacrosse is a melting pot of sports and there’s a lot that goes into it. It’s a little bit of hockey, a little bit of basketball, and a little bit of football.” Lacrosse is a contact sport that is played with two teams and is often thought of as a rough sport. Even so, it is enjoyed many and by both boys and girls. Mr. Phillips, who has been coaching the sport for over five years, believes that this year’s boys’ lacrosse team is doing very well. They have been undefeated the entire year and have improved very much since the beginning of the year. The hard work and determination the team has put in has been paying off for the team. Mr. Phillips has been there every year since the program started four years ago. Things have improved year by year. “Every year we have gotten better,” he said. Phillips would know. He has been playing lacrosse for years. He first played competitively at Old Bridge High School. He has always held a passion for the sport. This year’s success on the field (continued on pg. 8...)

Lacrosse Brings Pride to Salk

by Palak Gulati

With Kelly Higgins

Danielle Walton 7-1-D

(Lacrosse, continued…) has left him satisfied. He is proud of the team and their efforts in each and every game. He believes it’s a fun sport to play and started playing lacrosse in Old Bridge High School. The boys chosen to represent the school on the field have carefully selected. This helped lead to their victories this year. Salk should be proud of the lacrosse team. Hopefully they will continue their success in high school and the years to come.

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Every June, the seventh graders at Salk get an opportunity to step back in time to learn about one of America’s most critical times – the Civil War. Students take the entire school day to chat with Abraham Lincoln, or dress like a civilian from the 1860s, or watch an actual civil war cannon being fired. Through this type of immersion in the curriculum, students learn first hand about the people, weapons, life, and culture of Americans of the Civil War era. While Civil War Day has been a staple of Salk’s history department for many years, it still takes an immense amount of work to make it happen each year. Seventh grade social studies teacher Mr. Garisson has spearheaded the event for six years. Planning for the event begins a full year before Civil War Day. It’s a process Garisson has worked into a science in his years at the helm. “Planning begins in September and escalates until June,” said Garisson. “On Civil War day this year, we already discussed ideas on how to improve certain parts for next year's event.” One of the pivotal first steps of making Civil War Day a reality is fundraising. Beginning in September, student volunteers sell Fruit Roll-Ups to the student body to generate funds for the event. This year, four of Salk’s strongest saleswomen pitched in. “We had four amazing students help out; Shelby Gray, Jennipher Diaz and Yasmeen Yunisi,” Garisson explained. “Our best fundraising assistant was Sarah Ramos who alone raised approximately

$1000. Thank you, Sarah!” All that fundraising is needed to pay for the numerous actors who visit the school to make the Civil War come to life. One of Garisson’s most important contacts is Mrs. Thime of the N.J. Civil War History Association. The NJCWHA leads events in schools, state parks, towns, carnivals, and fairs and participates in re-enactments in other states as well. The actors come from all over the mid-Atlantic and New England. Their hard work, authenticity and historical accuracy have gained them much fame. Richard Hill, who plays Ulysses S. Grant, and Robert Costello, known this year to the students as President Lincoln, are considered two of the best re-enactors in the state. There is a thrill is meeting them, in character. “It’s really exciting to meet and question [them]. All in the group really do their best to know all they possibly can about how life was some 150 years ago in our country,” said Garisson. (next page)

CIVIL WAR DAY BRINGS THE 1860s TO LIFE

By the Salk Vaccine Staff

Generating even more Civil War buzz is the Salk music department. Mr. Batch and the school band spend months rehearsing music written around the Battle of Gettysburg. Their performance leads off Civil War Day and sets the tone for what the students are about to experience.

Meanwhile, former Salk music teacher Mrs. Hilfman, reprised her role as the lead narrator in the theatrical performance of a Civil War Reader’s Theater with some of Salk’s most promising young actors. These students don’t have very much time to prepare for their roles, as they can only begin practicing once the school musical has concluded. This means many hours after school preparing for the 19th century performance for the seventh graders. While Mr. Garisson spends a

lot of time sorting out seventh grade schedules and moving teachers and rooms around, he can’t do it all alone. Helping out all day is an army of eighth grade volunteers, who keep the event moving and help run some of the many themed stations each class visits during the day. This is a highly sought-after job. Garisson reports that over 200 eighth graders

apply to be a Civil War Day helper, but only 35 or so actually get a spot. The climax of Civil War Day comes at the end of the day with a weapons and ammunition demonstration. Led by the 6th New York Independent Battery, students revel in the firing of several types of Civil War-era weapons. They all clasp their ears and watch in amazement as the day ends with the firing of a cannon that actually saw action in the Civil War. The H.N.H. & Company manufactured the cannon in 1863. The 1230-pound weapon actually has a dent caused in battle by a piece of Confederate artillery.

Civil War Day marks a high point of the school year for the 7th grade Social Studies department. Thanks to Mr. Garisson, Salk’s seventh grade students not only learn about the Civil War, they get to live it for a day. It certainly is a day most will remember for a long time to come.

HAVE A GREAT SUMMER!!!