Do students eat too much sugar?

Students ready to test

knowledge at Spelling Bee

By Madeline Turner Have you ever encountered the word

thaumaturge in a piece of writing, and wondered what it could possibly mean? What about cavalcade, stratagems, or semaphore?

After school on Friday, students will have the chance to spell these and others words correctly in a spelling bee courtesy of the GATE program.

Lydia Nebiolo, 8th grade, is one of the dozen or so contestants from Shaler. “I signed up because I have never been in a spelling bee and thought it was fun,” she said.

This sentiment seems to be nearly universal among the participants.

Mr. Schrom, the GATE teacher, is the pronouncer and organizer. He said he has seen his daughter participate in a spelling bee, and saw how much she and the other competitors enjoyed it.

“I think it's great for kids to go up in front of each other and learn to perform,” he said.

Continued on Page 2

The Official Student Newspaper of Shaler Area Middle School

Sams Salmon Winter 2017

SAMS students pack the snack line to pay $.50 for six grams of sugar.

By Caty Clark and Jocelyn Schwartz

A Salmon exclusive revealed that students are consuming too much sugar and junk food each week despite efforts from the cafeteria to serve healthier foods.

The average SAMS student consumes few servings of fruits and vegetables but multiple cookies, sodas and slices of pizza survey results said.

The Salmon surveyed 100 students to gather data on their daily eating habits at lunch. Results showed that the average student consumes three cookies and two cans of soda per week. Many also eat pizza once a week with cookies as a side.

But the school has certainly done its part to make its students healthier. Nutrition Inc. – the company hired to provide lunches to students district-wide - has a policy of adding no sugar to its foods. They also offer a daily salad bar as well as fresh fruits and servings of vegetables.

Whether students eat the healthy foods on their trays is another story.

A little over half of those surveyed said they believe they eat healthy lunches but 27% of students admit to eating unhealthy foods regularly. Results also showed that 16% of students say they “sometimes” eat healthy, meaning they prefer to ignore the fact that they aren’t eating nutritiously. Students also notice others’ poor eating habits because 66% said their peers abuse the unhealthy options. This is slightly below the 70% of people who admitted to eating poorly in a recent CNN article on eating habits.

More information on the nutrition

survey can be found on Page 2.

Students ready for Bee

From Page 1 Words on the list are from the Scripps National

Spelling Bee words for 6th, 7th, and 8th grades. The winner of the SAMS spelling bee will advance on

to the next round, held at Robert Morris University in March. The winner of this regional competition will then move on to the National finals in Washington DC.

The SAMS contestants have found the practice and lead-up to be enjoyable.

“I think kids enjoy it because even if middle schoolers act like they don't care about knowing things or being capable, I know they do,” Mr. Schrom said.

“I'm super excited! I can't wait to see who wins and how the whole thing runs since I've never actually been in a spelling bee,” contestant Sasha Dzurovchik said. “But I am extremely nervous. I'm afraid I'll mess up an extremely easy word and miss my chance at winning.”

Don't be nervous, Sasha. You'll do great! Good luck to all of our SAMS spellers, we hope you

spell catastrophic, phrenologists, and interminableness correctly. We're rooting for you!

Sams Salmon 2

Café taking healthy steps The café is encouraging students to

make healthy choices and are cooking food in a very healthy and sugar-conscious way. The ladies put a lot of effort into making food that tastes great while keeping it healthy. Did you know that there is no added sugar in the smoothies, the tomato sauce and many of the other foods? Positive changes like this make a difference in how much sugar students consume weekly.

We aren’t eating well Our survey told us that kids are

consuming way too much sugar and junk food. The average SAMS student has three cookies a week. If you eat Nestle Toll House cookies, that is 18 grams of sugar. Students also average two cans of soda a week, which amounts to 78 grams! Students also eat a meal of pizza AND cookies once a week for a combination of fat and sugar that broke the calculator. Our problems are not unique. CNN published a nationwide survey that concluded that kids need to cut down on sugar. They eat double the recommended sugar and drinking too much soda, juice and energy drinks per week. It may not sound as good, but water is the best option.

Eat this, not that

There are many easy substitutions you can make to be more sugar conscious. They may not taste AS great at first but soon your body will make the switch. Instead of candy bars try a granola bar with a yogurt drizzle to make the choice more filling. Instead of ice cream, try frozen or plain yogurt for a big sugar reduction. Instead of sugary cookies, try rice cakes and peanut butter. Making one or more healthy swaps a day can lead to a better and healthier future!

Eat this,

not that!

“Off ‘Script” by Saltworks portrays the dangers of drug addiction

More than 100 students, staff and community

members packed the High School Auditorium on Jan. 26 for Saltworks Theatre Company’s “Off ‘Script.”

Written by Tom Long, “Off ‘Script” told the terrifying stories of people who were addicted to and destroyed by drugs. The show was geared to raising awareness and did so through three terrifying tales.

The first person portrayed was Justin, a boy who felt alone and that a soccer field was his only home. To try and solve his loneliness problem, Justin took prescription drugs, became addicted and couldn't stop. When he tried to quit, he felt sick, so he kept taking them to feel normal.

Jessica was the next victim. She started to take pills after being dumped by her boyfriend and was hopeless. She quickly became addicted.

David was addicted and tried to sell drugs to other people, including Kyle, a boy who consumed a lot of the drugs the same night. He got sick, and his liver, heart, and brain started to fail before he died.

More people die in drug overdoses than in car accidents. Hopefully those who attended the performance will spread the word to help fight this terrible addiction.

-- By Jorja Kobert

Sams Salmon 3

Rubik’s cube craze spreads but few can actually solve them

There has been a Rubik's cube craze

going around SAMS. The Salmon investigated its origins and went in search of people who know how to solve the cube.

We found the exact origin of the craze is a mystery and while the puzzle has quickly become popular among students, few can actually solve them without help from YouTube or the use of a cheat app.

“There is a phone app that tells you which turns to make,” Tanner Lieb said. “I haven’t figured out how to solve it yet but it is much better to learn how to actually do it.”

“Last year my friend got one,” Noah Brown said. “Soon after that I learned how to solve it and a lot of my friends got one. Now everyone has them but not a lot know how to solve them."

YouTube has videos that teach algorithms on how to solve the puzzle, Noah said.

Callum Montgomery said he learned how to solve the cube with help from his friends and videos."My friends had them and I started using theirs. I came to a point where I wanted to get my own, so I did. Later I learned to solve it. You have to memorize everything,” he said.

Teachers acknowledge the cubes are intellectually challenging but they can also be a distraction.

“There is a tactile fixation that goes along with these cubes,” Mr. Baine said. “It causes them to focus less on school work and more on solving a meaningless puzzle.”

“They are a distraction when my students are trying to analyze a novel but they are cool and fun otherwise,” Mrs. Grimes said.

Newcomers to the cubes are finding out just how difficult they can be. “I’ve tried to solve one a lot of times,” Catherine Colarusso said. “I cannot memorize the patterns that are needed to figure it out.”

-- By Billy Raida

Rubik’s cubes were made by Erno Rubik in Budapest, Hungary during the 20th century. He was a professor for architecture but is mainly known for creating the cube. It took him a whole month to figure out how to solve it and didn’t even know there was a way to solve it. Today, certain people can solve a regular 3 X 3 in less than 10 seconds. Ashley Tegtmeier (left) tries to solve the cube in her English class. She said she solved the puzzle using help from YouTube.

Sams Salmon 4

Dear Fellow Students:

We can do better

By Cassidy Laffey

The district spent millions of dollars

getting us iPads and many of us simply are not holding up our end of the bargain.

The iPads should be an amazing addition to the school year. You should be able to easily access your work and quickly contact your teachers. No matter what the question is, we should be able to access information with a Google search and a few quick clicks.

As my English teacher Mr. Duermeyer says, we have “the world at our fingertips.”

But many of us are not using the iPads this way.

We can do better. Just one of us not having our iPad can

slow down an entire class. It happens often and it does slow down our teachers, who have to print copies and change plans.

Just think… you could earn a zero or not be able to join the fun game of Kahoot in your Ancient Empires class!

We can do better. Not having an iPad charged is equally

harmful. There are charging stations throughout the school and many of us carry our chargers. Dead batteries happen but they shouldn’t happen at SAMS. Not charging your device is as bad as not having it.

We can do better. We need to take better care of the things

we are given. That includes the iPads, which came with cases that protect them from falls and drops. Many of us are not using our cases and our iPads are breaking as a result. When we damage our iPads, we are disrespecting those who bought them for us. Worse yet, some of us are losing iPads for days or weeks on end.

The iPads are a privledge, not a right, and they were an expensive one.

Fellow students, we must do better.

Basketball teams continue to compete despite losses

The 7th and 8th grade basketball teams continue to

compete and improve despite tough schedules. Against powerhouse Mars on February 2nd, both teams came up short, but it was not for a lack of effort.

The Salmon was there to witness players from both teams working very hard on offense and defense.

With the Planets being undefeated for two years in a row, the 7th grade team was defeated, 50-24. Shooting guard Jordan Clark said he sees improvement in the 7th grade team.

“We are passing better than we did earlier in the year and we play better defense,” he said. “We work together.”

The 7th grade boys currently sit just below .500 at 6-8 and the 8th grade boys are 3-8.

The Salmon also enjoyed the SAMS cheerleading

performances. The squad practiced during the game and performed routines inside of the gym.

The SAMS teams always seem to have good team spirit because they have the cheer squads and the people in the bleachers to cheer them on.

After the halftime show, the cheerleaders came back out and cheered the teams on. The girls happily wore peppy smiles during a picture that was taken after their performance.

--Reporting & pictures by Sierrah Skryp

Science Bowl an awesome experience for SAMS students

By Teyah Wilson

This year’s Science Bowl was an awesome experience

for everyone who represented SAMS. It was held at the Carnegie Science Center and Sports Works on Jan. 24. Students competed in many different activities and challenges.

The first challenge – the Barge Building – forced participants to make a boat that could hold washers out of a square piece of tinfoil. If a boat could hold 150 washers, a team got the full 30 points for the challenge. Anything less would result in fewer points. A boat holding more than 150 washers earned five extra bonus points.

The second was called Calculation Station. Students spent time searching the second floor of the Science Center while looking for the answers to questions about robots.

They had to find the year a robot was made, or the name of a robot. Students had to add, subtract, multiply or divide. The most points you could get for this challenge was 18 points.

The third was called Calorie Count. It took place in Sports Works. Teams had to run around, looking for the answers to the questions about exercise and the human body. The maximum amount of points teams could get for this challenge was 28.

The final challenge was called Mystery Bags. There were ten different bags with a different number of items in them. You had to guess what the item was, and how many there were, just by feeling, smelling, and shaking. The most amount of points teams could get was somewhere between 20 and 30.

The first place team got 100 points, the second place team got 97 points, and the third place team got 93 points. The most number of points that a team from Shaler earned was 90. The girls on the team were Caty Clark, Sydney Lang, Sasha Dzurovchik, and Teyah Wilson.

“It was fun to go to the Science Center and to learn new things,” Caty said.

There were two other teams that went too. Ian Weber, another contestant, said, “I had a lot of

fun, and I enjoyed being out of school for the day.” The AIU Science Bowl was a wonderful experience for

everyone who went.

Sams Salmon 5

GATE hosting numerous events The GATE Program is off to a strong

start under the direction of Mr. Schrom. In addition to the Shakespearean

Monologue and the Battery Car Challenge, students are participating in the Wordsmith Competition, a Scrabble like competition, the KNEX Challenge, and the 2017 Pennsylvania State-Wide Middle/High School Mock Trial Competition.

The case, which was originally created in 2012, features the manager of a construction site in Philadelphia who has cut too many corners during construction.

That, combined with negligence of worksite safety and possible sabotage efforts from the squatters that lived in the trench that was the site of major urban renewal project, caused the massive on-site crane, Fightin’ Phil, to topple over due to an overweight roof panel getting caught in gale force winds left over from Hurricane Isaac.

The falling crane killed one of the squatters in the trench and a federal construction official. Tatum Zillias, the project owner, was charged with two counts of murder in the third degree.

The seventh grade and eighth grade GATE students will debate his fate during trials consisting of prosecutors, defense attorneys and witnesses.

The jury will be made up of Law School students from schools all over Pittsburgh.

Is Tatum free of blame? Or was he guilty from the very start?

There is no right or wrong outcome to the trial, so only time will tell.

The case was designed and written by Jonathan A. Grode and Paul W. Kaufman. The pair also co-wrote the 2011 and 2012 mock trial problems.

--By Aidan Brophy

Sams Salmon 6

Through the Halls…

You probably have noticed, many students have been leaving their locks unlocked and lockers open in an attempt to save time between classes. A quick walk up the 7-White hallway revealed 60 lockless lockers. Some of these may be unassigned but many of them have items inside. You may not know this, but personal items could be damaged or stolen due to laziness. On top of that, some students play pranks by locking the lockers with a backwards lock. The next time you leave your locker, leave it locked!

Have you heard about the “Shakespeare” project the GATE Program recently completed? Well, students in the program participated in a contest where they reenacted scenes of one of Shakespeare’s monologues. The program was a success. “It’s a really cool experience because you get to learn more about Shakespeare’s work and literature,” Maggie Rea said. The students performed for the Public Theatre Group on February 6.

--- By Julia Ehrenberger

Aidan Brophy, Emma Burkard, Caty Clark, Krista Croft, Isabel Dean, Julia Ehrenberger, Dylan Henne, Kaden Kelly, Jorja Kobert, Cassidy Laffey, Gianna Law, Braiden Madine, Taylor, Martino, Callum Montgomery, Madison Ordean, Billy Raida, Maeve Snyder, Sierrah Skryp , Jocelyn Schwartz, Ashley Tegtmeier, Madeline Turner, Teyah Wilson Staff Advisor: Brian J. Duermeyer

2016-2017 Sams Salmon Staff

The SAMS Salmon is written and edited by middle school journalists. The viewpoints and opinions reflected in this publication may not reflect those of the Mt. Royal Middle School or Shaler Area School District.

Need locker help? Try these tips!

Having an organized and clean locker may seem like an impossible task but it does not have to be. Try these tips to create one of the coolest lockers in the school:

1. The most important step to cleaning a locker is to take all of your old papers out. Take them home (if they are good) or throw them away (if they are not). Do this and you are one step closer to having the locker of your dreams.

2. Organize your books, binders and folders neatly at the

bottom. If you put them in the order of the classes you have, you will save time and be able to “chit-chat” more when everyone else is scrambling to avoid being late.

3. Be proud when you can hang your book bag up on the

hook. Some students smash the bag into the bottom but this just complicates things. Keep your bag handy in case you need to bail in a hurry.

4. Certain accessories will make your locker sweet such as

stickers, a white board, a magnetic mirror, a mini makeup bag and a little organizer for your lotions and perfumes. Some people buy a portable phone charger, which always comes in handy when your phone is more tired than you.

5. If you have shoes, you can put them at the top of your

locker or in a gym bag that can also be hooked. Please do not store sweaty clothes in your locker or you may find it difficult to make and keep friends.

6. You can also insert a picture of your crush behind your

book bag so when you are feeling down and out you can open up your locker and see a beautiful face. It helps cheer you up when your science teacher gives too much homework.

7. Magnetic decorations will fit nicely on the inside of

your locker but be careful that no one steals them. Try bottle cap magnets for the papers or pictures you want to display.

8. You can also get a magnetic holder to hang up and hold

all of your pens, pencils and erasers. A calendar might help you count the days until spring or a picture of your arch nemesis can remind you how lucky you are to be you.

---By Madison Ordean & Ashley Tegtmeier

9.

Sams Salmon 7

Band Review: My Chemical Romance

By Taylor Martino and Emma Burkard My Chemical Romance was an emo, pop punk and hard rock

band with four very different guys. Gerard, Frank, Mikey and Ray each had a unique personality

and titles based on their appearances and actions. Gerard was “Sassy diva” because of his crazy dances and sassy poses and Mikey was “a unicorn believer” because of his crazy imagination and whimsical beliefs. The band (2001-2013) was named by Mikey Way, the bassist.

The Bullets Era started in 2001 and featured the album: “I Brought You My Bullets, You Brought Me Your Love.” The first song was “Skylines and Turnstiles” and “Our Lady of Sorrows” and “Cubicles” were also recorded. The band eventually met Frank, who happily became their guitarist.

The Revenge Era ran from 2003-2006 and produced the band’s most popular album: “Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge” in 2004. It featured “I’m Not Okay,” “I Promise” “Helena” and “The Ghost Of You.” In 2005, MCR opened for Green Day and also went on the Warped Tour with Fall Out Boy. They later collaborated with The Used for a cover of Queen and also a David Bowie classic.

The Black Parade Era ran from 2006-2008 and brought the album: “The Black Parade.” Soon “Welcome to The Black Parade” reached No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart.

The Killjoy Era ran from 2009-2011 when the band released “Danger Days: The True Lives Of The Fabulous Killjoys.” The album started with a cover of “Desolation Row” by Bob Dylan and it was featured in Watchmen. In the beginning of this era, Bob Bryar left the band for reasons that were never explained. A trailer video was uploaded to the official My Chemical Romance YouTube page called “Art Is A Weapon” which featured the song “Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na).” There was also a comic book to go with this album.

The Weapons Era ran from 2011-2013 and featured “Conventional Weapons.” This was noted one of the saddest eras due to the fact that this was the era where MCR parted ways.

After everybody was mostly over the band break-up, there was a post on the @MCROffical twitter page. It was a video of that had the date “9/23/16” everybody believed this meant the date of a tour and get-together, but it turned out to just be the 10th anniversary.

A note from the writers: Music doesn't decide who you are

and neither does anyone else, ever. That doesn't mean we can't influence you to listen to some different music.

The lead singer is Gerard Arthur Way Lee, who was born in 1977. Gerard has a wife, Lynz Way, and a daughter, Bandit Lee Way.

Mikey Way is Gerard Way’s brother and the bassist. He has a kid on the way and is 36 years old. He was born in 1980. His current wife is Kristin Colby Way. They have a child on the way.

The main guitarist and sometimes pianist is Ray Toro who was born on July 15, 1977 who is currently 39 years old. Ray Toro’s wife is Christa Toro and the couple has a son.

The second guitarist is Frank Iero. He is currently 35 years old. He has a wife named Jamia Iero, and three children.

Super Sam! By Gianna Law

The town of Badzville had only two cops so people committed many crimes. Luckily for the town, a super hero named Super Sam helped fight the bad guys!

Super Sam had many powers: She had super speed, super strength, could breathe underwater and fly like a sparrow. Her uniform consisted of blue leggings, a blue tee-shirt with a golden “S” in the middle and a green cape with another and much bigger “S.”

Super Sam was eating one day when she got a major crime alert. It was really bad. The Evil Dr. Kelbell was activating the town’s volcano and trying to destroy Badzville.

Super Sam quickly flew her way over to the volcano but the Evil Dr. Kelbell was nowhere to be found.

Was it a false alarm? Was it a trap? Was the Evil Dr. Kelbell invisible? Super Sam thought.

Super Sam looked for her but saw and noticed nothing so she flew back to her base where she found a note on her T.V. that read:

I caught Dr. Kelbell. No thanks needed. I know I'm awesome.

- Super Scott.

“SUPER SCOTT?!?” Super Sam shouted angrily. Super Scott was Super Sam’s rival. They had originally been sidekicks, but Super Sam had become cocky and fled to Goodsville. Just when Super Sam was starting to calm down, there was a loud KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK at the door. Before she could answer it, Super Scott came storming in. “Hello, hello!” Super Scott said. “I solved all the problems in Goodsville and am back to help you again!” Super Sam was not amused. She didn’t need help from a traitor. “GO AWAY LIKE YOU DID BEFORE YOU…YOU…” she yelled. “Can't think of a good nickname, huh, sweetheart?” Super Scott said smartly. “Why are you even here?” Super Sam asked. “To dump you off in Goodsville!” Super Scott snapped back. Before Super Sam could figure out what he said, she was back in Goodsville staring at The Evil Dr. Kelbell. “What are you doing here?” Super Sam asked. “Super Scott handcuffed me and stuck me here. Honestly, I like our fights better!” Dr. Kelbell replied. She had to figure out what was going on and left the handcuffed Evil Dr. Kelbell before flying away. To Be Continued in Issue No. 2.

Short story 8

Nation’s Vets recall service time

By Teyah Wilson

Veterans’ Day is important because we celebrate and honor our retired soldiers that fought for our country.

That’s why SAMS set aside the morning of November 9 to honor our veterans with a breakfast and musical assembly. They chose to fight for our country and without them our country may not be what it is today.

One gentleman named Roy Kennedy fought in the Korean War from 1953-1955. He said that it was actually called the Korean Conflict. He lost his hearing because they didn’t have hearing protection from all of the gun fire. When asked what it meant to serve, he said, “It meant protecting the United States.”

Another veteran named Gill Huckstein fought in World War II. He is ninety years old and was an infantryman in the 222 division. When he was asked if he could serve again, would he, Veteran Gill said, “definitely!” His division freed a concentration camp, and he was fortunate enough to come home without any injuries.

Many of the veterans will tell you that they are not the heroes. “The real heroes are the ones who did not come back,” Veteran Gill said.

The jazz band played a collection of military songs, while the eighth grade vocal ensemble sang. All of the veterans had the opportunity to stand when they heard their branch’s song. Eight Marines, 33 members of the Army, three Navy personnel, and eight Air Force Veterans stood to thundering applause.

All I can say is that the Veterans Day breakfast and assembly was a success. Thank you to all of our veterans and active soldiers for fighting for our country.

From the fall 9 Girls capture

legendary season

The SAMS girls’ soccer team had a fantastic season that ended with a 12-1-1 record. The coaches pushed their players to the limits throughout the season and much of the credit should be given to Coach Rob Yarnot and Bill Ament for their hard work and leadership.

What was a challenging schedule ended up being legendary season as the team finished with a great record.

The team’s only loss came to Hampton in the first game but the girls turned it around from there. When the teams played again, the girls found revenge in a key victory.

“You have to be happy when you can string together that many wins in a row,” Coach Ament said. “In addition to that, each kid improved throughout the year so they can hopefully contribute to the big program at the high school.”

The season featured some adversity as the original goalie got injured in practiced and was unable to play for the rest of the season. The backup goalie was also injured when she got kicked in the head against Deer Lakes. It was not until the team found a third net minder that its injury problems subsided.

“The season was definitely a success in many ways,” Coach Yarnott said. “Obviously the season record was more than any of us would have expected, so I am extremely pleased with those results. I was also tremendously proud of how each of the ladies stepped up and sacrificed for the team by playing new positions and playing through injuries.”

Author visits to discuss novels, writing On November 18, Author Joshua David Bellin visited SAMS to talk about his book Survival Colony 9 and its sequel, Scavenger of Souls. He talked to students about the process of publishing his book and answered questions about writing, publishing and the novels.

Bellin said that he relates most to Querry, the main character of both books, who is on the run with a group of survivors in a post-apocalyptic world.

The author gave a T-shirt to the student who asked the best question. It was a pretty interesting visit especially for the kids who have read Survival Colony 9, but also for everyone because it was neat to have a real author speaking to us. – By Kiera Harger

--By Caty Clark &

Jocelyn Schwartz