Return to
Print version(1.1 MB)
Sherlock search
| News November 2002, Volume 6, No. 3 |
|
|
Questions? Comments?
Tell us what you think!
|
By Jackie S.
Entertainment editor
 |
|
| Eighth grader, Kelly Barclay serves Japanese food to Itasca seniors during the annual luncheon on October 18, 2002. (Photo by Trisha H.) | |
The seniors enjoyed the food and performances. Many of them look forward to it and hope to come back again next year.
This year, the theme for the luncheon was East Asian. Seniors were entertained with martial arts, a Japanese Tea Ceremony and Asian music. They also learned to say "Hello" in Japanese.
Some seniors said that they have been attending the annual luncheon at Peacock since they began more than eighteen years ago. For others, this was only their first visit.
The seniors absolutely loved the service. They were very happy because their waiters always had smiles on their faces.
Dr. Cull, the district superintendent, was also very pleased with the food, but regrets eating too much. This was only his second year at a luncheon.
Dr. Cull liked the Tea Ceremony because it was relaxing and calm. He loved the artwork too, it reminded him of his visit to Japan.
He likes having the luncheon every year, because he feels it gives back to the community. The community supports the school so he believes we should keep having the luncheons.
Dr. Nickisch thought the food was outstanding and the service was great. He also said the artwork was "phenomenal."
His favorite dish was the party favors, which are called "pocky." His waitress was wonderful and fun.
 |
|
| Eighth graders Kaitlyn L. and Susie S. perform a Japanese tea ceremony before lunch was served. (Photo by Mark G.) | |
"The luncheon is held every year to bring people back to school," he said. He has been attending the luncheon for fifteen years.
Dr. Nickisch loved the theme for this year. He thinks the students had fun in the process of making it happen.
Dr. Medwick, principal of Franzen School, thought the luncheon was wonderful. She especially enjoyed the chicken.
The Tea Ceremony and Martial Arts Exhibition was outstanding and she loved the costumes. It was an extremely positive experience according to Dr. Medwick.
The students behind the luncheon were the following eighth graders: Lara C., Kaitlyn L., Andrew K., Briana L., Dee Dee C., Kenny T., Annie M., Rachel R., Hannah O., Marina L., Kyle P., Dave K., Danny R., Joe F., Paul P., Jenny O., Cathy C., Nikki H., Mike N., Keith M., Kelly B., Tori C., Radvile R., Skyler M., Susie S., Ashley Z., Gordie H., Marcel M., Shannon P., Ana N., Shannon T., Eriko Saito, and Jackie S.
Email The Charger about this story.
Adult view of bad bus behavior
Students acting stupidly endanger all
By Amy E.
Over the past month or so, there have been several behavioral problems on two busses. Peacock's principal Dr. Nickisch took serious actions to deal with these incidents.
On Bus 1, two students threw banana peels out the window. The banana peels landed on another driver's windshield. The bus driver, Mr. Young, said that this had never happened before.
|
The banana peels landed on another driver’s windshield. |
Mr. Marceau, the driver on Bus 5, said that the problem was yelling. Students made inappropriate jokes. Some students were walking around the bus and even jumping over seats.
According to Dr. Nickisch, the students' behavior was wrong and punishable because it put not only the students but the driver and cars around the bus in danger.
Dr. Nickisch said that the first thing he did to deal with the bad bus behavior was to assign seats.
He also gave a few detentions. At least five students received one day bus suspensions.
The next step, explained Dr. Nickisch, would be a five day bus suspension. He added that if the problems continued, the maximum of a ten day suspension would be used and then expulsion from the bus for the remainder of the year.
|
At least five students received one day bus suspensions. |
Mr. Young commented that Dr. Nickisch's way of solving the problem had helped. He said that he didn't think anyone got away without being punished.
If this ever happened again, Mr. Young added, he would have the principal do the same things he had done this time.
Mr. Marceau said that Dr. Nickisch's way of dealing with the incidents did the trick. He added that he hoped that this would never happen again on any bus.
Dr. Nickisch and the bus drivers commented that the bus problems were caused by students being stupid.
Email The Charger about this story.
Leaves falling, wind blowing
St. Luke's sponsors Fall Festival
By Carmen Z.
 |
|
| St. Luke’s teacher, Mrs. Peters, poses with students Alexis B. and Ryan R. at the Fall Festival. | |
The first of its kind, the Fall Festival was held on Saturday October 26, 2002, in the school gym at 410 S. Rush Street in Itasca.
Mrs. Karen Peters and her second grade class hosted the festival. Mrs. Mary Schmidt and Mrs. Lisa Krumwiede coordinated the event.
Mrs. Schmidt wanted to create a fun fair, such as those she remembered attending when she was a child.
There were many activities such as a fishing game, ring toss, miniature golf, bean bag toss, a singing jail and a rock climbing wall, just to name a few. There was also a cakewalk, which was a big hit.
Refreshments were available at a reasonable price.
With the help of many volunteers and donations from the community, Mrs. Schmidt felt the Fall Festival was a huge success.
Miss Hoffman, the preschool teacher said the festival was well organized, with lots of entertaining games for the children and great food.
Miss Hoffman enjoyed the cakewalk the best, it's like playing musical chairs and if you won you got to choose any cake you want.
St. Luke students Ryan and Rhett Raphus said they had fun and it was cool.
Peacock student, Amanda M., sixth grade, had fun running the fishing game booth and helping with the cakewalk. Her favorite event was the rock climbing wall and when she won a goldfish.
Mrs. Cathy Zaccaria, preschool teacher, enjoyed running the singing jail. She said it was fun to watch the children put their parents in jail. The parents had to sing a song to get out.
When asked if the Fall Festival was a success, Mrs. Peters said, "Not only was it a financial success, but more importantly, we provided a community service. We were able to provide a Christian atmosphere along with loads of fun. I hope we reach more people in the years to come."
Email The Charger about this story.
Railroad bridge construction
Noise pollution fills town center
By Kevin T.
The railroad bridge for the Metra railroad tracks northeast of the intersection of Walnut and Irving Park Road has been under construction this fall.
The noisy work has been a disruption to the residents and shopkeepers near by, such as 7-11, A Class Act beauty and hair salon shop and several others.
The construction is scheduled for sixteen weekends. The owner of A Class Act said, "The noise wasn't that bad, except when we opened the door."
All of the business owners spoken to were looking forward to the work being finished.
Email The Charger about this story.
Council reps attend CC conference
Eighth graders learn how to be better people
By Kaitlyn L.
Ten eighth grade Student Council representatives recently joined students from many other local schools to discuss how to do the right thing and to make good decisions.
They were part of a Character Counts conference, held at the College of DuPage in Wheaton on October 15, 2002.
The discussion centered around the six the Character Counts pillars: Trustworthiness, Respect, Responsibility, Fairness, Caring, and Citizenship.
After arriving, the representatives attended a huge assembly lead by "Dr. Mike." He spoke to them about issues such as how to get along with their parents.
After the assembly, the students split up into smaller groups, where they discussed how to make good decisions.
In many classrooms, there were games that were played or group discussions where students could meet new people.
After hearing many different groups speak, all of the schools came back together.
A group known as the Happiness Club sang and danced to different songs about Character Counts at the end of the day.
Nicole B. felt that the field trip was fun and so did many other students who attended.
Paige P. and most of the other students thought that it would have been a better trip if they hadn't been forced to wear T-shirts that were given to the attendees for the whole field trip.
All the Peacock students who attended said they trip had a good time learning about how to be better people.
The following students attended: Kaitlyn L. Mari D., Paige P., Rachel R., Brendan T., Steve G. Michelle M., Nikki B., Nicole D. Agnes Z.
Email The Charger about this story.
Will Saddam Hussein keep his word?
Or will war loom again?
By Steve G.
Citizens in the United States breathed a sigh of relief when Saddam Hussein said that he would allow United Nations weapons inspectors back in the country.
|
Afghanistan still needs help from America and should not be forgotten while it tries to heal its wounds. |
In his own country, Hussein has slaughtered thousands of Kurds, an ethnic group that lives in Northern Iraq. He has lied to, murdered, oppressed, and stolen from citizens of Iraq and the world.
We have issued a series of demands to him, including unrestricted access to all parts of Iraq to inspect for weapons.
In the war against Iran, and the attacks on the Kurds, Hussein has used biological weapons. Biological weapons use germs to destroy people, food, and animals.
Humans have used various kinds of biological weapons for centuries. They spread diseases, are cheap, and are very hard to control and detect.
|
Humans have used various kinds of biological weapons for centuries. They spread diseases, are cheap, and are very hard to control and detect. |
Weapons inspectors were driven from Iraq in 1996, and the United States does not know what kind of horrible weapons Hussein may have created while no one was watching.
One of the reasons the U.S. is so intent on ousting Saddam Hussein is that he might give these weapons to the Al Qaida network or other terrorist groups.
But why do we care so much? Iraq doesn't have the capabilities to shoot a missile around the world to the U.S. Yet.
Hussein could still fire one into parts of Europe and Asia, if what some analysts say is true. This could kill millions of people, and maybe start a nuclear world war.
Hussein temporarily avoided war with America when he submitted and re-allowed weapons inspectors to be in Iraq. The Russian foreign minister, Igor Ivanov said that the UN successfully avoided war with Iraq.
Many officials from countries such as Kuwait do not think that it is enough. After all, Hussein has broken a number of treaties over the years, and should not be trusted. After the Persian Gulf War we thought that Hussein was no longer a threat, but we were wrong.
|
Hussein temporarily avoided war with America when he submitted and re-allowed weapons inspectors to be in Iraq. |
Now though, the public is even less sure about what will happen. If we accept another treaty, it will probably be like putting a Band-Aid on the problem.
The military is ready to invade Iraq, but they may not have the chance.
Meanwhile, the CIA is searching for Al Qaida agents in Yemen and the surrounding areas. Yemen is Osama bin Laden's ancestral home.
It is believed that Al Qaida has mostly broken down, but there are still a few groups of renegades roaming the Middle East.
Now the war on terrorism will be more of a covert war with CIA agents and the Delta Force (the US Army's special anti-terrorist unit) attacking terrorist groups all over the world.
Arrests of several suspected terrorists have taken place in Germany.
Unfortunately, there has also been increasing violence in Afghanistan. Remnants of the Taliban have had several shoot-outs with Afghan soldiers.
Afghanistan still needs help from America and should not be forgotten while it tries to heal its wounds. It has only received one third of the money pledged to it from various countries.
This worries people, because they are afraid that Afghanistan will once again become a haven for terrorists.
The new government is still struggling, and still needs foreign aid if Afghanistan will ever become a prosperous nation.
Irrigation systems need to be repaired, and roads need to be rebuilt. Reconstruction has done well, but there still is a lot of work to do.
I hope that I have explained the situation clearly so that people will understand what is happening in the Middle East right now. It is a complicated issue, and there are many sides to it.
Email The Charger about this story.
Band, chorus perform pops
By Amanda M.
On October 16, 2002, the Peacock chorus and concert band performed their Fall Pops Concert.
A few of the songs that the chorus sang, were Asian pieces, such as "The Four Seasons," which was made up of four Japanese haikus.
The concert band played a number of songs also. Two of them were "The National Anthem" and "Mambo Number 5."
A short music booster meeting also took place. The upcoming dance, the poinsettia sale and future concerts were all discussed
There was a bake sale going on too. They were selling all sorts of sweets, including brownies and cookies.
The chorus will perform their holiday concert on Wednesday, December 4, at 7 P.M. The band will hold their concert the following Sunday, December 8, at 3 P.M.
Email The Charger about this story.
New tech wiz at Peacock
By Steve G.
News Editor
Mr. Cousineau taught industrial technology at Peacock Middle School for more than five years. He left to teach high school in June. Mrs. Sislow has served as a long-term substitute.
Ms. Lea Smith has now been hired to take the job on full-time. She will begin teaching Monday, December 2, 2002.
When interviewed recently, Ms. Smith said, "I love the town of Itasca. I've lived here since 1995. As a child, I used to live in a remote town called Battle Creek, Connecticut. It was far from a city so Itasca is a great town."
Ms. Smith attended college in Kalamazoo, Michigan and received her masters degree from Roosevelt College in Chicago.
She has taught before, but only corporate business to adults. She has been in the printing business for twelve years.
Ms. Smith was interested in teaching at Peacock because she would be teaching kids not adults, and she loves teaching.
She hopes to bring many new things to industrial technology, including music and even nutrition.
Since her background is in printing, she wants to study color and printing.
Some special activities Ms. Smith plans for the class include bringing in people from different businesses and using different technology.
Ms. Smith has many different interests. She enjoys all sorts of music including world music from South Africa and the Middle East.
She plays the flute for the Arlington band and at the Methodist church. She enjoys biking, skiing, and even likes to write fiction.
Ms. Smith has two black cats. Her niece Jena, who attends the College of Du Page also lives with her.
Email The Charger about this story.