Issue #4
Teacher Spotlight - Mr. Smith-Horn (EXCEL)
Conducted by: Suhani Kapil
This week we interviewed Mr. Smith-Horn, who teaches the EXCEL gifted and talented program. Keep reading to see his interesting answers to our interview questions.
Who is someone that inspires you?
"There are a number of people who inspire me: In high school I had a History/Social Studies teacher, Mr. Ostrin who happened to live in my neighborhood. He was a really smart man, great teacher, good neighbor and his wife and two daughters were equally kind and friendly. He was a very humble man as well. I had Mr. Ostrin for a US History class when I learned he worked as a codebreaker alongside some of the Navajo Code Talkers. He was a pretty good role model and someone to admire."
If you could choose a brand new name for yourself, what would it be?
"I already changed my name from Smith [on my birth certificate] to Smith-Horn - when my wife and I were married 35 years ago (!), so I've already done the name change. A brand new name ?? How about Charles Livingston-North [gotta keep the hyphenated last name]"
What is your go-to board game?
"I've always liked playing Monopoly, Scrabble, Sorry and Uno [technically not a board game], but my new favorite is Codenames."
Do you have any expertise on a subject that people wouldn't think you would?
"I started performing on stage as a storyteller in 2017 [so not that long ago] and when people discover that I am a professional storyteller [real, true life stories] they are always intrigued/surprised!"
What is your favorite movie and why?
"I love all sorts of movies so this is near impossible to answer because I have quite a few favorites. But, if I can only pick one it would be "It's A Wonderful Life", a 1946 black and white film that most people watch around Christmas time. I think it is a fantastic movie about one person's life and how every person's life is so interconnected to other people's lives. I first saw this movie on YV when I was 10 or 11 and I've probably watched it a hundred times since."
What is one of your proudest accomplishments?
"I am hoping the non-profit education organization that I created during the summer/fall of 2022 will be a tremendous personal accomplishment. The organization, the WWS Foundation is in memory of my dad, William Wayne Smith, who died in June 2022. I produced a one-man storytelling show in October 2022 with the help of so many family members and friends, [thankful for so much support] raising thousands of dollars for the foundation. It was a great night and the first step in what I hope will have a long term impact, beyond my lifetime."
What is the strangest coincidence that ever happened to you?
"When my daughter, Julia was 14 she got a small dog, who she named Rosie. They happened to share the same May birthdate. A few years later, Julia wanted to get a second dog as a companion for Rosie. My wife, Lisa and I searched for another small dog as a Christmas present. We were not having much success throughout the fall, but one night we drove to New Haven to see about a dog that fit much of our criteria. We liked the dog, but we not 100% convinced until we learned that this dog, who would be named Rudy shared the same November birthdate as our son, Lucas!"
What song do you believe would make the best theme music for you from your students' perspective?
"Never going to be able to answer this! But, I think it is a great question to ask my students..."
What was one of your most interesting/weird days as a teacher?
"When I was teaching first grade at Orchard Hill [years ago] a spring time field day, called Desmond Day, was planned for all the first graders in South Windsor. Everyone met at Nevers Park and two teachers - from one of the five elementary schools - were paired up as a team to run an activity. My partner was Ms. Zurkowski, currently a math teacher at TE but then was a first grade teacher at Eli Terry. We were surprised that we had dressed almost identically that day; green/teal colored shirts, khaki shorts and the same brand and color of sneakers! WHAT A TEAM!!"
Stay tuned for more interviews with teachers!
Are Separate-but-Equal Facilities Fair?
(click arrow)
By: Joanna Halle
On May 18th, 1896, the Supreme Court made a ruling that separate-but-equal facilities were constitutional. This was so trains and buses, and in public facilities such as hotels, theaters, and schools could legally be segregated as long as they were equal. Even though the ruling stated that the facilities had to be equal, that didn’t stop segregated facilities from being better for White people than Black. Was this ruling fair, what do you think?
Here's a little more on equality and the ruling that was made:
It all starts with the Jim Crow laws; they were laws that enforced racial segregation. These laws started in the southern states and moved outward from there. There were called Jim Crow laws because in the 1830s and 40s there was a White entertainer (Thomas Dartmouth Rice) that performed a popular song-and-dance act modeled after a slave. During this performance he would also darken his face to show he was reenacting a male of Black race.
Now skip to after the Civil War. Slavery has ended, but segregation hasn’t. Almost all public places have a different Black and White entrances, or different buildings entirely. It's almost impossible for Black people to own property or find jobs. That leaves many Black people poor and hungry. Protesting starts, and then skip to 1896, and a case of segregation is brought to the Supreme Court. This case was named “Plessy v. Ferguson,” and the final ruling was that separate-but-equal was constitutional as long as the different facilities were equal.
As I said earlier, that didn’t make many facilities equal, just separate, and nothing really changed. The US was separate, but not equal. Okay, now you may think, “Well it couldn’t have been that bad for Black people,” but trust me when I say you're far from right. Imagine your whole education and lifestyle was determined by the color of your skin. How is White people getting a better education and lifestyle than Black people fair? What do you think? Contact me with your thoughts at:
jh31476@apps.southwindsorschools.org.
Thanks for reading!!!
A Chance for Students to be Heard
(click arrow)
For this portion of the newspaper, I’d like to talk about a rising issue happening to me and possibly others in the school. It's an issue not many talk about, an issue that goes unrecognized, unnoticed, unheard, just like the students themselves. Today, I’d like to talk about students in classrooms that can’t voice an opinion, especially those with good grades.
Before I dive into this, you’re probably wondering, why do students need to be heard when they have good grades? Shouldn’t teachers be focusing on those struggling? And while that may be true, some students are forced by their guardians to have good grades, unable to show their struggles with education with body language. For example, someone with a good grade in math is probably expected to mentor others, while they themselves are struggling because they are only attained to memorizing the material.
While this is going on, peers, guardians, and teachers fail to notice these struggles that only harm in the long run, impacting a students grades. Students are judged by what they have to offer, what’s on the outside, neglecting their personality, what’s in the inside. Which brings me to another issue, people who struggle with their grades. They often seem dumb, judging what’s on the outside, which is the gradebook, and not what actually goes on in their mind.
What most people can’t see is the teaching style. Many students struggle with topics because the way that they are taught isn’t the way of learning that is effective to them, which again hurts them in the long run. The takeaway here is that voices aren’t being heard, regardless of strengths and weaknesses. We should personally get to know our peers more, build bonds and allow their voices to be heard.
King Gael Comics
Panel 1:
You should be thankful...
Panel 2:
My brother is using his money to buy you the best B-day present of all...
Panel 3:
...so that's why you should be thankful for my brother
Panel 4:
Oh yeah, the big-headed kid
Panel 1:
Well, it's the weekend so that means no school!
Panel 2:
So now we can do whatever you want!
Panel 3:
So what shall we do first?
Panel 4:
Wuff?
Sigh...go fish
Money (Poem)
By: Harveen Kaur
So very, very powerful it may seem
It would give everything you dream
A new phone or some new clothes
Food, water and shelter I suppose
Without it life would be pretty hard
You’d be someone friends could discard
It would seem like you had nothing
Just because of this little thing
But some don’t have a good family
Some have faced a severe calamity
And some may not be warmhearted
A problem may still be uncharted
Feedback
We'd like to hear from you! Please submit any feedback you have for us through this anonymous google form.