Photo Credit: Ariela Tehrani

Sixth Grade Trip to Simi

By Siena Goldman

My sixth-grade class trip to Simi Valley, California was one of the best trips I have taken in my life! The Brandeis Bardin Wolf Camp was a great place of beauty and nature. With its breathtaking mountain views, beautiful scenery, delicious food, and hanging out with friends, it was a great experience that I will never forget.

The camp during the day is amazing, but at night it is a whole different meaning of incredible. The dinner was delicious, and as I gazed at the twinkling stars, it was divine. After dinner, we trudged down the dirt path to our cabin. At 1:00 am, as we were finally settling down for the night, me and my friends started hearing scary noises. There were the squeaks of coyotes, the rustling of the trees, and the supernatural-sounding giggles from the neighboring cabins. Although we were scared, we managed to get through it by telling funny stories and huddling together. It was a great bonding moment.

Daytime activities at the camp were fun and exciting. On the first day, after we went off the bus, we had a mouthwatering lunch and headed out to our cabins. We were introduced to my cabin's counselor, Ryan. He led us on a hiking trail up a steep mountain. When we arrived at the top of the mountain, it felt like I could touch heaven. There was a wide expanse of picturesque mountain views. The city of Simi Valley was spread before us, and it felt like we could touch the sky.

On the second day there, it was going to be a busy day of exploration and fun. There were animal auctions, rock-climbing, boat-building, but best of all, the Giant Swing. The Giant Swing is a type of swing where you attach your harness to the rope, and your fellow group members pull another rope to make you move.

"As I was on the swing, I felt nauseous, but at the same time, it felt like I was flying. It was the highlight of my trip", says Victoria Milanova, sixth grade.

Overall, my sixth-grade class trip to Simi Valley was one of the best experiences ever. I have made priceless memories that I would not trade for the world. I saw what the beauty of nature can really be. I was able to spend some quality time with my best friends, even making some new ones. I glimpsed animals, views, and landscapes that are engraved in my mind. It is a trip that my whole grade, and me, will never forget.

Spirit Days at BVMS

By Xander Matcuk

Spirit days are an important part of school culture, but not all are created equal. From January 31 to February 4 we had a spirit week. Each day of the week included a different theme.

On the first day, we have pajama day, a timeless classic. Pajama day is always fun and adds a little something to the school day. The only downside is that unless one has multiple pairs of pajamas, students may need to wear the pajamas they slept into school. The second day was hat day. This day was simple yet entertaining. The third was Blackout day. This day was relatively new and not seen often. This day was easy to participate in and added a bit to the school spirit. The fourth spirit day was Blast from the Elementary Past. A day that I would have loved to participate in. Sadly for many eighth graders and seventh graders, their elementary spirit wears no longer fit. Last was Anything but a Backpack Day. Many brought grocery bags, trash bags, and even boxes to carry everything around. Although it was definitely fun, it added to the hassle students have trying to move their supplies from place to place. In summary, most spirit days are enjoyable but can create a few problems for students.

More recently on February 16, our school met on the field to cheer on our fellow students with a pep rally. The pep rally included many activities including performances from cheer, color guard, and the numerous basketball teams as well as games. On the other hand, it took up time during advisory which many students use to do their work, without giving something useful back. Also, making students attend a pep rally does the opposite of what a pep rally is trying to accomplish, it is lowering school spirit. In conclusion, the pep rally was fun but could have been optional or at a time when some students do not need to complete work.

Photo Credit: Aylin Akdag

Great Drama

By Aylin Akdag

On Wednesday 30, 2022, The BVMS Performing Arts Department had their drama classes period 1 and 4 perform selected scenes from Shakespeare and other modern plays. Most of the audience agrees they all did their best. Thank you to the event's supporters, the director Mr. Pinto, the technical crew, and the events sponsor Beverly Hills Education Foundation and Beverly Vista Middle School's PTA.

Space Camp 2022

By Staff Writer

This year an extremely enthusiastic group of 6-8th grade BVMS students, teachers, and parent chaperones attended Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama. Students spent six days learning to be astronauts. Each day was a full day of learning and working with others to complete successful missions. Fun was had by everyone who was lucky enough to go.

Photo Credit: Ryan (camp counselor)

Playing with Shadows on My Simi Adventure

By Liana Jensen

On February 23rd, 2022, the 6th grade of Beverly Vista Middle School left at 8:30 am for a trip to Simi Valley. Two hours later, we arrived at our camp. We took our luggage out of the busses, dropped our stuff in our cabins, and had a small camp meeting with our camp counselor. Once that was done, we set off on our hikes. I marveled at the beautiful mustard fields and colorful flowers all around me.

The next day I participated in many team-building activities. My group started off with an animal auction. We would try to buy animal protection parts and try to build our pet protectors. After we did the animal auction, we built a boat with motor fans and try to make sure the boats float. Once that was done we ate lunch. After lunch was finished, we played a game called tanks where basically two people were blindfolded on the other side of each other and we (the sidelines) directed them to stuffed animals and told them where to throw the stuffed animals in order to hit the person on the other side.

After that, we completed a maze to find the stuffed animal, but we had to do the maze blindfolded. For the last activity, we did that day we had to balance ourselves on a huge seesaw. Following that, we did a low ropes course and if one of us fell we would start over.

On the last day, we went on the high ropes courses. First, we ate breakfast, then we were on our way to the high ropes. When we arrived at the high ropes we had a team meeting, then we put all of our gear on, we received numbers for when we would go on the swing, and while we were waiting for the swing we would do the rock climbing. To do the swing we would have people pull us up on a rope and we had a rope that would tie us to the rope and the person that was strapped in would let go of the rope and swing. It was really fun.

The Adventures on the 6th Grade Trip

By Gabriella Broumandi

It was the day of my 6th-grade trip, and I was getting ready to board the bus to a camp three hours away from home. We boarded the bus and was ready to leave. After about twenty minutes I took a peaceful nap. Little did I know that the upcoming three days would be full of creativity, activities, and discoveries.

As I took my first step off the bus, I grabbed my luggage and looked for my cabin. I opened the door and saw all my friends unpacking. We had ten to twenty minutes to unpack until we had to go eat lunch. The food was delicious. As we ate we were introduced to our counselors. My counselor's name was Ryan, and he was super nice.

After lunch, my cabin group and I went on a hike. Since Ryan was an expert on rocks, we handed him rocks and asked how much each one would be worth. We realized that there were about ten minutes until dinner, so we made our way to the cafeteria, and ate some delicious lasagna. Time flew by and we realized it was time to go back to our cabins and get ready to go to bed. Before we went to sleep, we told each other funny stories about each other, and after a while, we were all sound asleep.

In the morning one of my cabinmates screamed and said that she found a hideous spider in her bed. Turns out that it was just the zipper of the sleeping bag, great way to start your day. We dressed and started heading to the cafeteria for breakfast. We found out that we would be doing a couple of activities including making a boat, learning about different animals, and my favorite, rock climbing. We did these things throughout the day until it was time for dinner.

After dinner, we went back to our cabins realizing that it was our last night together. I knew I would miss my cabin and my cabinmates. We ended the night laughing and telling jokes until we all went to sleep. In the morning I saw the buses. We ate waffles and cereal for breakfast and got ready to go on the bus. I sat with my friend, and we had an excellent ride home. After everything that we did, I was ready to sleep in my own bed.

Photo Credit: Miah Jackson