This year has been a wonderful year back after covid. I know so many people have been so grateful to have a somewhat normal year back after not having a normal school year since 2018-2019, for current fifth graders that were second grade!! With the current eighth graders leaving and new sixth graders coming to Whitford I'm sure questions are floating around. I decided to ask some eighth graders questions and take their responses to help answer some of those.

Coming to a new school can be very scary, especially when it's the transition from elementary school to middle school. I know it seems intimidating but everyone has done it, even me. I remember my first day at Whitford being super nervous to see all the older kids around me and thinking I was going to be sick out of fear. I promise you though, that when you walk through the Whitford doors this year, you will feel a special kind of community and welcoming presence.

You will quickly start making new friends and having a blast getting to have some freedom.

When asking eighth-graders for advice that they would give incoming sixth graders, I got amazing feedback. Some of the most important and best things I heard were:

• Make more friends than enemies.

• Keep up with your studies because this is a practice for high school.

• Stay organized.

• Just be yourself, you're not gonna get anywhere pretending to be someone else.

• The eighth-graders look scary but they are super nice.

• Take a deep breath now and then, it will be okay.

• ASK FOR HELP!!!! That's what your teachers are here for.

If you are about to be in sixth grade at Whitford or know someone who is, you should be happy that you get to start middle school at such an amazing place! If you have any questions about the school year feel free to email me or anyone in the current newspaper staff!

Summer is coming up fast. It's getting hotter and school is about to end. It's time to lay back relax and not think about when your homework is due. Summer is filled with endless amount of fun with swimming, fairs, vacations and more! Even though there are so many fun things to do, you can easily get bored. If you don't quite know what is going on with fun summer activities in your area, here are 3 summer activities that are great to do with friends and family.

1. Go To A Concert

Portland area has lots of concerts over this summer. The Oregon Zoo, Edgefield, and Portland Parks and Rec have great outdoor concerts.

Oregon Zoo Concerts

https://www.oregonzoo.org/zoo-nights

Edgefield

https://edgefieldconcerts.com/

Portland Parks

https://www.portland.gov/parks/arts-culture/sffa

2. Fairs

Fairs are a great place to spend time with family and friends. Although they can be kinda pricey, fairs have so much to it, like animals, rides, games, contests, food and more.

Washington County Fair July 22 - 31

https://www.bigfairfun.com/

Oregon State Fair Aug 26 - Sept 5

https://oregonstatefair.org/

3. Sport Events

Baseball is a summer sport. Hillsboro Hops, and The Portland Pickles are two baseball teams that play over the summer. If you aren't a baseball fan there are also soccer teams playing. The Portland Thorns, and the Portland Timbers are options as well.

Hillsboro Hops

https://www.milb.com/hillsboro

Portland Pickles

https://www.portlandpicklesbaseball.com/

Portland Thorns

https://www.timbers.com/thornsfc/

Portland Timbers

https://www.timbers.com/

When you find yourself bored this summer, remember that there are many events in the Portland area that may be just what you are looking for. Concerts, fairs, and sporting events are all great options.

Have you ever noticed a student who acts differently toward one group of friends and then acts differently around the other? If you do, you're not alone, a lot of other students at Whitford notice it too. I’m not talking about whether you are comfortable around one group of friends or get a little shy. I’m talking about students that change their walk, talk, and attitude around a group of friends.

For example, let's say you are a different race like Asian or White, any race other than Black and Hispanic. You are hanging around some other friends being yourself. Then you go over to your Black and/ or Hispanic friends then start throwing up gang signs, or start saying that you’re “hood” or from the hood, or going as far as to ask other Black or Hispanic people if they are blood or crip. Then start cussing in Spanish to seem cool when we all know that they went on google and googled how to say most of those words. Then start throwing out slang like-

• Cuh- another way to say, cousin.

• Finna- This isn’t even a word it’s just a more “ghetto” way to say gonna.

• Ain’t- This one isn’t as big of a deal because some students already say it naturally.

• Dis/Diss- Instead of the word this.

• Brotha/Sista/Sis- This normally is what black people use to address one another.

• Nothin-This one is mostly how they say it.

• Chillin-This is the same as “nothin”.

To make it clear, I’m not saying just because someone is not Black or Hispanic they aren’t from the hood and that they can’t talk like that. I’m also not saying that all Black and Hispanic people are from the hood and they talk “ghetto”. It is offensive too. The reason why it is offensive is that when students do this, it feels like you are mocking or trying to steal the way Hispanic and Black people talk. If this is you and you switch up, I hope you know that this is called being a phony, and stop trying to be someone you’re not because it isn’t cool or funny. It’s dumb and it makes you look silly.

The definition of a phony person “is a person who pretends to be someone or to have feelings or abilities that they do not really have.” In simpler words, it means you’re being untrue to others and yourself. If I’m calling you out right now, just know it’s never too late to be yourself and you don’t have to put up this front to fit in, and if your friends don’t accept you for you, are they really your friends?

What makes a good class? That's a question that I think a lot of people are asking themselves. A class is not just the people or the subject but also the environment. I have talked to a few Whitford students about classes and school, and I was given some interesting opinions.

I think this year has been hard for teachers and students with it being our first somewhat normal school year since COVID. With that being said, I also think classes this year have been so many different things; good, bad, hard, easy, funny, sad, and so much more. I know a lot of students are wanting to share their opinions but don't quite know how to, and that's what I am going to do!

After talking with kids from sixth, seventh and eighth grade, I have gotten a lot of awesome feedback to share with you. The first question I asked was “What do you think makes a good class?”. The seventh and eighth graders seem to all say pretty much the same thing and that was that they thought a good class is created by the teacher. If the teacher cares not just about the student's grades but also about their personal life. If the teacher gets the class to engage well and how interesting the stuff is that they are learning. The sixth graders seemed to say the environment of the class had a big impact, as well as how engaged the students are.

Out of curiosity I also asked each student what their favorite class is and the average answer is got was social studies and then math as a close second. I also asked why this was the student's favorite class and all the answers for math and social studies were “because I like the teacher”, or something around those words.

After talking to so many people about this, I have also realized that the subject in which you are learning doesn't play as much of a factor as a lot of people think. In reality, it is a lot about the teachers. If you are a teacher reading this please take into consideration what YOUR students are saying and let's have an amazing last month of school!

As many of you know, in advisory we have been going over the topic of microaggression. For a refresher of what microaggression is, microaggression is a statement or an action that is similar to racism. Did microaggression change from the beginning of the year to now? Did the racist “jokes'' calm down or were they a lot more made? Do students even understand what they’re saying and how it affects others? In this article, I will be asking students in all grades how they feel about the differences from the beginning of the school year to now. Some people may or may not be anonymous.

POV: 8th Grade Students

Anonymous #1: “The microaggression and jokes have gotten somewhat worse since the beginning of the year even though people don't know the backstory behind any of those words. I think it got worse because a lot of my friends have been experiencing it more now instead of at the beginning of the school year.”

Brayan Martinez Donato: “The microaggression comments and “jokes” have increased. Because when we were online, they didn’t know the backstory and thought they could get away with it because no one knew about their actions.”

Siena Riccardi: “The microaggression has gotten worse since September because people say these words that hurt, and they say them as jokes and don't care at all about the meaning around them or if other people hear/see/experience the hurt that it can cause. I think it has also gotten worse because now we are in-person.”

Chloe Meurisse: “I think the microaggression problem has gotten worse. People say hurtful words without knowing, or as a joke. I hear a lot more often than before, especially about LGBTQ.”

POV: 7th Grade Students

Anonymous #1: “I think it increased because people are making it more of a joke now”

Anonymous#2” I say it increased because everyone is a lot more comfortable and it has become less serious.”

Anonymous #3: “It increased, I feel like at the beginning of the year people were more by themself but now they just don’t care”

Anonymous #4: “ They have gone way up, ever since the zoom they said it a lot more. She probably thought people knew words.”

Stella Nordquist: “Because of Social Media, we can now share our hate on a broader scale. We don’t care what our words do because to us, it makes us feel cool and powerful.”

POV: 6th Grade Students

Anonymous #1: “I think it stayed the same, I noticed it before but it hasn't changed”

Anonymous #2: “I think it slightly got worse because they know who people are and so they know who they can make fun of and who not to mess with.”

Jason Blasingame: “ I think it got down from the last few days because of the advisory lessons we had but I also think it stayed the same”

Anonymous #3: It has decreased a little bit because they don’t know that it hurts people when it says that but it does”

My personal opinion is that it has gotten worse because at the beginning of the school year everybody just got back from being online and not in person so they were not as comfortable and they knew they could get away with it when they are online on social media, online games, etc. Now in the present, I feel like they are a lot more comfortable and have figured most people out and they know who they can and can’t say that around. I believe a lot of people can say it around because other students tolerate it and feel if they were to tell staff they’ll be known as a “snitch,” and no one likes being called that. That’s why I think they keep to themselves.

Ways we can deal with these comments or “jokes” are to one not be included and say it yourself, two you can not laugh so it doesn’t look like you are involved in it, three tell them yourself it’s not funny, and four if you want or are comfortable with it tell a staff member.

For the past 3 weeks or so, we have been doing slideshows in advisory about important things happening in our school like racism, bullying, harassment, and sexual harassment. Many teachers and students want to talk about sexism in those slides as well.

Sexism at Whitford is something we rarely talk about. We talk about racism, bullying, harassment, and sexual harassment in advisory class. Though sexual harassment is part of sexism, it is not all-encompassing. Many staff agree that there is way too much sexism at Whitford going unnoticed. An anonymous teacher from Whitford says “Yes it's something in the world, so it’s gonna be in our school.” I also asked them how they thought we as a school could change how much sexism we have here, she stated: “ I think that it is something we actively have to try to work on and if we all care we would put the effort in and we could change it.” Many teachers want to stop it when they see or hear it.

Many teen girls at Whitford are affected by sexism, and many chose to speak out. This includes eighth-grader Addison Holliday who said “Mainly when I think of sexism at our school I think of guys saying that they can do things better than girls because they are guys. Guys saying girls can't wear things, and when guys come over to you and are passive-aggressive and sexist.” Makena Campbell, also an eighth-grader at Whitford, chose to speak out and answer the many questions I asked her,

“Do you think there is sexism at Whitford?

Yes, I think there is a lot of sexism in our school.

Why do you think people do it?

To get a reaction out of people.

Do you think Whitford will change?

Schools are not gonna change unless somebody changes them.

How do you think it could change?

By people actually getting in trouble, because they never do.

Do you think they should talk about sexism at Whitford?

I think Whitford 100% should talk about sexism in our school.

Although sexism affects many young women at Whitford Middle School, it also affects the boys. Na'Shir Pitt, an eighth-grader at Whitford, notices how much sexism there is at Whitford and wants to change it. I asked him how he thought we could change it he answered: “ We need to stop being sexist and hurting others and have the same stuff for all of us and treat all of us the same.”

Many people believe that more than 85% of our school is affected by sexism or is the cause of it. People all over the world are sadly affected by sexism and Whitford is no different, but here at Whitford Middle School many students and staff want this to change. If we want to change our school everybody has to try to stop it and work to show people how it affects others and how it changes people.

As you may have heard, mask mandates are going to be lifted at Whitford. This started on Monday, and it will be very interesting to see who keeps using them, and who doesn’t. After a whole two years, masks finally won't be required, and we will slowly start falling into the endemic mode of Coronavirus.

In various Oregon counties, hospital rates are lowering, and we are now at a stable spot to start going back to normal. Oregon mask mandates were set to be lifted originally on March 31st, but then got postponed up twice. It was then set to be lifted on March 19th, and it was officially lifted last saturday. This means we can get things back to how it used to be.

Masks were a big impact to schools through this time, especially for the younger ages. Given this, places like New York still won’t let children from 2 to 4 not wear masks, because they are the only population that cannot get vaccinated, even given the effectiveness of the child vaccine (around 15%). Several learning issues have arisen, such as learning when a person takes a mask off to speak as it's easier to communicate. This can affect the way kids perceive masks. In addition, masks just aren’t sanitary for that age, as they constantly use them as napkins, or tissues. This provides another health risk.

Certainly, things won’t go completely back to normal. However, we are starting to get very close. When you come to school, will you be wearing a mask? Answer the question in the form down below if you would like.

As many of you know, Whitford changed the mask mandate on Monday, March 14, 2022. After Monday, you will have the opportunity to not wear a mask inside during the school day. The school district sent out a survey a few weeks ago to see how people feel about the mandate changing. The results leaned towards changing the mandate, but still many people are unsure about this shift.

Questions:

1. How do you feel about the mask mandate changing on Monday?

2. Are you going to take off your mask?

3. Do you feel safe around people who have their masks off?

Teachers:

Ms. Otermat

1. She is unsure about it right now, but she is more comfortable because of the data from the CDC. She is concerned about spring break and exposing more people to covid. But she thinks having no masks is important for social emotional learning.

2. She is not sure because of the exposure it could cause her family.

3. She feels comfortable around people without masks if she has a mask on.

Ms. Pacheco

1. She is excited, but she’s worried about people who can’t get the vaccine for health reasons.

2. She is going to take off her mask, but only in less crowded areas.

3. She feels comfortable around people without masks, because she has done the most she can to protect herself from the virus.

Ms. Thrower

1. She is nervous, but hopeful, because it means that we are moving in the right direction with the pandemic. she is excited to see smiles again!

2. She is not going to take off her mask next week because of spring break plans.

3. She feels comfortable around people without masks.

Ms. Bomber

1. She feels worried about the mask mandate change.

2. She will not take off her mask.

3. She feels safe with other people having their masks off, but when she talked to her students about the mask mandate they said it increases their anxiety.

Students:

Claire Regali

1. She feels great about the mask mandate change.

2. Most of the time she won't wear it, but sometimes she will.

3. She feels comfortable around people without masks.

Ella Braun

1. She is a little bit anxious about the mask mandate change.

2. She will wear it half of the time.

3. She feels comfortable, but it depends on who she is around.

Sadie Foersterling

1. She is okay about the mask mandate change.

2. She will wear it most of the time.

3. She feels comfortable around people without masks.

Lennon Wheeler

1. She doesn't really care about the change in the mask mandate.

2. She is going to wear her mask.

3. She feels comfortable depending on the person.

Riley Teed

1. He thinks the mask mandate change is good for some people and bad for others.

2. It depends on who is around.

3. He feels comfortable around people without masks.

Seventh grade students wrote Realistic Fiction stories about issues that are important to them. We focused on telling a story one scene at a time using: description, dialogue, inner thinking, and character actions. Each story has a theme or important message from the writer about how we should live our lives.

Zane Taggart:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1MTIxq8jnv-ErczE3ybbspiAcd72kcCt7y3rw1QHHacQ/edit?usp=sharing

Lolo Kinney:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XhaJ8bU-jVrte-G6lTWD_wZknJLO26Q15uwcrOw_9HY/edit?usp=sharing

Wyatt Sweeden

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1Ha4CKfQV40IASToAoiNQ74-FLnk85IsTa9p8wd1g1F0/edit?usp=sharing

Micah Kaufmann

https://docs.google.com/document/d/14vxeEErXBSJSosEsLFSGS5erYAHvJ2VaiceSB5nYgzE/edit?usp=sharing

Brandon Parker

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ORaJI1jyiFqwnCHblrKk4YIEa_daj406QAYK4Hn4Gr4/edit?usp=sharing

Avery Hottman

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1FQ4bav1WOQC5J5VGkBMr3EUzJHA7JOfGT91J7pftPWg/edit?usp=sharing

Sam Vinton

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ztil03ZSGDaH687AZ19OnwbRxiVxyEN2Q3ve4y_xU3E/edit?usp=sharing

Emily Dobbins

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_FofkehzCwUsbg0SWu8ohj9BxQYH57afIjExFP38RjA/edit?usp=sharing

Milly Johnston

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1zm5pn7J5OC4ljsSMz7mxuXUeWmBgWUgM/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=104362757927940209291&rtpof=true&sd=true

Anthony Nesheiwat

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1YM67K-TrIOhzGiRrDkwQ2DLAXoynuSLxqMlPe3F0YAo/edit?usp=sharing

Payton Loprinzi

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1sP2Scp9YnI2WFBBJzdezaxQD51EDTK6Yd2q7VQ_OxWQ/edit?usp=sharing

Jo Middlebrooks

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ijFV7clAvdOrj1HXxxxf3Iv1HjZxQz-HnZpifMycmzE/edit?usp=sharing

Darvey Calderon Villa

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1BG6sfePFsZWIgIZoL4eNej7fcjGu9Lx1bBL4_q66pqM/edit?usp=sharing

Emily Bridgens

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1lNc5Od4E1cCRgT0sze9SJ6h5EZvouvuH1rSX1dNcT1Q/edit?usp=sharing

Mia Minifie

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_WqndoYjvSi6yI407GQo8UDSALp9F6eG-tGK1E68IOo/edit?usp=sharing

Whitford has many different electives. You may be thinking, “what electives are the best?” Today you’ll find out which electives are the best, according to Whitford eighth graders.

According to the small number of students interviewed, Spanish was the third-best class. From an anonymous student, “Spanish is my favorite elective because we learn another language that can aid us in finding a good college.” This shows that Spanish is not only a fun and enjoyable class, but it can also aid students in the future.” Spanish is also a very useful class to take because it can help if you enjoy traveling. Countries that speak Spanish include most of South America along with Spain.

Newspaper was the second-best elective in the opinion of eighth-graders. According to Liam Andrews, editor of the Whitford Weekly, “You get to hang out with friends while self-directing fun work. It isn't a stressful class, even though we do a lot. It is really fun to write newspaper articles that get published online. It makes me feel proud to showcase the hard work I do for my classes. Also, Mr. Rooke-Ley is an amazing teacher.” Not only what Liam said, but being in the Newspaper class also provides numerous life skills and opportunities. Even though being in this class requires a large amount of responsibility, it is definitely worth it. You get to learn to manage your own time along with getting to choose to write about whatever you want.

Finally, Band is apparently the best elective. Reece Igarta says, “I like band because it gives me a break from all of school’s stress and lets me relax and play music with my friends and classmates.” From what I’ve heard, Mr. Natividad is an amazing teacher for many reasons. He is straight out of college and has had lots of experience playing instruments. He is also very sympathetic and understanding. According to an anonymous student, “it is incredibly entertaining and fun”. As one can see, band is an absolute banger of a class (ha get it).

Out of all the electives, eighth-graders seem to agree that band is the best, followed by newspaper and finally Spanish.

The 2021-2022 school year at Whitford Middle School has been challenging, although it’s not surprising given all the policies in place for Covid-19 like wearing face masks and staying six feet apart. But, it’s the behavior of students that has made this year difficult, particularly for 8th graders who have been at the school since they started back in 6th grade.

The behaviors that have become common (and disruptive) weren’t around a few years ago. Today, students purposely don’t show up to class, are often very late or they’re on their devices. What can we do to fix this problem at our school?

I think one of the reasons students are not following the rules as much this year over previous years is because they feel they can get away with it. In an effort to be empathetic to all that’s happening in the world, some (not all!) teachers are not giving consequences like they used to.

At first, I thought that it was just me who saw this as an issue, but I talked with friends, fellow students, and teachers, and I realized how many have a similar point of view. I realized that the more strict teachers get, the more their students will respect them. Some of my teachers give real consequences to bad behavior but that doesn't mean they aren’t nice people. The classes I enjoy the most are the classes where kids are not screaming, running around or being disruptive. They learn to respect the expectations that the teachers have laid out because if they don’t, there will be consequences.

In one of my classes, there have been a lot of tardies and late students. My teacher hasn’t done anything that I can see about it. It happens almost every day and nothing happens. If they don't get a consequence, they're just going to keep coming in late because they know nothing is going to happen to them.

To see if my opinion was shared by others, I interviewed fellow students around the school in my classes:

Makena Cambpell shared, “It is hard to focus in class when teachers won't do anything about the talking students and late students, because it affects how we get our work done in class. I think we can fix this by teachers needing to give a consequence, so the kids will learn to be more respectful, whether that's the students being late, on their phones, or being way too loud and disrespectful.”

Jonathan Isdarous said, “I think one of the reasons why kids have this behavior is because they are coming straight from an online school and need to get used to how school works again. Also, the 7th and 6th graders last participated in in-person school when they were in elementary school, and need to get used to how Whitford works.”

Yadira Solano shared, “I think that kids aren't used to being at in-person school, and still have some bad habits of online school and being at home, such as being on your phone or being able to talk whenever you want. I think a way we could fix this issue is instead of teachers not saying anything to the students, they should talk to them or give them a punishment. Maybe not even a punishment. Even a little chat with each other to see why this has been a habit for the student and how they can fix it.”

Interviewing different students was very interesting and it was nice to hear their opinion. Teachers don't always need to give a student a consequence. Teachers can fix things by being strict and earning the student's respect, but also by having a good private chat with a student to see what is going on. Are they doing these behaviors for a reason or if they're truly just a habit that needs to be fixed? This would greatly help to give every student a great learning environment.

Teachers should show the students that they care about their students and their learning but not be afraid to tell them to stop the behavior. Students are very thankful for the boundaries that you set!

For the students at Whitford Middle School, be kind to the hard-working teachers and be respectful and responsible with your choices for all your classmates.

At Whitford Middle School, we fix our problems to make it a better place for everyone.

Susan Bomber is the Structured Routines center manager at Whitford Middle School in Beaverton, Oregon. At the age of 14, Ms. Bomber started working at Burger King and worked there through high school. Instead of going to college, Ms. Bomber worked full time as a secretary and had children. She then became a para-educational instructional assistant. I asked her why she got into teaching and she said, “When I was in high school I volunteered in a classroom with kids with disabilities and wanted to help them.” She always wanted to be a teacher and at the age of 46 she became one! She said the reason she likes teaching special education is she can change their lives and how their needs affect them. I asked her what it was like to teach kids with disabilities and she said, “ It’s different, sometimes you have kids who can’t stand loud noises, quiet kids, kids who are really high in some subjects and really low in other subjects.”

Ms. Bomber’s special education class at Whitford has kids with autism, communication disorder, ASD, or intellectual disability. There are usually 8 to 15 kids in the classroom; this year there have only been 8. Some kids copy movie characters when they are having feelings they don't know how to react to. A lot of time during class Ms. Bomber will play games that have to do with social skills to learn how to do it with other kids. They also do independent work tasks. During class, they read, do math, write, and learn social skills. Teaching skills that help students with autism be more able to adapt to life situations and connect with others.

Autism is considered a speech disorder, affecting communication, sensory, smell, sounds, and many people with autism are very picky eaters. The students with autism in Ms. Bomber’s program have specific needs to help them succeed in school. Some challenges may include non-verbal skills, language development, narrow interests, and attention difficulties. Although there are struggles faced in school there are also positives: people with autism often pay attention to detail, have deep focus and concentration. They also have great observational skills and absorb and retain information well.

In conclusion, we are so lucky to have Ms. Bomber here at Whitford Middle School. There is so much that she helps with here at Whitford and she does so much to support her students. My personal experience with Ms. Bomber was great she is an amazing person and teacher. I have enjoyed getting to know her and her students during our newspaper class when we partner with her class. I loved interviewing her for this article, learning more about her life, and getting to spend time with her students.

In Ms. Bombers' class, there is a range of kids with different disabilities. You may have seen them around the school. There are usually 8-15 kids in her class. These kids have a variety of disorders including, autism, spectrum disorder, communication disorders, and intellectual disabilities.

This year especially, there aren't many set clubs or programs made to work with them because of covid. We don't really get to interact with them on a regular basis, but there are things you can do on your own time to collaborate with them.

Little things you can do to interact with them

If you see any of these kids in the hall, at recess, or even in your class, it would make their day if you even just said hi. Asking them simple questions helps them feel more included in the school environment. If you have more time you can even offer to play small games with them. They may not want to talk to you, and that's okay, just putting in the effort to acknowledge them makes a big difference.

Programs that you can be involved in

In the past, there have been different programs that you could be involved in to work with the kids in Ms. Bombers' class. One includes the peer tutor program where you could interact with them one on one. You would play games or do other activities with them. One of the activities includes having one big item and taking it apart like projectors, computers, and other electronics, this can help them work on their motor skills and engineering. Also in Mr. Rooke-Ley’s room, there are plants that his students bring in that they would come and water a couple of times a week.

Educate Yourself

The biggest thing you can do is to get informed and understand these disabilities, but recognize, one person is not everyone, they can have very different challenges from each other. There are many resources that you can use to educate yourself. Here are some videos that you can watch to learn more about these disabilities.

Video 1 Link

Video 2 Link

Starting Monday, November 8th, Whitford has a new phone policy: “Off and Away All Day.” No more checking your phone during class. Phones have to stay off and in your bag from before you enter the building until you exit the building. If your phone is seen (even in your pocket) you will get one reminder, next time it's sent to the office for the rest of the day, the third time it's seen it will be sent to the office and your guardian will have to come pick it up. Whitford has decided to enforce this rule to stop fighting from being recorded and posted on social media, stop bullying, and keep kids focused on academics while in class.

I interviewed 2 students from each grade with the following questions..

1. Who do you think this policy is benefitting ?

2. Has the new policy helped you in any way?

3. Do you think the policy will stay effective?

4. Does this policy make you more tempted to use your device?

5. Do you, as a student, enforce this policy?

Luis R (8th Grade):

1. “I think the policy is benefiting everyone equally”

2. “It has helped me focus more on work and listening more to the teacher”

3.“No, I think this new policy will last around a month or two because its 2021 and no one cares”

4.“No not really, because either way everyone is still using their phone and no one is listening”

5.“No, because when I come to school I come to learn and not tell people ‘off and away’ that's the teacher's job. I don't get paid for it.”

Ashlee M (8th Grade):

1. “ I find it's mostly benefitting the teachers because students are more willing to learn and stay focused. It's also benefiting the students by having them pay attention and not get involved in drama and record fights”

2. “No not really because I don’t bring my phone to school so it's no difference”

3. “I think in a few months students will start to not care because I still see them with their phone out sometimes”

4. “ No”

5. “No because that's not my job, if a student has their phone out that's their decision to break the rule and I'm not gonna go out of my way to tell the teacher”

Gavin R (7th Grade):

1. “The teachers because it's helping the kids focus better in class”

2. “Kinda because I never use my phone in class, with this new policy it helps people socialize more”

3. “Yes”

4. “No”

5. “Yes”

Nikko K (7th Grade):

1. “Teachers and staff”

2. “No”

3. “Yeah”

4. “No”

5. “Yeah”

Ashton W (6th Grade):

1. “Teachers because students will pay more attention now that it's supposed to be away”

2. “No, because I don't have a phone”

3. “Yeah because people will pay attention more and there will be no drama”

4. “No, because I don't have a phone”

5. “I don’t tell kids at recess but in class I do”

Ireland C (6th Grade) :

1. “Teachers because they can teach more students ”

2. “No, because my mom took my phone”

3. “Not really because students are still going on their phone during class”

4. “No”

5. “Yes and no”

After Interviewing two students from each grade I noticed that majority of the students are accepting the new policy. Some people may be surprised that middle schoolers accepted the policy so easily but in reality, students just want to come to school to learn, and socialize and not get into all the drama.

Over the past months, there have been complaints about racism from students at Whitford. For example, other races saying the N-word and students making racial comments. The staff at Whitford are trying their best to make Whitford a safe and comfortable place for all students, but some students are making it very hard for them. Some students at Whitford Middle School say the N-word non-stop without even knowing the real meaning of it. They throw the word around to seem “cool” when it really isn’t.

When these students are calling their friends the N-word, they are calling them a contemptuous term for a black or dark-skinned person. If you google it, that is the definition you’ll get. I did some deeper research because that's not all the truth; it has a deeper meaning to the word. The N-word with an “A” is a respelled way of saying the N-word with an “er”, but they mean the exact same thing. The N-word is used to insult a black person. As most of us know, white people used the N-word for a slave meaning.

The thing that is really messed up is that the hip-hop industry confused a whole bunch of people when they started to say the N-word in the '80s and '90s. This made some people think it was okay, which is not okay. The N-word is the ultimate insult—a word that has tormented generations of African Americans. Yet over time, it has become a popular term of endearment by the descendants of the very people who once had to endure it. Among many young people today—Black and white—the n-word can mean friend.

The reason why it is very hurtful when other races say the N-word is because when black people say the N-word to each other they say it as a friendly greeting type of way, but when other races say it, it feels more like a racial slur. It also may remind some black people of other people calling them the N-word in a racist way. It can also affect African Americans from stories that their older family members went through as a child.

The best thing that Whitford students can do about kids saying the N-word and other racial comments is to tell a trusted staff member about it. Some of the adults that I’ll recommend telling are the counselors and/or Mr. Rooke-Ley. I highly recommend that if you are feeling uncomfortable with your friends saying it, tell them they should stop, because it’s not right and it makes you uncomfortable. If they don’t listen to you or make fun of you for saying that, are they really your friends...? Lastly, if you hear someone use this hurtful word, standing by and saying nothing makes you a part of it and you can do better!

This year, the week of October 25th - October 29th is spirit week. You can have fun in school while showing your Whitford spirit! Every day there will be a new theme and a new way to dress up.

Monday - Pajama Day

Monday you can wear your favorite pajamas. If you have the trouble of waking up every morning and getting ready, this will be perfect for you. Feel free to just roll out of bed and come to school. You can wear hoodies, sweatpants, pajama sets, and more. Pick your favorite pajamas and wear them to school.

Tuesday - Twin Day

Tuesday is twin day! Pick a friend or many friends and you can all wear the same outfit. It can be as simple as wearing the same color or as big as wearing the same outfit.

Wednesday - Pink Day

Everyone in the school will wear pink on Wednesday. I'm sure someone you know has been affected by breast cancer and this is the perfect time to celebrate them. Everyone in the school will wear all pink on Wednesday. October is national breast cancer awareness month so this is the perfect time to wear pink.

Thursday - Neon Day

Thursday is neon day! You can throw yourself back to the 80s for a day and wear your brightest clothes. Anything bright will be perfect. Orange, yellow, green, blue, pink, etc...

Friday - Costume Day

Friday is costume day. You can wear your Halloween costume as long as it is school-appropriate. Meaning it doesn't have any explicit words, actions, violence, or mask covering your face. You will still need to wear a mask for covid though.

According to some 8th graders, spirit week is the best week of the year! I cant wait to see your spirit!

I remember my first day of middle school; getting off the bus was so scary I just saw all these people looking at me as I walked up to the building. I was so worried I wouldn’t find any of my friends, and walking into the big gym and seeing all the kids sitting on the bleachers was very intimidating. I was so nervous! Then I saw my friends, and I walked as fast as I could over to them before the principal came out and talked to us about the first day and our schedules…. It was the worst! I didn’t know anyone in my classes and I was so scared. But, then I found some nice people in my class and it ended up being just fine. It seems like a long time ago, but it all came back to me this week when I interviewed five 6th graders to hear what they had to say about their first few weeks at Whitford. I talked to Vinh Dao, Clementine Jackson, Anthony Bohannon, Ava Carr, and Laura Velasquez.

What Is Your Favorite Part About Whitford?

• Math with Mr.Gagnier, and all the teachers in general- Vinh Dao

• The big library- Clementine Jackson

• Likes the teachers and art class- Anthony Bohannon

• Going to every class and seeing different teachers and people everyday- Ava Carr

• The art contest- Laura Velasquez

Is Middle School Difficult For You?

• It's hard to get around with all the people in the halls- Clementine Jackson

• It can be difficult sometimes but it's fun- Anthony Bohannon

• Going through the hallways is hard with all the kids- Ava Carr

Is It A Lot Of Pressure To Be A 6th Grader?

• Only pressure sometimes but most of the time its fine- Laura Velasquez

• No pressure at all super fun!- Anthony Bohannon

• Nope! It is all super fun!- Ava Carr

They also said that drama is very fun! And, that you should never be scared to speak up for yourself and don't be afraid to talk to teachers! Overall 6th grade is very fun and shouldn't be scary; even if you don't have friends at the start of the year you will definitely find some because, like most of these people said, there are a lot of kids!

-Hallie Pedersen

Feeling like you are a part of a community is something that has always been important here at Whitford but is something that we have all missed during the pandemic. On Monday, October 4th Whitford as a whole had a virtual assembly in which we talked about STEAM and Whitford expectations. If you don't already know STEAM stands for success, teamwork, empathy, accountability, and motivation. This is our school motto and the purpose of having this statement is to give the students something to shoot for. Everyone should try to be the best they can be and STEAM is a reminder of things to work on.

The Whitford expectations are still the same as Pre-pandemic with a few exceptions because of Covid. Even though Covid has changed a lot, students are still expected to follow the rules. Try to keep your distance between yourself and the people around you and keep your mask on unless you are actively eating or drinking. It is still the student's responsibility to respect the school property. Older students should be setting a good example for the younger students and helping them if they get lost or need help with anything around the school. We are in this together.

If you are new to Whitford this year you may not be very familiar with everyone, let me introduce you to the principal and assistant principals. Mr.Peerenboom is the principal and trust me, he knows what he is doing. You might see him walking around the halls or standing outside at lunch, say hi he is nice I promise! Robyn Giacchi works alongside Cheryl Ashdown as the assistant principal. You might also see them in the halls or at lunch.

Spirit Week is a great way to show our school spirit. The week of October 25th marks the start of Whitfords spirit week! Monday is pajama day, Tuesday is twin day, Wednesday is pink for breast cancer day, Thursday is Neon Day, and Friday is costume day! It is not required but dressing up will show Whitfords pride. If you have any questions feel free to ask anyone on the student council or Ms.Melton!

Olivia Townley

This year, we have a new teacher at the end of C hall. Welcome Mrs. Leibowitz! Before she decided to teach here at Whitford, she was an architect for the last decade or so, but she found that she wanted to work with kids and also continue doing the thing she loves, art!

One of our first assignments was to make a surreal collage. A surreal collage is a collage with pictures of animals, landscapes and more to create an unusual, dream-like picture. With this assignment, we were given all different types of magazines to look through and cut out any picture we might use to create our collage. Once we had our pictures cut out, we started placing them in all different types of ways; some animals had human heads and some humans had a totally different body. The main concept of this was to use our imagination and think outside of the box. Here are some surreal collages that I think my classmates did a good job on using their imagination.

Many people wonder how Whitford began and or got its name. It all started with a railroad that was completed in 1872. Later, a section was added to the railroad that now goes through present-day Whitford. The Whitford train represents the old railroad station, which was located near the Fanno Creek Trail and McKay Elementary School. The railroad used to go from Beaverton all the way to Forest Grove. In the early 1900s, the railroad changed from steam engines to electric engines.

Whitford used to have a variety of sports as part of the school. These included basketball, baseball, football, and even cheerleading. Today we only have soccer. I believe that they shut down most of these sports when the middle school switched from 7th 8th and 9th grade to 6th 7th and 8th grade. At the top of A hall by the office, there is a trophy case where they show pictures of when we had school athletics.

Although we don’t have sports today, Whitford did produce two incredible athletes such as, Aaron Rodgers and Rubio Rubin. Aaron is a quarter back who attended California Golden Bears College. During his time there he set several records. He now plays for the Green Bay Packers. Rubio Rubin, is a forward for Real Salt Lake. He has played a total of 1,885 minutes in his professional career, and started 20 out of 28 games. Rubio also played soccer at Beaverton High School.

In present-day Whitford, we use a saying called “Steam”. The S in steam stands for success, teachers and staff want each and every kid to succeed. The T stands for teamwork, students will be able to learn great teamwork skills and be able to push each other for greatness. The E stands for empathy. Treating people with kindness is a core value at Whitford. A stands for accountability. Pushing yourself and striving for greatness is an important attribute for school and life. M stands for motivation. Motivate yourself and others to be the best version of you.

You may know about the “Devious Licks,” but do we know about the real trouble that they cause? It started, according to USA TODAY, the Devious Licks started off with a person on Tik Tok with the name “jugg4elias” showing a box of masks on Tik Tok claiming that he stole it from the school with the caption “ 2 months into school and I already hit a Devious Lick”.

It was harmful at the time, just a box of masks right? Well, it didn’t last long for the challenge to take a dangerous turn. It went from masks to soap dispensers and toilets, some people even took full LOCKERS!! The USA Today just said Tik Tok told USA Today it was removing content related to "devious licks," including the hashtag #deviouslicks and "redirecting hashtags and search results to our Community Guidelines to discourage such behavior.”, but people found a way around it by leaving the #, #dispicablelicks.

People didn’t just respond with a different hashtag, but the challenges got worse, from soap or masks it went to paper dispensers and even doors. But according to “my trusty source” USA Today “Nine students have been arrested on misdemeanor vandalism charges in Marion County Public Schools for incidents including hand dryers and paper towel dispensers being pulled off the wall and destruction of a urinal.”, even the law is getting involved in this challenge. According to WFTV9 “They are taking soap dispensers, breaking sinks, breaking paper towel holders,” said Michael Lawrence with Seminole County Public Schools.”. Students who get caught hitting licks are getting charged with hundreds or thousands of dollars.

But on the other hand, teens are just doing this to fit in, in today’s society. That can be demonstrated with all the other challenges there have been throughout generations. Like the Tide pods challenge, but that’s another story for another day.