Let The Good Times Roll With Mr. Pisacane
By Joseph Montano (8th Grade)
Embedded Files
Mr. Pisacane is a great teacher here at Wilbraham Middle School. But like all of us, he too enjoys free time outside of school. Here are some facts about him you may not know.
Mr. Pisacane is the ELA teacher for team 71. He adds a comfortable and easygoing feel to the classroom and enjoys friendly chatting with students.
To start, Mr. Pisacane enjoys watching movies in his free time. In fact, his favorite movie is "The Apartment". It is about a normal, everyday man who lives a normal life, but does what he can to get ahead in the world. But he never wants to complicate his morals. Mr. Pisacane says that "it really resonated with me because you will meet a lot of people in your life that you feel like you have to do wrong things to get ahead and I've always had a real problem with that." He also enjoys the acting and finds it funny.
Another fact about Mr. Pisacane is that he decided to live in Japan and got a teaching job there along the way. After moving back from Japan, he was only able to find teaching jobs since that was what he had experience in.
As it turns out, Mr. Pisacane has also been to over 70 countries! But there are two that he hasn't visited that he would love to go to. He would want to go to Antarctica because it is the only continent he hasn't been to. But he would also like to go to Egypt, specifically the valley of the kings and the pyramids of Giza. He thinks it would be very cool and interesting to see the pyramids because they are the only ancient wonder of the world still standing. He also finds the history fascinating.
When Mr. Pisacane is not in school, he likes to fill his free time with many fun activities. Like a lot of people at school, he loves to read, watch TV, and travel.
On top of going to Japan and teaching, Mr. Pisacane also decided to find a job that would be able to give him a living pay. He actually started as a sort of English teacher for immigrants. But it didn't pay well, so he decided to get a master's degree for teaching.
Mr. Pisacane also loves to read. The series that first got him into reading was The Belgariad by David Eddings. It is about a boy who must recover a stolen orb and defeat an evil god. The book series not only made him enjoy books, but spend most of his free time enjoying their stories.
Mr. Pisacane also remembers a teacher in high school who brought so much enthusiasm to his job. This eventually inspired Mr. Pisacane to not only become a teacher, but give his students a good experience at school. Mr. Pisacane says "For him, teaching was what he was all about." That feeling made a lasting impact on him.
Mr Pisacane not only is a great teacher. He also has great wishes. If he was given an opportunity to have three wishes granted, he would wish for all people to be less greedy. He thinks "It is one of the biggest problems, people being more about themselves than others... snap your fingers make other people more kind towards others." He would also wish for no more shortages of resources. His last wish would be more funding for the arts. He believes that the arts "add color and in my opinion all of the most important stuff in life."
Mr. Pisacane also has a funny story of when he was teaching in the past. He remembers when there was a book report and one of his students did the diary of Anne Frank. The girl who wrote the story wrote about how she could most feel the sensation of Anne feeling the grass on her feet as she escaped the concentration camp. Mr. Pisacane did not find the story of Anne Frank funny, but the gall of the student to make up such an ending to a tragic story. There is also a diorama that Mr. Roberts' class had that was of an old civil war. Mr. Pisacane found it funny that there were historically inaccurate things like tanks and radios in the middle of an old war. It was amusing to see something like that be so wrong.
Mr. Pisacane's personal stories show how much of an interesting life he has outside of school. Now you know what Mr. Pisacane is like away from work.
Wonder Shows Why Kindness Matters
By Berlin Maynard (6th Grade)
⭐ Rating: 4.5 / 5
Author: R. J. Palacio
Genre: Fiction / Children’s Literature
Setting: Upper Manhattan, New York City
Wonder is a novel by R. J. Palacio. If I could describe the book, it would be fiction and children’s literature. A sentence that caught my attention when reading is, “I won't describe what I look like. Whatever you're thinking, it's probably worse,” because it makes me wonder what his face looks like.
I chose to read this because I heard it was a good book. I started reading it and ended up liking it.
The main characters in the book are August “Auggie” Pullman, Olivia “Via” Pullman, Jack Will, Summer Dawson, Julian Albans, Justin, Miranda, Isabel Pullman, Nate Pullman, and Mr. Tushman.
The book is about a 10-year-old boy with a different face than other kids that some people find scary. He goes into 5th grade and gets bullied, but he finds some friends along the way who stick up for him. Something I didn’t like is how people bullied him, but that also made the story interesting.
My favorite moment was the ending when Auggie was happy with his friends.
The lesson the story is saying is “Don’t judge a book by its cover.”
I recommend the book to people who like drama and action books. I give it a 4.5 out of 5 because it could have had more detail in some parts. I think people should read this book because it is meaningful and teaches good lessons.
Pafumis on Main
By Aaryn Bartle (6th Grade)
Location: Main Street, Wilbraham, Massachusetts
Cuisine: American and Italian
I went when it opened to try a new restaurant in Wilbraham, Massachusetts, to see if it is a good local restaurant so I do not need to go far out of town.
There is a warm, casual, and inviting ambiance. The decor inside has nice calm lighting and plants to make you feel more welcome and to enjoy the food that you order. There are also little fake candles on every table. There are wood high tops and low tops inside, and high and low tops outside that you can choose from. Outside, if it is cold, they put up a tent and heaters so it feels like you are inside, but you are still outside with the plants.
The staff are really nice. They will welcome you, ask where you want to sit, and then a different person, or maybe the same person, will lead you to your seat and give you free water along with cups and menus. When you are leaving they will say goodbye and have a nice day.
If you get something smaller, the food will come out faster, like the appetizers. The main meal will take a little longer but will still be fast and high-quality food. The staff are quick, clean, kind, responsible, and caring.
I ordered a plain cheese pizza to see if the pizza was high quality and fries. My dad got a different pizza and my mom got a salad. The fries were perfectly salted and cooked, and the pizza was not super greasy but was very cheesy and the crust was cooked to perfection. I was not expecting that!
The food is served in plain trays, bowls, and plates, but depending on what you get they will sometimes make it look more fancy. The fries come in a medium-sized bowl with a lot of fries, and the pizza can be ordered in small, medium, or large.
My favorite dish is definitely the pizza. It is always cooked to perfection, and sometimes they change up the crust and cheese to see if people like it more or less.
5/5 experience — friendly staff, quick service, and excellent food.
Pafumi’s is a great restaurant if you are on a budget and if you do not want to go far out of town. My suggestion is that they could add a few more appetizers and some more desserts, but there are plenty of main meals.
If you love American and Italian food, you should definitely go. The price was around $71 plus tip for four people.
My overall rating is 5/5. I would definitely go back, but they could add a little bit more food to expand to more people’s tastes.
Why School Lunches Should Have More Nutritional Value
Why School Lunches Should Have More Nutritional Value
By Amelia Pluciennik (7th Grade)
Have you ever looked at your school lunch and thought to yourself, “What is this actually made of?” or “Is this actually good for you?” Wilbraham Middle School students have been noticing that the quality of the lunch food has been decreasing and that there is more canned and processed food included in school lunches.
School lunches should be more nutritious because it is healthier for students and teachers who get a hot lunch. The lunches should include the five food groups: fruits, vegetables, protein, grains, and dairy. They should also include more food options for people with allergies, such as peanuts, dairy, and wheat.
The Food Research and Action Center states that nutritious school lunches are very important for student health: “Nutritious school lunches are important for students' health and improve physical growth, brain function, and energy. They can also improve concentration and support overall well-being by providing essential vitamins and nutrients.”
Harvard Health states that nutritional food fuels the brain: “Your brain requires a constant supply of fuel. That ‘fuel’ comes from the foods you eat — and what’s in that fuel makes all the difference.” They also state that eating high-quality foods that contain vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants can nourish the brain and protect it from damage caused by oxidative stress.
SurvivalFirstAidKits.com states that nutritional food can strengthen the immune system and improve mental focus, which can help with better decision-making and overall health.
Some people may argue that they do not want healthier or more nutritious food because unhealthy food tastes better.
However, students’ health and learning should come first. If you eat more nutritious food, you may feel better and have more energy. Eating mostly unhealthy food can make you feel tired and could lead to long-term health problems.
Page updated
Report abuse