School Happenings

Students Attend First Pep Rally

On Friday, April 29, Marticville had their first pep rally since the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak. Everyone was pumped up and excited to get back into doing the fun things at Marticville.

As students entered the gym, the band played Crazy Train, Seven Nation Army, Smoke on the Water, and 25 or 6 to 4.

Next, Mrs. Smith recognized all the previous students of the month as well as announcing the March winners. Mr. Webster then recognized all the middle school athletes from all three seasons, and Freaky Friday winners were announced as well (Ben Paterson, Will Larrick, Khloe Rivera, Brent Huntsbuger, and Maddy Richter).

The rally ended with some fun games of Human Hungry Hippo. They had two different teacher teams and three different student teams. The two teacher teams consisted of two of our amazing math teachers Mr. Starry and Mrs. Bitts. The other team was Mr. Webster and Mrs. Smoker. They went head to head for the two rounds.

We are glad that our school is getting back to normal again!

Middle Schools Hold Successful Spring Concert

On May 4 at 7:00pm, the Marticville and Manor Middle School band, orchestra, and chorus went to the high school auditorium, uncertain whether or not their show would turn out a success. “This is either going to be the best concert we’ve ever had or the worst concert we ever had,” said band student Julia Ditzler leading up to the performance.

Before the fourth of May, the music groups from both Marticvile and Manor worked tirelessly to prepare for the concert, working in school and in rehearsals to get their pieces as perfect as they could, until finally the day came to unfold it all to a huge audience. This was going to be an eventful night.

The chorus sang five songs to start the program out on a good note. Two songs were performed with the chorus together, Rainstorm and Ubi Caritas, while the next two songs split the girls into one (Fly Away Home) and the boys into another (Blackbird). Their proportion wrapped up with a peppy song called Wangolo. Following that, awards were given out to Kassandra Welch from Marticville and a Manor student for the most honored Chorus performers, and singers chosen for the county chorus were recognized.

After the chorus exited, the orchestra came onto the stage to perform their four pieces, including Velocity, The Great Gate of Kiev, Nomadic Journey, and Wildfire. Claire Mincemoyer from Marticville and another Manor student were awarded with gifts for being the most honored orchestra members, and lastly came the band.

The band played three pieces, Ceremonium, Appalachian Sunrise, and Chant and Tribal Dance. As the entire concert came to an end, the band played one more piece, called The Mandalorian, to celebrate May Fourth (also known as Star Wars Day). The music department worked five hours the night before to add a recorded intro, and Grogu even made a guest appearance! In the end, Matthew Palmari from Marticville and a Manor player were honored for being exceptional instrument players, and the concert was officially over.

A feeling of relief swept over all the musical students after the concert, and most kids were glad it was over but shocked at how fast it went. For eighth graders, this was their last middle school performance, and for seventh graders, they’d have to wait another year for their next concert. Most of the groups thought the concert went well, and they were all proud at how it turned out.

Both Mrs. Masten and Mr. Thai, the amazing music directors of Marticville and Manor Middle School, conducted this concert and helped the band prepare for their long-awaited performance. Several high school students worked hard to also perform with the middle school as well as Mr. Johnson, the high school music director.

Lastly, Marticville’s talented piano player and percussionist, Eliza Myers, should be recognized for providing accompaniment to the Chorus performance. Thanks to everyone mentioned, along with the middle school instrument players and singers; this concert turned out to be a huge success.

Congratulations again to everyone involved in the 2022 middle school Spring Concert who helped the performance turn out as wonderful as it did!

Yearbook Club Collects Memories

The Yearbook Club just wrapped up the school’s yearbook and has worked hard to create the pages for it. The club has been really successful and is already on track to sell a lot more yearbooks than last year.

The Yearbook Club meets in Mrs. Bitts’s (gold team math teacher) classroom on cycle days 2, 4 and 6. The club is led by Mrs. Bitts and Mrs. McAnally who both keep the club running by making sure everything is organized and giving suggestions to the students if they need help. Before Mrs. Bitts and Mrs. McAnally took over the job, Mrs. Grosh and Mrs. Gerhes were the advisors of the yearbook club, and once they stepped down, Mrs. Bitts and Mrs. McAnally wanted to take up the challenge.

The students of this club mostly do all the active work, from interviewing other people, to taking and collecting pictures, to designing pages and backgrounds, to adding in extra information. The Yearbook Club gets their ideas for their pages from previous yearbooks, special websites to plan pages, and templates. They mostly work on their own but will sometimes bounce ideas off each other or help one another if someone needs to finish pages up.

In the beginning, each member individually filled out a form and voted on which pages he/she would prefer to design. Out of the 44 pages in the yearbook, 4 pages were assigned to each member based on what he/she wanted. Some of these yearbook pages include the student and staff pictures, cultural arts pages, sports pages, superlatives, spirit/theme days, and random surveys and questions.

Members of the Yearbook Club enjoy the club because they get to experience something new, with chances to meet/work with other people and think creatively. Some of the club’s favorite parts are getting to see what others come up with and learning new ideas. Others say their favorite part is to take pictures and have fun creatively designing the pages.

The yearbook staff can’t wait for Marticville to get the yearbooks at the end of the year, and congratulations for working hard to complete the pages!

Marticville’s Quiz Bowl Team had a fantastic season this year, setting a new school record. Not only did they end up with a 19-3 record, but they also came in second in the Lancaster Lebanon Quiz Bowl Tournament held at Ephrata Middle School on March 19.

The team won all five of their opening matches at the tournament:

Game 1: MV175, Northern Lebanon 115
Game 2: MV 245, Centerville B 110
Game 3: MV 190, OMPH 45
Game 4: MV 160, Centerville B 120
Game 5: MV 135, Lancaster Mennonite 45

They completed in the final round against Manheim Township. This round took place on stage in front of all the participating teams. Though Manheim Township ending up winning, our players stood up well to the pressure and gave a fine performance.

Quiz bowl is a competition between teams from two opposing schools that compete to get the most points. To earn points players must buzz in first and respond to the question with the correct answer. Questions can be from any category ranging from literature to history.

Each question is worth 10 points. However, if players buzz in with the correct answer before the reader is done asking the question, that team will earn an extra 5 points; this is called a power. However, if they buzz in before the reader is done asking the question and have an incorrect answer, the team will lose 5 points.

After a question has been answered correctly, the team will be asked 3 bonus questions that are each worth 5 points if answered correctly. Bonus questions are all about the same category.

At the beginning of the season quiz bowl had practices to prepare for upcoming matches. Practice is basically a simulation of an actual quiz bowl match. They would split into multiple groups to compete against each other.

Seth Gansner and Curtis Potts were asked what their favorite part of being part of the team was. Seth responded, “Being part of the team and being able to use knowledge that some people would find worthless, but it means something to me.” Curtis responded that his favorite part of being on the team is getting to score points for the team.

The team is advised by 8th grade social studies teacher Mr. Aungst. He’s been advising the team for around 12 years and especially enjoys the competition aspect and the teamwork he sees among the players. For instance, Matthew's knowledge of history, Eliza and Natalie's expertise in literature and music, and Seth's knowledge of geography and math combine to make the team strong, and the rest of the team members each contribute in various categories as well.

School Play Returns After Two-Years

Marticville Middle School hosted a play again after skipping last year because of the Coronavirus and not getting to perform the year before when all the schools shut down. This year’s school play was fun and entertaining for everyone!

This year, the 22-year Marticville play director, Mr. Webster, picked a play called “Cooking Can Be Murder” by Eddie McPherson. He had a few close picks but overall decided upon this one because it was very flexible with the cast in case there were too many or too few characters. It’s also a comedy/murder mystery, which in Mr. Webster’s opinion makes for a really fun play.

Mr. Webster helps out students participating in the school play everyday right after school until 5:00. His job is to monitor how everything is going, select members of the play, give ideas on how to fix problems and lead the rehearsals. Mr. Webster wanted to take on the job because when he was younger, he participated in his school plays, and he said that this is a way to stay connected to those times since he really enjoyed it.

The play is split between a cast and crew, which is made up of Marticville students. To pick cast members, Mr. Webster read applications students wrote and listened to an audition piece each student performed, scoring them with a rubric. These things decided whether or not he/she would act in the play or not. As for the cast, Mr. Webster received recommendations from teachers and read applications to see if he/she should be part of the crew. In total, about 100 students signed up to be part of the play, 30 wanting cast and 70 wanting crew. Twenty-seven kids made it in the cast, and 44 kids made the crew.

Stage crew jobs include the stage manager, crew (move furniture and props), prompters (monitor actors’ lines and stage directions), lights (operate the lights), sound (operate sound systems), video, ushers (hand out the programs and welcome guests), and makeup (dress the actors with accessories/makeup).

Props are a huge part of any play, and Mr. Webster says that Marticville has accumulated many over the years and reuses them frequently. He says that other props are either given through donations, bought brand new or Marticville will borrow them from the high school.

Mr. Webster says that he’s very excited for the play this year and can’t wait for the performance.

Like always, Marticville did a show for elementary school students on Wednesday, March 16th, and reenacted parts of the play for Marticville students on Thursday, March 17th.

Great work Mr. Webster, cast and crew!

Let’s Hear a Word from Our Cast

All of our actors have been working tirelessly after school to create an enjoyable performance for everyone. Although play practice is hard work, our cast enjoys it. Alena Carrado, an eighth-grader who plays one of the main parts, says that practice is relaxing for her and she gets to spend time with friends. She also told me that she finds it beneficial since there is a lot to learn. Aiden Whitfield, an eighth-grader, says that it takes up a lot of his day.

Even though it might look easy, having a part in the play is a tough job. Landon Hess, who is the main character, finds stage directions to be the hardest component. Figuring out where to stand, what to do with a prop, and many more directions are just a few examples of what Landon must remember to perform to the best of his ability. Haley Evans, a seventh-grader, thinks that having the courage to get up on a stage with many viewers is the hardest thing. I know that not many people have that kind of bravery.

Although some have a background in plays from church or elementary school, experience isn’t always necessary. Haley has never done anything like this before and landed an excellent role in the production. Aiden Whitfield had not planned to audition but was encouraged by Mr. Webster. He landed a role as well. These actors are definitely skilled!

The whole cast has been anticipating their first performance so come see your fellow classmates in “Cooking Can Be Murder!”

Let’s Meet the Crew

Plays have so many moving parts behind the scenes. Each part helps the actors on stage do their best in front of the audience.

Jenna Railing is the crew manager for the play. She is in charge of making sure the crew moves the props at the right times and to the right places. She also makes sure that lights and sounds get everything done on the right cues. Her favorite part of the job is getting to see behind the scenes of the play. She likes seeing how everything works behind the curtain. Jenna is a little bit nervous for the performance, but she’s excited too. She wants everything to go well.

The crew is responsible for moving the furniture and props on and off the stage. They have to give the actors props at the right times for things to go smoothly. Elliot Weber says that the hardest part is remembering the exact spots where to place the furniture and the time when they are supposed to move the props on stage. Elliot has had past experience in building props for plays, but he has never been in charge of moving them on stage. Elliot would recommend students to join the crew next year because it is a fun activity.

The prompter’s main job is to have a script and follow along with what the actors are saying. If one of the cast members forgets a line, the prompter is there to tell them what they forgot. Samantha Cook says that the hardest part of her job is following along with the script because sometimes that cast talks too fast to keep up. Her favorite part of being in the crew is getting to watch the play everyday. Samantha would recommend students to join the crew because it is a fun activity to do after school.

The light's job is to turn the lights on and off, dim them, and change the colors at the right times. The most difficult part of their job is changing the lights at the right times. Maddie Rohrer said that she would recommend students to join the crew because watching the play everyday is interesting.

The videograpger’s job is to film the performance and get pictures of everyone in the cast and crew. The most difficult part of their job is getting people to take their pictures because most people don’t enjoy getting their picture taken. Noah McCall joined the crew because he likes photography, and this was a good chance to use it. He would recommend students join the crew next year because it is a good experience.

Makeup's job is to style the actors' hair and do their make up. Their goal is to help the actors look as much like their character as possible. The hardest part of their job is working with the materials that they have. Natasha Wee would recommend students to join the crew next year because it’s a good and fun experience, but it does take up a lot of time. Her favorite part about her job is getting to work with other people.

The usher's job is to sell the tickets. They will also help people find their seats before the performances. Ava O’Hara has had past experience in seating people at events, like at family reunions. She would recommend students to join the crew next year because it’s a good learning experience.

WMMS Gets the Day Off to a Great Start

WMMS members are responsible for giving us our morning announcements.

We asked one of our announcers, Khloe Rivera, what her thoughts were on WMMS. Khloe said that she was definitely nervous for her first time on live TV, but she said that it wasn't as nerve wracking as being in front of live people because she was just sitting in front of a screen. She still gets a little nervous from time to time like anybody would. As time goes on, she gets more and more comfortable being on screen.

When Khloe gets to school, she heads straight to the WMMS studio. She then sits down and reads over the day's announcements. She normally does announcements with Grace Reppert, another announcer on WMMS. Khloe announces every two weeks.

We also interviewed Rayn Andreychek who is another announcer on WMMS. Rayn started a morning announcement or newscast in elementary school. He wasn't very nervous when he started on WMMS because he has been on camera before, and he has been in talent shows and things like that. During COVID, nothing really changed. Students just began announcing late in January due to hybrid scheduling at the beginning of the year. Rayn decided to do it again this year because it was fun in the previous year and he just wanted to help out. He would consider doing it again.

In addition to announcers, there are multiple positions in tech for WMMS.

One of them is doing the transitions and being in charge of the cameras. The person who does that uses a series of keyboard shortcuts to control and switch scenes. We use a simple user-friendly software called OBS, which stands for Open Broadcaster Software. How that works is there will be the cover screen on the program. That is what is live. Then whatever you are about to put out live is in a section called preview. Here you can preview the screen and make sure everything is ok. Then you use a keyboard shortcut to switch it to the live program. We use everything from the countdown to the cameras, to the videos and the Marticville Inspires cover screen you see.

The teleprompter is another one of those positions in the tech area. It’s easy to learn quickly and understand. We interviewed Lexi Kendig who has the teleprompter position. Here is what she had to say. “I did it in elementary school and enjoyed it and wanted to continue learning and doing it. I wanted to be a movie director when I was younger, and now it’s just fun to continue doing. I thought of this job as the first steps towards that. I started it at Conestoga. I would continue to do it in high school if given the opportunity. Some advice I have for others who may want to do it is to not get distracted and don’t scroll super fast so the announcers can read it well.” Lexi does teleprompter most of the time and did last year; she is one of the WMMS “veterans”.

Student Council Members Strive to Make Marticville Great

Marticville’s student council meets every day 1 during AP. The students brainstorm ideas to improve the school environment. Student council is a place for members to get involved and help develop leadership skills. The goal is for student council to bring positive changes to the school. They act as the liaison between the student body and the staff.

Mrs. Smoker and Mrs. Schieber have been advising student council for the last ten years. They plan the schedule for each meeting. During some of the meetings students will brainstorm ideas, work on service projects, or participate in a team building activity.

When asked what his favorite part of student council is, Aiden Whitfield responded, “The people that are in it and how everyone has ideas that they bring to the table and how everyone wants to improve the school.”

In the past student council has worked on many service projects. This year and in the years past they have made handmade cards for those living in Willow Valley. Currently students are planning to create a Unity Wall to install in Marticville (stay tuned for more details).

Seventh graders - if you’re interested in joining student council next year, it’s a great opportunity. You will fill out a form answering questions like, “What is your motivation for joining student council?” or “What are your ideas to improve the school?”

PBIS and Peer Helpers

For any new students or 7th graders, here's some information about the PBIS program and the Peer Helpers club. PBIS is an online system to reward students. Showing perseverance, integrity, respect, empathy and safety through the Marticville INSPIRES motto and going beyond expectations are just some of the ways to get points. In addition, you can even purchase school supplies or fun opportunities in the school store once you get some points. It can be as little as a pencil to as big as a fifty point pizza party.

The online program is easy to navigate. If you aren't on, you can search PBIS rewards, login, plug in an authorization code, and it brings you to the main page where it gives you your total points, how much you've got throughout the day, year, and GP. It also says your name and school on the top, plus below, you can find the store, explanations for why/how you got points, items you might have purchased, events, and more. Make sure to check it out and keep posted.

Earning points is definitely worth it since there could be events throughout the school year that involve them.

The peer helpers monitor and run the school store, and we thank them for all the hard hard work they put into it. Mr. Sheaffer and Mr. Webster work with them to do peer tutoring, out-of-school projects, encouraging services like food drives, running red ribbon week, and lots more creative jobs. Eighth graders are selected to be peer helpers each year.

Keep inspiring Marticville!