The String Thing

The orchestra is made up of four instruments. The violin, which is the smallest instrument with the highest pitch; the viola, which is like the violin but bigger and lower sounding; the cello, which is very low and a lot bigger than the violin and the viola (you have to sit down to play the cello); and the bass, which is the biggest. The bass is so big you have to stand up to play it.

You hold the violin and the viola under your chin. The cello's and bass' have end pins (the metal piece that sticks out the bottom) that go on the ground and you hold the neck of the instrument with your hand. All of these instruments have bows that are made out of wood and horse hair.

Reporter: Paige B. and Makenzie A

Photographer: Jessica Cory with internet

Editor: Laura A. and Jessica C.

Away with MEAP's

The MEAP's are finally done! What are MEAP's? MEAP stands for Michigan Educational Assessment Program.

We students had much frustration with the MEAP because no one wanted to take it. Everyone but the 7th grade and those who had to make up the test, finished Thursday, October 23rd. Seventh graders only have to do Math and English MEAP's while everyone else had to take those, plus Science or Social Studies. Also, as you may have guessed, some of us don't have to retake a section of the MEAP like we did last year. For now let us be glad that MEAP's are over with (until next year that is).

Reporter: Erin S.

Editor: Jessica C. Laura A. Renee A.

Raking = Fun = Difference

On Tuesday, November 4th, Team 6B went leaf-raking to help out elders in need. The is part of a program sponsored by Builders Club called "Rake-a-Difference." Almost everyone in the middle school gets to rake lawns for someone who could use a little help with the autumn leaves.

In the morning we all loaded into the buses to head to our first house. When we arrived we all poured out of the bus to the lawn and started raking. We developed small groups of three or four to work. Within 45 minutes the lawn was leaf-free. So we all sat on the curb to wait for our bus to shuttle us to the next house. Before the bus arrived the homeowner had baked a batch of brownies and handed them out to all the kids.

When the bus arrived we traveled to our next house. This house was much, much bigger than the previous one. So it took much longer, but we got the job done. When we were finished, there were about 50 bags full of leaves on the curb. It was pretty hard work, but it all was worth it. We felt really great when we were done, knowing that we had made a difference in the lives of others.

Reporter: Brooke M.
Photographer: Brooke M.

Editor: Jessica C.

Exciting Experiment!

Density filled our classroom! On October 12th, we did an experiment in science that had to do with the viscosity and density of a substance. Viscosity is a measure of how strongly a gas or liquid resists flowing.

My teacher handed out some mustard, ketchup, sunscreen, shampoo, food coloring, soap, and other supplies for this experiment. We arranged the mustard, ketchup, etc., from the least dense to the most dense on a scale from 1-8.

To test the viscosity, we used the food coloring and a toothpick to demonstrate surface tension. We poked a bubble of food coloring with a toothpick with soap on the end, then with nothing on the end. We had to observe what happened.

In my opinion, this was a very neat and fun way to learn about density and surface tension!

Reporter: Elissa K.

Photographer: Elissa K.

Editor: Paige W.

TSO Costume Concert

On Wednesday and Thursday, the 29th and 30th of October, there were two TSO costume concerts. TSO5, TSO7, and TSOCO played Wednesday. TSO6 and TSO8 played Thursday. They're called costume concerts because both the orchestra players and conductors wear costumes. One reason for having two concerts is that there are now so many students in orchestra that it is hard, perhaps impossible, to fit them all on stage together.

During these costume concerts, Mrs. Marr wears a different costume for each song. Here are some examples of the costumes and songs.

• For "Speedway", with TSO7, she was dressed up in a racing suit, and when she conducted, she used flags of yellow, green, and checkered black and white. This piece was written by Robert Longfield.


• For "The Pink Panther", Mrs. Marr dressed up as the pink panther detective. When she conducted she used a magnifying glass. "The Pink Panther" was written by Henry Mancini and arranged by John Caponegro.


• On "Stairway to Heaven," also with TSO7, Mrs. Marr was dressed up as an angel. It was written by Jimmy Page and Robert Plant. The music was arranged by James Uhl.

• Another song with TSO7 was "Star Dancer". It was written by Mark Williams. Mrs. Marr was a star, made up of other small stars. When she conducted, she used a sparkly star.

• For "Phantom of the Opera" with TSO8, Mrs. Marr was, of course, dressed as the Phantom. The music was composed by Andrew Lloyd Weber.


• When TSO8 played "The Ride of the Valkyries" by Richard Wagner, Mrs. Marr wore a Viking costume. She conducted with a long spear.
  


• The "Theme from The Simpsons" was conducted by Mr. Bough from the High School as Homer while Mrs. Marr helped out on keyboards dressed as Bart.


• Another song with TSO7 was "Hot Potato." Mrs. Marr was dressed up as a potato and conducted the orchestra using a sparkling silver purse.


• TSO6 enjoyed being conducted in an Indiana-Jones-like costume for "The Theme from Indiana Jones," and a baseball player as they played "Play Ball!"

• "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" was played by all the grades, so all the players who participated each night were on stage together.

There were over 150 students involved on Wednesday--about 140 string players and 15 to 20 high school band members. On Thursday, there were over 120, including some percussion help from the high school.

We have been practicing these songs for a long time and the TSO finally got to show off their skills. We also were dressed in a wide variety of costumes such as superheroes, soldiers, scouts, the Joker, angels, boys as girls, girls as boys, and almost anything a middle schooler could imagine.

Reporter: Paige B., Makenzie A.

Photographer: Ryan L., Mrs. M.

Editor: Laura A.