At Hawthorn Middle School North we like to have spirit weeks and days. In October we had Red Ribbon Week to honor staying drug-free. To kick off Red Ribbon Week the first spirit day was Hawaiian day. You could dress up as if you were going on vacation or to the beach. Or, you could dress up wearing leis and a grass skirt like I did. On Thursday, October 24th it was meme day and Friday was Jersey/favorite team day. Students dressed up as memes or wore signs with a meme. On jersey/favorite team day students wore jerseys or favorite sports team merchandise. The spirit week then continued to the next week. Monday was pajama day and Tuesday was crazy sock and hair day. This was my favorite day. Students wore weird socks or they could do something crazy with their hair. On the 30th of October, it was twin/backward day. Students could dress up the same as someone else or they could wear their clothes backwards. Finally, to end red ribbon week on Halloween, students and teachers wore costumes! There were so many good costumes and outfits throughout the week. I hope next year's Red Ribbon Week is as successful as this year's was.
Middle North Mania Srishanth M. Staff Reporter
How would you like to attend a fun social event that all your friends could come and enjoy? Then Mania is the perfect place for you! If you didn't make it this year then you should come next year. It was really fun and had many activities such as a hayride, a magnificent enormous bouncy house maze, a game room, a basketball court for playing, dancing with a live d.j. and many smaller activities. It is sponsored by student council and is meant to be a social event to help students get to know each other better and give them something to do on a Friday night. We are very lucky to have this event, it was a fun night for everyone.
7th Grade Orchestra Festival Arianna R. Staff Reporter
Are you in orchestra and love field trips? Well every year the 7th/8th-grade orchestras have a field trip to the high school and have a concert that same day in the evening. Hawthorn Middle School North used to have 7th and 8th-grade combined orchestras, but the groups were too big. This year 7th Grade Orchestra had their own festival on Tuesday, November 19. They had a field trip during the day to the high school and practiced with the other orchestras. They played with Middle School South and the Vernon Hills High School Philharmonic and Concert orchestras. The songs Blue Mountain by Alexander Safford and Wired Lauren Betnofsky were played by the 7th-grade orchestras. The Concert orchestra played Overture to Rodelinda by George Fredric Handel (Arr. Philip Clark) and Mythos by Soon Hee Newbold. Philharmonic Orchestra played Serenade for Strings First Movement by Anton Dvorak (Jeremy Woolstenhueme) and Passacaglia by Johann Havorsen (Robert Frost). Finally, all the orchestras combined to play Balalaika by James Meredith and Symphony No. 5 First Movement by Franz Schubert. The conductors for the concert and philharmonic orchestras were Dana Green. Nancy Kocal conducted for the 7th grade combined and everyone combined. Everyone sounded incredible and did an amazing job. Be sure to check out future festivals for band and orchestra!
Lake Ecology Arianna R. Staff Reporter
This year 8th grade went on a science based field trip to Independence Grove. The 8th graders were placed into three different groups and there were three different stations. The first station was collecting information about Independence Lake. This was fun as we got to go out in the lake on a boat that we rowed yourselves. We tested water quality by getting water from the surface and from 3, 6, and 9 feet underwater. The second station was to catch microorganisms that were in the lake. We got a net and a bucket and traveled to the lake to try and catch animals. Then we took out finding to a table and saw if the lake water was healthy or not. The last of the three stations was to see what type of land the watershed is. The watershed is the land that is around a water source such as a lake, pond, river, etc. We were given a t-shaped tool to dig out the earth materials. We then tested to see if the watershed had sand, clay, or silt. Overall this was a fun and educational trip.
Snowflake Ghost Writer Staff Reporter
This year's Snowflake was a great success. Approximately 300 students from Middle South, Middle North and Oak Grove attended. In addition, many parents and students from Vernon Hills and Libertyville high schools participated. Snowflake is a fun retreat focusing on personal and social development, promoting sound decision-making and emphasizing teens helping teens. The event was broken up into large group sessions, in which the students watched performances and presentations, and small group sessions, in which they engaged in activities led by high school students and adults.
