How to make hot cocoa mix (makes 45 servings)

Provided by Sophie Johnston and Lucia Nelson

10cups of dry milk powder

1 ¾ cups of unsweetened cocoa powder

4 ¾ sifted sugar

1 ¾ cups of powdered non-dairy creamer

            In a large bowl pour in milk powder, sugar, cocoa powder and creamer. Stir the ingredients until smooth. Then pour into an air tight compartment, next when you are ready to drink it add ¾ cup of boiling water, stir till dissolved and enjoy!

*Recipe from allrecipes.com 

How to say “hi” in 5 different languages

By Cami Palmer

                There are many ways to say “hi” to one another around the world. In Italian, to say “hi” in a more informal way, you say ciào, pronounced chow. In Greek, you say Γεια σου, pronounced YAH soo. To say “hi” in Austrian, you say grüß Gott, pronounced gruess got. In Dutch, you can greet someone by saying goedendag or hallo. Lastly, in Latin, you can say salve, pronounced sal-way, when talking to 1 person and Salvete, pronounced sal-way-tay, when talking to more than one person. There are so many other ways to say “hi” around the globe, too! 

Holiday Interviews

By Nathan Ma

Do you celebrate any holidays? Have you ever thought of what other people celebrate? Well, some other people don’t celebrate holidays the way you do. Read below to see how some students celebrate their holidays!

What is your favorite holiday? How do you celebrate it?

Evan Hamilton- My favorite holiday is Christmas and I celebrate it by putting up Christmas decorations and opening presents.

Josiah Nash- My favorite holiday is the Fourth of July and I celebrate it by blowing up fireworks.

Lexi Grigg- My favorite holiday is Christmas and I celebrate it by spending time with my family, and opening presents.

Jacob Flores- My favorite holiday is Hanukah and I celebrate it by lighting the menorah.

Gage Hayden- My favorite holiday is Christmas and I celebrate it by going to church and opening presents.

These are some examples of people’s opinions of what their favorite holidays are, and I hope you can see that people celebrate holidays in different ways.

Wood Pencils vs Mechanical Pencils

By Cami Palmer

          A debate that some kids seem to have is which kind of pencil is better. Some say wood, some say mechanical.

          There are good things about wood pencils, like that they don’t break as easily as mechanical. You don’t need to buy lead to make your pencil work, either. There is no risk of lead poisoning because a regular wood pencil has no lead in it, it’s just a mix of graphite and clay. You can write about 45,000 words with just one of these wood pencils! Wood pencils can write underwater and in zero gravity.

          Pluses for mechanical pencils is that they don’t waste trees. Mechanical Pencils never need sharpening! A mechanical pencil will create a more consistent line width. Another good thing about mechanical pencils is that they are more durable than wood pencils. They also don’t get any shorter than their original size, unlike wood pencils. Some people think that they are more comfortable to hold and to write with than wooden pencils.

          What side will you take- mechanical pencils or wood pencils? 

Stuco Responsibilities

By Cami Palmer

            In the West Student Council (Stuco), they have a lot of responsibilities! Stuco kids have a lot on their plates. Here are some examples.

            They have to ask around for ideas, feedback, and suggestions. They do this with surveys and by mouth. Once Stuco gets an idea, event, or information, that they want to advertise, they have to get the word out! They can do this by putting up a slide in the announcements, hanging up flyers, and by mouth.

Sometimes when something is really important, Stuco will split up and go around to all of the different advisories and give a Powerpoint presentation. An example of one of their presentations was when one or two students came into advisories and talked about the dance expectations.

Stuco members must set up for some of the events at West! For the Wild Wild West dance that we had recently, they had to show up at 5:00 p.m. to set up. Stuco had 45 minutes to get it all set up! Then, when the event is over, they had to stay behind to clean up and put everything back where it belongs. 

            One last responsibility that Stuco has is listening to the students and teachers/staff of West Middle School! They are able to fix concerns that you may have, or improve the school with an idea from you! Remember- these are just some of the responsibilities that Stuco students have! 

3-Minute Trail Mix

By: Molly A Roecker

Ingredients:

·  ½  cup of lightly salted peanuts

·  1/2 cup of dark chocolate chips

·  ¼ cup of sunflower seeds

·  ½ cup of almonds

·  ½ cup of raisins

·  ½ cup of cashews

Materials:

·  A mixing bowl

·  Measuring cups (1/2, ¼)

·  A spoon

·  Sandwich bags ( optional, for leftovers)

Instructions:

Add all your ingredients to the bowl and mix with a spoon. Then add them to the sandwich bags for storage, if you like. They will last for around a week. 

Disclaimer: If there are any ingredients you are allergic to or don't like, you can substitute them for any ingredient you like