Seasonal Topic
Lent and Ramadan
By: Musa Hans
03/21/2025
In the last edition of the “Seasonal Topic,” we briefly discussed the two religious fasting seasons that take place in March this year. These are Lent and Ramadan. Many Christian groups observe Lent, and Muslims observe Ramadan. There are many similarities between them, but also some differences.
To start, Lent is the 40-day-long season of fasting celebrated by Catholics and other denominations like Lutherans, and Anglicans, while some Baptists, Methodists, and Presbyterians also choose to observe it. The start of it is marked with Ash Wednesday. The purpose of Lent is to focus on Jesus and the Bible, as well as to reflect on how one is leading one's life. The word "Lent" has Germanic roots, and it essentially means the lengthening of days. The celebration of Lent lasts 40 days, and this comes from the Bible, where the number 40 stands for “discipline, devotion, and preparation.” The number 40 appears when Elijah traveled 40 days until he arrived at the cave where he had his vision, it appears when the Israelites were in the desert with Moses for 40 years, and it appears when Jesus went into the desert to fast for 40 days.
Ramadan is a month on the Islamic calendar, which follows the moon. Like Lent, it is a season of fasting that focuses on the Quran and God. It is mainly celebrated by Sunni Muslims but is also celebrated by Shias. It is only mentioned once in the Quran, but we still have lots of information about it. From dawn to dusk, nothing is allowed to go in your mouth. At the end, Eid is celebrated.
There are lots of similarities between Lent and Ramadan. For example, they are both a time of fasting that is dedicated to focusing on the holy book of each religion respectively. They are also both ended by big feasts, prayers, and celebrations (Easter and Eid). Did you know that this year, we have the day off from school on Eid, because it’s on a weekday? We also have school off on Good Friday, the day when the passion and crucifixion of Jesus are observed with a day of solemnity, prayer, and going to Mass.
In conclusion, there are lots of similarities and some differences between Lent and Ramadan, and there are lots of different ways that people celebrate their holidays and religions.
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March Holidays
By: Musa Hans
03/07/2025
March has just started, and there are many events and holidays this month. In this article, we will talk about some of the big things happening soon, like Locura de Marzo, Leprechaun’s Day, Lent, and Ramadan.
You probably know that March is reading month, but you might not know that there is an official bracket (here’s the link). It includes middle-grade novels like The Misfits. If you’re not in one of Ms. Syme’s Spanish classes, then you might not know that there is a spinoff of Reading Month, Locura de Marzo. It is a Spanish music competition (don’t worry, you don’t need to know Spanish) where you vote on songs (here’s the link).
You probably also know about Leprechaun’s Day (also known as St. Patrick’s Day). Did you know that it is a national holiday in some places like Ireland? Although it isn’t a federal holiday in the United States, it is still celebrated by many families and some schools too.
You also might have heard of Ramadan. It is a month on the Islamic calendar that falls perfectly on March 1st this year. During Ramadan, Muslims fast from dawn to dusk. At the end of Ramadan, Eid Al-Fitr is celebrated by having a huge feast and special prayers.
There is also the 40-day-long Christian season of holy worship called Lent. Like Ramadan, Lent is a special season with lots of fasting and prayer. It starts on Ash Wednesday and ends at sundown on Holy Thursday.
There are also lots of other, lesser-known holidays and historic events. For example, on March 15, 44 B.C., Julius Caesar was stabbed to death. And on March 25, there is National Medal of Honor day.
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From largely celebrated holidays to smaller festivities, March has many holidays, and all of them are celebrated by lots of different people.
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Presidents Day
By: Musa Hans
02/21/2025
You probably thought our most recent break was only due to Valentine's Day. But did you know, that we would've had school on Monday if not for Presidents Day? In this article, we will talk about why February 17 is Presidents Day and the history behind it.
The reason that February 17 is Presidents Day is because it is George Washington’s birthday, and because he was the first president, they made the date February 17 to honor him. Presidents Day was made official in 1879, but it was only celebrated in Washington D.C. until 1885, when it was officially recognized as a national holiday (which means no work or school). Although Presidents Day was originally made to honor President George Washington, it isn’t always celebrated on February 17. It is always the third Monday of February, and the first Presidents Day just so happened to be on February 17, 1879, 157 years after the birth of the first president of the United States of America.
Even before it was made an official holiday, Presidents Day was celebrated when George Washington was in office. A tradition of President Washington and the other members of the government was that every year, they would take a short break on George Washington’s birthday. This was even voted on in congress and observed all 8 years of Washington’s presidency, except for his last birthday in office. Even while most people refer to the holiday as Presidents Day, the official name is George Washington’s Birthday. Even over 200 years later, we still have the tradition of having his birthday off from school and work.
In conclusion, Presidents Day was made to honor our first president, George Washington, and even more than 200 years later, many of the same traditions are followed.
Presidential Inauguration
By: Musa Hans
01/31/2025
President Donald Trump was inaugurated Monday of last week, on January 20th. But, did you know that there are a lot of traditions for the Presidential Inauguration? One of them is the Inaugural Ball. Our own Mr. Kacz attended former President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Ball. In this article, we will talk about the facts and traditions of the Presidential Inauguration.
There are many traditions in the peaceful transfer of power that is the United States Presidential Inauguration. For example, the president and president-elect have a meeting and discuss current world affairs. On the day itself, the president-elect is sworn in at a big ceremony. After that, the now-president and First Family move into the White House. Before the move, the former president will say goodbye to the White House staff, and when the new president moves in, he will greet the staff. In a special tradition, the First Lady will invite the former First Lady to give the First Family a tour of the quarters.
The ceremony of the presidential inauguration is usually filmed on television. A special rule is that if January 20th, the day when all presidential inaugurations take place, falls on a Sunday, the inauguration will be postponed until the next day, which would be Monday, January 21st. After the inauguration, a ball is held with lots of people. Mr. Kacz attended former President Obama’s inaugural ball (see the middle school website for pictures). It just so happened that this year, President Trump’s inauguration fell on Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday. Since they are both public holidays, either would have meant a day off from school or work, but they were on the same day!
In conclusion, there are many special traditions and facts about this historic and important day, and we only covered a few of them, so if you’re still interested, click on the link in the sources.
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Winter Activites
By: Musa Hans
12/20/2024
In our last publication, we talked about skiing. We covered how and where to ski, and the different types of hills you can ski. In this article, I want to expand on winter activities. We will cover things and experiences you can do in the winter and popular vacation destinations for winter break.
The are a lot of different winter activities that you can do. One of the most popular activities is sledding. What makes sledding so popular is the fact that all you need is a hill, a little bit of snow, and a sled, which is essentially a piece of wood or plastic. Many people can even do it in their backyard. So, you most likely have gone sledding in your life, but have you ever heard of snow tubing?
Snow tubing is like sledding, but you don’t use a sled. Instead, you use a pool tube. When you use a pool tube, you don’t cut through the snow like you would on a sled. Sleds are long, like arrows, while a pool tube is round, like a frisbee. An arrow goes straight through the air, but a frisbee spins through the air instead of cutting through it. When you go tubing, not only do you spin, but you also have a bumpier ride because you’re not cutting through the snow.
Next, we will talk about winter break vacation destinations. Many families prefer to travel to warmer areas, like Florida or the Bahamas. They like warm beaches and a getaway from all the cold weather. Some families like the cold and travel to Canada to go skiing or snowboarding. After all, they do have a lot of nice snowsport resorts, like Deerhurst Resort, where my family has a family reunion every year. Most resorts have ski or snowboarding hills on the property, but some, like Deerhurst, have other activities, like cross-country skiing and snowmobiling on the property, and instead have ski spots close by.
There are many things that people like to do and different places where they like to go in the winter, and although preferences vary, it’s always fun in the end.
Guide to Skiing
By: Musa Hans
12/06/2024
Michigan offers many winter activities. Being farther north, we have a lot of snow, which allows for a wider variety of winter activities, like skiing, snowboarding, and sledding. In this article, we will discuss skiing, specifically how to do it better, and where to go to ski.
Skiing can be difficult for some people to master, but it becomes quite seamless once you get the hang of it. The thing most people get wrong (including me on my first time) is balance. When you're going down a hill, you need to bend your knees and tilt your skies in the direction you want to turn. Many people are also afraid of falling. If you think you will fall, try to fall backward, that way your landing is softer and you remain in control.
There are a couple of different places where you can go skiing in Michigan. One of them is Pine Knob, where a ski club is hosted. Another is Mount Holly, and there is also Crystal Mountain. There are good places to ski in Canada, like Deerhurst Resort, if you’re up for the drive. There are other lesser-known ski resorts, like Boyne Mountain and Bittersweet Ski Resort, but the two most popular mountains in Michigan are Pine Knob and Mount Holly, each with legendary hills.
After you learn to ski, there are a couple of different hills you can do. There are bunny hills, during your learning process, but after that, you enter the official ranking system. At the bottom of the chain is the beginner hills. These are symbolized by a green circle in North America and Japan, but a green square in Europe. Next comes the Intermediate level, often represented by a blue square in North America, but a red circle in Europe and Japan. Next is the expert: a black diamond in North America, and a black circle in Europe and Japan. This is where the European and Japanese ranking system ends. In North America, the black diamond is followed by the double black diamond, or expert only. The last rank is the terrain park, an orange bubble, which is a freestyle hill with lots of obstacles and jumps. One should not attempt a hill beyond Intermediate without lots of practice.
There are many more interesting details to the world of skiing, and once you get the hang of it, it is a thrilling experience. It is my favorite winter activity and a fun thing to do with your friends. The season just started, so have fun!
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Electoral College Explained
By: Musa Hans
11/15/2024
The United States presidential election is based on a complicated system dating back over 200 years. This system is called the Electoral College, and in this article, we will explain its history and how it works. Then, we will apply the new information to the 2024 U.S. presidential election.
The Electoral College system is the way the outcome of the presidential election is determined. Each state is assigned a number of electoral votes based on the sum of senators and state representatives it has (all states have 2 senators). For example, Michigan has two senators and 13 representatives, therefore it has 15 electoral votes. Washington D.C. is counted as a separate state and has three electoral votes. There are 100 senators and 435 representatives (the maximum according to federal law), plus two senators and one representative for Washington D.C. So, there are 538 total electoral votes, and whoever wins 270 of the votes is declared president of the United States of America.
In order for a candidate to win all of the electoral votes of a state, they must have the most votes in that state. However, in 48 out of 50 states, if a candidate wins more votes than anyone else, but not the majority of the votes, then the two candidates that got the most votes have a runoff election, and the winner wins the electoral votes in that state. This is called the rule of Plurality and is applicable in this unlikely circumstance in all states except for Nebraska and Maine, where the person with the most votes wins the state's electoral votes. Electoral votes are never divided (with a few exceptions that we aren’t going to get into in this article), and the winner usually takes all the votes from that state.
The electoral college system is 237 years old. It was created by the Founding Fathers in 1787 as part of the Constitution. Throughout all these years and all the U.S. elections, the Electoral College system has been used in all of them, since the very beginning. It was created as a compromise between the ideas of Congress deciding the president and the people voting on it. However, it also means that a candidate could win the popular vote but lose the electoral vote and therefore lose the election, which was, in fact, the case in the 2016 presidential election, when Donald Trump beat Hillary Clinton by the electoral vote, even though he lost the popular vote.
However, that is not the case in the 2024 U.S. election. Former President Donald Trump won 312 electoral votes and the popular vote (as of November 10th), while Vice President Kamala Harris won 226 (as of November 10th). No other candidate won any electoral votes.
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The History of Halloween
By: Musa Hans
10/18/2024
Many people in the US celebrate Halloween, but most don’t know the history behind it. Halloween has been celebrated for over two thousand years and has developed quite a story.
Did you know, that Halloween originated as a pre-Christian Celtic festival called Samhain, which means summer’s end? The Halloween we know and celebrate today has changed in more ways than one.
Halloween has a very long and diverse history dating back to around 0 CE. It was originally celebrated by Celtic people to mark the end of the year's harvest. This festival was called Samhain, meaning summer’s end. It also celebrated the crossing of souls into another world. In Ireland, the UK, and France, people used to ward off ghosts by lighting bonfires and wearing costumes. Trick-or-treating also has an interesting history. In Scotland, the precursor to trick-or-treating was known as “guising.” People would dress up as ghosts to scare people into giving them food or money. Hundreds of years later, this evolved into trick-or-treating.
They also had lots of unique traditions back then. For example, women would dress fancily and try to find husbands. They also followed lots of rituals. For example, the women threw apple peels over their shoulders. These traditions evolved to shape and form the Halloween we know today. Jack-o'-lanterns have a very interesting story behind them as well. The legend has it that long ago, a man named Stingy Jack outsmarted the devil into never letting him enter hell. But because of this, he wasn’t allowed to enter heaven either. So, he was forever cursed to roaming the Earth with nothing but a piece of coal in a carved out onion.
The reason we have all these myths and traditions is because in 1840, many Irish people fled their country because of the potato famine and immigrated to the United States. They told all their stories and traditions and created the Halloween we know and celebrate today.
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The Science Behind Fall
By: Musa Hans
10/04/2024
Apple picking, beautiful colors, cider mills, and trick-or-treating make fall an amazing time of year. So many things happen this season, like the Autumnal Equinox, the leaves change colors, and so much more. However, many people do not know the science behind fall, why we can do these activities, and why these events occur only in the fall and not at any other time of the year.
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The Autumnal Equinox is when the axis of the Earth switches sides. This is why we have seasons. This is the time when the northern hemisphere turns away from the sun. When we are away from the sun, it gets colder. That is why fall and winter are more frigid than spring and summer. It gets hotter on the other side of the world when it gets colder here. But we aren’t the only ones affected by the weather change. Let's explore why leaves change color. This happens because in the fall, the days get shorter and the temperature gets cooler. This slows down chlorophyll production (the pigment plants use to make food) in the leaves, and eventually, production stops completely. As this happens, other pigments in the leaves, such as carotenoids and anthocyanins become more visible, making the leaves appear yellow and orange.
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While the carotenoid (yellow) pigments are always there, anthocyanins (red) are only produced in the fall. Now, as the chlorophyll washes away, these pigments finally get a chance to show off their beautiful reds and yellows. The brilliant colors give you the illusion of flames dancing among the treetops. Interestingly, the color red is unique to North America and East Asia. Scientists think this is because 35 million years ago, trees in North America and East Asia survived the Ice Age. After all, the mountain ranges spanning from the North to the South protected the trees. As the trees survived, so did the insects and pests that fed on them. The trees evolved to produce red leaves to deter the bugs, which were attracted to the color yellow.
That is why we in Michigan get to enjoy beautiful displays of color in the fall as we sip our apple cider. Another fall fun fact is that many people think that apple juice and apple cider are the same, but they aren’t. Apple juice has lots of preservatives and can be stored for long periods, which is why you can find it on the shelves of grocery stores, even in the off-season. Apple cider, however, is purely the juice of apples, with no chemicals or preservatives at all. This is why apple cider is such a seasonal beverage. So, to make apple cider, all you have to do is cut an apple in half and squeeze it.
There are so many more events that take place in the fall, and although we couldn’t cover them all in this article, there is a scientific explanation for all of them. I hope by understanding more about the science behind fall, you can enjoy bragging to your friends about how you know why leaves change colors.
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