Actually overfishing has been a major issue. It is in human nature to take all that we possibly can, and at the same time make technological advances to make it easier to do so. One of the favorite ways (and most wasteful) to catch fish is to use a fishing net. It is actually a very noncomplex device used for the massacre of different species. A fishing boat thrusts a large net overboard, and it drags behind the boat, catching anything in its path. The boat lifts it aboard and because most ships have the equipment needed for canning and freezing onboard, they do not need to dock very often! Now unlike people, nets don’t discriminate. They just catch whatever is in their path, much to the fishermen’s dismay. For every ton of prawns caught, there is three tons of other seafood thrown overboard. Most times they are dead or dying. 20,000 porpoises die in salmon nets in the Atlantic and Pacific oceans yearly. Hundreds of thousands of sea creatures die at the hands of tuna fishermen each year. To be quite frank, this is EXTREMELY wasteful.

Apparently we as humans also have a taste for food high up on the food chain. The perfect example is the tuna fish, which Americans are the largest consumer of each year. Of the people I asked, the majority said they would be willing to switch to seafood lower on the food chain. Tuna fish take longer to reach maturity than other fish, and at the rate we are eating them, they are not having enough time to breed and make more little tuna fish! By simply eating fish lower on the food chain, we can save the tuna!

I hope that in the near future, mankind experiences a revelation that causes us to turn our ways around completely to the point where they are sustainable. People can coexist with the sea, and have since the time of Cleopatra. The mismanagement in the recent past has caused the problems we are just starting to take notice of.

A charter school is schools where a group of five or so teachers come together and apply for state funding and start their own school.

A charter school is a form of a public school, but with nowhere near the amount of controversial things going around.

Now, if I was a straight A public school student, but was nowhere near a charter school, what would I do?

I would stay in a regular public school, where everyone was dumping their kids when they couldn’t afford or weren’t near a charter school.

So, do any students know what a charter school is?

Alexis Phetteplace, an eighth grader, thought it was an online school. This would make sense, but it is not the correct answer.

Riley Roshell, a sixth grader, thought it was a school where people go to learn how to work for Charter. This also made lots of sense.

Trevor Franz, a seventh grader, had absolutely no idea.

I thought at least one of the three I interviewed would have some sort of clue, but then I realized: I had no clue what on Earth they were, until I googled it.

Now, it seemed like everyone knew what a private school is. Probably because they are more common and have been around longer, whereas charter schools are more modern, a new concept.

I bet you didn’t know the average cost for a private school is $6600. Pretty expensive, huh? When I asked, Trevor Franz said that he would not pay that much for an education, because it meant less for college. Alexis Phetteplace said that is would depend on the area she lived in.

Twenty-five percent of all schools in America are private schools, so they’re kind of unavoidable, and eighty-one percent are religious.

Now, back on the topic of charter schools. Another interesting thought: what teachers would you pick to teach you at a charter school? Riley Roshell said he would pick Mr. Kent, Mrs. Wergedal, Mr. Olsen, Mrs. Zimmerman, and Mrs. Drivas.

All answers were similar, mostly students picked teacher from their team. When I asked them why, all three said: because they’re good teachers.

All the people I interviewed said that they thought public schools and private schools should have more interaction, and I have to say, I don’t agree. Why?

Because we already have enough things to take care of individually. This would just create a new set of problems, such as selling drugs, name calling and bullying. They have their views and we have ours. It would just be a bad idea.

Also, everyone I interviewed said that they weren’t even friends with someone from a private school.

Now that you are better educated on the topics, what is your opinion? Are you all for this whole charter/private school thing? Or are you totally opposed?

Dylan Schimmel said, “Web has helped a lot, like with the tour and feeling more comfortable.” Some disagree with Dylan. Cole said that “WEB has not helped.” He wishes the 6^th graders could have picked their own groups. Dylan also agrees with Cole. He wishes that they could have been in a group with at least a few friends. I know some leaders also wish they could have picked out there partner to.

Although some students did not like WEB, a lot of the leaders did! Meghan Chiasky said that everybody was excited and she thought that the 6^th grade orientation was a lot of fun. Eliza Nutzmann said that she still had fun with her partner even though she didn’t get to pick her; she also mentioned that she thinks the school should keep the WEB program at the Chippewa Falls middle school.

In conclusion, 8^th graders and most 6^th graders agree on one thing: WEB should stay at the Chippewa Falls Middle school! A lot of 6^th graders want to be WEB leaders when they are 8^th graders.

I am a WEB leader, a person who helps a small group of new coming 6^th graders. There are two web leaders per group, and that group has six to eight kids. Yes, EVERY 6^th grader has to be in WEB. It was something that they introduced just this year, and WEB leaders have been in training since last year. We had to go to school two days earlier then anybody else, and we have to give up our TA’s every Monday. Is this all really necessary?

Wanting to know what the 6^th graders thought about this new change to the school, I interviewed a couple 6^th graders. I asked Sabrina Greener if she thinks that WEB is necessary, and she thought that it wasn’t, because “We don’t need teachers to guide us through our 6^th grade year.”

I think that the most memorable moment had to be the first WEB party, which had all of the WEB leaders, 6^th graders, and most of the teachers. Here’s the best part: The teachers where like cheerleaders! I thought that it was entertaining, although I could tell that some kids where a little shy…

While the first WEB party was fun, there is plenty more to come! I don’t want to spoil anything, but let’s just say that it’s going to be interesting! The new 6^th graders and WEB leaders are going to have a great year.

Lindsay, Eliza, Kortney, and Chelsea think that we should be able to carry them around if we filled them up at school. Lindsay and Chelsea would not put anything else but water in them. Eliza said it depended on what her mood was for the day. Kortney would maybe do it. Lindsay said she would be irritated if she could not get a drink, as would Kortney. Eliza, Lindsay, Kortney, and Chelsea think that a lot of people would carry around water bottles. All the girls said they get really thirsty in the middle of class when a teacher is talking. Chelsea even said she sometimes gets thirsty in the middle of class.  Kortney, Lindsay, Eliza, Chelsea think people will put something bad in it. One girl stated that she would not wait to get a drink so she will not be late for class. Eliza and Chelsea said they would get a pass from their teacher. Kortney does not know what she would do. Eliza said she would start a hissy fit if half the class got a drink but not her.  Chelsea said she would wait and that is why I choose to talk about water bottles.

“The Cardinal’s Chant” brought Bresina’s and Bob’s team spirit right up. It goes like this…*clap* *clap* *clap* *clap*, READY, READY, BREAKDOWN! … CARDS! … BREAKDOWN! … CARDS! … BREAKDOWN! … CARDS! … OOOOOOOOoooooooh…. “The chant is really cool!” says an athlete from CFMS. That pumps the Cardinals up at the beginning and end of every single game of the season. It also intimidates the other team!

Every Chippewa Falls Cardinal Football team runs a “double-wing” offense and a “3-4” or “4-4” defense. A “double-wing” offense means that there are 2 Running backs, 1 Fullback, 1 Quarterback, 2 Tight Ends, 2 Guards, 2 Tackles, 2 Guards, and 1 Center all in a “tight formation”. They also run “3-4” defense which means 3 players on the line and 4 in the backfield (not including the safety).

One of the kids told me some ways to prevent ways to stop bullying at school. Some of them were to put up posters and to have more teachers in the hallway. The place in the school where the most students get bullied would have to be the hallway.

77,017 kids in Wisconsin stay home from school every day because they get bullied. Most of the kids at CFMS get bullied during passing time. When you walk down the hallway you can see if someone gets bullied. For example, slamming someone’s books onto the ground than you run away is bullying. Pushing someone into the wall is another case. You may not think you’re bullying that person, but that person may be hurting inside.

Bullying is a serious problem here at CFMS. To find out more information about bullying and how to prevent it, go to www.stopbullying.gov or call 1-800-448-3000. Thank You!

Boys, when you say you like a girl and the next day you are telling their best friend or even another girl, you liking them are sending both the girls mixed signals. Flirting with other girls in front of your ex, trying to get them back may not always work. Yeah, we may get jealous, but sometimes the outcome of flirting with another girl won’t end up to well for you. I asked Lexi Levine what she thinks, and her response was that when boys “fart” in front of a girl it’s gross!

I asked Xarra, and Nastaja and they all said “No they don’t work!” When I asked Lexi Levine and Ally what they think on pick up lines, and they both said, “Some of their pick-up lines don’t work, especially not the cheesy ones” Lexi said, “Some, like the one, if you were a bugger I’d pick you first.”

Let’s face it. We all accidently slip and say something that gets us in trouble. When you’re trying to be flirty, and sometimes you slip and say something that hurts a girl’s feelings. Well, here are some things to watch out for and not say or do. Lexi said, “Making fun of me. They think it’s funny but it’s not.”  One BIG NO NO is when you tell a girl, girlfriend, or your crush that they look like your EX. You never want to do that; to a girl that is the biggest insult.

Is 8^th grade even fun? If you make it fun, it will be a good time. If you are good in school you will have the chance to go to the Mall of America and Valley Fair. Be good, and it will be worth it.

Teachers are very rewarding if you do good in school and work hard. Most of the time if you don’t have any punches and receive a lot of cardinal credits, you’ll go on a field trip or get a different reward.