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Word of the Month: Xenophobia: A fear of foreigners or strangers ​ ​

Quote of the Month: “Don’t worry about failures, worry about the chances you miss when you don’t even try.” ~ Unknown

Fact of the Month Cherophobia is the fear of fun. By: Asha Chauhan

Thanksgiving Factsќ BY: Victoria Surdacki

❖The first was in 1621 and was celebrated for three days. ❖ In 1941, Congress declared Thanksgiving a national holiday which is the 4th Thursday in November. ❖ 91% of Americans eat . ❖ About 20% of all cranberries that are consumed in the U.S. are eaten on Thanksgiving. ❖ About 280 million turkeys are sold on Thanksgiving. ❖ Only male turkeys gobble, females cackle.

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❖ Thanksgiving is ranked the 2nd most popular holiday after . ❖ There were no turkeys or forks at the time of the first Thanksgiving. ❖Thomas Jefferson thought that Thanksgiving was the most ridiculous holiday ever, so Benjamin Franklin named the male turkeys Tom in spite of him. ❖“” was originally a Thanksgiving song.

ќ More Thanksgiving Fun Facts!ќ By: Amrit Kaur 1. Three towns in the U.S. take their name from the traditional Thanksgiving bird, including Turkey, Turkey Creek, Louisiana and Turkey, North Carolina.

2. The famous Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade began in the 1920’s.

3. Thanksgiving Day is celebrated on the second Monday in October in .

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4. issued a ‘​Thanksgiving Proclamation​’ on the third October of 1863 and officially set aside the last Thursday of November as the national day for Thanksgiving. Whereas earlier, the presidents used to make an annual proclamation to specify the day when Thanksgiving was to be held.

5. Californians are the largest consumers of turkey in the .

6. Ben Franklin wanted the turkey to be our national bird. According to him, an eagle had "bad moral character." A turkey, on the other hand, was a "much more respectable bird."

7. The early settlers gave thanks by praying and fasting, which is what they planned on doing to celebrate their first harvest, that is, until the Indians joined them and (lucky for us!) turned their fast into a three-day feast.

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Thanksgiving Jokes By: Rosamargot Chang Grade 6

1: What key can't open any doors? ~A turkey! 2: What do you say when it's raining turkeys? ~There's foul weather outside! 3: What happened to the poor turkey when he got in a fight? ~He got the knocked right out of him! 4: What side of a turkey has more feathers? ~The outside of course! 5: Why did the turkey cross the street? ~The chicken had the day off! 6: How did the scarecrow win his first Nobel Prize? ~He was out standing in his field!

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FIVE FUN FACTS ABOUT WINTER by: Mackenzie Bruce

FACT ONE Our Northern Hemisphere is the closest to the sun during this season.

FACT TWO It begins on the Winter Solstice and ends on the Vernal Equinox.

FACT THREE When it is winter in the Southern Hemisphere, it is summer in the Northern Hemisphere.

FACT FOUR Wind chill can cause problems during the winter. Wind chill is the combination of wind and temperature and is based on the rate of heat loss from exposed skin.

FACT FIVE In the United States, Christmas, , , New Year’s Day, President’s Day, Valentine’s Day, and all take place in winter.

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THE BOOK CORNER WHERE ONE COULD FIND AN EXCITING, FRESH BOOK. BY SEUN OLANREWAJU *All books have been selected from Goodreads 2016 Choice Awards book list.

Thirteen Reasons Why By Jay Asher ​ ​

Thirteen Reasons Why is a young adult book for mature readers. ​ Heavy topics take place in this book. With this in mind, those who Thirteen Reasons Why can handle should read the book. It ​ ​ captivates challenges and problems that adolescents face today. Jay Asher writes about a guy named Clay Jenson who unravels the mystery of Hannah who succeeded in her suicide attempt. He discovers that he is one of the thirteen reasons why she committed suicide. Clay Jensen will be revealed the truth that might change his life in this book about overcoming tragedies and discovering the true self that one really is.

Lily and the Octopus By Steven Rowley

Lily and the Octopus is a quirky fiction tale about Ted Flask’s ​ companion, which is a dog. Sometimes the one you trust and the one you can’t live without could be an animal. The emotional depth and magical spirit of the book creates an environment where one’s imagination can explore the amazing advantages of reading .

This is Where It Ends By Marieke Nijkamp

Follow the four perspectives of students who are caught in a life changing event, where the ultimate game of survival takes place. A shooting is an incident that any individual could not predict. However, with a student out for revenge in Opportunity High School, students must make rash but reasonable decisions. This is a contemporary and realistic fiction novel where teens are exposed to and educated on life threatening situations.

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Mock Election 2016 ​ ​ By: Rosamargot Chang

This year’s election got pretty heated, pretty quickly! So who's to say kids can't have a choice in it at all, well at least for fun, right? On Thursday, November 3rd, select sixth grade social studies classes got the honor of voting for their favorite presidential nominee! Including all four candidates, 2 U.S representatives, public questions one and two, AND the “write in section” the ballot looked almost identical to the real one. Students placed their “ballot” in a small box and all votes were kept confidential unless independently shared by choice. On Friday, November 4th, the results were revealed!

Hillary Clinton WON, taking an astonishing 56 percent of all the votes! Donald Trump received second place with 29 percent of the votes, which is almost half as much as Hillary’s votes! Jill Stein was honored, coming in as a third place winner with six percent of the votes. Next, Gary Johnson had 3 percent of the votes. Last but never least, the “write in/no vote/other” section took 6 percent of the votes. With a total of 154 votes placed, the students really did have the opportunity to “vote” this year. Even though our votes won't go into the real election, at least the students’ opinions were expressed through the Mock Election!

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* Thank you to Mr.Lucibello for for publishing all of the statistics in his classroom, this article couldn't have been done without him.

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Election Survival Hacks: For the next crazy election!

By: Vanja Zaninovic

Though the election may be over, there will always be a next one! Take the next 4 to 8 years to prepare yourself! 1. Make sure to keep up with articles online. They ​ ​ can be key to knowing which direction the election is going.

2. Be clear about which candidate you are rooting ​ for. It is important that you know who you stand for, or else the election will definitely get confusing.

3. Do your research. Don’t make an uneducated decision about who you stand for. It is of ​ high importance that you know which platform would most benefit you and your family.

4. Stop the hate! Make sure you don’t pressure others to side with your favorite candidate. ​ Whatever you choose to represent is fine, but it’s not okay to try and change other people’s beliefs. Respect them and their decisions.

5. Watch and learn. Pay close attention to the candidates and their behaviors, as well as ​ the way they behave in public. Watching the debates is a big help and a big dealbreaker.

Follow these lifehacks, and you are bound to come out of this election worry free! While we may not be able to vote, a student’s voice is as important as anyone's. Make sure you are making the right decisions and are both educated and happy while doing so.

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5 iPhone Life Hacks By: Sinal Patel

1. If you're in a hurry and you need to charge your iPhone, don’t worry, plug in your iPhone to your charger and put your phone onto airplane mode. Your phone will charge twice as fast making it quicker for you to get out the door. It’s a real time saver!

2. It’s common for you to type in the wrong digit when you use the calculator on your iPhone. I have a tip for you that will help you delete the unwanted number. Simply swipe the number you put in on the calculator screen from left to right, and the unwanted number will be deleted.

3. When you’re taking a photo of someone or merely taking a selfie, sometimes it can be hard to click the button that takes the photo. Instead of clicking on the button, click on the volume button. It can be the any of the volume buttons and it will capture a clear photo.

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4. With the new IOS 7 update, the multitask bar (double click the home button) can let you close up to three apps in one swipe. Just remember to use three fingers.

5. It gets tough to not use up all of your storage on your iPhone. So if you get the constant reminder that your storage is almost full, download Dropbox. It’s a free app that downloads all of your photos from your camera roll. Once all of your photos are downloaded, you can delete the crowded photos on your camera roll which will create more storage on your iPhone. The best part of this app: if you accidently delete it, you can just redownload it again and log back in. Your photos will still be saved. Plus, Dropbox automatically downloads all your photos. Every time you take a picture, it automatically appears on Dropbox.

November: Filled with National Days! By: maram souda

November 1st: National Calzone Day-National Authors’ Day-National Family ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Literacy Day-National Cook For Your Pets Day-National Vinegar Day-National Deep ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Fried Clams Day-National Brush Day-National Stress Awareness Day–First ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Wednesday in November

November 2nd: National Deviled Egg Day-Traffic Directors Day ​ ​ ​ ​

November 3rd: National Housewife’s Day-National Sandwich Day-National Men ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Make Dinner Day–First Thursday in November ​

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November 4th: National Jersey Friday-National Chicken Lady Day-National Candy ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Day

November 5th: National Day-National Love Your Red Hair Day-National ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Bison Day–First Saturday in November ​

November 6th: National Nachos Day-Saxophone Day-Daylight Saving Time ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Ends–First Sunday in November ​

November 7th: National Bittersweet Chocolate with Day-Job Action ​ ​ ​ Day-Color the World Orange Day-National Canine Lymphoma Awareness Day ​ ​ ​ ​

November 8th: National Cappuccino Day-National Harvey Wallbanger Day-National ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Parents as Teachers Day-National STEM/STEAM Day ​ ​

November 9th: Microtia Awareness Day-National Scrapple Day ​ ​ ​ ​

November 10th: Marine Corps Birthday-National Forget-Me-Not Day-National ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Vanilla Cupcake Day November 11th: National Sundae Day- ​ ​ ​

November 12th: National Pizza with the Works Except Anchovies Day-National ​ ​ ​ ​ Chicken Soup for the Soul Day

November 13th: National Indian Pudding Day ​ ​

November 14th: National Pickle Day-National Spicy Guacamole Day ​ ​ ​ ​

November 15th: National Bundt (Pan) Day- National Philanthropy Day-National ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Clean Out Your Refrigerator Day- National Spicy Hermit Cookie Day- National ​ ​ ​ ​ Raisin Bran Cereal Day- America Recycles Day ​ ​

November 16th: National Fast Food Day-National Button Day- National Educational ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Support Professionals Day–Wednesday of American Education Week ​

November 17th: National Baklava Day-National Take A Hike Day- Great American ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Smokeout–Thursday Before Thanksgiving ​

November 18th: National Vichyssoise Day-Mickey Mouse’s Birthday ​ ​ ​ ​

November 19th: National Carbonated Beverage With Caffeine Day-National Play ​ ​ ​ ​ Monopoly Day-National Adoption Day–Saturday Before Thanksgiving ​ ​ ​

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November 20th: National Peanut Fudge Day-National Absurdity Day ​ ​ ​

November 21st: National Stuffing Day ​ ​

November 22nd: National Cranberry Relish Day ​ ​

November 23rd: National Jukebox Day–Day Before Thanksgiving-National Cashew ​ ​ ​ ​ Day-National Eat a Cranberry Day-National Espresso Day-Tie One On Day–Day ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Before Thanksgiving

November 24th: National Sardines Day-National Day of –Fourth ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Thursday in November-Thanksgiving Day–Fourth Thursday in ​ ​ November-Turkey-free Thanksgiving–Fourth Thursday in November ​ ​

November 25th: National Parfait Day-Blasé Day- Shopping Reminder Day-National ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Day of Listening–Day After Thanksgiving- National Native American Heritage ​ ​ Day–Day After Thanksgiving-–Day After Thanksgiving-Buy Nothing ​ ​ ​ ​ Day–Day After Thanksgiving-Flossing Day–Day After Thanksgiving- Day–Day ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ After Thanksgiving-You’re Welcome Giving Day–Day After Thanksgiving ​ ​

November 26th: National Cake Day-–Saturday After ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Thanksgiving

November 27th: National Craft Jerky Day-National Bavarian Cream Day ​ ​ ​ ​

November 28th: National French Toast Day-–Monday After ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Thanksgiving

November 29th: Electronic Greetings Day-National Day of Giving–GivingTuesday ​ ​ ​ ​

November 30th: National Package Protection Day-National Mousse Day-National ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Meth Awareness Day-Computer Security Day-Stay Home Because You’re Well ​ ​ ​ ​ Day-Rockefeller Center Tree Lighting –Changes Annually ​ ​ ​

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Unique Thanksgiving Crafts By Alexandra Bartoszek and Amelia Siczek

PINECONE TURKEYS These turkeys would make great centerpieces for your Thanksgiving feast!

Materials ● Feathers ● Googly Eyes ● Pinecones ● Orange Felt ● Glue Directions

1. Take your pinecones and put them on their side. 2. Take your feathers and glue them onto the base of the pinecone until they look like the tail of a turkey. 3. Take the googly eyes and glue them onto the pinecones. 4. Take the orange felt and cut a triangle. Glue it under the eyes. 5. Let it dry and put it as a centerpiece at your Thanksgiving feast!

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LIGHTED LEAF CENTERPIECES This project is very fun to make and it also would look amazing as a centerpiece on your dining room table!

Materials: ● Maple Tree Leaves ● A jar ● Glue ● Red, orange, OR brown string (optional)

Directions: 1. Take your jar and make sure it doesn’t have anything on it or in it. 2. Take your glue and a bunch of your maple tree leaves and glue them to the sides of your jar. 3. Glue one maple tree leaf to the bottom of the jar. 4. Place a tealight candle in the center of the jar on the spot where you glued the maple tree leaf in the previous step. 5. (Optional) After this step, you can take a piece of the red, orange, OR brown

string you have at tie it around the top of the jar as an accessory.

6. Now, all it takes for the finishing touches is to light the candle and put it in the center of your dining room table! Tada! You just finished your own centerpiece! Now you can present it to your family, friends, and guests! Have fun!

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Pumpkin DIY

You will need: ★A mason jar​ ​ ★Brown and orange paint ★A small knob ★Green paper/cardstock ★Twine or string (optional) ★Any form of crazy glue (hot glue, etc.)

Step 1: Start by painting the lid of the mason jar brown. While ​ ​ waiting for the paint to dry, you can begin cutting out two leaves from the green cardstock.

Step 2: Glue those leaves to the bottom of the wooden knob. (If you want, you can even paint the “stem” also known as the knob) For extra effect, you can take the twine and glue it on the bottom of the knob, or you can take green string, use any method of curling it and do the same with glueing it onto the bottom of the knob.

Step 3: Pour some orange paint into the jar. You can either just twist the jar around to make it evenly spread out or you can use a paint brush to spread it out. Wait until dry to twist on cap.

Step 4: Enjoy the jar by putting in some festive candy or just leave it as a decoration! There you have your pumpkin diy mason jar! By: Isabella Gorczowski (6th grade)

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Thanksgiving Play

Every Thanksgiving, I write a play for my cousins and I to perform in front of our parents and other family members. Our plays are about Thanksgiving. Here is one of the plays I made:

Characters: Narrator Melissa the Pilgrim James the Pilgrim the Native American

Melissa and little James sit on the couch which they pretend is the boat.

Melissa: Ugh. I’m hungry and tired of sailing. Are you, James?

Narrator: James looks up and slowly nods.

James: Yes.

Narrator: Melissa and James finally hit land. They both sigh with relief and hop off the boat. Melissa and James wander around the island they found. It is beautiful. Melissa walks up to some rocks. Suddenly, a person pops out!

Melissa: AHH!

James: AHHHH!

Squanto: AHHH!

Narrator: Everyone is startled by the other’s sudden appearance.

Squanto: Umm, hello. I am Squanto!

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Narrator: Squanto seemed very proud of this.

Melissa: Oh, hello. I am Melissa, and this is James.

Squanto: Pleased to meet you.

Narrator: Squanto, Melissa, and James walk to a river. They go fishing and they have a picnic. Melissa makes Squanto try tea and sandwiches from England. He likes the sandwich, but not the tea. When it is time for Melissa and James to go, Squanto is sad.

Squanto: Bye.

Melissa: Squanto, wait!

Narrator: Squanto turns around and catches the sandwich that Melissa throws to him.

Melissa and James: Bye!

Squanto: Bye!

By: Emilia Cabaero

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Thanksgiving Recipes

It’s almost the end of November, which means that our wonderful American holiday of Thanksgiving is just around the corner! Thanksgiving means many things: being grateful, appreciating what you have, spending time with your family-but most of all, it means enjoying and indulging in never the delicious food that your diet would allow otherwise. Therefore, here I ​ ​ need have for you three heavenly meals that you on your table this Thanksgiving! ​ ​

1. Mashed Sweet Potatoes with Marshmallows Ingredients: ~2 pounds of sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed ~2 tablespoons of orange juice ~¾ cup brown ~⅛ teaspoons ground nutmeg ~2 tablespoons butter, cubed, room temperature ~1 (or more) cup of mini marshmallows

1. Start by preheating the oven to 350 degrees F 2. Then, in a large sauce pan or pot, throw the potatoes into lightly salted, boiling water over medium heat. Cook for about 20 minutes, or until done. *You know they are done when you can easily pierce one with a fork and they are soft and tender. 3. When the potatoes are done, drain them and toss them back into the pat along with the juice, butter, sugar, and nutmeg. Whip or blend until

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completely smooth and then spread them evenly on a baking dish. Spread the marshmallows evenly over the mashed potatoes. *You can also add other toppings like chocolate or nuts. 4. Bake in the oven for about 10-13 minutes, or until the marshmallows are golden brown and melted. Note: I make this recipe every year, and I find it so delicious. It is one of my favorite recipes!

2. Delicious Pie I think that it’s safe to say that pecan pie is certainly up there, when it comes to the best holiday and Thanksgiving . Although apple or pumpkin pies are much more popular, pecan pie is certainly just as tasty. Here is an easy and necessary delicious recipe for a pecan pie that is at your Thanksgiving table. ​ ​ Ingredients: ~ 1 premade (or homemade) pie crust ~1 cup of ~3 tablespoons of ~ ½ teaspoon of salt ~1 cup corn ~¾ teaspoon vanilla ~⅓ cup melted butter ~3 whole eggs, beaten ~1 cup of chopped

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1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the pie crust over your pan. 2. Mix together the , salt, , salt, vanilla, butter, and eggs. 3. Pour the dry, chopped pecans over the unbaked pie crust and spread them evenly. 4. Finally, pour the mixture over the pecans, cover the pie with tin foil and bake in the oven for about 30 minutes. Remove the tinfoil and bake for an extra 20 minutes. At this point, if the pie is still jiggly, put the tin foil back on and bake it until it is firm, but not rock hard. 5. When it is done, let it cool for a few hours or overnight and serve.

3. Baked French Fries with Herbs Though this recipe isn’t exactly a classic at most people’s , it is a dish that my family ALWAYS has at ours. This recipe was created by myself, my minutes. sister Ada, and my mom. And let me tell you, these fries are gone within ​ Ingredients: ~2 large sweet potato french fries *Read note below* ~1-2 teaspoons Salt ~1-2 teaspoons Pepper ~about 2-3 teaspoons of fresh, minced rosemary. ~About 2-3 teaspoons of fresh, minced thyme ~ Olive oil

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* There really are no measurements for this recipe, it just depends on how many french fries you want/ how salty or sweet you want them. Though, this recipe generally makes about two trays, or about 3-5 servings. 1. Start by preheating your oven to 400 degrees F. 2. Wash, peel, and chop your sweet potatoes into strips/slices. I usually make ¼ - ½ inch wide and 3-5 inch long slices. 3. Spread your uncooked fries evenly on a pan and pour the olive oil over them. Then sprinkle over the salt, pepper, and herbs and mix it all together, making sure to coat all the french fires. 4. Lastly, throw them in the oven for about 20-30 minutes, or until they are crispy and fully cooked through. Serve.

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Thanksgiving DIYs ❖ Gold-dipped Corn Husk ➢ Steps: ■ First, wrap corn husks around an 18-inch diameter straw wreath, preferably using a hot glue-gun. You will need about 35 husks. ■ Using a foam brush, paint the tips of each husk with gold acrylic paint, and let it dry for about 15 minutes. ■ Starting with the outer edge of the wreath, use the glue gun adhere three concentric rings of 16 corn husks each. For the second and third ring, position the tip of each husk between two corn husks from the previous rings.

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❖ Bleached Pinecone Ornaments: ➢ Steps: ■ Mix two parts bleach with one part water in a bucket. ■ Submerge pinecones in the solution for 24 hours. ■ Rinse them in water and set aside to dry until the pinecones open up again. ■ Cut 1 yard of ribbon into a ¾ yard piece and a ¼ yard piece. ■ Adhere end of longer ribbon to the pine cone base. ■ Tie the shorter ribbon into a bow; adhere to the base of the pinecone. ■ Tie the pinecones to chandelier arms, or wherever you like, and trim the excess ribbon.

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Leaves are falling Summer is gone Leaves change color all season ​ ​ ​ long There are many things to do this month Like jump in some leaves And have Thanksgiving fun

Thanksgiving is coming And lots of food And spending time with your Family all season long ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​

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Be a part of quote of the month! Think of a quote and write it down, then submit it to Mrs. White or Mrs. Buffa and maybe you will be the lucky person to have your quote be Crusaders included in next month’s edition of the ​ Chronicles​ Newsletter! * Please submit quotes ​that you thought of yourself!!! * If you choose to submit a quote created by someone else please submit your name and the name of the original author!!! * Include your first name and last name on any quotes that you submit!!! HAVE FUN! Have a Great Thanksgiving!!

Til’ Next Time at Crusader Chronicles ... ​ Editors: Fatema Ahmed and Nishat Ahmed

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