The Bell THE MIDDLE SCHOOL NEWSPAPER November 3, 2014 A Student Publication of the Belmont Hill Middle School Issue #1 Change is in the Air: Welcome from the Form I travels to Camp Burgess Editors By Chetan Shukla Form I By Bell Editors Forms II and III Camp Burgess is a very well thought out way to get first As Dr. Melvoin remarked formers to engage with each oth- during his opening speech on the er. Whether it’s in the Gaga pit to first day of school, this year is one the dinner table, we were always of “change,” both in-school, and together. The bus was in front of in the outside world. The 2014- the Jordan when I got there. There 2015 academic year is also a time was a mound of bags so I put mine of change for the Bell. With a com- right on top. Everyone was down pletely redesigned layout (now on the turf field playing football printed on newsprint!), the Bell until we were called to the bus. is all-new and better than ever! The bus ride to Cape Cod, which This year, in an effort to al- is where Camp Burgess is located, Form I boys getting ready for an exciting day at Burgess Mr. Ekwelum low the entire Middle School to par- was bucket loads of fun. We got off ticipate, we hope to conduct more the bus and in front of our eyes was to tag them on the back. tory after beating the team of coun- polls and surveys, and we would love a beautiful blue lake. There were so Then, we went back to selors. By then, we were all hungry to hear any suggestions on articles many things to keep us occupied, the base and split into each of our and we ate a lot at dinner. Dinner or topics you want to see printed! it was hard to see us ever leaving. groups. The groups were all the was tacos. After dinner, we went We encourage all of you to The first thing we did when we got advisory groups. Our group, Mr. to get ready for the night hike. The write, and we hope you will enjoy there was play. We had about fif- Carr’s, started on the zipline. The night hike was very cool and at the reading the work of your peers! teen minutes to spare until lunch. zipline was about 20 feet high end we went to a campfire. At the There was tether ball, gaga ball, and was extremely fun. After the campfire the teachers talked about and basketball. After this we had zipline, we did some team building their heroes and some brave kids lunch in Yohe Hall. Lunch on the games. Finally, we went to the low did too. We also had s’mores after. first day was ham and turkey sand- ropes course. There was a steel rope After we all had some well wiches. After lunch, we had some connecting some trees together and deserved sleep, we woke up and games as an entire form. We started we all had to stay connected with went to breakfast. For breakfast, by walking over to a field where the person in front of us. It might there were pancakes, sausages, and we all spread out. Then we played sound easy, and it looked easy be- orange juice. After breakfast, our a form of Simon Says. We also fore, but it took a lot of hard work group went to rock climbing. There played a form of tag called Every- and a lot more teamwork. After this, were two walls and you could one Is It. In the game Everyone Is we had the Gaga-Ball tournament. choose which one you wanted to do. It, you can tag anyone and then they After a long tournament, Mr. Swee- There was hard and then extremely are out. The catch is that you have ney’s advisory group took the vic- hard. After the rock climbing, was Continued on Page 5 Camp Becket: New Faces and Old Friends tivities, but not before lunch. After This Issue: everyone refueled in the dining hall and settled in at their cabins, we strolled down to the baseball field, known as Moose Field, to play a Community few quick team-building games and to be introduced to the coun- Form I and III Annual selors. Once we got our groups we Trips Page 1 & 5 set off, finally, to start our activities. My group was one of the Popular Clubs: Model first groups to get to explore the high ropes courses. The high ropes UN Page 5 course was a challenging, but not impossible, obstacle course sus- 3rd Formers getting ready to Canoe Mr. George pended roughly twenty feet in the air. These obstacles were not only “character development.” As the Sports By Jeff Eaton physical tests of strength, but also last person stowed away their bag Form III mental tests as they pushed you to 3rd Football contin- and the buses pulled out the school go further even when you did not The birds were chirping, the parking lot, the excitement slowly ues 2-year undefeated think you could. They also stressed sun was shining, and we were as en- decreased as everyone settled in critical thinking, trust and risk-tak- streak Page 2 ergetic as ever. It was the morning for the nearly three-hour bus ride. ing as many students were required of September 11, a solemn day in Minutes turned into hours to push their boundaries to where many American hearts, but not for as the suburban scenery slowly, yet 2014 - 2015 NBA they have never been before. Some, the boys of the third form. Today gracefully, turned into rural farm like the tight rope or the Chopsticks, Season Preveiw was something special, something land that gently grazed the hilly land- focused on pure ability, due to the different, a chance to get away scape. As the buses weaved through Page 3 fact that they were a solo task and from school, yet still be with your the windy roads of the Berkshires, physically taxing, but others, like friends and fellow classmates. The everyone watched out the windows The Big and Bad are the Giant’s Ladder, in which two usual atmosphere of a school, the with close intensity as it was unlike students would have to climb up as back! Page 4 tired students and the dreading of any other usual sight one may see the rungs quickly grew in distance what was to come later in the school in a city. To one side, the trees tow- apart, stressed teamwork since the day, was not present, at least not ered over the buses with the over- two partners would have to use among the third form. Everyone, hang reducing the sunlight bleeding each other to boost one another up including myself, was eager to go, through, and to the other the rivers on the next rung. Most would try The Back Page to set off into the dark wilderness and streams carefully dissected the and, surprisingly, most would suc- and explore the unknown. Today hill side that ran along the highway. ceed, but others would fail miser- Fun & Games was the annual third form trip to When the buses rounded the ably, but not without great effort. Page 6 Camp Becket. Becket, an overnight final corner and steadily approached Next for my group would camp for boys run by the YMCA, the camp site, the enthusiasm im- come maybe the most relaxing and sits on nearly 1,400 acres of land mediately picked up and people Look Alikes most amusing activity, canoeing. in the beauty that is the Berkshires peered around the seats of others to Page 6 Canoeing was a rather simple activ- of Western Massachusetts. Known get a glimpse of what would be their ity in which all we had to do was by its reputation of beautiful views home for the next two days. Pains- paddle around the lake that sat in Student Spotlight and stunning land features, Becket takingly, the third form had finally front of us. To add to the fun, well, stays true to its century-long com- arrived at Camp Becket and were Page 6 what would be a well-executed ca- mitment to its “rich traditions” and eager to start their exploring and ac- Continued on Page 5 PORTS PG. 2 S The Bell 3rd Football Has Strong Start after Two Undefeated Seasons By Gavin Colbert with not a score, but experience pumped. Coming out strong with somewhat unorthodox daily warm- Form III and the hunger for the real test of a touchdown on the first play, we up, coaches who preach hard-work the first game versus St. George’s never looked back. Stellar playing and the importance of being a This year, the 3rd Football JV team. After the preparation all around with a great running at- good family man and a true multi- team is looking to build upon the of hard practices, and a Saturday tack from the speedsters, a great dimensional athlete, and having a successes of two previous undefeat- morning film and practice session passing display from the QBs, the bunch of brothers with a real sense ed seasons and have a great year of the team was ready for the chal- tight ends, and the backs, and a of team, the 3rd football team this football. With veteran coaches Mr. lenge of the first game.