Things happened to me when I was in Uganda and this is my story.
One day I was with my friend at home. Then, there was one friend that came to pick us up to play soccer. We went to the playground. There was a crazy woman who was always sitting near the road. We were playing and then the crazy woman threw us something like a small ball. One of my friends took it and started to play with it. Then he said that it started to get hot and it was burning his hands. We all came to see what is happening, so at that time we saw it. It was made of steel and other metals. One of my friends said that he knew what it was because he saw it in the movie, and it kills. The one who was playing with it said that he’s lying to us. We ran far away after we heard that it kills people. There were two who remained there playing with it. They were throwing it with each other. So, in a few seconds they threw it down. Then it exploded. One died and the other broke his leg. We who were far away had some small metal fragments enter our bodies.
At that time we couldn’t hear anything because it was so loud. The ambulance came and took us to the hospital. I was at least okay, but others were in bad condition. There were about ten children who were playing soccer. They took the crazy woman to jail and they found out that she was not actually crazy; it was her mission to kill us.
For generations now, people have lost interest in bettering their lives through education. It has been an issue faced by teens and has risen higher and higher throughout the years. Dropping out of school should never be an option if all school does is bring good things to a person and helps in gaining more knowledge of what is out in the world. We should all be trying to figure out why students feel the need to drop out and how do we get them to stay.
In 2018, the dropout rate for African Americans in the United States was at 16.2%, whereas the dropout rate for 2017 in Baltimore, Maryland was at 17%. One reason why kids turn to dropping out is because of family problems, whether it’s money or something worse. It could also just be that they simply lost interest in the educational system thinking that it wouldn’t be able to help them.
I want to educate people on why students feel the need to drop out of school before fully accessing all the knowledge they can in high school. But not only to tell them why kids drop out but also to help others find ways to get the students to want to stay and gain this important experience/knowledge they will need in their futures. I don’t want people to keep pushing away this problem but instead learn and change. Kids need to know that there are people looking out for them. Encourage students to join various after-school extracurricular activities. Some examples of extracurricular activities kids could join include school sports teams, club sports, community volunteering, and so much more. Not only school extracurricular activities but also ones provided by the community.
Schools should have a job fair for students that need work to help support their families where they get introduced to different local jobs and learn how to write a resume. All kids should want to get an education, they should never lose interest in gaining knowledge.
Parents/guardians should check in with their child’s teachers to make sure they are engaged, but also check in with your child to make sure the teacher is giving proper information. Parents/guardians should also check on a school’s environment to make sure their child is well taken care of.
We rely on future generations to help the world become a better, safer place but that can’t happen without the knowledge of how to do so. No one seems to be discussing this very important topic and that need to change. We need to educate people on this issue before it is too late to fix. Pick the path that is better for you and for the people around you.
Naomi Hodge is a student at McDaniel College and a graduate of Baltimore City Public Schools.
Students in Ms. Tucker’s cosmetology class created hairstyles, makeup and nail designs inspired by several different cultures and time periods from history.
1. The Middle Ages
We were inspired by the Middle Ages. Why, one might ask? Because this age falls between Classical Antiquity and the Renaissance Period (A.D. 476~1450), we wanted to see how the previous and the following era influenced the Middle Ages. “Madam Butterfly” was created as a result of us demonstrating the towering hair styles from the Middle Ages which were considered very flattering and elegant. This striking presentation was accented with complimentary nail color bringing this look into the twenty-first century.
-Mo-Yah Jones Benjamin, Author
-Olga Reyes Villanueva, Contributor
2. Victorian Age
In the Victorian Age (1837-1901), women preferred a more soft and natural look. Because of her fair skin and blonde hair, we decided to use earth tones both with her make-up and nail color. Women from the Victorian Age pinched their cheeks to create a natural blush effect. When wearing subtle makeup, earth tones such as dark chocolate nail color is very complimentary. Her overall look, including her conservative hairstyle, is perfect for a professional woman.
-Bryonna Butler: Author
-Bre’Asia Thomas, Aislinn Garcia: Contributors
3. The Greek Culture
Hairstyling became a highly developed art in the Greek culture (~500 B.C.). “The Mermaid” reflects the Greek contributions to beauty because of her curly locks and hair accessories. We used shells to create a decorative hair clip emphasizing her soft waves. We used multi-colored loose glitter that could be mistaken for such minerals as chalcopyrite, epidote and apatite to mimic the colors and textures of fish scales. The Greeks used lavish cosmetics made from ground cinnabar (an orange to brick-red mineral) and kohl around the eyes creating what we now call the ‘smoky eye’.
-Shauna Key, Author
-Meylin Diaz, Co-Author
-Beontae Carter, Contributor
-Dayonna Ckyyou, Contributor
4. The Egyptians
The Egyptians were very innovative with their creativity. They used minerals, insects and berries for makeup. That’s amazing! Don’t you think? Not only that, they used henna paste to stain their nails red. Red is the color of power, so we painted the mannequin’s nails fire engine red and applied the same color to her lips. The Egyptians were the first to cultivate beauty in an extravagant fashion, which is why they used a lot of jewelry in their hair. Wearing jewels was believed to protect the owner and give them strength.
-Adamary Reyes, Author
-Arnyah Brown, Contributor
5. The Chinese Culture
Throughout the Chou Dynasty (1100 B.C.), gold and silver nails were strictly reserved for royal family members. The color purple is also associated with luxury, power, and ambition. Naturally we selected our home football team to create our Ravens Girl a.k.a. Ms. Jackson #8. Not to overdo it with the gold, we incorporated silver glitter with her purple nails. We also used clip-in hair streaks, colored hair spray and gold hair accessories to complete her look.
We were not able to write an article about the softball team in time for the print edition of the Patterson Press that came out today, but here are some photos of the team:
Patterson guard Jalen Willis dunks the ball to help the Clippers win the State Championship (Photo: Mr. Scholz)
The Patterson Clippers varsity boys basketball team won the Class 2A State Championship on March 16, beating Wicomico by a score of 79-56 to secure the title. The game took place at the Xfinity Center at the University of Maryland, College Park. This is the third state championship Patterson has won, the most recent time having been just two years ago in 2017.
“We started out our game vs. Wicomico very aggressively, pressing and trapping them all over the court. In the second half, we were able to tire them out and extend the lead to over 20 points.”, Coach Harry Martin explained. “Wicomico was definitely a scrappy team that battled and played hard. Their coach has over 800 wins so we have a lot of respect for their program.”, he added.
During the game, Marvin Price led Patterson in scoring with 31 points. Tyrone Thomas has the most assists (seven) and Marvin Price led the team with ten rebounds.
Holding the state championship trophy (Photo: Mr. Scholz)
“When the final horn sounded and I knew we just had won another state title, I felt a great sense of joy and accomplishment.”, Coach Martin recounted. “A lot of work goes in to being one of the best teams in the state.”
Patterson basketball player, Lizandry Nunez, also shared his reflections on winning the championship. “It felt great!”, said Nunez. “We got what what we worked hard for all year, at practice and at summer workouts. It was a relief to hear the final horn go off, knowing that we won.”
According to Coach Martin, basketball has become a year-round sport at Patterson. In order for our school to compete for a state championship, the team has to put in maximum effort all year to get better. The conditioning, weight training, and basketball workouts cover almost the entire year.
This season was an inspiration to a lot of our young men and women. We actually for the first time in school history had 2 females compete in wrestling. This wrestling season was a well-accomplished season for the Patterson Clippers. We started the season with 22 wrestlers, a number of which had never wrestled before. Under the direction of Coach Walker and Coach Smith, our first time wrestlers quickly became acclimated to the sport.
We had 3 wrestlers place in the city tournament. Markel Ross placed 3rd, Anthony Lopez placed 3rd, and Dominic Rabey placed 4th overall. All three of those wrestlers also qualified for the regional tournament in which Anthony Lopez placed 7th overall in the entire North Region.
As a team, we were able to compile a 5-3 record, which was good enough to place 4th overall in the entire North Region.
As the head coach, I couldn’t be more proud of the effort and fortitude displayed by my team. The hope is that through my coaching they were able to become better young men and women. For me, it wasn’t about becoming better wrestlers; it was about becoming better people, and I believe we accomplished that. While I will not be returning next year, I just want to say that I love you all and wish you the best moving forward.
Editor’s note: Students at Patterson High School wrote anonymous messages about what they wish people knew about the community they most identify with.
I am a member of the LGBTQ community. We are still people. We are still humans.
I am a member of the Hispanic community. Not everybody is “Mexican.” We are just like you, and everybody else.
I am a member of the introverted community. It’s really hard to talk and socialize with other people, especially strangers. Some of us may come off as shy or even rude, but most of us just think a lot about how to react to new people.
I am a member of the female community. Girls are not just pretty. We are also smart. We should be respected and treated like humans, not objects.
I am a member of the Black community. Some of us kill each other for nothing. We need to change everything about that.
I am a member of the caregiving community. People who have never been a caregiver cannot understand the experience.
I am a member of the Muslim community. I wish people would understand that what’s shown on social media and shared on the internet isn’t a reliable source to have your questions answered. People need to understand that getting a personal answer from a Muslim you know gives you a deeper view on the reality of Islam. My favorite part of being Muslim is that, no matter where I go with my hijab, I will always get an “As-Salaam-Alaikum” or “Salaam, sister.” I love that a lot.
I am a member of the artistic community. Drawing is easy sometimes and sometimes it’s not. When I finish what I’m drawing, I feel proud because it ends up looking amazing.
I am a member of the Christian community. My favorite part of this community is meeting every week after church to discuss what it’s like to be a teenager.
I am a member of the East Baltimore community. It’s dangerous over here.
I am a member of the young Black men community. We are brothers who all want to be successful at what we do and will always be there for one another.
I am a member of the biracial community. Everyone assumes I am something I’m not. Just because someone has curly hair and light skin doesn’t mean they are Hispanic.
I am a member of the Muslim community. I wish people understood that Muslims don’t condone violence and that we’re all about peace. I wish people understood that ISIS aren’t real Muslims. If they were, they wouldn’t commit such acts.
I am a member of the soccer community. We are about communication and hard work. We are also about love, peace, and equality.
I am a member of the Black community. WE ARE BEAUTIFUL.
I am a member of the creative community. I wish people understood I make my own ideas for me and for me alone. I won’t stand for people who think art and creativity is trash. I will fight for my community if I must.
If you’re curious about an unfamiliar community . . . let’s share ideas.
We have good intentions; we want to learn about communities outside of our own. We’re interested in building relationships, and even inter-community. But how to make that happen can be confusing, or even intimidating. Thankfully, there is no shortage of resources to help us get started.
In fact, Baltimore Racial Justice Action, a nonprofit “provid[ing] a variety of racial justice educational events, workshops, and services for individuals, groups, and organizations” recommends dozens of books, articles, websites and films on their site alone. In the process of creating community, knowledge is a necessity.
Deanna Lavery also recommends a comprehensive list of resources. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration has a page devoted to numerous programs that could be the starting place for learning about unfamiliar communities. Beyond that, Deanna says, “I always go where the people are. I meet them where they are.” To form community, she says we must “listen, listen, listen.”
Are you hesitant to learn about other communities? Do you have suggestions about where to start? Let’s continue this conversation.
Patterson faces off against Poly
(Photo: Herson Guzman)
By Mr. Phillips
The Patterson boys lacrosse team finished the season with 2 wins and 8 losses. In spite of this disappointing record, the team did show a lot of strengths, especially conditioning at the midfield and attack positions and strength in the defensive positions. Opposing coaches noted that Patterson played hard the entire game, played physical, and have underclassmen who should improve next year.
The team’s biggest weaknesses were passing accuracy, lack of experience and eligibility. We only had 1 player with a significant amount of previous high school lacrosse experience. Lack of experience shows up in game situations when players chase the ball rather than defend their assigned player or zone. This led to a lot of open shots on the “weak side” when defenders left their zones. Good lacrosse requires a high amount of trust and teamwork, which is not built in a 2 month period, but requires a few years.
Eligibility was a big problem this season. We started with nearly 30 students attending conditioning and ended up starting our final game with just ten players healthy and eligible.
Patterson can only get better. We have not had an active lacrosse program for several seasons. We will be getting underclassmen involved in summer club lacrosse and younger players will get better at playing together. Our MVP was Brandon Chambers (2019), team captain, who played long-stick defense and also filled in as goalie on several occasions. Brandon is an extremely hard worker and well-respected voice of reason in a huddle. His willingness to help teach freshman was outstanding.
An unsung hero for the team was Desmond Wilds, who played goalie after our starting goalie became ineligible. Desmond started in the goal against Poly, which was our strongest game in terms of hustle and effort. Playing goalie on an inexperienced team is a very difficult job because a person who doesn’t know much about lacrosse will assume that the goalie is a bigger factor than defensive lapses.
The Patterson High School varsity baseball team (Photo: Mr. Funk)
The Patterson Varsity Baseball team has had an excellent 2019 season. Led by a strong pitching staff and deep senior leadership, the Clippers rattled off five straight wins to start the season. The team’s 10-9 win over Mervo on April 1 stood out in particular, with seniors Terrence Taylor and Jason Núñez rallying to tie the game in the bottom of the 6th, and freshman Emmanuel Caraballo winning the game with a walk-off hit in the bottom of the 7th.
A series of narrow mid-season losses to Poly and City–all by six runs or less–eliminated the Clippers from contention for the Baltimore City Championship game, but decisive bounce-back wins over Douglass and Mervo guaranteed Patterson sole possession of third place in Division I. The team heads towards the state playoffs boasting an 11-3 record and playing with a great deal of confidence, and impressive contributions from underclassmen like Josh Martinez indicate more great Clipper baseball seasons to come.
We’ll miss senior veterans like Tavon Mitchell and Mike Abreu, but over the past few seasons they’ve set a tone and example for the team that will live on here for years after they’re gone.
Most people think that video games are bad because they affect kids and adults’ brains and health. Kids sometimes don’t want to eat or fix themselves something to eat, or if they have to go to the bathroom they would wait a couple of minutes and then they would go. They don’t have the time to do anything.
However, there are also good things about video games. Some games can even be very educational and help you learn.
According to Joanne Orlando, a writer for Curious Kids, “Children
like video games because they are fun and because they can be challenging. You
have to solve problems, work out the best moves for your character, and decide
how to use your equipment and supplies in the best possible way. Making all
these decisions can be exciting.”
People at Patterson High School have given their opinions about video games. “Children like video games because they are fun and because they can be challenging.”, said freshman Marquis Jones.
Nonetheless, many parents are concerned that their child might always choose to play a video game instead of playing outside and getting exercise.
Like most things, video games are best enjoyed in moderation. As long as you keep a good balance and don’t spend too much time looking at a screen, playing video games can be a healthy way to relax and maybe even learn something.
pattersonpress.org 