Wizarding World of Harry Potter to Open in June

Mount Rushmore, Grand Canyon, Hogwarts.

Which one would you choose?

On June 18, The Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park will open in Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida with rides and attractions straight from the series that millions have fallen in love with.

Harry Potter's Wizarding World in Orlando, Fla.

“Our primary goal is to make sure this experience is an authentic extension of Harry Potter’s world as it is portrayed in the books and films,” said the production designer Stuart Craig to gossipcenter.com

The park includes a realistic Hogwarts that takes guests on tours allowing them to view areas from scenes in the movies, a replica of the rustic shopping village, Hogsmeade, and a wild, two car racing rollercoaster called the Dragon Challenge.

Harry Potter lovers all around the world– including at Penn Manor, are more than hyped for the unveiling.

“I’m so excited to go in July for my cousin’s 18th birthday party,” said Mikayla Herbert, “I want to walk through Hogwarts!”

“Our field hockey tournament is in Florida next year, so I’m excited to see everything,” said Kayla Bixler.

“I would want to go if it wasn’t so far away,” said Ryan Newswanger.

Along the way throughout the park, attendees may also run into Hagrid’s hut that takes you on a smaller rollercoaster named The Flight of the Hippogriff.

After experiencing all the rides, guests can even visit a replica of The Three Broomsticks restaurant where they can choose from foods such as butterbeer (a non alcoholic beverage from the books), fish and chips, peanut butter ice cream and more.

Many travel sites offer generous travel packages, and universalorlando.com offers a one day pass to Universal Studios for as little as $109 for an adult.

But if one day isn’t enough, the same site offers seven day passes for only $169.99 for an adult.

Households with children ages 7-14 can also enter a scholastic contest for a family of four for an all travel expense paid trip to visit the park for 3 days at www.scholastic.com/realmagicsweepstakes.

Whether a devoted fan, a movie lover, or just jumping on the band wagon, the theme park is sure to fulfill the dreams of anyone who ever wished to step into Hogwarts.

By Mike Nitroy and Lindsey Ostrum

Good Luck McNabb

In the eyes of Cowboys fans, the NFC East conference looks like it should have their team’s name all over it.

The Philadelphia Eagles are losing their team one player at a time. Not only is it bad enough that the Eagles are losing their players, but they are giving their sloppy quarterback of 10 years over to division rivals, Washington Redskins.

This news is not as much of a surprise to me as much as it is a pleasure, especially since I know that McNabb might not even start.

The head coach of the Redskins, Mike Shanahan, told McNabb that he will have to earn his place as the starter.

If the current starter, Jason Campbell, stays in the starter spot I will be in shock and awe.

Many people may think of him as a nice addition to the Redskins, however McNabb is no miracle worker. Whether he improves the team or not, the Redskins will not have a shot at the playoffs.

The Redskins ended their 2009-2010 season with four wins and 12 losses. To have a shot in the playoffs you need to have 11 wins.

Whether McNabb makes an improvement or not, the Redskins will never be able to win seven more games than they did last year.

No matter what quarterback you are, Peyton Manning, Joe Montana or Tony Romo, some of the best the league has ever seen, no one will never be able to adjust to the Redskins offensive line.

Now I am not going to say that Eagles had an amazing offensive line, but the Redskins offensive line is just terrible. According to NFL.com the Redskins let up 45 sacks all season. That is an average of 2.8 sacks a game. If you are a football fan you will understand that that many sacks per game is outrageous. If you are not a football fan, then just understand that you cannot get much worse than that.

Good luck Donovan, good luck.

By Mike Bouder

Bon Appétit Penn Manor – A Delicious Afternoon

I have two words for you Penn Manor: soups on!

Mindy Rottmund’s advanced foods class took part in a cook-off today and the results were simmering. Wednesday the students spent their time cooking two separate entrees which were then tasted and judged.

The unit was based on the movie “Julie and Julia.”  The movie is based off of the famous cook Julia Child and her many recipes.

“I had gotten the movie for Christmas and was excited about it. The kids had participated in a Rachel Ray challenge before so they knew what to expect,” said Rottmund.

All four groups had to create Child’s Boeuf Bourguignon along with another one of her famous soups.

Billy Brice, a chef from Mazzi’s restaurant in Leola, and Krista Cox, Penn Manor High School’s assistant principal, served as the two judges during the competition.

Brice got involved in the event from a local connection.

“I knew Billy from the hotel restaurant where I work,” said Zach Ross, a senior at Penn Manor.

Each student had their own role to play in the making of the soup and Brice found the results of their teamwork quite tasty.

“I was very surprised by the garlic soup. I’d never had it before and didn’t think much of it, but it tasted pretty darn good,” said Brice.

However, one team did not finish in time and was not allowed to compete.

“They just didn’t work well together,” commented senior Brandi Kauffman, one of the participants in the cook-off.

The judges had to grade each dish on a one-to-five scale in categories such as visual presentation, aroma and flavor.

Rottmund had high hopes for her class and was satisfied with the end results.

“It went well,” said Rottmund. “The kids learned a lot about timing, organization and teamwork. We did some good life-long skill building.”

Ross, who plans to attend YTI in his near future, has much appreciation for the class and the skills he is learning.

“All the activities we do are going to be helpful for college and my future career,” said Ross.

However, at the end of the day, it seemed all that mattered was who took home the gold.

Contestants in Penn Manor's first French cooking contest stir up delicious meals.

In the Boeuf Bourguignon competition, the first place award went to “the boys”-Zach Ross, Cory Horst and Vaughn Stetler with 52 points out of 60. Second place went to Mariah Landis and Stephanie Carroll with 45 points out of 60.

The second soup that each group made also received scores out of 60 points.

First place with 49 points went to Zach Ross, Cory Horst and Vaughn Stetler for their outstanding cassoulet de porc et de Mouton soup. Second place with 48 points went to Brandi Kauffman and Cory Bowman for their soupe de poulet, or strained chicken soup. Third place with 47 points was awarded to Emmy Hess and Kendra Keuper for their garlic soup.

Overall, the judges thought the food was a hit.

“I gave high marks all around in different areas,” said Brice. “Some scored high in visual display…and some not so high in taste.”

By: Emily Brody and Jacqueline Lennon

Butler Almost has One Shining Moment

By Sam Valentin-

Butler had a close to fairy-tale ending to its 2010 season, but it was happily ever after for Duke.

After a crushing screen on Dukes Kyle Singler from Butlers Matt Howard, Gordon Hayward was instantly freed up and put up the shot it hit the backboard as the clock hit zero the ball then hit the rim and hit the floor next as the Butler Bulldogs clock struck zero on their fairy tale.

As the Butler fans screamed “ohhhhhhh,”  there was already a dog pile of Duke players at half court.

The win for the Blue Devils wasn’t secure until after the ball shot near half court by Bulldog forward Hayward, hit the floor.

Duke won their fourth national championship Monday, all under Coach Mike Krzyzewski. He won his first in Indianapolis and now gets his fourth there, also. He is tied with Adolph Rupp for second place on the all-time list.

Kyle Singler led the “big three” and Duke in the championship scoring 19 points and grabbing 9 boards. Duke’s junior guard Nolan Smith had 13 with senior guard Jon Scheyer scoring 15 points in the win.

Butler was only 5.6 miles from their private school to Indianapolis, ensuring the stadium had many Butler fans.

Butler showed they could hang with the elite earlier in the tournament by eliminating Syracuse, Kansas State, and Michigan State. They showed it again by only being down by one at half to the skilled Duke shooters.

The teams came out and were fast paced in the first half, only starting to slow down about half way through the first half.

Most believe this is one of, if not the most, memorable NCAA basketball tournament in recent years with a great combination of upsets, underdogs and a plethora of close games.

Butler was led by sophomore guard Shelvin Mack and forward  Gordon Hayward who both had 12 points in the crushing defeat.

Butler won’t be losing many players to the draft or to graduation so look for them to make another deep run into the tournament next year.

And the always strong Duke team always expects to go deep into the tournament but they will most likely be losing Kyle Singler to the draft and Jon Scheyer is a senior, therefore dismantling their big three.

That leaves only Nolan Smith, but he too could declare for the draft. Duke will also lose senior center Brian Zoubek to graduation or to the draft and starting forward Lance Thomas, leaving maybe one starter from last year, Nolan Smith.

Duke has a strong recruiting class coming in for next year. But always expect the Blue devils to go deep.

Indie Artist Comes to Penn Manor

Bess Rogers is going to “Travel Back” to Lancaster on April 15.

Recruited by Kim McMullen, Penn Manor art teacher, through a Penn Manor Education Foundation grant, the semi-famous indie artist will perform and speak with students and faculty.

McMullen describes Rogers’ music as: “she’s anywhere from indie pop, to 80’s and country…it’s just such a vast spectrum.”

She and Rogers met in true indie fashion.  After a concert, McMullen invited Rogers to ‘crash on her couch.’

Rogers has appeared on Ellen, The CBS Early Show, and is awaiting an appearance on The Rachel Ray Show, and her music has been featured on TNT’s “Raising the Bar” while apparently maintaining a happy obscurity.

She often swaps between her solo work, and performances with Ingrid Michaelson, The Flux Capacitors (dedicated to bluegrass covers of 80s songs), and The Age of Rockets, an orchestral/electronica group, who have been compared to “The Postal Service meets a grand orchestra.”

The event will also be host to the “Be a Fan, Bring a Can” drive, a sort of “optional admission fee.”  Food gathered will be donated to the Solanco Food Bank, which supports 14 families within the Penn Manor School District.

By Kennedy Phillips

McNabb traded to rival Redskins

On Easter Sunday it was finally announced that the Eagle’s six-time Pro-Bowler, Donovan McNabb, was traded to NFC East rival, the Washington Redskins. The trade now opens the door for Kevin Kolb to become the Eagles starting quarterback.  The Eagles acquired a second round (No. 37) draft pick in 2010 and a third or fourth rounder in 2011.

“He was worth more,” said Penn Manor math teacher and Eagles fan, Gary Luft.

Others believe that the Eagles decision was a good step forward.

Future Eagles starter Kevin Kolb and Donovan McNabb

“I think they got enough for him, I think Kolb will be a successful quarterback,” said senior TJ Richartz.

One Eagles fan thought they traded McNabb at just the right time in his career.

“I have a lot of respect for him, but he is not as good as he used to be,” said freshman Sonya Hamby.

There are some fans who think the Eagles made a huge mistake trading McNabb.

“This is a decision they are going to regret,” said sophomore Mark Raymond, “I think they are worse off without McNabb.”

Young Kevin Kolb will go into this season with only two NFL starts under his belt. In those two starts Kolb won a game and lost a game. Many have high expectations for Kolb because in both starts he threw for over 300 yards and accumulated four touchdowns.

“I’m looking forward to a fresh start with a new QB,” said Luft.

Everyone will be able to see who benefits more from this trade because the Eagles and Redskins play each other twice this season.

“I think McNabb will be more determined to beat the Eagles now,” said Richartz.

By Cody Straub and Taylor Groff

A look in the past: The 90’s

You know you grew up in the 90’s if you wore jelly shoes and watched Ren-n-Stimpy.
Picture yourself as a child again: What did you watch on TV? What toys did you play with? What games did you play? What was your favorite movie? What trends did you notice?

Sophmore Mitch Wise said, “All of my school friends would collect and trade them (Matchbox Cars).”

Your childhood is a landmark in time where you had nothing to worry about except for whether you were eating Lunchables or Kid Cuisine meals for lunch.

Senior Sam Evans said, “Its so much different, looking back now, it seems weird.”

Gameboy was a popular hand held game in the 90s.

Imagine the time when you woke up and played with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Some students of Penn Manor enjoyed 90’s toys such as Barbie’s, Matchbox Cars, Powerrangers, Legos, Koosh Ball, Beanie Babies, Furby’s, and Play-Doh.

Penn Manor youngsters were groovin’ to the sounds of the Backstreet Boys, Nsync, Spice Girls, Green Day, NoDoubt,Will Smith, 98 Degrees, and Britney Spears.

Senior Krista Conlin said about Britney Spears, “I wanted to be like her and I liked her songs.”

Some cartoons that Penn Manor students enjoyed in the 90’s were Rugrats, Ren-n-Stimpy, Doug and Aaahh!!! Real Monsters.

Or did you run home to watch Boy Meets World, Full House, Sister-Sister, Smart-Guy, Keenan and Kel, or All That?

Sophomore Jackie Thomas said, “I liked Crumb (Aaahh!!! Real Monsters) held his eyeballs in his hands.”

Certain games and toys bring back good childhood memories.

Were you a Penn Manor tike who picked those cherries off the cherry tree in Hi-Ho Cherrio? Some hit games were Monopoly, Chutes and Ladders, Candyland, Gameboy, Perfection, Hungry Hungry Hippos, and Battleship.

Senior Katelyn Harnish said, “I liked playing Monopoly because it gave me a chance to beat my parents.”

If you were a child in the 90’s you may have been begging your parents to take you to see Toy Story, Pocahontas, The Lion King, and Small Soldiers at the movie theaters.

Sophomore Junior Suarez said, “I got really interested in the Lion King because of the subliminal messages throughout the movie.”

Do you remember wearing jelly shoes, Airwalks, light-up shoes, shell tops, bellbottoms, belly shirts, Sketchers, overalls or Mom Jeans? Then you were a child of the 90’s.

Krista Conlin said, “They (Jelly Shoes) felt cool on my feet.”

Amber Schwebel said, “If I had the chance to do it over (childhood), I wouldn’t because it made me who I am today.”

As a child things were much different in the 90’s, although the great toys and movies are still popular today.

The new generation has improved on quality, some movies are now in 3D, bands have become more realistic singing about real life scenarios, games have been generated to online multi-player, and trends have changed dramatically.

Today the childhood toys, games, movies, cartoons, trends and bands are a complete outbreak of the 90’s.

Junior Roy Keagy said, “Looking back you see how innocent you used to be.”

By Stephanie Herr

The Dreaded Senior Year

It affects more high school seniors than the common cold, its causes more headaches for teachers than a dense freshmen.   It is senioritis.

This disease has plagued the shores of the United States for years. Looking back at my brother when he was in high school in 2005, he had so much leeway and pure laziness, that he called his homeroom teacher to tell her whether or not he would be in school that day, just so he could sleep a couple more minutes.

Of course, this was not at Penn Manor, but the feelings of staying in bed for a few extra minutes have grown to new intensity in the second semester of my senior year.

I guess you can call it senioritis that even when writing this paper, while the sun is shining and the breeze of summer is rushing all around, I cringe over my keyboard. I am ready to enjoy summer air on my neck and the feeling of a rather childhood freedom of summer.

Most of this year’s senior class now have acceptance letters from schools or are preparing for what they have planned for the next step of their lives. However what seniors are experiencing now is the feeling of just wanting to get out of here.

column
Juan Montes is a senior at Penn Manor.

Going into the final year of high school, when many kids start turning into young adults, at least a sad excuse for an adult, it’s easy to lose appreciation for these moments. These years are completely pivotal for us but we don’t know it yet.

High school is a passage to what we need to experience to become an actual adult. These are the years that we will always remember and about which we will reminisce.

Not everyone has had a great high school experience but while you are yearning for that final bell on June 10, now may be the time to slow down and look around and appreciate what we have just finished, a chapter in our lives.

Juan Montes

PMTV: Unrated Edition

The average American is captured on a closed-circuit television camera 200 times a day, according to a major documentary on the subject of hidden security.

For students, around 25 percent of that may occur during school.

The cameras set up in and around Penn Manor High School can record a student almost 50 times a day, and the cameras also cover the sports fields and streets surrounding the grounds, according to school resource officer, Jason Hottenstein.

Most of Penn Manor’s cameras were received through a donation, and while there are currently no plans to add more, upgraded models are being eyed, according to Hottenstein.

A camera at the entrance of Penn Manor High School. Photo by Kennedy Phillips

The number of cameras in Lancaster city currently outweighs those in larger cities, like Boston and San Francisco, and recently, Lancaster’s cameras made national news, and was named “The most watched city in the U.S.”

The problem is, a record of the event is excellent evidence, but the threat of a record is a poor deterrent.

These camera systems are not always effective at preventing theft and violence.  The CCTV system of Baltimore city is being dismantled because, according to the state attorney’s office, “We have not used any footage to resolve a violent-crime case.”

In other words, Big Brother isn’t doing his job.

And even though students might feel “watched,” they should count themselves lucky; cameras in dressing rooms and public restrooms are legal in 37 states, Pennsylvania included.

In fact, security cameras are now so common, 2009 saw the release of a docu-fiction titled Look, billed as “the ultimate look at our big brother world.” It is shot entirely through CCTV footage.

by Kennedy Phillips

Innovative Teacher Brings Technology To The Classroom

All of the courses that Scott Hertzog teaches at Penn Manor are involved in the new, modern, and, dare we say it, fun book report called “Fireside Book Chats.”

An innovative teacher at Penn Manor, Hertzog is now one of 700 entries that are hoping for one of ten first place prizes for innovative teachers through the Public Broadcasting Service.

The chats are really podcasts that are recorded in front of the class, “They still have to do work, like writing an annotated bibliography,” said Hertzog. “It’s an interview setup that students alike agree is less threatening.”

Hertzog describes the students as having anxiety about their thoughts on a book going worldwide.

Originally called Room 312, Fireside Book Chats started as a quick five-minute lesson recap that students could use if they hadn’t made it to school that day.  But since no one was using it, Hertzog decided he could evolve it into something more interactive.

Clearly the Fireside Book Chats have had an impact worldwide. Hertzog says one of his proudest moments was when their site; www.firesidebookchat.com hit 55,000 downloads. Not only is it a hit online with people all over the world, but even the authors of the books have written in.

Taking one look at the site, you can see why Hertzog would be motivated to compete in the innovative teacher’s award. Book reviews ranging from Nickled and Dimed to A Great Derangement can be read on this  growing site.

The thirteenth year English teacher at Penn Manor said he likes how the whole concept has developed.

Hertzog said, “It has evolved from just a simple list of questions to using MLA citation and writing an annotated bibliography.”

Ninth through twelfth graders participate in Fireside Book Chats, but, “I slowly increase the intensity as courses are taught,” as far as length of books and the depth of annotated bibliographies, Hertzog explained.

Hertzog is currently ranked among the top five teachers nations wide. Winners will be announced on April 5.

By Dana Poetzl