Teachers’ Costumes
costume out of a big cardboard box. The box
went over my head and my legs stuck out of
the bottom. I wore green tights and brown
shoes…..The flower was yellow with some
pink….The flower was beautiful.” Mrs.
LaPlace.
Have you ever wondered what teachers wore
when they were kids for Halloween? I
surveyed all the teachers in the Middle
School, as well as Mrs. Benedict! I was
surprised that their costumes were not that
different from what we wear today!  Thanks
for the participation of the faculty and
administration. Please enjoy the following
Halloween memories from some of your
favorite teachers.
“My favorite costume was a Gypsy….I got to
wear a skirt of my mom’s, and her highheeled espadrille sandals. I had a kerchief
around my head, and we made fake curls to
come out from underneath it…I won 1st place
in the contest at school.” Mrs. LaRoche.
“In my childhood neighborhood at age ten we
all dressed up as ghosts and went around in a
pack acting like scary kids. It was really fun
since there were about twenty of us.” Mrs.
Benedict.
“My favorite costume was the one my mom
sewed for me from a pattern: Sylvester the
cat. Mrs. Laschon’s mother made her a
Tweety Bird costume. When we discovered
this, we decided to wear our masks together
at an Ellis Halloween party.” Mrs. Laschon
and Mrs. Rigsby
“…I was in…..3rd grade…..I was a washing
machine, my little sister was a box of Tide
detergent, and my younger brother was a pile
of dirty laundry. My mom made the washing
machine and Tide out of big cardboard
boxes…..we won a prize. I liked it because we
looked funny and got a lot of laughs, and it
was pretty unique.” Mrs. Compton.
“When I was a child, I dressed up as a
vampire. I wore my mother’s old nursing
cape…..my older sister painted my face white
and added different bleeding scars each year.
Black pants, a white shirt and greased back
hair added to the vampire look and was
similar to the vampires we saw on TV in the
70’s.” Mr. Mercier .
“Most of the time I dressed up as an athlete –
a Steeler football player or a Pittsburgh.
Pirate.” Ms. Crum.
“I think the best costume that I ever had was
the year I was a horse with my sister. I got to
be the front, which was great. My sister was
not as pleased with the outfit since she could
not see where she was going.” Mrs. Okonak.
“My favorite Halloween costume as a child
was Bozo the clown…I spent a considerable
amount of time getting the costume together,
but alas on Halloween I was sick and could
not go trick or treating. The cool part of the
story is that my dad modified the costume and
wore it to get candy for me!” Mr. Ferrante.
“In fourth grade, I was a Gypsy. I wore a red
head wrap, big gold hoop earrings, had a fake
mold on my cheek, red lipstick, and black
flowy pants…I had a wide red belt on and lots
of
funky jewelry….We had a Halloween
parade at my school and I got 2nd place for
originality.” Mrs. Perry.
“When I was a child we lived in the Soviet
Union, and we did not have Halloween.
However, kids were able to wear costumes for
New Year parties. I loved to be a Snow
madden. In Russian fairy tales, that is a very
famous personage.” Ms. Istomin.
“My favorite costume was Wonder Woman. I
wore a Wonder Woman mask; a red, white,
and blue outfit; and gold bracelets. I was in
“My favorite costume as a child was when I
dressed up as a flower. My mother made the
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first grade. I especially
bracelets!” Mrs. Rohr.
loved
the
gold
although it used to be United Nations
International Children’s Emergency Fund. As
the name explains, UNICEF helps children
who have been through natural disasters (like
a tsunami), or live in places with poor health
treatment, poor education, gender inequality,
or other such things. So now that you know
what UNICEF is, please donate to help
protect children and give them a chance for
better living conditions..
“My favorite costume was a bride. I was five
or six. It was all white, and I think I had a
bouquet and a veil. I loved it because I loved
dressing up, and I had just been in my aunt’s
wedding as a flower girl.” Mrs. Rust.
“My favorite Halloween costume when I was a
child was Raggedy Ann…..I remember liking
the bright red wig made of string that I wore.
Plus I got to wear this entire white make up
on my face, and that seemed so cool at the
time.” Mrs. Sidari.
Alexis Balog
Funny Trick-or-Treating Tips
1) If a witch offers you an apple, don’t eat it – It’s
not a costume.
“I was Batgirl in 3rd grade- in a snazzy purple
and yellow satin costume that my mom made
for me. I even had a Batgirl Utility Belt! There
was a campy Batman TV show from the 60’s
that I watched every day after school and I
loved Batgirl above all others. It was the
coolest costume ever!” Mrs. Simon.
2) Make sure that your friend is really wearing a
mask before complimenting him on his hideous
face.
3) Don’t comment on someone’s “I am with
Stupid” shirt before realizing that you’re the one
the arrow is pointing to.
“The one I certainly remember the most was
when I dressed as Robin, Batman’s sidekick. I
liked it because I made it from scratch,
including an oversized, 70’s style belt that
was perfect and a T-shirt that I had to color
completely with magic markers.” Mr. Stone.
Which teacher’s costume is your favorite?
Email me at parkso@theellisschool.org to
cast your ballot!
4) Remember: Not all dwarves are Sneezy! If
you see one, don’t offer him a tissue.
5) Make sure the guy dressed as a sumo
wrestler is really in a fat suit before you tell him
how fat his costume makes him look.
6) If a health nut thinks she can pass off a
granola bar for candy, don’t hesitate to TP her
house.
Olivia Parks
7) There’s only ONE size of candy bar - King
size! Everything else is a worthless imitation. If
you get one of these pathetic excuses for a
candy bar, stomp on the candy and run away.
8) While trick-or-treating you might find an empty
house with a bowl marked “Take One” but it
really means knock yourself out.
What is UNICEF?
Kate Berger-Acheson, Lauryn Williams, and
Maia Rosenfeld
Every year around Halloween, Guild asks you
to donate money to UNICEF in boxes in the
homerooms, and every year there are
confused people who don’t know what
UNICEF is. For those of you who do know,
great! For those of you who don’t
know…well…read on!. First of all, UNICEF
stands for United Nations Children’s Fund,
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Charlotte Forsythe came to Ellis from Sacred
Heart. She likes to play field hockey and
basketball. Her favorite color is lime green.
She has one brother and one sister. She also
has a dog named Rosie. Her favorite food is
beef stew.
New Students in the Middle
School
New Students in Grade 5
Leila Reines comes to us from Georgetown Day
School in Washington DC. She likes to play
tennis and volleyball. Her favorite color is light
blue. She has one sister, Amelia, who is four.
She also has one dog, three cats, three birds,
fish, and two guinea pigs. Her favorite food is
mango.
The Ellis 5th grade welcomes Addy Lee to our
class. She came here from Canon Mac. Red
is her favorite color. She lives with her little
brother Nicholas, her dog named Koda, and
her cat named Moose. She had a cat, Angel,
but it ran away. Her favorite food is a good
fajita.
Olivia Rautio is a new student this year.
Before she came to Ellis, she went to Liberty.
Her favorite color is silver and magenta. She
likes to play volleyball, and her favorite food is
Thai food. She has no siblings, but she has
cats.
Please welcome Sunny Zhou to the Ellis 5 th
grade class. She came here from the First
Experimental Elementary School in Jiangsu,
China. Her favorite colors are blue and
yellow. She has one older sister named
Summer who is a junior here at Ellis. She has
a small, black dog named Little Black who
lives back in China. Her favorite food is
French fries, or anything made from potatoes.
Another new student this year is Corby Wolfe.
Her former school was Sacred Heart. Her
favorite food is pasta; her favorite color is
pink; and her favorite sport is field hockey.
She has three siblings, Campbell, Keegan,
and Kathryn. She has one dog named Luther.
The Ellis 5 th grade is happy to have new
student, Nyjah Cephas, in their class. She
used to go to the Urban League of Greater
Pittsburgh Charter School. Her favorite colors
are pink, lime, lilac and sky blue. She has a
sister named Teila, a brother named Sharon,
and a sister named Nevaeh. She has a
beagle named Bugsy, and her favorite foods
are spaghetti and pizza.
Emily Mazur is new to Ellis this year. She
went to Keystone Oaks before she came to
Ellis. She has one brother named Aaron. She
has one dog and four fish. Her favorite color
is green; her favorite sport is swimming; and
she doesn’t have a favorite food.
Lastly, Alma Bartnik is new to Ellis this year.
She went to Keystone Oaks before she came
here. Her favorite color is black, and her
favorite sport is baseball. Her favorite food is
sushi. She has one brother. Alma also has
one dog, one cat, one guinea pig, and two
rabbits.
Carrie Mannino
6th Grade New Students
Caitlyn Amshel came to Ellis from Winchester
Thurston North. Her favorite color is neon
green. She has many pets including: a baby
bearded dragon, a leopard gecko, and two
dogs. She has a brother named Eli. Her
favorite sport is lacrosse, and she loves
fudge!!
Laurel Hettinger and Emma Perelman
7th Grade New Student
Clare McKenzie’s former school is St.
Edmunds Academy. Her favorite color is
purple. She enjoys playing tennis and field
hockey. Her cat’s name is Belle, and she has
a turtle named Shelly. She has an older sister
named Lauren. Her favorite food is grilled
cheese.
The seventh grade is ecstatic to welcome Zoe
Merrell to Ellis. I sat down to ask Zoe some
questions to help the Middle School get to
know her more. Zoe came to Ellis from
Dikson Intermediate. Don’t be surprised if you
see Zoe eating a Twix Bar at the Halloween
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party because they are her favorite candy bar.
When she gets home from school, Zoe enjoys
either fruit or chips as a snack. Zoe also
enjoys Googling things on the computer in her
free time. If you ask what her favorite piece of
clothing is, Zoe would tell you about her
favorite soft, blue sweater that she loves to
wear. You can find Zoe in the art studios
because art is her favorite subject. Zoe would
love to visit South America because she loves
the animals. A reason that Zoe loves Ellis is
the friendly environment and nice girls. Be
sure to say hi to Zoe in the halls and welcome
her to Ellis.
Random Facts!
1. The body loses half a liter of water every
day through breathing.
2. Humans are born with 300 bones but, by the
time they reach adulthood, they only have
206.
3. Fingernails are made from the same
substance as a bird’s beak.
4. The most common phobia in the world is
algophobia, which is the fear of pain.
5. Mosquitoes have teeth.
6. The largest pumpkin pie ever made weighed
2,020 lbs. and was baked in Ohio in 2005.
7. The world’s windiest place is
Commonwealth Bay, Antarctica. Winds
regularly exceed 150 miles per hour.
8. The letter w is the only letter in the alphabet
that does not have one syllable. It has
three.
9. Because snow is relatively unknown on the
continent of Africa, children there know the
fairy-tale heroine as “Flower White” rather
than as Snow White.
10. Honeybees have hair on their eyes.
Nicole Fallert
New 8th Graders
One of the new faces in the 8th grade is
Shruti Ravindramurthy. She came to Ellis
from Marshall Middle School, in the North
Allegheny School District. She loves to paint,
eat pizza and pasta, and her favorite color is
blue. Shruti is obsessed with Nick Jonas, and
the Jonas Brothers, but doesn’t like Taylor
Swift. She is an only child and enjoys reading
the Harry Potter series in her free time. So
when you see Shruti in the hall, remember to
say a friendly hello!
?????????
Another new student to the Ellis 8 th grade is
Francesca Pellegrini. Francesca comes to
Ellis from Providence Heights Alpha School in
the North Hills. She has an older brother
named Danny, an older sister named Lisa,
and a younger brother named Luke. She also
has a French bulldog and two cats.
Francesca’s favorite color is pink, favorite
food is sushi, and favorite sports are
swimming, volleyball, and dance. She also
loves the television show, Glee, and the
movie, Hocus Pocus.
In two words,
Francesca would describe herself as, “really
Italian!” Please welcome both Francesca and
Shruti to Ellis!
Mystery 8
This issue’s Mystery 8, has brown
hair, bluish-green eyes, and a sister. She
enjoys dancing and watching American Idol,
Gossip Girl, Lincoln Heights, Greek and Glee.
Her favorite colors are lime green and blue,
and loves the Twilight series. She loves
vacationing in the Bahamas and her favorite
holiday is Christmas. Her typical lunch
consists of turkey, gluten-free bread, some
fruit, and a bottle of bubbly water. Do you
know who the Mystery 8 is?
Sophie Abo and Olivia Cochran
Olivia Cochran and Sophie Abo
Mystery 7
This issue’s Mystery 7 has brown eyes and no
glasses. She likes to read, but she doesn’t
like to do homework. She likes the outdoors.
Her favorite subject is art. She lives in a
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house in Fox Chapel. Her favorite color is
blue. She likes to play music.
Compton. This club, like the Harry Potter
Club, was created by 5th graders. Tillie
LaBranche and Carrie Mannino plan for each
girl to research one body part and then
collaborate at the end.
Alexis Balog and Lucy Newman
Harry Potter Club, Friday Dance Revolution,
Twilight Series Club, and Human Biology
Club, are four great new clubs which make
the 2009-2010 school year even better!
Mystery Teacher
This issue’s Mystery Teacher, is a teacher the
Middle School could not live without. He/she
is the head of one of the lunch time clubs and
is a homeroom teacher. His/her favorite color
varies depending on her mood that day.
He/she loves hiking in the woods and reading
the book The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein.
He/she loves the movie What’s Eating Gilbert
Grape, and his/her favorite food is peanut
butter. He/her has a cat named Bob, and you
would be surprised to know that some of his/
her relatives are dairy farmers. Can you
guess who this Mystery Teacher is?
Emily Thomas and Anna Fireman
Recipes
Giant Baked Pancake Puff
Ingredients:
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Sophie Abo and Olivia Cochran
4 eggs
1 tbsp butter or a can of Pam
1½ cups of flour
1 1/3 cups milk
½ tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
You also need:
New Middle School Clubs
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1.
2.
This school year has started off with four
awesome new clubs! The new clubs include
Friday Dance Revolution, the Harry Potter
Club, Human Biology, and the Twilight Series
Club.
Friday Dance Revolution, with Mrs. Rust, Mr.
Mercier, and Mrs. Mechling, is all about
dancing though the decades! Held in Joy’s
gym, this club is the biggest in the middle
school.
In Room 32, Mrs. Okonak is running the
Twilight Series club. The Twilight club is
everything Twilight! From the movie, to every
book, even the board game, this club is
definitely for those Twilight lovers!
3.
4.
The Harry Potter Club run by Ms. Perry was
inspired by three 5th graders. In this club,
they plan to make potions, watch the movies,
and even attempt to play quidditch! If you’re
interested in anything and everything Harry
Potter, this is the right club for you.
5.
The last new club this year is the Human
Biology Club which is sponsored by Mrs.
8.
6.
7.
5
9 by 13 inch baking pan
wooden spoon
whisk
dinner knife (if using butter)
small bowl or pot (if using butter)
rubber spatula
brush (if using butter)
large mixing bowl
2-cup liquid measure
measuring cups and spoons
timer with a bell
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Use a dinner knife to cut along one line
on package of butter.
Put the butter in a small bowl and heat it
in the microwave for 30 sec.
Scrape butter into pan and brush around
or spray Pam.
Crack 4 eggs and put them in a large
bowl.
Pour milk 1 1/3 milk into meas. cup,
then into eggs.
Meas. 1 tsp vanilla extract and 3 tbsp
sugar, then put them into the milk and
eggs.
Whisk until it is all one color and
smooth.
9. Meas. 1½ cups flour and ½ tsp salt, put
these into the wet mixture.
10. Whisk until flour is not visible and there
are no more lumps, scrape sides and
mix it all in.
11. Hold the bowl and turn it toward the pan,
scrape into pan with spatula
12. Put in oven, set timer for 35 min, check
to see if it’s done, if not, set for 5 min
and repeat.
13. Cut the puff and serve hot or warm with
maple syrup, powdered sugar, etc. on
top.
Honest Pretzels by Mollie Katzen
Aries (3/21–4/19) Congrats, you will find a
fortune on the sidewalk. Keep polishing that
penny!
Taurus (4/20–5/20) Donate to charity. Help
save a life! You can make a difference. Doing
good things for others makes you feel good
about yourself!
Gemini (5/ 21–6/21) Eat healthy foods, such
as veggies, fruit, and all that other good stuff.
Remember, an apple a day keeps the doctor
away!
Cancer (6/22-7/22) Work hard on your
studies. Great hardships are ahead, but even
greater rewards!
Strawberry Ice Cream
Ingredients:
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1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Leo (7/23-8/22) Congratulations! You have
finally discovered that the art of shopping
burns more calories than running laps! (But
don’t tell Ms. Crum!)
2-3 cups strawberries (mashed)
2 cups whipping cream (shipped to
soft peaks)
1¼ cups sweetened condensed milk
1 cup cold water
6 tbsp sugar
½ tsp vanilla
¼ tsp salt
MAKES ABOUT 2 QUARTS!
Chill all ingredients.
In mixing bowl, beat all ingredients
together with an electric mixer.
Pour into a 9 by 13 inch panand
freeze until mushy (3-4 hrs).
Remove from freezer and return to
mixing bowl.
Beat until smooth but not melted.
Return to pan and freeze another 3
hrs.
Virgo (8/23–9/22) You will stay healthy during
swine flu season! Keep up washing your
hands, and sneeze into your elbow!
Libra (9/23-10/23) Your kilt will mysteriously
shrink in the wash.
Scorpio (10/24-11/21) Careful, you might spill
orange juice all over your white polo. Thank
goodness for those Clorox wipes!
Sagittarius (11/22–12/21) Congratulations!
You have achieved the ultimate goal! You
have beaten your rival in a battle of wits
(chess OR shopping).
Also try peaches or blueberries, or
almond extract instead of straw-berries or
vanilla!
Capricorn (12/22–1/19) Wow! This is a bad
hair month for you. Try getting some new
conditioner!
Simply in Season by Mary Beth Lind and
Cathleen Hockman Wert
Aquarius (1/20–2/18) All you’ve ever wanted
is right under your nose. Don’t sneeze!
Pisces (2/19-3/20) You will share many
laughs with your friends this month. (Even if
it’s not that funny!)
Alexis Balog and Lucy Newman
Horoscopes
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Carley Fritsch and Julia Granito, and for the B
team, Mackenzie Haney and Hanaa Malik.
Elianna Paljug, Suzie Kazar, and Maia
Rosenfeld
Congratulations on a great season!
Kate Berger-Acheson
Riddle Time!
In a world where everyone names buildings
what they are, there was a neighborhood where
all but one house was identical to the others
except for color. The buildings were called
Redhouse, Yellowhouse, Greenhouse, and
Bluehouse. Which house looked different?
A: The greenhouse. It was not green, but had
plants kept inside
Lindsay Gorby.
Staff Box
SPORTS!
Editors: S. Abo, O. Cochran, L. Epstein, C.
Karlovich, O. Parks, N. Ravi,
Soccer
Reporters: A. Balog, K. Berger-Acheson, N.
Fallert, A. Fireman, N. Frantz, L. Gorby, L.
Newman, E. Paljug, M. Rosenfeld, E.
Thomas, L. Williams, S. Kazar, L. Hettinger,
A. Lucas, E. Perelman, C. Wolfe, E. Wolfe, C.
Mannino
The soccer teams have done a good job this
season! The A-Team captains were Charlotte
Verstraeten and Sophie Abo, and the B-Team
captains were Isabel Brooke and Lauryn
Williams. From the very beginning, every
player worked their hardest and played every
game with enthusiasm and dedication. The A
team coach was Miss Crum, and the B team
coach was Miss Bucklew.
Sponsors: Mrs. Okonak and Ms. Hui
The Middle School soccer players all deserve
congratulations on a great season.
We need artists and photographers who
are interested in working on TigerPrint. I
you are interested, see Mrs. Okonak
Nikita Frantz
Field Hockey
This year’s Ellis Middle School field hockey
has started out with a bang! The A and B
team were both undefeated this season! This
year’s B team captains were 7th graders Emily
Thomas, Mackenzie Haney, and Lindsay
Gorby. The A team captains were 8th graders
Colleen Karlovich and Manal, Piracha. The
field hockey coaches who have helped the
Middle School Tigers throughout this season
were Mrs. McConnell, A team, and Miss
Magan, B team. MVP’s were for the A team
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