Windsock

SAT Test Taking Tips

The SAT is a standardized reasoning test that intimidates many high school students around the nation. Many colleges within the United States require that their applicants take the test. 
The SAT test is comprised of three primary sections: critical reading ,mathematics, and writing. This 3 hour and 45 minute exam will play a large role in determining your future. So here are a few tips and tricks to raise your score.

Read Daily:
Get in the habit of reading daily. Even if only for a few minutes a day, reading can tremendously improve your vocabulary and writing. Reading books also helps improve your reading speed, which will be useful with those long and tedious reading passages. Don't be a picky reader, read a variety of genres and authors. Try to read 50 or more pages a day. 

Learn the Vocab:
Aesthetic, anachronistic, hackneyed, surreptitious, spurious, ostentatious.
Did you recognize any of these words? If not, you should think about brushing up on your SAT vocabulary. I cannot stress enough the importance of vocabulary. It's definitely a good idea to get a head start on memorization. You should memorize 500-1000 SAT words if you're aiming for a good score. If you're an avid reader, you probably already know many of these. There are certain words that College Board loves to reuse, so check out the most used words on the SAT. Leave yourself plenty of time before the test to study and reinforce the words. Memorize 10-20 new words a day and don't foreget to review old words. It wont be productive to learn new words only to forget the old.

Know Your Math:
You should be fluent in Algebra 1, Geometry, and Algebra 2 before taking the test. Although the math level of the SAT is pretty low, the problem is high speed. Many students fail to answer math questions not because the problems were too hard, but because they ran out of time. Master all the topics: coordiante geometry, algebra, some statistics, and speedy solving. Do some practice math sections every day, even if it's just 10 problems a day. 

PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!
The most effective way to develop your time management skills is to put them to work through realistic practice tests and simulations. There's a lot of good prep books out there such as Barrons SAT Prep, Kaplan SAT Prep, and also Official SAT Prep from the College Board. 

GENERAL TIPS:
-Learn the section directions now. Don't even bother to waste time reading them during the actual test.

-Bring a watch to the test center. You can't be guaranteed that there'll be a working clock there. (Just make sure it's not the beeping kind!)

-Easy questions usually precede hard ones. You will need to breeze through the first few questions in order to leave time to think and answer the harder ones.

-Know when to skip an SAT question. Sometimes after reading a question, you know that you will not be able to come up with an answer. Rather than spending ten minutes trying to narrow down your choices, skip the question. If you have time at the end, you can go back and have another go at it.

-Understand the scoring! You get a point for a right answer. You lose a 1/4 point for a wrong answer. Know when to answer a question and when to skip it. This should be done strategically. There are five answer choices and a 20% chance of getting it correct on luck alone. It would actually hurt your score more to incorrectly answer than to leave it blank. So unless you can eliminate at least 2 choices, skip any question you haven't the faintest idea about the answer. You don't lose points.

-Don't spend too much time on any one question. You should spend only a few seconds on the easiest questions, and hesitate to spend more than 1-2 minutes on even the hardest ones.
Remember that the SAT consists of a series of small, timed, mini-tests. Keep track of the time you're allotted for each one and how much time remains. Time management is crucial for the SAT's. 

-Contrary to popular belief, eating a huge breakfast may not be the best idea. I once knew a student who never eats breakfast, but boldly decided to eat a buffet on the morning of SAT day. She ended up sick during the test and unable to focus.

-Make sure that you don't eat or drink too much right before the exam. You don't want to waste test-taking time because you are holed up in a bathroom.

-It’s hard to resist the temptation to stay up all night and cram for the SAT. The fact is, you will be much better off if you spend that time resting. Make sure that you get enough sleep the night before. Your brain will thank you for it. 

-Make sure you're ready, mentally and physically, for a long SAT test.

 

~Minji Chung

Ask Angie

Dear Angie,

Okay so my sister is having some hard times with people around her and I have advised her to tell my mother about the problem but she is scared that my mom and dad will get her in trouble instead. How do I make my sis understand that my parents will help her if she just tells the truth?
            -sis who needs help!

 

Dear Sis who needs help,

It seems to me like your sister has some trust issues. If you feel like your sister is in any type of situation that she can’t seem to handle herself then you should go to your parents directly. It’s not fair to you for her to tell you about these things and expect you to know what to do. Try explaining to her that she should tell your parents and that you know your parents will love her no matter what the situation is. It may also be a good idea to tell her that you will stick by her when she tells your parents. Knowing someone is going to be there for you is a wonderful thing when dealing with trust issues. I wish you the best!

Love,

Angie

To Dance Or Not To Dance

When I think “Mennonite,” I imagine folks who accentuate family tradition and good food. One can also argue that many Mennonites tend to lean toward more conservative beliefs. For example, Mennonite traditions assert dancing to be “worldly”, and it was frowned upon by the community. Most Mennonites certainly aren’t vibrant dancers, prancing and flinging their arms about in a hysterical manner. The portrayal of Mennonites is more like that of serious-minded men and women, staying true to their customs. 

EMHS holds the annual Junior/Senior Banquet, similar to prom night in public high schools. As a Christian school, it seems reasonable to censor anything that crosses the line of modesty, but why exactly are students refrained from dancing? 12th grader Samantha Rimer voices her opinion on why the school should have dances. “I feel like I’m missing out on crucial high school experiences that I would have if I went to public school.” 11th grader Caleb Townsend adds, “I think that not having dancing makes some events boring and awkward. Not everyone is Mennonite; we shouldn’t have to follow the strict Mennonite rules.” Many students seem perplexed as to why such a rule exists. Sherman Eberly answers, “Well technically, we do allow dancing. Although the school doesn’t host dances, the SCO parents provide an After Banquet at JMU where students are permitted to dance.” Mr. Eberly further clarified the school guidelines which state that “students are encouraged to follow parental and congregational guidelines on the matters of on-campus or off-campus dancing.” He explains that the school itself has no specific regulations restricting students from dancing. Rather, the matter is dependent on both the individual’s choice and consent from parent and church.

Times are changing, and it has certainly opened up different mindsets regarding dancing. Not all Mennonites are die-hard conservatives, and many Mennonite families today are becoming more liberal. In fact, some families permit and even encourage certain kinds of dancing. As family members become more involved in one another’s lives, parents are becoming more involved in what their kids are doing. Dancing at EMHS is still somewhat an issue to be debated, and it could garner major support as a lot of people would be in favor of it.

 

~Minji Chung

 

Ask Angie

Hello readers! Once you reach middle school, your life seems to get really complicated. In high school, it's even worse! Do you have questions about friends, relationships, school, stress, or just life in general? That's what I'm here for. My upcoming articles will be advice columns. If anyone has any questions they'd like to ask- about anything- that's what I'm here for. Plenty of my friends have told me that I give good advice, and I'm always the one they go to for advice. I've decided to share that with the rest of you. Feel free to write in your questions, and if no one writes in, I'll do an article called “Advice for Life.”

Lots of Love,
Angela

Paranormal Activity 3 Movie Review

Let me start off this review by saying that I hated Paranormal Activity. I had heard so much hype about the first one, how it is the scariest movie of all time, and how people had heart attacks in the theater, that when I finally got around to watching it, I was disappointed to see two hours of what I can only describe as a 2 hour long youtube video blog, with bad actors trying to act like they aren't acting, and furniture flying across the screen. As I saw the second one, not much improved for me, as it was basically a carbon copy of the first one. But surprisingly enough, I loved this movie. 

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Paranormal series, these films are known for being shot like it was a documentary, therefore trying to make the movie look more realistic. It's like if The Office were a horror movie. And in all of the movies, the main character will set up cameras in his house to try and record footage over night of what he might think to be a ghost. Some weird things start to happen, and what starts off as weird shadows and bed sheets moving around quickly turns into something very dangerous. In the third installment, which is a prequel to the first and second movies, The two sisters who are adults in the first two movies are kids in this one. Katie (Katie Featherston) and Kristi Ray (Spargue Grayden) share a two level home with their mother Julie (Lauren Bittner) her boyfriend Dennis (Chris Smith). The girl know something is in the house, perhaps an Imaginary friend or perhaps a not so imaginary friend.

When it comes to movies, it takes a lot to scare me. A general thing that keeps me from being scared in movies is a lack of realism or relevance to me. When I see Alien, or Jaws, or The Ring, I think, when am I ever going to be in space, or the ocean, or a well? It doesn't get to me. But Paranormal Activity takes the safest place I can think of, my house and my bed, and makes it incredibly scary. That's why I wanted to like the first one so much and was so disappointed with it. But this movie took everything wrong with the first two, and improved on it. It had more cameras in more places, including a panning camera, so I didn't have to sit through two hours of the same room. It added humor into the dialogue and had better acting than the first two, which made the scene's that weren't scary a lot more entertaining to watch. It's just an all around better movie than the first two. 

Just a note, this kind of movie is best seen with a huge audience that screams at every turn and laughs loudly at every joke. This is NOT a movie so watch alone, not because it's to scary, but because it's just a fun movie to watch with a lot of other people.

 

Caleb Townsend

 

Jake Lind, Daniel Martin, and Mark Mast

Jake Lind

1. I have attended EMHS since 7th grade

2. Playing soccer

3. Plans for next year: work.

Daniel Martin

1. Since 9th grade

2. Discovery trip

3. Going to EMU, undecided, possibly education

Mark Mast

1. Have attended EMHS since his freshman year

2. Winning the state tournament in soccer

3. Going to EMU next year to study Biology

Joseph Nam, Parker Leap, and Christopher Lehman

Joseph Nam

 

 

Parker Leap

1. Attended EMHS for 4 years

2. Puerto Rico!

3. Going to VCU, majoring in Psychology

Christopher Lehman

1. I have attended EMHS for two years.

2. My favorite memory was going to Europe with the touring choir

3. I will be attending EMU next year

Robert McConnel, Steven Mattichak, and Victoria Clymer

Robert McConnel

1. I've been here since 6^th

 2. I will never forget biology class with Mr. Blosser and the awesome corny jokes he says. Or sports teams, like bus trips and all the laughs, but especially golf.

3. I will be going to The United States Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut where I will be majoring in marine and environmental sciences and hopefully be training for the search and rescue profession

Steven Mattichak

1. Ive been here since 6th grade.

2. Probably the E-term I went on last year to New York City and going to watch a play on Broadway while we were there and just touring the city.

3. I plan on taking the year off to work and think everything over and maybe take a few classes at Blue Ridge in the meantime.

Victoria Clymer

1. I have attended for 4 years

2. I remember all the "days out", school day out etc., Touring Choir definitely, music in the hallways, setting up Banquet that one night during the torrential storm :), phone-a-thon, lots of stuff.

3.  Next year, I'm going to EMU and majoring in Elementary Education.

Ryan Kline, Christophe Langouet, and Kevin Leaman

Ryan Kline

1. He has attended since sophomore year.

2. His  favorite memory is Senior Trip.

3. He will attend Blue Ridge to study nursing and then plans to transfer to JMU for his BSN.

Christophe Langouet

1. Christophe has attended EMHS since 6th grade.

2. His favorite memory is touring choir.

3. Next year, he plans to attend JMU and major in biotechnology with a pre-med program and minor in statistics.

Kevin Leaman

1. Since 6th grade

2. Discovery/ Touring Choir trip to Puerto Rico

3. Going to EMU and majoring in biology, with a minor in Spanish

Leah Jacobs, Edward Wang, and Al Vanegas

Leah Jacobs

1. Has attended EMHS for 7 years

2. The E-term to Trinidad and Tobago, andthe myriad of friendships created here

3. Attending Emory, majoring in Economics and Math, and playing volleyball

Edward Wang

1. I have attended EMHS from 2008-2011

2. Chapel, God, Bible

3. College in Canada.

Al Vanegas

1. I've gone to EMHS since 6th grade.

2. My favorite memory here is being with my friends.

3. I'm going to EMU next year.