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“Cheers to a newyear andanother chancefor us to get itright.” ~Oprah WinfreyTHE CASA CHRONICLEHappy New Year!Issue No.12| JANUARY 2024CYBERARTS STUDIO ACADEMY

CYBERARTS STUDIO ACADEMY Dear families, We wish you a very happy andhealthy New Year!We are at the end of MarkingPeriod 3, which will close outSemester 1. This is a vital period inschool because this grade will goon students' transcripts and counttowards graduation. Families,please encourage students to makeup missing work and attend schooldaily so that they can pass all theirclasses and earn their credits.Regents Week will be January 23rd -January 26th. The Regents scheduleis attached to this newsletter. Allstudents must show up for theirscheduled Regents exams. Allstudents sitting for Regents examswere given their Regents invitation.Semester 2 will begin on January30th. Please encourage yourstudents to do their best and workhard.iIn partnership,Mrs. Wauchope“TAKE THE FIRST STEP IN FAITH. YOU DON’T HAVE TO SEETHE WHOLE STAIRCASE, JUST TAKE THE FIRST STEP.” ~ MARTIN LUTHE R KING JR.FROM THE PRINCIPAL’S DESK

THE CASACHRONICLEJanuary 2024Financial Wellness MonthGet Organized MonthInternational Creativity MonthNational Blood Donor MonthNational Mentoring MonthNational Staying Healthy MonthNational "Thank You" MonthSelf-Love MonthJANUARY MONTHLY OBSERVANCESOur LearningUpcoming EventsAfter School ClubsWednesday and Thursdays (Check the CASA Event Calendar fordetails.)First Day of Semester 2January 30Fall 2023 Report Cards DistributedJanuary 30Senior Trip Payment Due in FullFebruary 1Senior Picture Retake DayFebruary 7Senior TripFebruary 9-11Monthly SLT MeetingFebruary 12, 5:00pm, Room G22A &ZoomENL SupportPlans are underway for a lunchtime peer tutoring programfor ELL students who would like assistance with theirstudies. More information on this will be shared soon.Monday, January 15, 20242

CONGRATULATIONSC Y B E R A R T S S T U D I O A C A D E M Y ’ SG R A D E 1 2 - M A C I K I E C A R B E N T E G R A D E 1 1 - E U G E N I A T E M G R A D E 1 0 - F A B I A N O C R U ZG R A D E 9 - M A R C O A N T O N I O - M E Z A

EASYEASYEASYEATS!EATS!EATS!SNACKSNACKSNACKDRIVEDRIVEDRIVEW e a r e c o n t i n u i n g o u r c o m m u n i t y p a n t r y f o r o u rs t u d e n t s . W i t h y o u r h e l p , w e w i l l b a g s n a c k s t o b ep i c k e d u p 3 t i m e s a w e e k f r o m d i f f e r e n t l o c a t i o n s .Y o u r d o n a t i o n s w i l l h e l p g e t t h i s o f f t h e g r o u n d . W ew o u l d l i k e t o s t a r t t h i s i n O c t o b e r , o n O c t o b e r1 0 t h . Y o u c a n d r o p a l l d o n a t i o n s o f f i n M s . S t e i n ' sr o o m . T h e d a y s t h a t s t u d e n t s c a n p i c k u p s n a c k sw i l l b e p o s t e d a r o u n d t h e s c h o o l .G R A N O L A B A R S , C H I P S , P E A N U T B U T T E R A N D J E L L Y , P O P C O R N ,C R A C K E R S W I T H O R W I T H O U T C H E E S E , C H E E Z E - I T S , P U D D I N G ,M U F F I N S , P I E S , D E B B I E C A K E S , G R A H A M C R A C K E R S , T R A I L M I X ,A P P L E S A U C E , F R U I T P O U C H , H E A L T H Y C O O K I E S , G O L D F I S H ,P O P T A R T S , O R A N Y T H I N G T H A T Y O U M A Y H A V E A T H O M E F O RA S N A C K B A S E D P A N T R Y . F O R A D D I T I O N A L I N F O R M A T I O N , P L E A S EC O N T A C T S S T E I N 7 @ S C H O O L S . N Y C . G O VFOR MOREINFORMATION CONTACTMS. STEININ ROOMG21AHELLO ALL:

HOW TO BEAT THE WINTER BLUES TIPSFOR ALLEVIATING SEASONAL DEPRESSIONCan't get outside? Try walking up and down stairs in your house or office for five-minute breaksthroughout the day. Any movement is better than no movement throughout the day; even marching inplace for a few minutes will get your blood flowing and increase your energy!Exercise can help release beneficial hormones in our brains and nervous systems called endorphins.Endorphins have helpful physiological effects on our minds and bodies. A daily 30-minute walk may helpprevent depression, so get out there!How to Beat the Winter BluesStay activeEnjoy the sunlight

The CASA Chronicle is honored to feature theamazing student writing that is happeningthroughout our school. Special thanks to Ms.G. Harris for these literary treasures. The Writer's NookEssential Question: People are constantly told to think and act forthemselves, yet it is the human essence to revise yourbehavior when within a group. What makes people deterfrom their normal behavior when involved in a group?Author Shelby Ostergaard introduces the termsdeindividuation, anonymity, and diffused responsibilitythrough the informational text, “It’s No One’s Fault if it’sEveryone’s Fault” and discusses how people who are partof a group make critical decisions that they wouldn'tmake on their own. In “The Man in the Well” by Ira Sherand “Cheboygan Day” by Brittany Allen, characters makecritical decisions that dictate the path of the story andlead to some terrible consequences. Brittany Allen’s “Cheboygan Day” illustratesdeindividuation when the characters behavior differedwhen in a group setting, acting less held back in theiropinions on Adele. For example, in paragraph 93, thenarrator says, “Then he spun his index finger around next to his head, the universal gesture for “kooky”. Inspired, Arpan and Jumi laughed into a hit when they pretended to be related, and a bunch of townies laughed. Townies - that was the word I thought of then, looking at my classmates’ faces, all twisted up and mean.”This demonstrates the powerful influence that deindividuation has by showing how within a grouppeople tend to exhibit behaviors and actions that they normally wouldn’t have shown when alone. The impactof being in a crowd is further discussed in Shelby Ostergaard’s “It’s No One’s Fault When It’s Everyone’sFault”. He claims, “People lose their self-awareness ingroups; they become less self-conscious and lessinhibited.”(p3). In other words, people lose sight of theconsequences of their actions and behaviors,becoming more bold and or aggressive. This is similarto the story since normally many of these childrenwouldn’t have acted in such ways when they are alone,away from the influence of a group. Ira Sher’s “The Man in the Well” illustrates the termanonymity when the group leader, Aaron, revealseveryone else's names after one of the narrator'sfriends accidentally reveals his name. They werepreviously anonymous to The Man in the well. Forexample, the narrator describes, “Aaron didn’t look at Arthur or anyone and then he began giving all our names one at a time. We all watched him, trembling out faces I had seen pasted on the spectators in the freak tent…When he said my name, I felt the water clouding my eyes, and I wanted to throw stones, dirt down the well to crush out his voice. But we couldn’t do anything, none of us did because then he would know.” (paragraphs 52,55). This shows the power of anonymity because withouttheir anonymity, they were more cautious due to thefact that they couldn't hide behind a larger group toblame their actions upon. Moreover, Ostergaarddescribes how being in a group affects behavior when,he explains that “Anonymity is present because anindividual can hide themselves and their acts within alarger group.” In other words, anonymity is when aperson feels comfortable doing something becausethey know it will be difficult to pin the responsibility orthe consequence to them. This relates to the storysince the children refused to take risky choicesbecause they had lost their anonymity, in other words,their disguise. When people are acting within a group, the resultscan be harmful and even deadly. In the short story,“Cheboygan Day”, deindividuation plays a powerfulrole while in the short story “The Man in the Well”,anonymity played a significant role. While it may bedifficult to fight the impact of deindividuation,anonymity, or diffused responsibility, it is important tolearn from the examples of harmful group behavior totry and maintain an understanding of individualresponsibility.By Aaliyah Robinson, English 1 How does being in a groupaffect how we behave?18

Therefore, in the end, they let her out slowly andquietly at the end of the story. However in “The Man in the Well” it is theopposite. The group of children should not beforgiven because what they did to the man in thewell was cruel and displeasing. For example, thetext says, “But along the way we slowed down,and then we stopped, and after waiting whatseemed like a good while, we quietly came backto the well. (5)” This shows that the kids didn’tmind getting help for the man and instead lefthim in the well until he drowned. For anotherexample, in the story, it also says, “That night itrained, and I listened to the rain on the roof andmy mother sobbing, downstairs until I fellasleep. (57)” This demonstrates that they did notfeel guilty about what they did and went on withtheir life and did not tell anyone. However,people can also argue that they should beforgiven because the text states, “The nextmorning we came back, most of us carryingbread or fruit or something to eat in our pockets.(20)” This illustrates that they somewhat caredabout the man because they brought food andwater to keep the man alive. Those stories show everyday life choicesindicating the bad and good things people do.Considering the consequences people cause inreal life, it also happens in stories for characters.This is why in “All Summer in a Day” the studentsshould be forgiven and in “The Man in the Well”the children should not. The Writer's Nook With the things the characters did in thestories read in Unit 1, people would arguewhether or not the characters should beforgiven or not. Considering the consequencescaused by the characters following the crowd inthis unit’s short stories, the students in “AllSummer in a Day” should be forgiven while thechildren in “The Man in the Well” should not beforgiven. In “All Summer in a Day,” the studentsshould be forgiven because they were able torealize what they did was wrong. For example,at the beginning of the story it says, “Then,smiling, they turned and went out and backdown the tunnel, just as the teacher arrived.(43)” This reveals that the students did not careat first and were happy that Margot would notget to see the sun. However, after beingexposed to the sun they start to feel bad abouteverything they did to Margot and regret theirchoices. For another example, the text states,“They turned through the doorway to the roomin the sound of the storm and thunder, lightingon their faces, blue and terrible. (85)” Thisdemonstrates that they feel terrible about notbelieving Margot and locking her in the closet. “All Summer in a Day” by Ray BradburyYing Chen English 1 19

The Writer's Nook The authors of “The Lottery” and “CheboyganDay” both use mood to develop the theme fortheir respective short stories. However, the twostories differ because “The Lottery” by ShirleyJackson uses irony to develop their story's themeand “Cheboygan Day” by Brittany Allen usescharacterization. Both "The Lottery" and "Cheboygan Day" usemood as a powerful tool. In "The Lottery," ShirleyJackson skillfully creates a certain mood throughher vivid descriptions and tone. For instance,when the townspeople gather for the annualritual, Shirley Jackson writes, "The morning ofJune 27th was clear and sunny, with the freshwarmth of a full-summer day; the flowers wereblossoming profusely, and the grass was richlygreen." The sentence leaves the imagination ofthe readers to think that the story will have agood outcome. The setting contrasts with theending of the story. Similarly, Brittany Allen usesmood effectively in "Cheboygan Day." Whendescribing the deserted town, Brittany Allenwrites, "Cheboygan was empty. The sidewalkswere bare, the storefronts silent." This creates afeeling that something bad will happen, invitingreaders to question the reasons behind thetown's abandonment. In both stories, moodserves as a vehicle to interest the audience. While mood unifies the stories, the authors usemore than that to create the theme, so the storiesalso differ. “The Lottery” relies on irony to createits theme. The title itself is ironic. A lottery can betaken as something good but while reading thisstory you realize the outcome isn’t so luckybecause the story deals with tragedy. Forexample, when the townspeople draw their slipsof paper, Shirley Jackson writes, “Bill Hutchinsonwent over to his wife and forced the slip of paperout of her hand. It had a black spot on it.”The irony lies in the fact that Bill Hutchinson's wifegot the winning slip. Typically winning symbolizesluck, but this leaves Bill and his wife with a badfate. On the other hand, “Cheboygan Day” usescharacterization for the theme of the story.Brittany Allen develops her theme through the lensof Owen. Owen is Adele’s “welcome ambassador.”Owen and Adele connect in the hallway. In conclusion, both “The Lottery” by ShirleyJackson and “Cheboygan Day” by Brittany Allen usemood as a common theme to interest the readers.However, they differ because they use differentnarrative techniques for the stories. ShirleyJackson’s story uses irony to interest the readers onthe theme of blind tradition in “The Lottery” whileBrittany Allen uses characterization to help withthe theme of accepting change in “Cheboygan Day.”By examining these stories, it becomes evident thatboth stories use different tools to put out theirmessages.18Sarah Cathme-NarvaezEnglish 1

MR. J’S MOVIE REVIEW NAPOLEANNAPOLEAN(2023) * * * *, APPLE TV, COLUMBIA PICTURES History bros., we ate good this year. It’sfinally time to review Napoleon. This was amore anticipated movie for me thanOppenheimer, so the hype was enormous.The film’s reception has been a bit polarizing,to say the least. People either love it or, or hate it. That seems to be the casewith many of the director’s, RidleyScott, recent releases (House ofGucci and The Last Duel). As ahistory teacher and enthusiast ofFrench history, especially theNapoleonic Age, I went ready to lovewhatever I was about to watch. Napoleon features some of the mostimpressive battle scenes in a moviein a long time. From the Siege ofToulon, to Austerlitz, Borodino, andfinally Waterloo, Ridley Scott hascrafted visually striking scenes thatcapture the harsh realities of battlein the 19th century (Austerlitz beingthe biggest standout and a trulyamazing spectacle). Other scenesincluding the coronation as emperorare equally as memorable. In addressing the major criticisms ofthe film, one focuses on how the filmcenters more on Napoleon’srelationship with his wife Josephine(a powerful performance fromVanessa Kirby) rather than his timeas a general, leader, emperor, etc.While I would have liked to see moreof that as well, Ridley Scott did sayat the very onset of this movie that itwould be mostly about therelationship between Napoleon andJosephine. So I knew to expect a lotof that going in.

Perhaps the biggest backlash the film hasfaced, however, is the litany of historicalinaccuracies throughout. From the details ofNapoleon’s whereabouts during thesignificant events of the French Revolution,to the events of Austerlitz, aspects of hismarriage with Josephine, his presence inEgypt, his methods and tactics in several keybattles, and the events of Waterloo, there isa lot to pick apart. One thing to know aboutthe director, Ridley Scott, is that he is goingto make the movie he wants to make, andhas no problem sacrificing historicalaccuracy for the sake of creating ablockbuster film. All those things aside, I can look past thatenough and just be happy to see one of myfavorite historical figures brought to life in abig budget blockbuster film with some of thebiggest and coolest battle scenes I’ve seen ina movie in years. Not to mention the featuringof other key figures from the French Revolution, I was grinning ear-to-ear forthe first 20 minutes of the movie. My biggest gripe comes with thefilm’s runtime. Two hours and fortyminutes is not enough time to capturethe life of someone of Napoleon’smagnitude. Many key moments inNapoleon’s life were eithercompletely left out or rushed throughvery fast. “But Mr. J, you’ve beencomplaining lately about moviesbeing too long. Now you’re sayingalmost three hours is not enough?”Yes. For having spent about fourmonths reading a biography over1300 pages, I needed a much longermovie. Oh well. Time to wait for the 4hour director’s cut.

W E L C O M E T O C A S A A R T SPORTRAITSENVIRONMENTAL PORTRAITSDOUBLE EXPOSURE PORTRAITS“FATIMA” JUNFENG DONG"LUIS" by VALENTINA ROMERA "LEO" by JERMAINE KEMP“ANATASTASIIA” BY JESSICA SAINTUS

W E L C O M E T O C A S A A R T SPORTRAITSENVIRONMENTAL PORTRAITSDOUBLE EXPOSURE PORTRAITS“KEVIN” BY DIEGO MEJIA"DIEGO" by AXEL GUARCAX"ROSES OF ART" by GISSEL RODRIGUEZ“DOUBLE EXPOSURE PORTRAIT” BY KAI KAPENA ALICEA

January Birthdays Rocio Ines Flores Ryu PayaoFiona Beqiri Zion ThomasHenry Perez Hernandez Cristina Quisquina Cumes Tissany Garcia Naomi Carbente Jeliday Gualan Rosa Chiptop Pu Mayre Garcia Shaddy Munoz

January BirthdaysEfrai Julajuj Cesar Jose Moreno Cruz Kapone Davila Angel Lara Luna Amber Santiago Cruz Sandoval Vicente Oasis Rosa Kai Kapena Alicea Riquelmi Camila Lopez Anisa Vasieva Catherine Flores Nahuacatl

January BirthdaysIqbaz Muhammad Iqra Toqeer Fidel Reyes Taylor Lewis Ejannah Barrett Aaliyah RobinsonBrithann ValladaresGenesis Ramos Mr.KniesteMr.LathanMs.Milton

January BirthdaysMs.R. MonroeMs.MooreMs.Wauchope

@ C Y B E R A R T S H S B K

We would especially like to thank Ms.Wauchope, Ms. FordeMs. G. Harris, Mr. J, Ms. Leyva, Ms. M.Monroe, Ms. Rogers, Ms. Stein, and theCASA faculty and staff for theircontributions to this issue of theChronicle. EDITOR-IN-CHIEFMS. K. HARRIS