Boothbay Region High School

In February 2009, Mrs. Lewis and Mrs. Miller will be traveling with students to Europe to visit the cities of Paris, London, and Normandy. Students have already begun signing up, for information on this 12-day trip, contact one of them at the high school, 633-2421. With gas prices on the rise, the sooner people sign up, the better, as prices will be locked in.

Library News

It's Donor Book Time!

We are continuing the Donor Book Program in memory of Francie D. Aley, former BRHS Library

Media Specialist. Letters have been sent to local individuals and businesses requesting $50 donations to cover the cost of 2 books plus shipping. One copy will be awarded to a student who has achieved academic excellence, and the other copy will be added to the library collection with a nameplate. Donor Books will be presented to students in all academic disciplines on Awards Night, June 5 at 7:00 p.m. Thank you for your support!

BRHS Students and Teachers Experience China

Eight Students (Erin Chipman, Lindsey Lord, Chris Holmes, Kaitlin Orne, Heather Rego, Ryan Scott, Matt Forgues, Tiffany Tsang) and chaperons, Mrs. Lewis and Mrs. Miller had the opportunity to travel to and experience China during the April break. Traveler’s visited the cities of Beijing, X’ian and Shanghai. Students saw parts of the 2008 Olympic facility (including the “Bird’s Nest”, and the “Ice Cube”). Other highlights of the trip included climbing the Great Wall of China, viewing the Terra Cotta Warriors, marveling at Chinese Acrobats, experiencing the meditative environment of the (Buddhist) Big Goose Pagoda, eating Peking Duck (some with head and all) Students also had the opportunity to see how silk fabric is derived from cocoons, to try their hand at Chinese calligraphy and brush painting, to practice the art of Tai Chi, to experience a Tea Ceremony, to see a mussel opened which contained 22 freshwater pearls--and to do some serious shopping--a real cultural experience!!---- All travelers became well acquainted (and comfortable) with the art of haggling with vendors and merchants (for pearls, silk, tea, kites, name brand fashions, incense, art work..... and much more!) The trip included the ancient through the ultramodern---on the other side of the world---China!!

Math Students, be thinking about next year:

Calculators are a necessary part of all math students tool-kit. All students in algebra I and geometry will need a scientific calculator next year. All students in algebra 2, advanced math, and calculus will need a graphing calculator to be successful. Any scientific calculator will do, but the best graphing calculators for our purposes would be:

Texas Instruments TI 83 plus, Texas Instruments TI 84 plus, Texas Instruments TI 84 silver edition

Freshman World Cultures have had the pleasure of hosting our visitor from China who has shared with us his work in a Chinese High School as an English teacher. This has been an especially exciting chance to talk with someone from the country we are now studying and to hear another perspective on world events. Students have also learned about World War II in the Pacific Theatre by reading the accounts of local men and hearing firsthand experiences from Mrs. Appollonio a yearly visitor. Finally, our own students who traveled to China in April have shared their experiences.

Freshmen classes will participate in a second annual cleanup at Camp Knickerbocker as apart of their community service. Sociology students have done community service at the elementary school and Bay Landing and the high school, as they take a close look at our small community.

A Successful Gapp Exchange April 8th to April 29,2008

On Tuesday April 8th, 2008 fifteen young German students, their teacher Ragnhild Baade, and accompanying adult Bruce White boarded the school bus to start on their big adventure to Berlin and Bad Harzburg, Germany. They would be away from home for 3 weeks and a few of them, surely, were filled with some trepidation. After all it wasn't just a sightseeing trip but the students would be living with a German family for most of the time. And while they had hosted their partners in the fall they did not really know what was awaiting them.

After a three-hour trip to Boston and a three-hour wait for our departure we boarded our KLM flight and were off on our great adventure. Once we were boarded and in the air the excitement of every one became palpable. After the usual airplane fare which is never very satisfactory, laughter and soft conversation could be heard among the students. I am sure every one tried to sleep a little, but I for one could hear the hum of the engine while I dozed. The early morning hours saw us landing in Amsterdam from where we caught a connecting flight to Berlin. We raced to or next gate but then found there was ample time to buy some refreshments. Once again in the air we realized the sky was cloudy and there was a slight rain falling. Berlin too greeted us with a drizzle but the trees had small leaves and daffodils and tulips were already in bloom.

A bus transported us to our hotel. People dove into the showers and we were off to the city. The rain prevented us from visiting the zoo but every one enjoyed the big indoor mall the "Europa Center" with its many varied stores and even numerous restaurants. Some of us visited the "Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church " affectionately known as the " tooth" by the Berliners. The church was almost completely destroyed during WWII and the people of Berlin decided not to rebuild it but to reinforce the tower and leave it as is as a reminder of the war. The steeple looks like a ragged tooth, thus its nickname. Next to the old tower a new one was built as well as a new octagon-shaped church, both with beautiful blue and red windows. When one passes the church in the evening, when there is a service, it is an absolutely beautiful sight.

Thursday: Day two in Berlin. We took a three hour bus tour of the city, where we saw many of Berlin's landmarks including the Berlin cathedral, the Eastside gallery, a remnant of the wall with very imaginative graffiti, done by some well known German artists. We also saw Potsdamer Platz with its Sony Center now the middle of united Berlin, and Alexander Platz with the World clock. The latter being the center of former East Berlin. We passed the Humboldt University, the opera House, the Congressional Hall, numerous Museums, the Reichstag, too many places to mention and ended at the Brandenburg Gate, symbol of Berlin and for the past 19 years symbol of Berlin's unification. Here students had time to themselves and find a place where they could have lunch.

Here we were also met by Thomas Lutz, the educational director of "Topografie of Terror" a good friend of mine since a seminar in Israel. He was going to guide our students through the exhibit at the Topografie of Terror. Bruce White, Thomas and I enjoyed a pleasant lunch in a restaurant where many of the government officials of the nearby Reichstag eat. After lunch we walked past the Holocaust Memorial, were guided through Topografie of Terror, and then visited the Check Point Charlie Museum. The museum covers the post war division of East and West Germany, the building of the wall with its traumatic results of families being torn apart for close to 3 decades and shows every means that people used to escape from the East. People tunneled their way out, escaped in cars that had been bullet proofed, with hot air balloons and by many other daring means. The highlight for the students was the testimony of a former prisoner of the Stasi who, as a journalist, had been able to smuggle out a number of people from the East only to be eventually betrayed. He spent nine years in prison. The fall of the wall finally saw him released.

Friday: Day 3 During the night I had become violently ill and found I could not accompany the group. But thanks to Bruce White and my students everything went well. With some directions from me Bruce got everyone to the Wannsee Conference Memorial Center. The site is important because the decision as to how to implement the final solution for the Jews was made here. An excellent presenter kept the students interest. From Wannsee they went on to some lighter fare, the Neuse Palais in Potsdam, part of a number of smaller and larger palaces built in the park of Sans Souci. For lunch the students were introduced to Doner which is a wonderful Turkish sandwich with chafed meat, either beef, lamb or chicken, shredded vegetables and tsatziki sauce. Our students are to be complimented for that day particularly for the insightful questions they asked at Wannsee.

Saturday: Day 4.I had somewhat recovered and was able to join everyone for the day trips. Again up early for breakfast after which we were on our way to Sachsenhausen, the former concentration camp in Oranienburg which is just outside Berlin. In Oranienburg we were met by 3 cousins of mine whom I had never before met. Their parents, my generation, had grown up in East Germany, while my parents escaped with us children to the West. The young men toured Sachsenhausen with us where we had a wonderful young guide whose English was excellent .She also had an admirable way of keeping the students' interest alive. Visiting a concentration camp is difficult and I could see the emotional impact it had on our students. I associate Sachsenhausen with bad weather anything from rain, hail and snow squalls this time the sun was shining and it made the atrocities that happened here even more poignant.

We had lunch at the train station before we took the train back into the city to the Reichstag. Here we had a 45 min. presentation in the main room where the elected government officials meet.

In order to get into the Reichstag I had to send in a complete list of all participants with their birth date and place of birth. We also needed to bring our passports .The security system before you could enter or exit is quite impressive. I had prepared the students as to what they would see and hear. For instance where the majority parties sit, and that the two major parties form coalitions with minor parties in order to gain the majority vote. Also that the two major parties share the power. For example the chancellor is of the ruling party while the president, equal to our vice-president, is from the opposition party.

Our students showed exemplary behavior during the presentation. Afterwards we went up to the cupola, the magnificent glass dome, that covers the Reichstag. The glass dome ,acts like sonar panels and supplies the heat for the Reichstag and the surrounding government buildings. From the top of the building we had a 360-degree view of Berlin. We could see the offices of Angela Merkel, chancellor of Germany, in the same building foreign dignitaries are entertained and other state affairs take place. You could also see the recently completed Hauptbahnhof [train station] that is connected to the Reichstag area via a bridge. Naturally this was picture-taking time. From the Reichstag we crossed over to the train station and took a train to the Haeckische Hoefe a system of beautiful backyard buildings going back to the 19th century. Today prized real estate. We had dinner nearby. Back at the hotel we got ready to go to a small disko. Since discos do not start to come alive until about eleven and because this one did not play the kind of music our students like it was not a big success.

Sunday: Day 5. No wake up call at 6:30 but at 7:00.A number of people skipped breakfast. I was too nervous to sleep late since this was the day that would present the greatest challenge yet, tackling the German train system with our American luggage. I had discussed size of suitcases and number of suitcases but it always ends up a challenge. Once again we were picked up by bus to transport us to the train station. That was the easy part. Then we needed to locate where we had to stand on the platform in order to enter the right car where our seats where located. Once the train arrived we wasted no time boarding it, we managed it without leaving any one or anything behind. Then began the stowing away of the luggage. We managed but barely. The ICE is a wonderfully comfortable and fast train and quickly brought us to our destination and our next challenge, changing into another train in Braunschweig. Everyone got off. No one let themselves be intimated by impatient travelers who wanted to get on. My message that we needed to get off had sunk in.

In Braunschweig we had 20 minutes waiting time. Most everyone, but a handful of us, went in search of a MacDonald’s in the train station. Suddenly those of us left behind realized the Bad Harzburg train was already there .I send out a scout to get everyone back and we started to transport all the luggage onto the train. Naturally we had plunked everything down at the wrong end of the platform. The first group of students to get back looked somewhat alarmed when they did not see their luggage or us but quickly figured out what had happened. More arrived on the double but we were still missing two students and I was getting a bit nervous. Suddenly they came sprinting along. Guess what? They had boarded the wrong train. I could have used an Alka-Seltzer.

The last leg of our journey to Bad Harzburg seemed like seconds. Suddenly we were there and greeted by our partners with flowers, hugs and a huge banner. The first awkward moment meeting a parent or two also went quickly and in the blink of an eye the train station was empty. We would see each other later for a huge pizza feast and the next day at school.

In Berlin we had been among us and learned to some degree to function as a unit in Bad Harzburg we became part of the families and so everyone’s experience is different.

Bad Harzburg, Monday, April 14

During period 1 we were greeted by the principal of the Realschule in a room that was to be our space for the duration of our stay. The German Gapp students had decorated it for us. The principal has been supportive of the program from its beginning and considers it one of the most important assets of the school. In his words” We are proud to be the partner of Boothbay Region High School.” We presented him with a Gapp shirt and a book about Maine. Later we had a chance to exchange first impressions of our stay. Everyone seemed to be quite happy. In the days to come students learned to integrate into the school schedules, easily adapted to the two breaks and the fact that classes were only 45 min. long, and that school got out at 1:20pm. Students were also invited to many different classes were they were asked to talk about life in the USA and answered hundreds of questions. We would meet every day during period 5+6 and talk about our impressions and experiences, the plusses as well as the negatives, work on Gapp journals, do some homework and plan for our farewell evening. We put together a similar program as the German students with music, dances, differences between Germany and America and a slide show.

Peter Kerlin had put together a varied and interesting program for us. We took several day trips. One to the East Harz which took us through absolutely beautiful countryside already quite green.

Although the weather was damp and cold that day the students seemed to enjoy the cave that we visited ,the mountain train ride, the ride on the cable car that brought us to the witches dancing place and the visit to Castle Wernigerode. By afternoon the sun was shining and we spent a pleasant hour in Wernigerode shopping and people watching.

On another day we visited the " Auto City" in Germany’s youngest city Wolfsburg. Wolfsburg was built in the 1930's to accommodate the workers at a newly built VW plant. The touring of the "Auto City” with its may exhibit halls was very informative. The exhibit halls include among many others a museum, a laser show, as well as the building where costumers can pick up their new VW in an impressive ceremony. A third tour took us to the Heide Park, an amusement park, that features the highest and steepest wooden rollercoaster in the world. I can still hear the screaming of our students as the cars hurtled by. There were many different rides and the students enjoyed the unlimited access to them. I enjoyed the sunshine, the beautiful flowers and lush greenery, a number of mild rides and the pirate show.

We also bowled one afternoon, had a scavenger hunt and on the first really bright and sunny day we climbed the highest mountain of the Harz, the Brocken. There was still plenty of snow on the mountain and we dragged our feet through heavy slushy snow. I am happy to say I made the 10 mile round trio up and down the mountain and I am proud of our two girls who were first on top of the mountain. I consider conquering the Brocken a test of fire. As long as I can make it up and down that mountain I can continue with the Gapp exchange.

During the last week we practiced diligently for the farewell evening. With the help of Peter Kerlin we practiced singing "I am leaving on a jet plane". We wrote thank you notes in German .We also continued talking about the different experiences that students had. Many students absolutely loved their host parents and felt at home in the family. They commented on the hospitality and generosity of the families that they were with. On weekends many of the families took them sightseeing as well as shopping and some also opened their homes to gatherings of the whole group.

The final evening came. We had a splendid meal, with many of my favorite foods, followed by our performance. I am proud of the way that the students pulled it together. Naturally when it came time for "Leaving on a jet plane" there were few dry eyes. We closed with flowers to the mothers and thank you notes to the whole family.

Both Peter and I took the opportunity to talk about the importance of the exchange, the fact that every time that an exchange takes place bridges are built between our two countries, understanding of our different cultures is fostered, and friendships are formed and unforgettable memories are gathered. The lives of our students are enriched in ways that they may not yet be aware of. The lessons that they learn from the host culture are invaluable and by their willingness to learn from the host culture and by their behavior they can help to dispel the notion of the" ugly American". While they were in Germany they were young ambassadors of their country and I hope they are proud of that. I am proud of our students and the way they presented themselves and their country while in Germany.

Next day saw us for a tearful fare well at the airport. It was especially poignant because many of the students would probably never see each other again and yet they formed deep friendships. Others made promises of a revisit and in some cases that will indeed happen. Even if only one lifetime friendship has been formed the exchange was a success. Once the German students and their parents left, tears dried. Our minds focused on home, our families, friends and cars. We were going home.

On a final note, the Gapp exchanges have enriched both our school and the Realschule Bad Harzburg. I am proud of having started the exchange, now almost twenty years ago, and fortunate to find such a suitable partner school and a friend in Peter Kerlin who is as passionate about the program as I am. We are already excitedly planning the next exchange for 2009-2010.

Ragnhild Baade

ATHLETICS

A reminder that we are in full swing, with Varsity baseball and softball, JV baseball, girls and boys tennis, and track and field. We have something for nearly everyone who wants to get outdoors and be active. If you are interested in knowing what’s happening, please check www.highschoolsports.net - the easiest way is to go to the BRHS website and click on the Calendar-Athletics link.

Have a great spring.

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