Paw Prints  February 2020 

 

Harrington Middle School

hmspawprints@mtlaurelschools.org 

Advisor-Mrs. Poulton  

Recap On Snowball 2020 By Kate

The 2020 Harrington Snowball Dance was once more a great success! Held on Friday, January 24th, approximately five hundred 7th and 8th graders attended dressed up and ready to celebrate! So what did you think? Here is some of the feedback that I received from kids who attended. Did you have fun?

“Yeah, definitely.” -Abby S. “I think that my friend group had fun. I’m not sure about other friend groups, but I had fun.” -Sabrina P. “Yes, except for the fact that my feet were killing me.”-Caitlyn S.

What were the highlights of the night? “The music and watching the kids dance.” -Kennedy D. “Getting to hang with my friends.”-Abby S. 

     

 

Valentine’s Day Romantic Movie Night 

  Not everyone is excited about Valentine’s Day. We don’t all have a “special someone” to buy us chocolate or a fuzzy, teddy bear. So, what should all of us unattached loners do on a Friday Valentine’s Day? Well, why not watch a good romantic movie to give us hope and lift our spirits. Here is a list of some really good romantic movies to watch. Pop some corn, grab a fuzzy blanket and two-ply tissues, and enjoy. 

 10 Things I Hate About You:  

Based on Shakespeare’s The Taming of the Shrew , antisocial Kat (Julia Stiles) falls for resident bad boy, Patrick (Heath Ledger) This one is so fun and sweet, and it will surely make you smile. 

 A Walk to Remember: 

The story of Landon and Jamie. Popular boy meets quiet, daughter of the local minister and they fall head over heels in love. Starring Mandy Moore and Shane West, this romantic flick will have you searching for a tissue in the end. So sappy, but so good!! 

 A Cinderella Story: This classic Cinderella tale is modernized and will not disappoint. Who doesn’t enjoy watching an underdog like Sam(Hilary Duff) find her prince charming(Chad Michael Murray).  The Last Song: Based on a Nicholas Sparks novel, The Last Song stars Miley Cyrus and Liam Hemsworth. This is a tale of love and loss that will capture your heart and never let it go.  

Fun Facts About Valentine’s Day 

By: Abby Sharp 

 

We all know, but maybe not love, the holiday dedicated to love! Although it may seem like there’s 

nothing more to Valentine’s Day than Cupid and boxes of chocolate, there is definitely more to this holiday.  

 

❖ More than 36 million heart-shaped boxes are shipped on Valentine’s Day. 

❖ The average man spends $130 on Valentine’s Day, while the average woman spends $70. 

❖ Around 9 million pets are bought as gifts. 

❖ Teachers receive the most cards on Valentine’s Day. 

❖ About 43 million flowers are purchased on Valentine’s Day. 

❖ Hallmark was the first chain to ever release a Valentine’s Day card in 1913. 

❖ Around 1 billion cards will be exchanged on Valentine’s Day. 

❖ More than ⅓ of men are completely okay with not getting anything on Valentine’s Day.  

❖ 18% of women send themselves flowers on Valentine’s Day. 

❖ Roses are the most purchased kind of flowers bought on Valentine’s Day. 

❖ 64% percent of men do not make plans for Valentine’s Day. 

 

As you can see, the holiday about love isn’t always 100% lovely. So, the next time Valentine’s day comes 

around, think about these facts. And maybe, you’ll realize they’re correct.  

  

February Logic Puzzle By Ben L.

Noah, George, Joe, and Robert have agreed to have a snowball fight. Everyone has made a different sized fort and set up a pile of 100 snowballs, everyone getting a set amount based on how much they stockpiled, those set amounts being 10, 20, 30, and 40. They go inside to take a break and warm up, but forget who gets how many snowballs and whose for it whose. Can you figure it out?

6x6x4 4x12x5 2x2x20 8x8x8 10 20 30 40

Noah

George

Joe

Robert

10

20

30

40

1. George stockpiled less snowballs than the person with a cubic fort, but more than the person with the fort

with the highest dimensions. 2. Noah knows that the person with the 4x12x5 fort stockpiled 30 snowballs 3. Joe knows the largest dimension of his fort is larger than the largest dimension in Noah’s fort, but smaller

than the largest dimension of Robert’s fort. 4. Noah stockpiled 20 snowballs

SuperBowl LIV 2020

By Kennedy D. On February 2, 2020, we had America’s annual football game. It was 

Kansas City Chiefs vs. San Francisco 49ers. The Chiefs made a comeback and beat the 49ers by eleven points. It was such a shocking surprise that the Chiefs won because they were not doing too well in the beginning. The 49ers were dominating them for the first two quarters, but then Chiefs came back during the third quarter.  

Along with the game, the halftime show was also amusing as well. Shakira and Jennifer Lopez performed the halftime show this year. Shakira performed for the halftime show on her birthday, which I bet was a great birthday gift for her. The halftime show was most definitely very interesting and one of the most memorable ones yet. 

Where Do You Stand? By Illana S.

Valentine’s Day is one of the most controversial holidays along with Thanksgiving and Halloween. Many people take the day to celebrate the special people around them, while others believe it is irrelevant and takes away from real love. Is it a necessary day full of love for everyone or is it a pointless, consumerism plagued day?

Valentine’s Day is worth the hype and celebration. Valentine’s Day seems to get the most hate from those who are not in a relationship. Fortunately, this day is for everyone to show their love for, not only significant others, but also platonic love for friends and love for family and pets. It is a day to show how much these special people in our lives mean to us, something often taken for granted and overlooked. It is also a day for self love. We often treat ourselves worse than we treat anyone else in our lives. On Valentine’s Day, instead of being critical of ourselves, we recognize all of the amazing things about ourselves. It is a day to change our mindset about how we treat ourselves and others, a little reminder of the people in our lives. Many of us need this reminder and challenge to appreciate the ones we love just a little more than the year before. Yes, Valentine’s Day has been largely commercialized, but at its roots, it is just a day to start appreciating the important people in our lives more.

Valentine’s Day should not be celebrated. Valentine’s Day brings unnecessary stress upon people. The expectation of having to buy gifts and love everyone around you can be stressful and tiring, making you not even able to focus on loved ones at the end of it. The love on Valentine's Day has been lost, covered by commercialism and consumerism. All of the single people on Valentine’s Day are only reminded of the fact that they are alone on this day of love while others have a great time. At the same time, with all of the gifts and candy, it makes us focus on the material aspect of relationships rather than love. Giving unoriginal gifts of teddy bears and chocolates does not show appreciation for the people you love, it only tells them that they are just someone you had to check off your list of people to buy gifts for. Why do couples and loved ones need a day to start appreciating each other? Instead, each day should be used to show the important people in our lives how much we love them and how much they affect our lives. If we only use this one day to show our love for the people we love, it comes off as lazy and uncaring. Real love is natural, and it doesn’t need a day to come about.

So what do you think? Will you celebrate Valentine’s Day or just treat it like any other day? Where Do You Stand?

How To Get A Valentine By: Caitlyn S 

 Step 1: Take a shower! The only way you can attract a Valentine is to not be stinky! Stinkiness is not attractive!  Step 2: Apply an attractive fragrance  Step 4: Dress stylishly  Step 5: Be confident and smart around them  Step 6: Talk to them more frequently  Step 7: Become friends with them  Step 8: Buy Valentines Day related items and give them to your crush  I’m not saying these will work for everyone, but I hope they guide you in the right direction! Happy Valentines Day! Best of luck to you guys! 

Chess Challenge

Theme:Forks 

White to move White to move Black to move

When you find the answer to any of the puzzles, email the position back to the Paw Prints email, (hmspawprints@mtlaurelschools.org), with an arrow showing what move is your answer. Whoever has the most correct answers by the end of the school year will get a trophy! Leaders: Andrew G. and Jacob B. (2 pts each)

A Tribute to Kobe Bryant 

By Lindsey C.

Kobe Bean Bryant died on January 26, 2020. He was with his daughter Gianna who was thirteen 

years old when the helicoptor they were in crashed.  

Kobe Bean Bryant was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on August 23, 1978. His father was a 

former 76er’s player. When he was a kid his favorite team was always the Laker’s.   

Kobe Bryant attended Lower Merion High School and played basketball there. He was extremely 

athletic and smart. He went to the NBA straight out of High School. He was first selected by the 

Charlotte Hornets with the 13th overall pick of the 1996 NBA draft and then he got traded to the Lakers.   

In 1998 he was voted into the All-Star team when. He was 19 years old and was the youngest 

All-Star player ever. Shaquille O'Neal was the star player on the Laker’s but when he left Kobe became 

the star player. He scored 81 points in a game and became the second person to score the highest in an 

NBA game.   

Kobe retired in 2016. He has been called one of the greatest NBA players of all time. He will be 

missed by his wife Vanessa Laine Bryant and his children, Bianka,Natalia and Capri. He will leave 

behind a legacy that will never be forgotten. 

  

  

Valentine’s Day Word Search 

  

By Julia W  K  I  N  Z  V  N  F  V  L  O  P  N  Y  O  F    B  V  W  S  N  A  G  Q  K  C  L  D  X  U  Y    B  P  O  U  Z  G  L  W  G  D  I  I  Y  R  P    D  A  X  M  L  M  F  E  Q  X  J  P  A  Z  Z    R  Z  Z  E  Z  P  D  Y  N  R  I  U  B  H  I    B  S  T  R  A  E  H  R  M  T  R  C  C  O  X    C  L  E  T  Z  K  Q  I  E  B  I  A  Q  B  Z    K  I  F  Q  U  G  K  H  E  T  N  N  E  K  Y    H  S  H  X  K  L  O  F  Z  D  N  E  E  X  C    V  G  L  C  J  L  I  Z  Y  Z  F  I  W  T  Z    U  T  U  N  I  L  X  P  C  R  E  J  W  P  T    G  A  W  D  H  C  K  C  Z  S  T  F  I  G  W    G  B  A  P  T  C  H  O  C  O  L  A  T  E  L    V  Y  Y  K  X  I  F  P  E  Z  A  K  P  Z  T    K  A  O  V  X  H  T  N  E  E  T  R  U  O  F    

 FEBRUARY VALENTINE HEARTS CANDY CHOCOLATE WINTER FOURTEENTH CUPID GIFTS HOLIDAY 

Logic Puzzle Answers

Noah is in the 6x6x4 fort and stockpiled 20 snowballs George is in the 4x12x5 fort and stockpiled 30 snowballs Joe is in the 8x8x8 fort and stockpiled 40 snowballs Robert is in the 2x2x20 fort and stockpiled 10 snowballs