Tag Archives: School Newspaper

And A Global Debate: Which One is Better, Cats Or Dogs?

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By Milo Butler

Cats come in all shapes and sizes. Dogs do too. Both cats and dogs make great pets. 

Fun facts: Have you ever seen a dog as big as a horse (Great Dane) or a dog that looks like a lion (Tibetan Mastiff)? And, by the way, have you ever seen a giant house cat (Maine Coon) or a cat that has no hair (Sphinx)?

But some people like one more than the other. That brings us to our question. Which one is better? Cats or dogs? In a recent survey of 60 Bradley Beach students, eight people responded that they like cats more, 19 people answered that they like both the same, and 36 people liked dogs more.

So it seems like a clear victory for dogs, at least here at Bradley Beach. If there’s anything else you need us to settle, let us know in the comments below.

In Tough Political Times, Love Comes First: Opinion Piece

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By Molly Flynn

“In our nation, we owe loyalty not to a president, or a party, but to the Constitution of the United States.” – Kamala Harris’s Concession Speech, November 6. 2024.

The election this year was controversial, to say the least. However, this doesn’t mean we need to fight at the dinner table over our opposing points of view. Just because one party won and the other lost, doesn’t mean we need to fight people or leave the country. 

Many of us just celebrated Thanksgiving. Christmas is coming up. I personally have family members with a range of political views, ranging from extremely conservative to very liberal, yet, at Thanksgiving, we talked about our interests, my dancing, my cousin’s golfing, and not about our political views. Want to know why? Because we love each other regardless of our political ideologies. That’s what you should care about. Now, I have some tips on what to do if the dinner table gets political. One thing I like to do is to tell a joke. This will hopefully distract people and start a new conversation. For example “Why couldn’t the sailor learn the alphabet? Because he got lost at ‘C’” A real knee-slapper. You could also tell your family about something new or exciting that happened to you. Maybe you just saw Wicked, you could talk about that. Hopefully, this guides the conversation into something less controversial. 

Now, I have heard of a lot of people saying that they’re going to leave the country. However, that is a terrible and immature response to the results. Instead of only focusing on the parties of America, we should focus on keeping America as the great country it is. Political parties are one singular part of America. There is so much more. And even if you oppose the current administration, there’s always another election in 2028. 

I will leave you with this fact: There is a 1 in 400,000,000,000,000 chance that you were even born on this planet. We should be grateful for even being here, and even more grateful that the number one thing we’re worrying about is politics. Stop worrying, and think about what you do have, not what you don’t have.

As you can clearly see, we shouldn’t let our political parties interfere with our day-to-day choices, especially how we view our family members. When you’re at the dinner table with your family, don’t forget that you love them for who they are.

The “Best of BBES” Writing Contest

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We are pleased to announce the winners of the 2024 “Best of BBES” Writing Contest!

Last month, teachers nominated the three best writing pieces created by students in their grade levels this school year (members of The Tides were not eligible). Our newspaper staff judged the work on the following criteria: conventions, creativity, organization, craft moves, and details. Please click on the titles below to enjoy the work by our talented writers!

In first grade, Stiles Butler for “Planetarium.” Judge: Max Gast.

In second grade, Kailey Garcia Zuniga for “Uniforms.” Judge: Lillian McClaren.

In third grade, Beau Bartlett with “Ben Currso and the Flying Torch.” Judge: Molly Flynn.

In fourth grade, Yara Mohammed Sorour with “Personal Narrative.” Judge: Nora Weber.

In fifth grade, Saul Jose-Cruz with “One Day in D.C.” Judge: Kaitlynn Cook.

In sixth grade, Jazzelle Dockery with “Boat Ride.” Judge: Layla Katz.

In seventh grade, Dean Llolla with “Why Space Exploration Shouldn’t be a Priority.”  Judge Max Gast.

In eighth grade, Diana Montes-Santiago with “Amor Eterno.” Judge Brynn Hopf.

Naturally: Chapter 2: The Demon

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By Layla Katz

Live Aurelius, a 17-year-old boy with the gift of creating live organisms such as plants, is searching for the one who has gifted him these powers. Through his search, he finds a mysterious little demon and a cool, bunny-loving girl. Who are these weird new friends of Live’s? And how can they help him find the person he’s looking for? Welp! Time will tell.

Read Chapter One

“And, yeah we kinda just…stood there awkwardly for like a straight two minutes. It was weird” Jene told the girl who sat in front of her. 

The girl looked confused as she took a sip of cold Starbucks coffee. 

“He’s not in any of your classes?” Nato asked, grimacing and putting the coffee cup down like it was a bomb.

“Weirdly enough, yeah. The only other time we were together besides homeroom is lunch,” Jene answered, picking at her sandwich. 

“Ooh, you should go talk to him,” Nato egged on, jerking her shoulders up and down. 

“Ha ha, no way. It was way too weird talking to him earlier,” Jene deadpanned, opening up a bag of Cheetos Puffs and crossing one leg in front of the other underneath the table. 

“Oh, come on. He’s right there! Go talk to him!” Nato shot up, pointing over to where the young boy stood by the garbage cans. 

“No, Nato.”

“Yes, Jene.”

“Nato, stop.”

“Come on.” Nato dragged out the last word.

Jene rolled her amber eyes before standing up and walking over to the blondie. As she strolled over, she saw Nato silently cheering and dancing out of the corner of her eye. 

“Hey, Live,” Jene greeted, swiping her beige hair out of her eyes. 

“Oh um, hello Jene,” Live greeted, turning on his heels to face the taller. 

The two of them stood there awkwardly for a few moments, again. 

“So, uh what are you doing here?” Jene asked, crossing her arms.

“I was going to throw my lunch out but, I think I saw something in the garbage can,” Live said. He narrowed his eyes in an uncomfortable way, retracting his hands away from the can. 

“Huh, eh, it’s probably nothing. OH MY GOD-” A pair of glowing red eyes met Jene from inside the garbage can. Live jumped and took a step back as she shrieked. 

“Live, I might be going insane, but do you see eyes in there?” Jene shakily asked, her amber eyes wide like a cat’s. 

“Um …yes,” Live responded, dropping his lunch remnants as Jene screamed. 

Suddenly, a flash of black and merlot red zipped by the two and leaped onto the floor. Live immediately grabbed the thing by its collar from where it sat on the floor eating Live’s remaining garbage. 

“What in the world …?” Live murmured, staring at the creature that was thrashing around in his grip. It looked to be human, but a few things were off. Their skin was so pale, it looked a little green. Its pupils were inverted with the irises bright red. It also had little black horns peeking out of the same colored hair. 

“Ugh! Can you put me down already!” the demon complained, still thrashing around. 

“Ok. What the heck!” Jene demanded, staring at Live and the creature. 

“Put me down!” the demon screeched again. It was kind of surprising how no one had noticed the three of them yet. 

“Why would we put you down? We don’t know if you’re dangerous!” Live responded, looking back at them. 

“Do I look dangerous to you?” the creature hissed. In truth, he wasn’t much. His voice was high and sharp. He wore merlot-red armor and had a belt with a sheathed sword. 

“I dunno. You look like a little kid in some dystopian YA series,” Jene said, shrugging her shoulders. 

“Gotta agree with you on that, Jene,” Live responded blandly, his hands in his pockets as he looked down at the demon. 

“What’s your name anyway?” Jene asked at eye level. 

The demon audibly scoffed. “Why should I tell you?! You literally just made fun of me! I’m not telling you anything!” He turned on his heels and crossed his arms. 

“Okay, fine. We’re sorry. Will you tell us your name now?” Live let out a loud sigh, stepping over to the demon and making eye contact.

“Wa-Wait…Really? I- My name is Jovas,” the creature looked so touched by that one apology. 

Live gave him a small smile. “Hey, Jovas. I’m Live. This is Jene.”

“Wait, Live. What are you doing? What’s going on?” Jene tugged on the smaller boy’s jacket sleeve. 

“Later Jene. We need to introduce ourselves, no?” Live responded, giving her a thin smile. 

“But … wait …” Live had already stepped forward to Jovas, leaving Jene’s grasp. 

Will This be Ms. Acerra’s Last Washington Trip?

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By Leah Twerell

Ever since Ms. Acerra, the middle school social studies and civics teacher, told some of us last year that she would be stepping down from her long-time position as organizer of the eighth grade Washington D.C. trip, we have been speculating: Is this Ms. Acerra’s last Washington trip?

If you want to know the answer, keep reading this Q&A with Ms. Acerra … 

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Dancing in the Parade

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By Molly Flynn

The streets lined with thousands of people, fire trucks honking, everyone celebrating the one and only St. Patrick. The Belmar St. Patrick’s Day is a fun parade celebrating St. Patrick’s Day. This year was their 50th Anniversary. Also this year, my dance school (The D’arcy School of Irish Dance) opened the parade and marched in it. Now let me tell you about the history of this parade. 

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More than a Secretary: A Profile of the Amazing Miss Ramirez

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By Hans Weber

Oliva Herrera, a mother of three, needed help with completing legal documents. She couldn’t think of anyone who could walk her through the process, especially since all the documents were in English, not Mrs. Herrera’s native Spanish. Suddenly, she remembered Ruth Ramirez, the friendly, bilingual school secretary who is a Mexican immigrant, like her.

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