About the Project         The Magazine         Our Writers         Photos         Contact Info         Home        

A Letter from the Panther Writers

It’s hard to believe that two more quarters have passed and that the second issue of the
Middle School Magazine is now available on the web! While the name of our magazine
may have changed, our goals have remained the same. Despite the variety of challenges
that the project presented to Mrs. Sara Hawkins’ 6th period reading class, her students all
succeeded in creating articles that simultaneously expressed their personal interests and
engaged with the theme of “science.”

All twenty-one articles in this issue were motivated by the idea that the most interesting
articles to write and to read are those that both pose a question and earnestly seek to
answer that question. As a result, the Panther Writers all began by coming up with a
science related question that they had no idea how to answer. With questions like, “Why
do hamster’s cheeks puff up?” “How can I shake my hips like Shakira?” and “How does
the larynx work?” the students headed to the computer lab once a week, and with the help
of the internet, attempted to answer these questions for themselves and for you. The
students took notes, kept track of the sites that they visited in order to practice
responsible research habits, and transformed their notes into articles, which they hope
that you’ll find to be both educational and enjoyable to read.

This project, this magazine, and these articles were made possible by the support of the
tireless Mrs. Sara Hawkins, by the help of our wonderful undergraduate volunteers Adam
Hartleben, Billy Wohl, Derek Campbell, Jenny Koningisor, and Jess Bartow, and by the
abilities of our webmaster Kyle Pellet (www.pelletfactory.com). And of course, we must
thank you, our reader! The work that these 6th graders from Wright Middle School have
done means nothing without the presence of an audience who is willing to engage with
these students’ writing, writing which truly can be read as an expression of their
collective intelligence, creativity, and wit.

With that, please enjoy the Panther Writers Magazine, check out the clever public service
announcement that Isa and Anna created for extra credit, and be sure to share what
you’ve seen on this site with others as well.

                                                          With all our best,
                                                          The Panther Writers & Staff

<< Go back