By: Madi Wade &
Maggie Copeland
Saraland Middle School
was nominated for Channel
15’s “Cool Schools.” This
means that the school that
is nominated is different
from all others.
We did renovations over
the summer that cost over
three million dollars, such
as transforming our locker
rooms and redesigning our
gym.
Cheerleaders, band
members, archery,
FCCLA, and other
voluntary students were
featured on air at six
o’clock that morning.
To view the
segments, you can go to
www.local15tv.com and
search “Cool Schools.”
Then, segments will
come up on the top
right-hand side.
Tanner Mauldin, a 7th
grade archer said, “I was so
nervous about shooting on
live TV. I was scared I
would mess up shooting,
but it was a really fun
experience!”
“My favorite part of
being on television was
screaming, and the 7th
grade winning the school
spirit award! My school is
cool because we had
renovations, and we have
an endless amount of
sports,” Kirk McDonald
said.
Saraland Middle is a “Cool School”
Vote for the Yearbook Staff Video
By Gunnar Jones &
Zach Hardman
The journalism staff
wrote and acted in their
very own video for a
yearbook video contest.
Hallie Rowell said,
”That was a great start to
my acting career.”
We can’t win without
your votes though. To vote,
you have to have a
Facebook account. Then,
once you have logged in,
go to “Jostens Adviser &
Staff” page, and then click
“Commercial Contest.”
Our video is called,
“Saraland Middle
Yearbook Battalion!” Click
on “Vote” to select our
video in the contest.
Don’t forget, the last
chance to order your
yearbook is February 18th.
Don’t miss out on this last
opportunity to hold on to
this year’s memories.
Order yours now for only
$50.
Announcements
Mon. Jan. 28—PTO Open House 5:45 serving free hotdogs, chips, and drinks
6:00 meeting then visit teachers in rooms
Feb. 2— SMS Pageant Tickets $15 at the
door. 8th grade contestants are collecting
gently used uniforms. 7th grade girls are
collecting money for the Saraland Animal
Shelter. Homerooms can win a pizza party
or donut party based on donations.
Feb. 15— Valentine’s Dance starting at
6:30, $8 singles, $15 couples, refreshments
available for purchase.
SMS Cool School 1
Video Contest and Yearbook Deadline 1
Spartan Sports 2
Cheerleading 3
Scholars’ Bowl 3
Spelling Bee Winner 4
Students of the Month & Creative Corner 4
In this Edition
Sp
arta
n T
imes
S
AR
AL
AN
D M
ID
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E S
CH
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Volume 1, issue 4
January 2013
By Connor Nitteberg & Andrew Booth
The Spartan basketball team has had a
hard but fun year. The boys ended the
regular season with a win against St.
Luke’s 51 to 39.
Tyler Sheppard stated, “It’s been a fun
year with all my teammates, and our team
has grown closer not just as teammates
but as friends.”
The lady Spartans also worked hard
and improved as individual players and as
a team. Coach Travis said, “It’s been a
tough season, but getting to know the
girls has been a real good pleasure.”
has all of these qualities and has the
archers to prove it.
In tournaments, shooting distances
range from ten to fifteen meters. You
are allowed two practice rounds and six
scoring rounds. Points on the target are
scored from 1 point to 10 points. Over-
all, a perfect score would be 300 points.
This amazing feat of a perfect score is
very rare because it is nearly impossible
By Jack West, Zach Hardman, &
Hunter Tangle
Archery is a lot more than just pulling
a string back and letting go. To
participate in this sport, you need skill,
strength, and determination. Being an
archer requires hours of practice. There
are various challenges to this sport that
only the great will succeed in. Our team
to shoot all tens in your round of
shooting. Only the committed archers
will one day maybe be able to accomplish
this feat.
Our Saraland Archery team recently
participated in a tournament at Shiloh
Baptist in Saraland. Our archers showed
great talent throughout their rounds at the
tournament. SMS won first place in this
tournament. Joe Joe McDonald led all
Saraland archers with a score of 273.
Jordan Mayo shot a 271. The team’s
score was a 3152.
Sixth graders at Saraland Middle
usually compete on the elementary team
while 7th and 8th graders compete on the
middle school team. (Pictured to the left
is the middle school team.)
The archery team’s next competition
is February 1st and 2nd at North Mobile.
Then they will compete in Regionals at
Alma Bryant on February 28 and March
1st.
Overall, one can observe that archery
takes time, strength, and effort, and our
team certainly has it all.
Page 2
Basketball Teams Continue Improving as Season Ends
Archery Requires Focus and Determination
Above: Asia Woodard dribbles the ball in
toward the basket.
Pictured to the left is Jamear Love as he
shoots over his defender.
S PAR TA N TI ME S
Spartan Sports
V OLU ME 1, ISS UE 4
By Laura Owen & Aleah Myers
Not just anybody can be a
cheerleader; you have to put full effort
into this year-round sport. Unlike other
sports, which only have a season,
cheerleading goes on all year, even in
the summer!
The cheerleaders participate in a
cheer camp every summer. This year
they brought home a 2nd place trophy
from South Alabama.
Laura Owen said, “We worked very
hard, and I think the practice and hours
spent were well worth it. I also enjoyed
spending the time with our squad!”
They go to the Flip Factory once a
week during the school year, where
they spend countless hours perfecting
their cheers and tumbling.
Cheerleaders have to attend
every game including football,
basketball, and volleyball to
cheer our teams on.
The stunts performed by
the squad take a lot of trust
and courage.
Kennedy Gill agreed, “If
you don’t trust your stunt
group, it increases the chance
of you falling or shaking. If
you can trust them, it is easier
to concentrate on your
sharpness and balance.”
On top of that, as soon as
the past year ends, try-outs for
the upcoming season are just
beginning. To make our fabulous
squad, you have to participate in a four-
day clinic where you learn a cheer, a
chant, and a dance that you are
expected to perform during try-outs.
The judges will judge you on
sharpness, personality, and confidence.
The girls that have the top scores will
be chosen for our squad. Then the proc-
ess of perfecting cheers and chants
starts all over again! Cheerleading is tough yet fun and
the cheerleaders wouldn’t have it any
other way.
questions and 15 seconds to do math
equations. Once a person buzzes in with
the right answer, their team is given two
more bonus questions. The team also
competes together on a worksheet round,
where they have 2 minutes to answer 20
questions.
Our record so far is 3-2. We have
beaten Booker T. Washington, Calloway
Smith, and North Mobile and had close
losses to Lott Middle School and Clark
Magnet. When our team faced North
Mobile, our A team won by a score of
245-60. The top scorers were Donovan
By: Kirk McDonald & Vinayak Nair
Imagine trying to answer such
questions as “What was the name of the
popular battle where Napoleon’s forces
were finally defeated?” Or “What is the
scientific term for a substance made from
only one kind of atom?”
This is what scholars’ bowl team
members do each week during practice
and in monthly competitions. Team
members practice buzzing in on random
questions about math, science, literature,
history, and popular culture. Members
have five seconds to answer regular
Hughes and Vinayak Nair. The B-team’s
score was 180-170.
The team was especially excited to
get new buzzers this year, which cost
about $500, thanks to a generous
donation by Calpine Corporation. One of
the team parents also donated money to
help purchase new study material.
The team has their final regular
season competition next month at Faith
Academy, and then they’ll find out if
they were invited to the super
tournament. Good luck, scholars’ bowl!
Page 3
Cheerleaders Provide Spartan Spirit
Scholars’ Bowl Team Members Grapple with Tough Questions
Spartan Spotlight
JANUARY STUDENTS
6T H GRAD E: MACHALEY WEST &
T YLER KNAPP
7T H GRAD E: KEYONA DI XON &
KEON DI XON
8T H GRAD E: BRI A NI CH OLSON &
CHAND LER COTT ON
STAFF PAT ON THE BAC K MISS BARTLETT
“I feel excited and nervous,” he said.
“If I win this competition, then I go to the
next competition, and then I get to go to
Washington DC, which if I do I would be
very excited!”
We are very proud of our Spelling Bee
participants! Keep up the good work!
Spelling Bee participants: Gale Couch,
Presleigh Myers, Katelyn Junkins,
Christian Kelly, Hannah Hall, Josh Engle,
Melissa Zattiero, Tristian Montoya,
Donovan Hughes, Chandler Cotton,
Joseph Bush, Nathanael
Thomas, Rachel Carwile,
Hollie Courington,
Hakeem Jackson, Katie
Beth Garrison, Madison
Booth, Lana Chasom,
Dylan Peterson, Aron
Prestridge, Hallie Rowell,
Phillik Rodgers, Tyreek
Marshall, Annamarie
D’ Angelo, Makayla Lol-
ley, and Bria
Nicholson
By Melanie Lens & Kennedy Gill
First place winner Chandler Cotton
will represent SMS at the county Spelling
Bee competition later this month.
Donovan Hughes placed second, Josh
Ingle came in third, and sixth grader
Rachel Carwile came in fourth. The top
three finishers were all from the eighth
grade.
Chandler is eager to represent our
school at the next level and has been
preparing very hard.
Spelling Bee Winner
S
o
c
k
Students of the Month and the “Pat on the Back”
Creative Corner
SMS Top 10
Top Ten Snack Foods
1. Chips
2. Debbie Cakes
3. Chicken and Candy (tied)
4. Chocolate
5. Cookies
6. Cheese-Its
7. Pizza Rolls
8. Fruit
9. Ice Cream
10.Popcorn
Pickles just missed placing in the top
10. Watch for our next SMS Top 10
list!
H
o
p
!
Sixth grader Tayla Ellison and seventh graders Genna Hinton and Kayleigh
Johns show off their creative side as they proudly display their drawings,
which Mr. Burgess has chosen to represent our school at the Mobile Museum
of Art Student Exhibition. Their art will be submitted for the visual art
contest, and winners will be announced on March 17th. Good luck, ladies!