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The Art of Music

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Part of thebirdonfire.org feature series on Art Live!

By Sami Alnabelsi and Mason Conway

Art is something that can be looked at, or listened to. It provides a feeling whether that be happy, sad, angry, or a mix of all. Not anyone can do art; art takes skill and persistence that takes years to perfect–making art isn’t easy; in fact, it’s quite challenging. The challenge applies to making music. It takes skill and hard work to make an audience feel a variety of emotions. 

Music is a very complex form of art that includes so many different styles and artists. Music has existed for tens of thousands of years, evolving and developing new ways to express emotions. Here we conduct surveys to figure out what types of music people in our Palm Valley School community like best. 

For me, Sami, my favorite style of music is a mix of everything, while Mason’s style is rap, and his favorite artist is Kanye West. But, what does our survey prove? We asked PVS students who their favorite music artist was, what specific music genre they liked best, and why?

Millie Flemings from 8th grade said she liked the music artist Tyler the Creator. She also liked RNB and hip hop. Millie says she likes this artist and these genres of music because she finds them very pleasing to the ear, there’s a good mix of vocals, and overall everything is well mixed. 

Gabe Rodriguez Portugues, a senior, says his favorite singer is Prince. Gabe’s favorite style of music is vaporwave–an electronic music subgenre and visual art style because it encompasses many different genres, and often samples music from the 80s, 90s, and 2000s, so it gives Gabe a nostalgic feel. 

Fellow blogger Sarah Alnabelsi said that she liked Katy Perry and felt the best style or genre of music was rap. When we asked her why, she said that the rhythm in the music was something she really liked. 

Logan Lackey from the 6th grade says his favorite band is the Eagles. And his favorite genre is rap because it rhymes. 

Lastly, 7th-grader Roman Mathews says that his favorite music artist is Tupac, and if he had to choose a genre of music it would be hip hop as he enjoys the melody of the music. 

Where do we find our favorite music? Spotify. Photo Credit: Sami Alnabelsi.

To conclude, Palm Valley School is home to many peoples’ unique and interesting favorite artists and genres. Music is expressed in so many ways–whether it be at a party in the summer listening to some hip hop, or walking downtown having earbuds playing rap, or even a rainy day inside your house listening to jazz. The possibilities are endless. Song can literally be the background music of our lives. Daniel Bagheri of 7th grade says when he walks his dog he listens to some jazz and happy tunes. Music can dictate how we feel, or represent it.

Mummies and Vampires at School

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PVS Blogger Mason Conway on What’s New in the PVS Neighborhood

Halloween has come and gone at PVS. Kids created and bought costumes. Last Friday, October 31, Palm Valley students wore their costumes to school! There were blow-up cats, dinosaurs, Dragon Slayers, chickens, and Napoleans. 8th-grade Karsen Flury wore a Hawaiian shirt with boxing gloves. Guess what he was? Hawaiian Punch! 8th-grade Sami Alnabelsi carefully planned out his costume. He even had it sketched out. Sami said, “I wanted to be Theodore from Alvin and the Chipmunks because it’s realistic to my height, and I get to match with my friends Calum and Jaxon.” The Halloween parade was full of parents, teachers, administrations, kids on dragons, Dorothy from Oz, a Mona Lisa, super villains, Caesar, witches, Marie Antoinette, ghosts, and ghouls.

Sami Anabelsi’s Halloween costume plan

Political Violence Needs to End

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By Middle-School Bloggers Sami Alnabelsi and Mason Conway

Those who make peaceful revolution impossible, will make violent revolution inevitable.

–President John F. Kennedy

There has been an increasing divide between opposing political beliefs. And that makes for dehumanization. We forget the person disagreeing with us is a person, too.

It feels like in the last couple decades, political figures and parties have further split apart, showing no agreements. This needs to stop. Violence is erupting. Something should be done to show we can agree on more things than we know. Also, political figures need to stop stirring things up, stop being hypocrites, and start sticking to what they believe.

According to the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (or UNDRR), “Violence is a social phenomenon that involves forceful acts or behaviour that are intended to cause harm. The injury or damage inflicted by violence to an individual or collective group may be physical, psychological, . . . or deprivation.” Compared to criminal acts such as violence of personal gain, political violence has a core element, and that is political motivation. For example, someone’s political party has certain beliefs, and another has a different set of beliefs. If you feel those beliefs go against yours, and you take it so seriously that you’re moved  to violence, this would be political violence. Usually when people are committing political violence, they often target a specific person, but in some cases this violence is focused on institutions or entire governments.

Have we seen a rise of political violence? 

Now that we know what political violence is, we can see if this form of violence has increased over the years, or even decades. According to GOVFACTS, high profile attacks sometimes create a perception that political violence is rapidly increasing. Now let’s look at the numbers to actually see what’s going on. According to ACLED (Armed Conflict Location & Event Data), the US has joined the list of top 50 conflict-ridden countries, primarily due to rising political violence. And, according to Princeton University’s Bridging Divides Initiative, there is a rise in threats and harassment in this country. Threats against public officials are rapidly increasing to almost 3x the number of what they were in 2020 (see GOVFACTS chart below). The rate of political violence is climbing. It needs to stop.

What is driving the rise in political violence?

There are so many factors on why political violence is on the climb. According to GOVFACTS, a major reason for this is dehumanization or “affective polarization.” It is where you have sheer hatred for the opposing party–to an extent where you have no remorse, no regret, nothing at all because you don’t see them as “one of you.” This is effectively demeaning humans. Another possible reason for the rise in violence is hateful rhetoric from political figures. Political leaders saying many hateful and dehumanizing things to opponents is not only immoral, it’s just immature. For example, if you were to be in a political position of authority and you say the person you are running against is a liar and needs to be hated on, that is hateful rhetoric; this leads to your supporters following along in your dehumanizing rhetoric. Eventually both sides speak of this hatred, which fuels the fire in political violence. Lastly, one of the largest “fuel to the fire” is the internet. The online world is large and sometimes we see individuals who spread hateful, radical rhetoric. The most unfortunate thing is because the internet is so large, this rhetoric gets shared with many people, and people start normalizing radical ideas, creating a space where millions of people can willingly excuse or even support political violence. 

How can we solve it?  

We need a solution. A very effective solution is talking things out. Things like productive arguments can help reinforce safe and healthy debates. According to Sami’s “Arguing is Good for Friendship,” a past thebirdonfire.org post, having a productive argument is having an open mind. It doesn’t mean you have to completely agree with the person you are talking to, but at least understanding an issue will allow you to take things in without hatred and fury. Even if someone has something hateful to say to you, understand that he or she needs to learn how to argue productively. And so, you can teach them in a respectful way. Do not resort to political violence. “When you stop talking, that’s when you get violence,” said late activist Charlie Kirk. When we stop having productive debates or arguments, we stop listening to each other.

Graph comes from a GOVFACTS article from September 11, 2025: “Is Political Violence Rising in America?” (govfacts.org)

The Most Interesting Game Ever: Kerbal Space Program

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By Eighth-Grade Blogger Mason Conway

What makes a game interesting? Is it a jumpscare around every corner, or an action-packed fantasy? I personally believe that the best games are the unusual ones, something refreshing can be so nice once in a while. The game that has the most quirk is Kerbal Space Program made by Squad game development group. 

In Kerbal Space Program, you, the player, run a space agency with little green workers called Kerbals. You are faced with choices that can make or break your gameplay. Maybe you don’t put a parachute on your rocket to save a little extra money, but then your rocket crashes without a parachute and the little Kerbal inside dies. You now have a reputation as a failed builder who takes shortcuts.

Kerbal Space Program takes place in the Kerbol system, which is a replica of our solar system. Everything revolves around Kerbol, which is the in-game sun. Moho is Mercury; Eve is Venus; Kerbin is Earth; Duna is Mars; Jule is Jupiter, and Eeloo is Pluto.

If you were a player in the Kerbol system, this is the image you’d see of the Kerbal Universe (Photo Source: NamuWiki).

You can’t shoot a rocket into the vastness of space without a place to build the rockets first. The VAB, or Vehicle Assembly Building, is located on Kerbin. This is where you start the game and where you build rockets in the Kerbal Universe. The VAB in the sandbox mode, or creative mode, gives you everything in the game you need to build with. However, in career mode you only start with basic stuff and unlock new rockets and more through the tech tree; the tech tree is a building that you use to research new stuff. In Kerbal Space Program, science points are needed to progress through the tech tree. You can get points by performing science experiments on different planets. You have to do exploratory jobs to earn points to build rockets.

You start the game building rockets inside the Vehicle Assembly Building (Photo Source:  wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com).
Mason shares with us the image of his technology tree in Kerbal Space Program. Says wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com, “The Technology tree allows the player to unlock more advanced parts for constructing craft. Sami furthers explains, the tech tree is needed when you play in career mode. (Photo Source: wiki.kerbalspaceprogram.com)

What follows is footage of my space station. In the game, I used the station for gathering scientific data while in orbit. The game requires data gathering to get points so players can build more rockets.

                                   

Kerbal Space Program might not be action packed or full of epic boss fights, but it has multiple unique little quirks–things like stranding Kerbals on the moon or building a Duna base. That’s why I think it’s the most interesting game out there. You can actually learn something while you play. Thanks, Mr. Kisling (PVS Technology Teacher–who brings Kerbal Space Program to the masses).

Waffles versus Pancakes

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By Middle-School Bloggers Calum Webster and Mason Conway

Inspired by the song “Do You Like Waffles?” by Parry Gripp, 7th-graders Calum Webster and Mason Conway set out to find which breakfast entrée is the ultimate way to start your day. The two conducted their scientific research by walking around the Palm Valley campus and asking people for their opinions: Waffles or Pancakes?

Addison chooses “waffles because they have little pockets that can hold syrup.”

Jaxon says, “Pancakes because they have the crispy edges.”

Sami likes “pancakes because they are so fluffy and soft.” 

Max prefers “waffles because they are pancakes with abs.”

Ben likes “pancakes more because they have aura.” 

John says, “Pancakes because I eat them more.”

Elizabeth “prefers a flat breakfast”–so pancakes for her.

Morgan likes “waffles because they’re fluffier.”

Mason and Calum weigh in . . .

Mason: My tastebuds tell me that pancakes taste like cardboard and waffles taste way sweeter. Waffles have a nicer nexture and have a little bit of give with a slightly crunchy outside unlike their counterpart.

Calum: I believe that waffles are way better than pancakes. Waffles have places to hold syrup, and they are so much fluffier.  

At the end of the day, pancakes won, but, with Mason’s and Calum’s votes, waffles would have won. So, the boys have answers to the song “Do You Like Waffles?” but not the way they wanted. It is fine because, according to the two of them, people will soon see the beauty of waffles over pancakes.     

What’s Your Favorite Candy?

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By Middle-School Bloggers Calum Webster and Mason Conway

Candy is a seemingly innocent topic, but it is heavily debated. Do you like Mounds Bars or Almond Joy? Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup or Nerds Gummy Clusters? Whoppers or Milk Duds? The topic about what candy is best gets talked about often. In order to get to the bottom of people’s opinions here at Palm Valley, 7th-graders Mason and Calum went out interviewing to discover the best candy to chomp on.

7th-grader Julian says of candy, “My favorite candies are Sweet Tarts, and Twizzlers are my least favorite.”

7th-grader Silvanita says she dislikes “Snickers because I do not like the peanuts in it, and I love Nerds because of the sweet flavor.”   

8th-grader Edward replies, “Hi-Chews taste amazing, and Milky Ways . . . too sweet.” 

10th-grader Rylie says she likes “Haribo Raspberry because they are crunchy on the outside, sweet in the middle; . . . she hates “black licorice because it tastes horrible.” 

Teacher Mr. Killeen recommends Godiva because “it’s pretty high quality and consistent quality. He hates “Werthers.” He says, “It is blah and too sweet.”

7th-grader Sami says, “Elephant Poop Chocolate” is his favorite because of its nice texture. “This is a real thing!” Sami adds. “Dubai Chocolate” is his least favorite because he says it “tastes like grass.”

7th-grader Jaxon’s favorite candy is the “Kinder Bueno bars/eggs because they have a creamy hazelnut filling,” and he says his least favorite candies are “Milk Duds because they look and taste like over baked cookies.”

7th-grader Emmy says she likes “The lollipops from the kids’ meal at the sushi place in Mammoth,” and she doesn’t have a least favorite candy.

7th-grader Max says, “My favorite candy is chocolate-covered pretzels,” and he adds, “My least favorite candy is Vegemite.”

7th-grader Ben says, “My favorite candy is Twix because of the carmel,” and he adds, “My least favorite is Dots because they taste artificial.”

8th-grader Moses says his favorite candy is “Reese’s Pieces because the peanut butter tastes good,” and he says, “I hate Almond Joy because it tastes so bad.”

7th-grader Devlin says, “My favorite candy is og Hershey’s,” and adds “my least favorite is Whoppers because they suck.”  

7th-grader Gavin says he does not have a favorite candy, but he has a favorite place to get candy–”it is by far See’s Candy.” And, he says that his least favorite is “Dots because they don’t taste like anything, but they have a weird factory taste to them.”

8th-grader Addison says she likes “Nerds Gummy Clusters or Watermelon Sour Patch Kids,” and she says my “least favorite is probably black licorice because it is gross.”  

Candy sells. PVS middle schoolers mixed and matched their favorites at the CJSF candy “salad” bar.

This has been a really fun project searching for the best candy, but the PVS community has not decided upon a clear winner.

Calum and Mason received a lot of great answers–from Dubai chocolate to Vegemite–but logged no clear consensus. However, Ms. Zachik adds, “Judging from the rush for Nerds Clusters at the CJSF Candy Salad Wednesdays, I’d say Nerds are a courtyard favorite.”

What’s the Hardest Sport and Why?

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By Middle-School Bloggers Mason Conway, Calum Webster, and Elizabeth Greenwood

Here at thebirdonfire.org, we argue over everything–including Why my sport is harder than your sport! We thought we’d take it to the Palm Valley sidewalks. We asked people what they believe is the hardest sport and why. We know what the hardest sport is (Water Polo!), and we know everyone else is wrong, but wanted to hear their insights. Their answers surprised us, displaying a wide range of perspectives on the physical and mental challenges involved in different sports.

John Webster, What’s the hardest sport? “Formula 1 or rock climbing. F1 is difficult because you are driving at a high speed and you risk your life, but rock climbing is also difficult because there is a demanding mix of physical strength and balance.”

Mr. Kisling : “Open water swimming because if you stop, you drown.”

Ms. Maguire: “I think that decathlon is the hardest because you have to be able to run a marathon and do all of those sports really well, and I think that is really hard.”

Devlin Roosevelt: “Soccer because sometimes the refs are blind.”

Mateo Omier: “I think boxing or wrestling because you get beat up every single time.”

Maxwell Pretorius: “Boxing because you can get hurt.”

Ivana Vega: “I would say wrestling because you can genuinely die.”

Addison Uhlhorn, What’s the hardest sport? “Hockey because it’s physically demanding on multiple different levels.”

Emmy Kaminsky: “Hockey because you have to skate while you are fighting while holding a stick while moving a puck.”

Jaden Ramer: “Ice Skating because you have to be precise.”

Brooklyn Hatrak: “I agree with Jaden because you have to be flexible.”

Sami Alnabelsi: “The hardest sport and why? I don’t know soccer because the refs are blind.”

Grace Ghaly: “Soccer because the coaches in soccer are mean.”

Ryder Gardner:  “Hardest sport? Football because you have to do conditioning.”

Jaxon Pacilio, What’s the hardest sport? “Football because you get get hit really hard.” Photo Credit: Mason Conway

Sarah Alnabelsi: “Soccer because it has a lot of running.”

Zoe Groendyke: “Ice Skating.”

Mr. Killeen:  “F1 because you have to be short.”

Riley Jorgensen: “Football because it’s the most physical sport possible.”

Coach Jake: “I would personally say football.”

Julian Berumen: “Volleyball”

Cindy Wang: “Volleyball’’

Silvinita Garcia:” Volleyball or basketball.”

Now, Elizabeth says…

As you can see from the wide range of answers, everyone has a different opinion on what makes a sport difficult. Whether it’s the physical demands of hockey or the precision of figure skating. It’s clear that all sports require hard work and dedication.

And, Calum adds…

In my opinion, water polo is the hardest sport for a couple of reasons. First, you have to be treading water for a long period of time. The game is 50 minutes long with only 13 players and 7 playing at a time, and you can only get subbed out after a goal or a time out. So you are for sure going to be tired after the game. Secondly, you can only use one hand at a time. You can not pass in from hand to hand. You either have to dribble it or drop it in the water. This can be really hard because you are going to have to have a really good grip on the ball. The ball is constantly in the water, which means it is going to be wet and slippery. In addition to that, you can only shoot from 5 meters or farther. Finally, it can be a very physical sport. There is a lot of fighting that goes on under water that the ref doesn’t see. That is why water polo is the hardest sport.

Finally, Mason concludes…

I’m going to agree with Calum on this one, I can barely swim, so imagine swimming for that long. If I was to try to play water polo, I would be at the bottom of the regulation 20-feet deep pool. Some people like to drag the players when the refs are not looking, which sounds terrifying; I’d die. I also believe lacrosse is one of the hardest sports solely because you’re allowed to break your stick over someone; the sticks they use are made out of carbon fiber and hard plastic, which I imagine would hurt a lot.

School Uniform Debate: Necessary or Restrictive?

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By Middle-School Bloggers Mason Conway, Calum Webster, and Elizabeth Greenwood

Should we wear uniforms? Many schools, such as PVS, require strict attire. Most are private schools, but some public school students wear uniforms. It seems everybody’s got an opinion on whether we should switch back to no uniforms or keep them. Mason, Calum, and Elizabeth have something to say on that:

Mason says . . .

It can be a good idea to reinforce wearing uniforms as it could limit bullying and reduce distractions, but other people argue that it could limit creativity and make families struggle to buy more expensive uniform clothing. I personally believe that we should have no uniforms as in the morning I waste time trying to find my khaki shorts and my polo, which sometimes makes me late for school. 

Calum says . . .

One point that Mason said is requiring uniforms can reduce bullying. I believe this is a fair point; everybody is wearing the same thing, so you can’t bully people on what they are wearing. On the other hand, you have to spend more money on uniforms, and most people are not going to wear them outside of school. In my opinion, I don’t think there should be uniforms, but there should be a dress code. First, a dress code lets people wear what they want. Choosing their own clothes will make kids feel more comfortable and relaxed during the day. They will also not have to go through the struggle of getting ready in the morning–looking for those lost khaki shorts and polos. I believe that it is easier to find my casual clothing in the morning than it is to find my uniform.

Elizabeth says . . .

Personally, I believe that uniforms should be mandatory because they create a sense of uniformity among students. One reason uniforms should be mandatory is that they help students focus on their work rather than on their appearance. And, while I slightly agree with Mason and Calum that uniforms might reduce bullying, without uniforms, students may be pressured into wearing certain clothes–which can have a negative effect on younger students because they are pressured into wearing expensive clothing.  Another reason why uniforms should be mandatory is that uniforms are easier to find (way easier to find a pair shorts and a polo than putting a whole outfit together), and by wearing them it takes less time to get ready in the morning. 

And, finally, Mr. Koehler says . . .

“The main reason for school uniforms is to create an inclusive and welcoming environment for students to thrive in.”

It seems school uniforms have some value. They create a sense of uniformity, reduce stress, and can make mornings easier (except for Mason). By wearing uniforms, students have more freedom to focus on their work and less on external distractions. Uniforms are not just for looks but are about inclusiveness.

Mason, showcasing the Palm Valley School uniform, tells us he’s doing his “model walk.”