The Origin of Cheese

Behold, the mighty chiz!
This article is not about cheese, in case you are confused.

Hello All,

     A student asked me today where the term "cheesy," meaning "cheap or stereotypical," comes from.  I did not know at the time, but I promised I would look it up.  Based on some reliable sources, here is what I found.

     Cheesy, today, means "cheap, unpleasant, or blatantly inauthentic," at least according to the Apple dictionary.  It is cliche, stereotypical, or so unoriginal you can't help but wince.

     So far as historians can tell, however, the term comes from the Persian word chiz (pronounced just like cheese), which means "thing."  When the British invaded and occupied much of the Middle East and India in the early 1800s, they would refer to their native servants as "the real chiz," or the real thing / real deal.

     From there, it transferred to common British society in the middle 1800s, where it became associated more with "showy" instead of just excellent.  By the end of the 1800s, it meant gaudy or cheap, like oversized costume jewelry or overly dramatic gestures.  It wasn't long before it became a common term for anything stereotypically bad or cliche, which is how we know it today!

     Thank you, Jasmine, for the question!

Best,

Mr. DeMaris

UTC Trip Tomorrow

Hello Eighth Grade!

     Tomorrow you take a trip to the United Technologies Center in Bangor.  Three of you still need to bring in permission slips; if you don't have them, you will spend your morning doing schoolwork with another teacher.  Our bus leaves Helen S. Dunn School promptly at 7:45, so arrive at school on time.

Rock-a-thon Papers!

Hello, Eighth Grade!

     Your Rock-a-thon papers are due tomorrow, Wednesday, May 21, 2014.  You need sponsors to attend the event on Friday.

Sincerely,

Mr. DeMaris

Tonight's Game is Cancelled

Hello All,

     Tonight's home game against Veazie is cancelled, likely due to the great amount of water in the field.  Hopefully Thursday's game will still happen!

Property Tax is Established!

Citizens of Room 27 Vote for More Taxes, Bank Bailouts

by Mr. DeMaris

     Today, a majority of class legislators passed a law creating new taxes to pay off government debt incurred by bailing out the failed First Blue Bank of the Helen S. Dunn School.  The institution, which had lent more money than it could afford, shut down when student concerns about access to money led to a run on the bank that drained its funds.  After several days without access to their bank accounts, and unable to do anything but watch their income swallowed by massive debt, students agreed that their comfort and security was more important than immediate fiscal responsibility, and proposed new legislation authorizing the Government of Room 27 to bail out the bank in return for higher taxes to pay off that investment.

     As a result, government officials have imposed a property tax on each individual in the classroom.  Students must now pay for the right to sit in their chair and use their desk, even though that chair and desk has been theirs since the beginning of the school year.  Many students expressed dissatisfaction with this decision, but their voices were overwhelmed by the majority, who insist that it is a worthwhile trade.

     We must wait to see what the long-term impacts of this decision will be.

The Civilian Conservation Corps

Hello All:

     In 8th Grade, we are looking at the Great Depression and FDR's "New Deal," part of which was the Civilian Conservation Corps, or the CCC.  There were actually 28 CCC camps in Maine between 1933 and 1942, and they worked on everything from forest management to cleaning up and improving national parks.  Click on this link to read an article about the CCC's work in Acadia National Park.

     After reading the article, students should either type or write the answers to the following questions:

1. What was the nickname for the workers?
2. What did critics call the CCC?
3. By 1942, how many men had been hired by the program?
4. How many camps ran in Maine?
5. How many camps contributed to Acadia National Park?
6. How old was Simon Caswell when he started working for the CCC at Acadia?

     Click on this link to read an article about the CCC in the state of Maine.  After reading the article, students should either type or write the answers to the following questions:

1. How many men were requested in the first quota of 1933?
2. What was the base pay for employed men?  How much of that did they get to keep?
3. How many Maine enrollees worked for the CCC?
4. How many supervisors and technical staff members worked for the CCC?
5. How much money did their families earn from the program during the period of 1933 to 1942?
6. Was the CCC a worthwhile program?  Why or why not?  Defend your answer with reasons and examples, as this question is worth as much as three others put together.

New Tax Established

Income Tax Begins in Room 27

by Mr. DeMaris

     A controversial bill was passed today by the legislature of Room 27, and signed into law by Mr. DeMaris.  Law 18 establishes a 5% income tax on all classroom paychecks to provide compensation for the creation of new jobs in the room.

     In an effort to maintain fiscal responsibility and keep the government from sliding into debt, Legislators Hunter, Jayton, Kyle, and Chris pushed for the development of this new tax to prevent the ballooning prices of candy and other necessities in the classroom store.  By agreeing to this law, Hunter says, you can make sure the room stays clean and people still get to work.

     Others, however, take a different view of the matter.  Greg believes that any income tax is a bad idea, and money earned should go into the worker's pocket, not to the government.  "I'm not signing that," he said.

     Still, the majority of the class agree that this new law will help boost the economy by building up new economic opportunities for those currently unemployed.  Says Hunter, who just got his first job today, "If you pay me well, I'll want to keep working."  And that, in this reporter's opinion, is good for everyone.  Whether or not this optimism will play out in the long run, we will simply have to wait and see.