WINTER MUSIC AT SHS

 ORCHESTRA STUDENTS PERFORM IN WINTER CONCERT

By: Shea Harrison 

On December 7th, 2021, the Sparta High School Orchestra presented their annual winter concert. The Symphony and Philharmonic Orchestra (who were joined by a variety of brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments for a few songs) played a variety of fun and festive songs such as Radioactive, Sleigh Ride, Themes from the Nutcracker, and more.

 As always, the concert was conducted by wonderful music teacher Ms. Bach, along with Mrs. Lopez who played piano. The concert was a great way for students to share their musical abilities and hard work to friends and family and bring holiday cheer to Sparta High! There will be an upcoming choir concert on Wednesday December 22, 2021 at 7pm. Be sure to check it out! 

THE NEW GERMAN CHRISTMAS MARKET

 GERMAN CHRISTMAS MARKET RETURNS

By: Noelle Hanek

With the recent festive decorations and music galore, it is obvious that the holiday season is officially here complete with all the fun activities. One well-known event in Sparta is the German Christmas Market. Initially, it was held on Lake Mohawk in Sparta, NJ until last year when it was canceled because of Covid-19. Now, the German Christmas Market has returned and took place at the Sussex Fairgrounds from December 3rd to 5th. 

The market quickly filled up as the day went on, attracting people from all over Northern New Jersey! The vendor stands sold a variety of German foods, goods, and gifts. There were also craft stands located around the market. Some notable things included a Wood Carver who crafted beautiful and realistic sculptures, a miniature train world and a petting zoo. Imperfect Phil, a dog with a book series all about him, was also there to greet the visitors! Additionally, there were musicians and food trucks. 

The market is a beautiful, festive, and fun experience and was a great way to spend time with friends and family while getting a taste of German Christmas culture! If you missed it this year, it is definitely worth checking out at the next holiday season!

 

Image from www.facebook.com @GermanChristmasMarketofNJ 

WINTERFEST IS COMING

 FIND THE COURAGE PRESENTS WINTERFEST

By Hayley Lane 

On Wednesday, December 8th, Find the Courage hosted their annual 2021 Winterfest Volleyball Tournament! Find the Courage is a club made up of SHS seniors who exhibit positive attitudes and leadership. Seniors gathered in their staff shirts to host a fun and thrilling day of Volleyball with positions such as checking teams in, collecting money and donations, refereeing , and playing in games. 

All money and donations raised from the event will go to underprivileged children in Sussex County. SHS was able to raise $750 Wednesday with more money coming! 

Congratulations to our winning teams Blue Ballers, Bubble Guppies, Red Dragon, A.O.F, Cookies ‘n Cream, Practice Safe Sets, Shawty and more!! Semi-Finals will be taking place this Friday, December 10th, during lunch. Best of luck to everyone! 

SHS ACTOR SHARES FINAL THOUGHTS ON FALL PRODUCTION

 Fall Drama Actor Shares His Experience

By: Shea Harrison, Emma Muth, and Kavya Kamath

On November 19th, 20th, and 21st, Sparta High School students performed in the Fall Drama, Middletown, and showcased their incredible talent to the audience. The cast put a lot of hard work into the play, from the acting, to the stage crew work, to the set. However, to get the best idea of the play experience is to hear from one of our own actors. And so, below is an account from Shea Harrison, who played John Dodge, one of the main characters in the play:

“Middletown was seen as a weird play from day one. I think I can speak for the whole cast and crew when I say we didn’t know what to think of it at first. Even now after the show I can’t really say there is much of a plot. Most of the story is just people living their lives and the emotions that came with that. It also gets dark in a way I haven’t seen in a Sparta show.

I was cast as John Dodge, one of two characters who are named from the beginning. John tries to appear happy-go-lucky and joking on the outside, but it is easy to see that he has a lot of anxieties and parts of his life that make him contemplate (and eventually try to carry out) taking his own life. 

As I said the show was very interesting, and as we kept rehearsing the scenes, the subtle messages hidden in the things the characters say and do were revealed, and how a lot of it has a deeper meaning that relates to life in the real world. It’s a really interesting play like that.

Was it challenging to memorize a whole lot of lines? Sure it was! But even with our short time to prepare the show the cast and crew were able to pull it off and put on an amazing show.”

As one play comes to an end, another starts up! The fall drama ended but Sparta High thespians need not fret—this year’s musical is starting up!

On Monday, November 29th, there was an interest meeting about Newsies, the Spring Musical of 2022. The meeting’s sole purpose was to scope out interest in the show, and to detail information about the show such as audition dates, the rehearsal schedule, parts, and much more. The show dates are on March 4th, 5th, and 6th! We can’t wait to see you all there! 

SPARTAN FOOTBALL WRAP UP

 

Varsity Football Wrap-Up

By: Olivia Flanz

On Friday, November 19th, Sparta’s varsity football team wrapped up the season ending in a playoff away game against Cranford. While Sparta lost to Cranford in the playoff (45-21), let's not ignore the team’s great season with them being the number 1 team in their league. Within their games they won 8 out of the 13 games giving them a 61% winning rate this season. With that Sparta is currently ranked 42 in New Jersey for varsity football.

SHS STUDENTS SHARE LOVE OF LANGUAGE AT HMS

 SPARTA HIGH STUDENTS TEACH LANGUAGES AT HELEN MORGAN

By: Noelle Hanek

Throughout the school year, members of the French and German Honors society teach elementary students at Helen Morgan School. Each Monday after school, members volunteer to drive to Helen Morgan and teach the young children fun and engaging lessons in their language to help prepare them for middle school language classes. So far, the 5th graders were taught introductions, numbers, colors, body parts, and animals. The french sessions involved multiple fun activities for the children to learn. For instance, the class threw around a foam number dice block, and with every number it landed on, they had to say the number out loud in french. To help teach them colors, the class played eye-spy, and to learn animals, they played charades. 

These sessions will continue on until at least the end of January. Additionally, the two honor societies plan on instructing even younger kids further down the road. In fact, the next four sessions are going to be for the fourth graders! These sessions are both a great experience for the kids to get introduced to new languages, a wonderful life skill to have, and a great experience for the high schoolers to gain teaching experience. Any high school student who is considering joining the French or German honor society should definitely do so since fun activities such as this will be available!

Photo of Helen Morgan School, Sparta NJ