Schools
Forensic Team Finishes First
Teamwork leads to big win for Grover Cleveland Middle School forensic team.
Whiz Kids' Name(s): Rachael Borrows, Olivia Carrara, Elizabeth Elliott, Abby Lebet, Ashvin Nagarajan, Brendan Padover, Ally Wertz, Lydia Wielgus and Roxanne Wilcox.
Patch Whiz Kid/Team/Club of the Week: Grover Cleveland Middle School 2011-12 Forensic Team
Whiz Kid's School/Church/Community Center: Grover Cleveland Middle School, Caldwell
Find out what's happening in Caldwellswith free, real-time updates from Patch.
Whiz Kid's Accomplishment: Students in the Gifted Academic Program (GAP) at (GCMS) took home the varsity first place team trophy for overall performance from the , as well as second, third and fourth place trophies on Thursday, Jan. 5, at Montclair State University. Members of both the varsity and junior varsity teams from GCMS participated in the event.
Whiz Kid's Key to Awesomeness: Competing against students from nine other districts in Essex County, including Livingston, Roseland, West Orange, Irvington, Bloomfield, Nutley, Belleville, Essex Fells and Newark, the students from GCMS took home four individual trophies and the overall varsity team trophy for their performances at the annual Essex County Forensic Tournament. Sponsored by the New Jersey Consortium for Gifted Education, the competition is open to students in grades six through eight within the gifted academic programs.
Find out what's happening in Caldwellswith free, real-time updates from Patch.
GCMS students delivered monologues from Chinese Cinderella by Adeline Yen Mah; Theodore Boon, Kid Lawyer by John Grishman; Matilda by Rol Dahl; To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee; and How I Became a Pirate by Brendan Padover. Specifically, Wertz took home a second place trophy for Matilda, and Padover placed fourth with his recitation from How I Became a Pirate, in the junior varsity competition. Wielgus placed third with Theodore Boon, Kid Lawyer, and Borrows placed fourth with Chinese Cinderella at the varsity level.
To participate, students select a three- to five-minute piece from a book to read aloud. The speaker is accountable for the effective reproduction of not only the words, but also of the thought, emotions and spirit of the original orator; use of vocal variety and pace for emphasis; appropriate use of facial expressions and gestures; frequent eye contact with the audience; clear and correct enunciation and pronunciation; effective voice projection; and movement.
Stayed tuned to hear more from this talented group of teens.
