Illustrated by Nadia Garcia
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The Deer Fish
Author: The Prospector
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The 50% Policy
Written by Paige Coleman and Elsa Williams
The years of COVID and quarantine caught the world off guard. With this sudden shift for everyone on the planet, many organizations have had to drastically change their practices. Schools especially were impacted.
Online classes were put in place in lieu of in-person classes, and little to no work needed to be put in in order to pass. It was virtually impossible to fail, as your grade could only go up. Tests were a breeze. With no teacher looming over you, cheating on tests was laughably easy. Zoom calls became nap time, as just being in the call meant you were present.
But these years of no learning came at a price. When students came back from school, nobody was ready to do work again. So, they made school easier. The main accommodation that was made by the Sac City Unified School District, which was applied at McClatchy, was giving half credit for missing assignments. This rule was put in place to ease us back into the swing of things, but two years later, it’s still in place. It may not seem all that bad, giving students an easier time at school, but in the end, what is this teaching us?
Why do your work when you’ll still get credit? This whole rule is teaching students that work isn’t important. Plus, students who work hard for good grades can be out-competed by other students who took a three-day credit recovery course. How disheartening is that? Failing class (if you can) isn’t even a bad thing anymore. Credit recovery classes are way too easy, and most can be done in a number of days, if not hours. Plus, with them being all online, cheating is as easy as ever.
And college isn’t even close to as forgiving. College will prove to be a huge shock to most. Harder, more grueling classes will be even harder with us not being used to completing our work. College is also where grades really matter. Almost your whole career (depending on what you want to do) is reliant on your grades.
Both McClatchy and the district are not preparing us for the real world. Procrastinating has consequences that we need to teach now rather than later. I believe that 50% on missing work should be removed, and the normal, 0% should be given instead.
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CKM Admin to Reinforce Cell Phone Policy
In the upcoming week, the reinforcement of the campus phone policy will be pushed once more. A resurfacing of the old policy in reaction to previous phone restrictions not being followed by both students and teachers.
In an email from Principal Egan, she explained that allowing them in school is disrupting the learning process of the students and making the teacher’s job harder as there has been a decrease in completed work in the classrooms due to cellphones being distractions. This policy will also be extended to the hallways and bathrooms during class periods. Faculty hopes that students will adapt to phasing out phones on campus, preparing for the new policy to become standard next year.
If kids happen to have them out they get a total of one warning from the teacher. On the second they call home, on the third they have to call a staff member to get the phone and escort the student out.
Administrators are trying their best to help improve the learning environment for teachers and students. Education is important for every student, limiting the distraction during class hopefully will make a noticeable change.
Photographs taken by Francisco Escobar:
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Get published in The Prospector!
The Prospector staff took a mini field trip to Chocolate Fish Coffee Roasters on Freeport Blvd. Each of us tried something off the menu and have provided our thoughts:
3.5/5 stars
I ordered an iced “Mango Tango” tea from Chocolate Fish, this is my review:
I generally enjoy tea much more than coffee, so I opted for just that. Perhaps it was because I got it iced rather than hot, but I thought the flavor was bland. Not bad though, but for a drink called “Mango Tango” you’d expect more of a mango flavor. Overall it was very refreshing and I enjoyed it for what it was!
3/5 stars
Having passed by this place multiple times in the last few years and hearing many raving reviews from students, Chocolate Fish did not live up to its expectations for me. Maybe it’s because I’m not a big coffee nor tea drinker, but the only good thing about the place for me was the baked goods.
3.25/5 stars
I got an Iced Mocha and a Chocolate chip cookie, here are my thoughts:
I usually like chocolate and coffee. When I first received my items I thought they would be really good. However, when I tried the iced mocha I thought it was too strong and bland. It tasted a little too much like just water and mocha. But I still enjoyed it sip by sip. Then I tried the cookie. It was good but I would’ve preferred it warm. Overall, it was good but probably won’t get the same order.
4.5/5 stars
I recently had the pleasure of going out for a coffee run with my staff from the Prospector, and we had a blast. We all had some laughs, cries, and maybe even some delicious coffee. However, I cannot review what Chocolate Fish is known for because I did not order a coffee and instead, I ordered a Matcha ice drink. And it was quite delicious and it was not what I was expecting coming from a matcha. Though I love Japanese food and culture, I do not consider myself a Matcha individual, but I wanted to try something new. The drink was delicious! Though most people do not like matcha, I would say to give this one a try.
3.5/5 stars
Chocolate Fish is a comfortable cafe that offers a variety of healthy snacks and drinks. Although I failed to capture pictures of my two other items, I remembered to take a picture of the avocado toast I had ordered. Based on looks, the cafe was modern and chic, the interior consisting of blue, gray, and white. Upon looking at the menu, I was confused and impressed with the healthy beverages and food they sold. It was cold out so I wanted to order something to warm me up. I decided to get a hot cocoa with marshmallows and a blackberry scone. I never had a scone before, but I heard they were good. It was pretty dry, but overall alright. After my drink, I decided to get some avocado toast, which cost seven dollars. I was hungry so I decided to add an egg for an additional two dollars. Don’t get me wrong, it was tasty but not worth ten dollars.
2/5 stars
I got the green tea from Chocolate Fish. Here is what I thought about it: It wasn’t really my cup of tea, literally. I tried to sweeten it a little, but it didn’t make any difference. I don’t really enjoy regular tea and coffee like that only if it’s sweet tea or from Starbucks. But, my snack which was a croissant was really very good! I love croissants. I would’ve rather it heated or something but it still was good.
4/5 stars
I got a blended mocha and banana bread, which were both delicious. Here are my thoughts:
I wanted something sweet, so I opted for a blended mocha because I figured it would be like a frappuccino. It was not as sugary as I was expecting, but I still enjoyed it. The banana bread was my favorite part of the meal. It was heated up after I ordered it and had a subtle banana flavor, which complemented the chocolate chips in the bread too. Overall, my two choices paired very nicely and I had a great experience.
4/5 stars
I got a macchiato with caramel and banana bread. These are my thoughts on my order: I’d say the coffee was a 10 out of 10 with no doubt. I was kind of going for a Starbucks type of drink and it didn’t disappoint. It wasn’t too sweet, but it wasn’t too bitter or strong either. I’d say it was just right. On the other hand, I thought the bread would have more flavor, don’t get me wrong it did have flavor but not what I was expecting. It had something green in it, not sure exactly what that was. There were also chunks of bananas which I was not so big of a fan of. Overall it kinda disappointed me. I’d say I would go back for the coffee but for sure not the banana bread.
4/5 stars
I got the iced white mocha, and I was pleasantly surprised! I usually absolutely hate white chocolate, but the syrup they used didn’t really taste like white chocolate. It gave the coffee a nice creamy flavor, and it wasn’t too sweet. Plus, coffee usually gives me a stomach ache, but not with this drink. Overall, it was really good!
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Halloween Costumes on Campus
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Fall Word Search
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CKM Digital Art Gallery
Here are some of our favorite pieces from Mr. Miller’s talented students.
