Thursday, September 10, 2015

VIDEO: An interview during PHS open house

A visitor to Planet Homeschool during the open house on May 1, 2015 chats about why she's there. Interviewed by Solomon Midwinter. Video by Aurora J. Pass.

Major General Stanley and Judy O’Neill

by Malachi Johnson
PHS Press staff member


Math teachers.  They help you solve problems that you would never have without them. 


Judy O’Neill was inspired to teach by watching teachers and learning from them.   O’Neill began her teaching career in 2008 at Planet Homeschool. 

O’Neill started teaching at Planet Homeschool because one of her two daughters started attending. To O’Neill, a typical day at Planet Homeschool is very busy with every thing being set up. Never the less O’Neill very much enjoys teaching algebra and geometry. 

On a more personal note, unlike Major General Stanly, O’Neill has not incorporated the Pythagorean theorem into her parenting style. Because “I don’t think of the Pythagorean theorem and parenting as intertwined. The Pythagorean theorem is really straightforward and clear-cut, where-as parenting has none of those qualities,” she said. 

Meet Tim Hereid


by Bridger Berg 
PHS Press staff member

This is an interview with Tim Hereid, the physics teacher at PHS, for our teacher spotlight stories. Be sure to look out for other stories on other teachers at PHS on the site!

When asked how he found out about PHS, he said that he had just found out about it through internet research, eventually, he got an interview, and the place just seemed like the perfect fit for him. The reason he had wanted to teach at a place like PHS, he said, was that he had always sought an environment where kids were self motivated, interested in learning, and he just likes to teach. He said his initial interest was just a place that had the kinds of science and electronics classes he wanted to teach, that his first idea, the High Altitude balloon class, was a blast to teach, and that he still sees some of those ex-students in his classes today.

High Altitude Class

Q&A With Tim Hereid

Q: How long have you been teaching at PHS?
A: I believe I started in 2012, so about three years.
Q: What is your favorite thing about teaching at PHS?
A: Well, it’s a great community, a very strong community, another great thing is that with homeschool kids, they’re just as comfortable with adults as with kids their age, and that’s just great.
Q: So, you teach physics?
A: Yes, I generally teach middle school physics, which is very project-based, you know, we build catapults and we’re going to build pendulums, just as hands on as it can possibly get with physics. And then I’m teaching a sign-language class, I taught an ethics class, the app class, geography, biology, hoping to teach creative writing,
Q: How would you say PHS differs from other places you’ve taught at?
A:  Other than what I’ve said already, it’s great because both the kids and the adults get a chance to explore a workshop-like environment, the big difference I think is just the love of learning, I mean the kids just really, really like to learn, and it feels more like a collaborative work environment than it does a classroom.

Thursday, May 7, 2015

BOOK REVIEW: The Kingdoms of Evil by Daniel Bensen

by Solomon Midwinter
PHS Press staff writer

The Kingdoms of Evil by Daniel Bensen was a joy to read.  It was a surprise to learn it was his first book.  I would recommend this book highly, but only to people 12 and up, because there are a few moments involving some colorful language, and some moments that may not be suitable for younger children. 

   I expected the book to be a comedy, and very little else.  While certainly funny, the book actually also had some more serious moments, which was a nice surprise.
    It is an imaginative series, set in a fictional universe that is in many ways not so different from our own.  Freetrick Feend was a student at a college in the Rationalist Union.  Then he was spirited off by a strange, anatomically improbable creature called Mr. Skree, and his betrothed, a strange and terrifying woman called Bloodbyrn. He was taken to be the god-king of the kingdoms of evil. This was an incredibly dysfunctional empire, composed of three kingdoms.
     It had once been a serious threat and force in the world, but that time was centuries ago, and now it is a nation stuck in the middle ages, in an (albeit magical) world that is in the post industrial era. 
    Quite beyond that, government policies, or lack thereof, have ensured that unless something is done quickly, the entire empire will implode.  That is if they don't starve to death first.  And no one realizes how weak the military and decides to invade. 
    And on top of all of this, the Skrean (Skrea is one of the kingdoms of evil) magic system is entirely dependent on slaughtering massive numbers of monsters and/or people, as its magic system is necromancy. 
    As the name implies, these kingdoms relatively few human inhabitants are almost exclusively homicidal maniacs and sadists.  More to the point, the standard procedure if you are unhappy with the current administration is to arrange the death of the current ruler.  And as a sane and logical ruler, Freetrick had some deeply unpopular ideas. 
    This book is great, although somewhat hard to find.  It was never actually traditionally published, but it can be found on Kindle unlimited, or just Kindle.  It is also supposed to be the first book in a series, called the Covenant Nonsense.  I have been unable to find the second book, but I am still looking.  I am, however, thinking that it will come out soon if it does at all, as it was published as an Ebook  four years ago.  All in all, I would rate this book quite highly, and hope to find a sequel soon.

Monday, May 4, 2015

Wait, what is a Propane-a-phone?

by Parker Lehman
PHS Press staff member

Boiled in Lead

Boiled in Lead is a Minneapolis based band of an impossible to define genre. They kicked off on Saint Patrick’s Day 1983 and 15 years later released a compilation titled “Alloy”.

The Band is made up of Marc Anderson (drums and percussion), Dean Magraw (guitar) Todd Menton (vocals, guitar, mandolin, bodhran, whistle) Drew Miller (bass guitar, dulcimer) David Stenshoel (fiddle.)

Alloy kicks off with “Arpad's Guz,” a fast paced song that mixes a strange cymbal sound with an unidentifiable string instrument. The next track “House-Husband’s Lament” is rockabilly at its finest.

They go on combining the surreal, (“The Microorganism”) the silly, (“Rasputin”) and the serious (“The Dreadnaught”). Boiled in Lead pulls from a collection of 16 instruments including Electric guitar, Hurdy-gurdy, Propane-o-phone, and Zurna to craft a wonderful sound where you never know what will come next. The bass player Drew defines what exactly a Propane-a-phone is: “The propane-o-phone is some long metal pipes that, when you heat the column of air inside with a propane torch, it produces that special sound that only a propane-o-phone can.” They are used on “The Microorganism.”

After 32 years Boiled in Lead is still going strong. Check them out at http://www.boiledinlead.com/ or search YouTube for some of their music.


Friday, May 1, 2015

Soren Le’go’ Page

by Parker Lehman
PHS Press staff member
Soren LePage of Woodbury


Lego stop motion is a technique has been around for years and is a favored medium for PHS’s very own Soren LePage, 15 years old from Woodbury MN.

The popularity of this medium reached an all time high after The Lego Movie grossed $468,000,000 making it the 13th highest grossing animation of all time. They used a mix of computer generated and stop motion Lego animation.

 In Lego stop motion a scene is set up then the Lego figures are moved in incredibly small increments taking a picture each time. About 4 years ago as LePage was watching Forrestfire101, a well known Lego animator, and decided to try his hand at animation. He set up his Legos and prepared to take thousands of photos. When asked why he enjoyed it he responded, “Because I play God.”

POLL: The better of the two


Malachi Johnson
PHS Press staff member


The people of Planet Homeschool have taken their votes of which one is better.

Indiana Jones



or



Star Wars. 


Indiana Jones got 6 votes

Star Wars got 17.

Star Wars is the clear victor with a whopping 17 points.

Thursday, April 30, 2015

VIDEO: Cooking with Sam & Frodo



Sam: Ethan Lehman
Frodo: Joe Schatz
Golom/Smeagol: Solomon Midwinter
Narrator: Willow Skidmore
Filmed by: Aurora J. Pass
Ad guy: Riley Adesheim Marshal
Inspired by the The Lord of the Rings as Literature taught by Elise Duval Werger

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

Worm Warfare is Winning



by Bridger Berg
PHS Press staff member
 

Hey! This a review of a group of games, a group of STRANGE and very fun games, known as the “Worms Games.” The versions of the games include Worms Reloaded, Worms Clan Wars, and Worms Revolution.

The story of these games, if you could call it that, is of a group of worms that for some reason have extremely advanced technology and weapons, and wage warfare on other equally advanced worms. 9/10 Rating for creativity!

Anyway, these worms fight in many different landscapes and scenarios, such as forts, where the worms have to destroy each other’s fortress to win, deathmatch, where the goal is to eliminate all the enemy worms, and a lot of other variations of those two types.

The game is multiplayer, turn based, and viewed from the side. The first player does their turn, one worm from their team of four worms being selected to fight that turn, then using special items they either start out with or collect, such as the Holy Hand Grenade, the Explosive Sheep, and the Water gun to try to eliminate their opponents before their time for their turn runs out. (As you may have guessed by now, this game doesn’t really take itself very seriously.)

 After that, the next player goes, doing the same thing. This continues until the map is thoroughly destroyed and the last team with at least one worm still alive on their team wins.

Example turn: It’s GeneralSlimy122’s turn first. His “Scout” class worm, Tiny, is selected for him to play that turn. He crawls Tiny over to WormyOverlord101’s “Heavy” class worm, Bob. Selecting Tiny’s Baseball bat weapon, he hits Bob, who was near the edge of the map, off the side and into the water below, eliminating him.

 It’s now WormyOverlord101’s turn. His “Soldier” class worm, Harry, is standing next to his “Scientist” class worm, Moe, who is selected that turn, so his scientist heals both Harry and himself with the scientist unique skill.

Then selecting a jetpack for Moe and flying him over close to Tiny, WormyOverlord selects the Explosive Sheep. Clicking the mouse once activates the Sheep, which begins running over to Tiny. A second click blows up the Sheep, heavily damaging Tiny.

Play goes back to GeneralSlimy122, and another of his worms is selected to fight that turn.

There can be up to four players in a map, which would total sixteen worms! Talk about chaos! There is also a single player option, so that those that are either offline or are just getting started and need to learn a bit can still play.

 Worms are also customizable, so you can give them different voices, hats, glasses, names, and so on. If you have the game through the massive game site, Steam, you can also download custom maps and other content from the Steam workshop, a place for people to share their creations.

I would recommend this for: Someone looking for a light and silly but still very fun game, since these games are very different from any others. They are also perfect for a bored Minecraft player or whatever. (No offense to Minecraft.) So if you think it sounds right for you, go and try one of the many editions of these games!

VIDEO: Ellen Crain discusses ins and outs of Planet Homeschool


Ellen Crain sat down the PHS Press reporters Soren LePage and Tyler Skidmore to talk about upcoming classes being offered, why she homeschools and what sets Planet Homeschool apart.

Gerald Benford: Minnesota Swordplay


 by Tyler Skidmore
PHS Press staff member

Gerald Benford, a man of 50, teaches fencing at a homeschool co-op named Planet Homeschool. He has been Fencing since the 1980’s, in highschool and then college.
Benford’s Grandmother sponsored Maria, who was trained in Cuba to Fence. Maria is known as "The Mad Cuban." She and Benford started dating and Maria taught him how to Fence. They got married in the 1990’s.
“ Fencing is one of those few sports where you actually compete one on one. You are testing your skills against another opponent in mock battle.  Its more of an art than a self defensive sport. I like it because you develop long lasting relationships [ / ] friendships by the sword, said Benford.
 He encouraged Maria to start a Fencing business, and they eventually started Minnesota Swordplay in 2000. Minnesota Swordplay has locations all over Minnesota and Wisconsin.
They plan on opening a U.S.F.A ( U.S. Fencing Association ) club in Minnetonka. The website is minnesotaswordplay.com.
They were referred to teach at Planet Homeschool as a Fencing instructor.
Benford’s favorite book is the Bible, and his favorite pastime is ministry. Benford majored in business in college.
They have been in Fencing matches on TV and overseas, and plan on traveling all over Europe this summer for fun.

Monday, April 27, 2015

Friday, April 24, 2015

Thursday, April 23, 2015

Friday, April 10, 2015

The Hobbies of Tyler Skidmore

by Solomon Midwinter
PHS press staff member


Tyler Skidmore
Tyler Skidmore, age 15, of St. Paul has a few hobbies, and is a student at PHS.  When asked what they were, he said “ I like to draw detailed robots, abstract shapes, and patterns, and I like to build intricate lego models.”  

He enjoys both hobbies about the same.  He said, “I enjoy expressing myself through each drawing and model, combining feelings that I am having at that moment with different elements of the model or drawing.”  He has both drawn and made Lego creations for about twelve years.

According to Skidmore, he builds with Legos because he is bored, and when asked when, he replied, “I do both pretty much every day.”  He builds the massive Lego constructs in his room.  He will draw just about anywhere there is pen and paper. And as for how, in Skidmore's own words, he uses the Legos “by putting bricks together.” 

When asked what his favorite model is, he said “My favorite model is a turret crab which I keep on a shelf to look at (every once in awhile adding to it).”   He may have some drawings in an upcoming issue of the PHS Press.
 A robot that Tyler Skidmore drew. 

Solomon: a Writer

by Tyler Skidmore
PHS Press staff member


 
Solomon Midwinter
Solomon Midwinter, 13, enjoys reading and writing fantasy in his free-time. Fantasy is a genre of writing that is about supernatural creatures.
I like fantasy because it is very creative, and fun to read. It allows us to imagine how the world could be different, and then share our favorites with others,” said Midwinter.
Solomon was introduced to fantasy by reading books, and eventually decided to write his own fantasy. He has been writing fantasy since he was 11, when he wrote part of a novel for NaNoWriMo.
NaNoWriMo, National Novel Writing Month, happens every November for youth and adults. The goal is to write a novel in 30 days.
Midwinter does not share his stories very frequently, unless it is with a family member for some feedback. Usually his stories are around 10-20 pages in length.
Midwinter is inspired by Brandon Mull, Rick Riordan, George R.R. Martin, and J.R.R. Tolkien.
Solomon has not gotten published yet, but he hopes to someday.

Monday, April 6, 2015

Home school kids learning to use computer modeling

by Solomon Midwinter
PHS Press staff member
Kim Chase-Kozak
Kim Chase-Kozak is a teacher at PHS, and has a class on a modeling program called Blender. 

Blender is a free modeling program, which can be used for many purposes, and can create animations as well as models and images.  As Chase-Kozak said, “Blender is computer software used to create 3d models or drawings.  It can also be used to create animations or games.  It can also work with other programming engines.”

The process that is used to create a model is more or less as follows.  First, you draw or download a picture of what you want to model.  Then you use extrude commands to model over the picture.  Then you can use textures and materials to make it the right color and texture. 

When asked what the most interesting thing anyone in her class has done yet, she replied that one of the students has sent her an animated character over email, which was especially neat because they have not yet covered animations. 

A model done by Chase-Kozak
What they have most recently done in class was talk about different kinds of light.  Before that, they were mostly working on the basics, such as the extrude command, getting the modeling pictures into files, and the blade tool.  Camera placement, texture and animation are more advanced skills covered in the class. 

Chase-Kozak has had some previous experience with teaching.  In college, she was a undergraduate TA, and has a degree in math and computer science from the U of M.

She has been leading and teaching kid related things since her kids were school age.  She has also learned quite a bit teaching this class.   This is her first time teaching a class at PHS, and she would be glad of an opportunity to teach at PHS again.

When asked what her favorite thing about teaching is, she said, “I love it when students start running with their new skills and start creating and trying things I haven't done.” 

Friday, March 20, 2015

COLUMN: Team Yarn, Hats for cancer patients!


by Aurora J. Pass
PHS Press staff Member

Team Yarn – Head Huggers helps cancer patients. It’s an organization that makes hats, scarves, shawls, blanket, and so on for cancer patients, and you can help us by donating in the Team Yarn drop box at PHS. Team Yarn’s website is: http://teamyarn.blogspot.com/, and the Facebook page is: Team Yarn - Head Huggers.
Team Yarn was founded by Amy Pass, my mom, because her mom, my grandma Cheryl Slater, died of cancer. We wanted to do something to help.
 “Starting Team Yarn gave me something productive to do when I was grieving after my mom died from cancer,” said Amy. We started Team Yarn because the hospital that my Grandma was at gave her hats, and we wanted to help.
The co founder of Team Yarn is Tesha M. Christensen Pettit, teacher of the Newspaper Writing Class at PHS. Team Yarn just celebrated its second birthday at the January 2015 meeting. Meetings are every third Sunday of every month at Silverwood Park in New Brighton  from 1:00 to 3:00 PM.
 The meetings are a time for people to get together, knit, crochet, and drop off finished projects to donate to hospitals. Stop by if you want. We always love new members of our group.
We try to donate to hospitals once a month. Every time they are always happy to get new items to give away. It makes everyone happy to know people care so much.
There is a Team Yarn drop box at the table when you walk in the door at Planet Homeschool. So, whoever wants to donate can. If you do donate please pin your name to the hat so whoever gets that item can know who made it. I will be taking your items home at the end of the day.  You don’t have to know how to knit or crochet. You can donate items you made or yarn.

Thursday, March 19, 2015

A book review on 'Ready Player One' by Ernest Cline

by Solomon Midwinter
PHS Press staff member

Ready Player One is a truly great book, if you don't mind something that can be depressing at points.  It takes place in a dystopian, post apocalyptic world, where there was an Eco disaster that greatly damaged human civilization.  All the oil and coal has more or less run out. 

    The protagonist is a boy called Wade Watts, and his story up until the point where the book starts is not very happy.  He never knew his father, and his mother died when he was pretty young, so his aunt took him in, not out of any sense of kindness or family duty, but simply because she could use him to get extra food vouchers.  She doesn't even feed him or anything.  So, up until the point where the story starts, Wade has been just barely getting by. 
    A lot of the story, however, doesn't take place in the real world at all.  Instead, more than half of the book takes place inside a virtual reality called the OASIS, the biggest, most spectacular, hugely unbelievable video game ever created. 
    And it's not just Wade.  Most of humanity spends most of their time inside the OASIS.  It is, to them, simply a better place than the real world.  While this is pretty sad, it also reflects just how broken the world is at the time when the book takes place.
    But there wouldn't be much of a story if it weren't for James Halliday, the creator and owner of the OASIS, who died and left one most interesting will behind. 
    He turned his last will and testament into the biggest video game contest ever. He did this by hiding an Easter egg inside the OASIS, and explaining simply in his will that his entire estate would go to the first person to find it. 
    And it turns out that there is an elaborately hidden Easter egg in both the hardcover and paperback (and hopefully kindle) editions of the book, the first clue in a series of video game tests that is somewhat like that in the book.  The prize was a 1981 DeLorean.  I know Craig Queen won but even so, I'm going to do it, just to see if I could have won.
    Ready player one is filled with many great things.  There are great moments, some hilarious, some heartbreaking, and some that are just awesome. 
    So, it has been five years since Halliday's death, and the scene is set.  This book can be  hilarious, and is filled with strong characters, all set against an epic backdrop.  This is a book that I highly recommend. 

Friday, March 13, 2015

LARPing the day away


by Bridger Berg
PHS Press staff member

Aurora J. Pass as a wood elf
Aurora Pass, 12, a PHS student living in Minneapolis, enjoys Live Action Role Play (LARP) with friends after PHS classes.

As Pass said, LARPing is a fun way of acting out a certain character in a storyline, and imagining that the things they do are real.

Asked why she likes to do this, she answered: “It’s really fun and [is also] fun to base games on books, mostly fantasy and some Sci fi.” However, according to Pass, when they base something on literature, they do not just act out the book, it’s more like they make their own story out of the premise of the original.

Asked what she likes to do most in the games she said: “Well, I’m best at dying actually.”

Lego role playing because it is fun



by Aurora J. Pass
PHS Press staff member


Bridger Berg age 12, PHS Press staff member, lives in St. Paul, and his hobby is making up Lego games, characters, and fortresses for Lego role playing.
He plays with friends at his home, in St. Paul, on earth, on the Orion arm, in the Milky Way galaxy. Berg does this because he says it’s fun.
Now you might be thinking Live Action Role Playing or Role Playing table games, but this is different. It’s with Legos. All you need is some imagination and Legos.

Thursday, March 12, 2015

Meet PHS Guitar Instructor Joe Filipovich

Get to know Planet Homeschool guitar instructor Joe Filipovich (jfmusiclessons.com). Video and interview by Parker Lehman and Malachi Johnson.







Joe is a guitar teacher who offers lessons at PHS. He has almost thirty years of guitar experience and has been teaching for five years. You can contact him at http://www.jfmusiclessons.com or through the PHS website.


What's your favorite book series?

Cast your vote in our poll! Find the poll in our right sidebar.

What do you think the results will be?

Wednesday, March 11, 2015

They made screaming mandrakes in Harry Potter class


At PHS, there are many classes, of all types.  There are the ones that you might find in a normal school, like classes on math and history, and then there are the more interesting ones, the ones that are hard to find elsewhere.  These include things such as Lord of the Rings as literature, or the Harry Potter crafts and gizmos class. 

Here are a few video interviews with some members of the Harry Potter class, and its instructor, Michelle Lehman.


Interviewer: Solomon Midwinter
Filmed and edited by Aurora J. Pass

Monday, March 9, 2015

VIDEO: Good Morning Middle Earth #3 - News from Isengard


News Reporter: Willow Skidmore
King Theodin: Ethan Lehman
Script written by: Aurora Pass
Videographer: Solomon Midwinter
Inspired by the The Lord of the Rings as Literature taught by Elise Duval Werger
at Planet Homeschool

Friday, March 6, 2015

Amity Neubauer: the next Angelina Jolie


by Malachi Johnson
PHS Press staff member


Amity Neubauer at the age of 11 lives in Apple Valley, MN. 

Neubauer’s favorite thing to do is act.  She is a seasoned actress with many productions in her portfolio such as ‘Sleeping Beauty’.  She loves spending time acting out stories on the stage.  Neubauer divulged that watching people on T.V. got her into acting.  She also admitted that she thought playing as different people would be “cool and fun”… Does she still feel this way? She wouldn’t say…

When asked who she likes to act as most she answered with shifty eyes “PEOPLE”. But when asked how she likes to act she responded “AS HUMANS “.  Neubauer is working on her next production as a mere mortal.  You will not want to forget the soon to be famous name of Amity Neubauer...                                                                     

WATCH OUT HOLLYWOOD.          

Thursday, February 19, 2015

VIDEO POLL: Why do you come to PHS?

PHS Press reporters Amity Neubauer, Bridger Berg and Malachi Johnson question fellow Planet Homeschool students about why they come to PHS each Friday.

Thursday, February 12, 2015

Don’t Get Breakdanced!


by Bridger Berg
PHS Press staff member

Interested? Was it the headline? Well, today the review is of a game that is a spinoff. A spinoff, I think, that is better than the original.

Brawlhalla is a game in closed beta released by Blue Mammoth games, and is an authorized spinoff of the Super Smash Bros game. There are many differences between the two, the foremost being that Brawlhalla is played on a PC, which makes a difference in how the game is played (Keyboard rather than Controller), and might be a turnoff for some people, but don’t give it up! And without further yakking, let yourself be welcomed to…BRAWLHALLA!

The game is a Player VS Player focused game viewed from the side, with up to four players controlling a different character each and attempting to defeat the other players by knocking them off the side, bottom, or even top of the arena they fight in. How? Different clicks and key combos activate different attack skills, such as light attack, heavy attack, and breakdance attack.

Also, items such as the bouncy bomb, spiked ball, and land mine drop from the sky, which players can throw at each other to cause general mayhem. Each time players are hit, they take damage, the more damage has been dealt to a player, the more knockback they take, making it easier for opponents to knock them off the edge of the arena.

The characters: There are quite a few, with new ones always coming, but they include Vraxx the alien warlord, Scarlet the steampunk airship captain, and Gnash the caveman. They all have different combos of damage, speed, attack speed, armor, and different weapon combos.

Weapons?! Well, occasionally, an item drops from the sky, and when players pick it up, they gain one of their two weapons. Scarlet, for instance, has a Hammer and a Lance. These weapons are more powerful than basic hand attacks, and all characters have different weapon sets and types of weapon attacks.

Overall, Brawlhalla is a fast paced, fun, and cool game, which I would recommend to, really, anyone! …Just don’t get breakdanced. Seriously, its nasty. (Activate with heavy attack+down key)

VIDEO: Good Morning Middle Earth #2



• News Reporter: Ethan Lehman
• Mr. Goblin: Nadia Sullivan-Nightengale
• Filmed by: Aurora Pass
• Script by: Willow Skidmore
• Inspired by the The Lord of the Rings as Literature taught by Elise Duval Werger at Planet Homeschool in Minneapolis

Friday, February 6, 2015

VIDEO: Good Morning Middle Earth #1



News Reporter: Emily Weinlick
Mr. Butterburr: Riley Adesheim Marshal
Script written by: Aurora Pass
Videographer: Ethan Lehman
Inspired by the The Lord of the Rings as Literature taught by Elise Duval Werger

Thursday, January 29, 2015

PHOTOS: Pajama Day 2015

Photos by Malachi Johnson
PHS Press Staff


Photos from Pajama Day on Friday, Jan. 23, 2015 at Planet Homeschool.









Friday, January 23, 2015

All smile now



The spring 2015 staff of the PHS Press includes (back row, left to right): Parker Lehman, Soren LePage, Solomon Midwinter and Tyler Skidmore. Front row: Aurora Pass, Amity Neubauer, Bridger Berg and Malachi Johnson. (Photo by Tesha M. Christensen Pettit)

Meet PHS Press staff: Amity Neubauer


Amity Neubauer (by Soren LePage)
by Aurora J. Pass

PHS Press staff member

Amity Neubauer is 11 years old and lives in Apple Valley. She likes to listen to the song Skinny Love by Birdy. Her favorite books are The Naturals and Percy Jackson. Amity likes to read Lego Magazine, and she likes to go rock climbing. She likes it that there are nice people at PHS, and she joined The Newspaper Writing Class because she thought it would be fun. Amity also likes to write short stories.

Meet PHS Press staff: Tyler Skidmore

by Parker Lehman
PHS Press Staff
Tyler Skidmore (Photo by Soren LePage)


Tyler Skidmore
Age:15
Home town: Spokane, Washington
Favorite book: “I don’t like books.”
Song of the week: This is The Time-Nothing More
Favorite magazine: GQ
Favorite activity: Drawing stuff
What do you like most about PHS: All the peeps.
Why Did You Join PHS Press Staff: Because I liked it better then the other classes.
What do you like to write: Books.

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Meet PHS Press staff: Soren LePage

by Bridger Berg
PHS Press staff member


Soren LePage
Age: 15
City/Town: Woodbury
Song of the week: Everything but pop
Favorite Book: Yes.
Favorite Magazine:Yes.
Favorite Thing To Do: Live
What Do You Like Most About PHS: Yes.
Why Did You Join PHS Press Staff: “I don't like to read.”
Favorite Thing To Write: Storyboards
PS: Yes=N/A  

Friday, January 16, 2015

Meet PHS Press staff: Solomon Midwinter

Solomon Midwinter (Photo by Soren LePage)
by Malachi Johnson
PHS Press staff member


Solomon Blue Midwinter
Age/Grade: 13/ 7th grade
City/Town:  West Saint Paul
Song of the week: EYE OF THE TIGER
Favorite Book: Ready Player One
Favorite Magazine: Make Magazine
Favorite Thing To Do: Gaming Writing
What Do You Like Most About PHS: All
Why Did You Join PHS Press Staff: Sounded Fun
Favorite Thing To Write: Fantasy

Meet PHS Press staff: Malachi Johnson

Malachi Johnson (Photo by Soren LePage)
by Solomon Midwinter
PHS Staff member


Malachi Johnson
Age: 13, 7th grade
City/Town: Plymouth
Favorite Book: Beyonders
Favorite Magazine: Lego magazine
Favorite Thing To Do: free running
What Do You Like Most About PHS: taking pictures
Why Did You Join PHS Press Staff: his mother though he would like it.
Favorite Thing To Write: not much