The student news site of Carlmont High School in Belmont, California.

Scot Scoop News
The student news site of Carlmont High School in Belmont, California.

Scot Scoop News
The student news site of Carlmont High School in Belmont, California.

Scot Scoop News
Ava Rafii

Ava Rafii, Staff Writer

Ava Rafii (class of 2027) is a sophomore at Carlmont High School and a first-year writer with Scot Scoop. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, running, and playing the violin for the school orchestra and the Peninsula Youth Orchestra (PYO). Ava is looking forward to expanding her knowledge and skills in Media Arts this year.

All content by Ava Rafii
A large Mario figure is displayed near the entrance of the San Francisco Nintendo store. Although this location is thousands of miles from other Nintendo stores or parks, the sites share similar outward appearances. “Usually, when it comes to Nintendo-themed locations like parks or airports in Japan, they are all pretty creative and fun to look at,” said sophomore Katelyn Yee, the vice president of the Carlmont Pokémon Club.

Nintendo store presses ‘Start’ in San Francisco

Ava Rafii, Staff Writer • May 29, 2025

Famous gaming franchise Nintendo continues to expand its retail presence with the opening of a new store in San Francisco, offering fans and newcomers exclusive merchandise, interactive gaming screens,...

Students make crepes during the celebrational party to recognize their hard work throughout the school year and on the contest. “I was very satisfied with how the students did, even with challenging topics like liberation and environments,” said Laurence Arfi-Tocatlian, a Carlmont French teacher.

[Photo] Students wrap up French classes with cultural style

Jessica Sun, Staff Writer • May 25, 2025

Students make crepes during the celebrational party to recognize their hard work throughout the school year and on the contest. “I was very satisfied with how the students did, even with challenging...

A pedestrian stops to look inside Amorino’s San Francisco location. Aside from gelato, Amorino sells its signature macarons that are often placed on top of the gelato. “I like how the presentation uses a variety of sweets like macarons and chocolate nuts to create an appetizing dessert,” said Jolie Zheng, a junior at Carlmont and an occasional gelato eater.

Amorino blends Italian tradition with global attraction

Ava Rafii, Staff Writer • May 6, 2025

The smell of sweetness drifts through the city. Lines gather outside a shop. Phones snap pictures. Since its beginning as a small store in the heart of Paris, Amorino has grown to more than 250 locations...

A Nerdle player completes the daily math puzzle. Although the classic version of Nerdle has eight spaces in the equation, there are other variants like Speed Nerdle, which is timed, and Micro Nerdle, which has five spaces. “Math is my favorite subject, but I don’t really like Nerdle because it is more logic-based, and there are so many combinations to input that it becomes difficult to solve,” said Abby Maher, a sophomore at Carlmont and an occasional player of Wordle and its variants.

Wordle variants: how different creators have put their own spin on the original game

Ava Rafii, Staff Writer • April 15, 2025

Five green, gray, and yellow letters, rearranged again and again until success. The popular word game Wordle, publicly released by creator Josh Wardle in October 2021 and eventually bought by The New York...

A person enters their credit card information into the computer. One common credit card scam involves alerting people about unauthorized purchases on their account. To "fix" this issue, scammers ask their victims to put their information in and clear any transactions. By then, it is too late.

Caught in the web: unmasking online scams

Ava Rafii, Staff Writer • March 26, 2025

It started with downloading an app. Within minutes, Kay Huber found herself writing a check for $766 to a scammer’s bank account in hopes of installing a “security service” on her newly bought computer. Her...

A shopper looks at the Lego Orchid set from the botanical collection. While these sets are bought by everyone, they are often gifted to women for occasions like Mother’s Day and Valentine’s Day, according to Lego. “In our campaign, we are trying to appeal to girls in the next few years because it is still primarily boys and male based,” said Grace White, the Lego Store manager for Hillsdale Shopping Center and Westfield Valley Fair mall.

Lego: from wooden blocks to global phenomenon

Ava Rafii, Staff Writer • March 17, 2025

For many, playing with colorful plastic bricks is a childhood memory that lasts a lifetime. Yet, decades of engineering, testing, and production have evolved Lego from its handcrafted wooden design into...

A Duolingo user earns rewards for completing a Spanish lesson. According to Duolingo’s 2024 Language Report, Spanish was the second most popular language learned globally and the most studied language in the United States. “I wanted to learn Spanish because my new babysitter spoke it,” said Michael Winters, a student at Ralston Middle School.

Duolingo speaks a new way of learning languages

Ava Rafii, Staff Writer • February 26, 2025

Duolingo’s gamified approach to learning languages has contributed to a surge in popularity among users of all ages. In 2012, Duolingo was launched globally with the goal of making language-learning...

A Monopoly player adds the “Go to Jail” expansion pack to their preexisting board game. This expansion pack includes corruption and super corruption cards which allow players to steal each other's properties, buy properties for discounts, and get free properties. “This pack seems like it would be my favorite because a game with mischief seems more fun than the classic Monopoly game,” said Sophia Lee, a sophomore at Carlmont.

Monopoly rolls past ‘Go’ with new expansion packs

Ava Rafii, Staff Writer • January 28, 2025

Monopoly levels up the board game world as it celebrates its 90th anniversary with brand new expansion packs, adding new twists and excitement to the classic game played by new and old players alike. Over...

A traveler checks the status of his flight at the San Francisco International Airport (SFO). According to InsureMyTrip, SFO has the highest flight delay percentage out of all United States airports. As of January 2024, 37.2% of all SFO flights have been delayed.

Nature’s wrath disrupts holiday travel plans

Ava Rafii, Staff Writer • December 12, 2024

From grounded planes to snow-packed roads, winter weather is causing widespread travel disruptions, leading to numerous delays and cancellations for air and road travelers alike. On Dec. 9, there were...

Target displays its holiday items and decorations weeks in advance. “One of the retailers' top priorities is getting consumers to shop early. They do this through early sales and displays,” said Patricia Huddleston, a professor in the Department of Advertising and Public Relations at the College of Communication Arts and Sciences at Michigan State University.

Retailers ring in the season of giving

Ava Rafii, Staff Writer • November 15, 2024

With Black Friday, Cyber Monday, and the holiday season right around the corner, retailers are rolling out new technological shopping assistants and strategies to attract customers and improve their shopping...

An invasive nutria resides in a patch of grass and stares into the distance. “The water that nutria inhabit, as well as their diets, pick up iron, and the iron pigmentation causes their teeth to be orange,” said Greg Yarrow, professor of Wildlife Ecology at Clemson University .

Invasive nutria pose threats to California ecosystems

Ava Rafii, Staff Writer • October 29, 2024

Over 1,000 nutria have been eradicated in California this year, yet their presence continues to increase and spread. Nutria are an invasive species in California that harm infrastructure and wildlife....

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