Top-Notch Tuesday - A Word From Ninth Graders

Today's Top-Notch Tuesday post is dedicated to the 9th grade English students at Logan High School. They are smart. They are good. They are hilarious. They have important things to say.

They've been bravely trudging their way through The Odyssey, and I wanted them to find ways to connect Odysseus' journey to their own lives. Otherwise, what's the point.

I gave them a list of "autobiography" questions to answer about their own lives. After they'd written for while, I had them put a star next to things they had written that could represent a journey in their own lives. We made a list on the board of possible "journeys" a 9th grader may have already been on.

Some of these kids have already been through a lot. Some of them haven't. And they've all been thrown together in one classroom and asked to make sense of a story that's hundreds of years old.

I've been reading through the thoughts they shared with me on their autobiography worksheets. Their answers are top-notch. Here are some that inspired me, made me laugh, or made me think.

1. Describe the place where you grew up.

"Las Vegas was an old dry desert, but we had a pool."

"It had a big backyard and a barn. And there was a swing set. We had a dog named Missy and a cat named Tomas."

"It was a small one room apartment in Fullerton, California. The place was very ghetto. There was police at that place 24/7. Also a lot of gangs and drug dealers. It wasn't the best place but we moved after I turned eight."

"I've lived in seven houses. In Maryland, I lived in a moldy, old, broken house. Then we moved to two townhouses and it was so humid."

2. What is the most difficult situation you have ever faced?

"To either move in with my dad or move to Layton. After my mom died I lost trust in my dad, so he gave me two options."

"One of the most difficult situations I have ever faced was to not sleep for a whole 24 hours. I didn't fall asleep because my sister said she would give me ten dollars if I did it."

"Women. I get too attached too easily, so when a bond is broken, it's tough."

"Choosing between right and wrong."

"Trying to make a decision when there wasn't really a wrong or right."

"When my parents divorced, I thought my world would end."

3. Tell me about a turning point in your life.

"Moving from junior high to high school. I didn't know high school would be as hard as it is. So many people are rude and disrespectful. But some people are nice."

"We moved to a new house. My mom and stepdad don't fight as much. I came to Logan to get away from some problems. I don't get in fights as much."

"When I decided to be happy."

"When I moved to America and decided to stay here. I had to start a new life, make new friends, and leave family."

"This summer was a turning point in my life because I grew up a little I guess you could say and finally understand where my parents come from when they talk to me."

"When I made the decision to do what I thought was right instead of doing what others thought was right."

"A big turning point in my life was when I noticed that my little cousin wanted to be like me cause I was like his role model and I have chosen to be a good example."

4. Who is an influential person in your life?

"A very influential person in my life is Beethoven because his music taught me the glory of music."

"My mom supports me in every good thing I do and helps me a lot in school."

"I love my mom very much, although she does severely annoy me sometimes."

"My parents. Mainly because they are the most selfless people and came here all the way from Mexico just to give my siblings and I a better life and future. And it paid off."

"It is my Uncle Juan, he influenced me to keep good grades and go to college with a scholarship like he did."

"In my life the most influential person is myself because I feel that everybody should choose for themselves."

"Taylor Swift! because I feel like her songs are so personal and describe my life. Like she gets me and expresses what I'm feeling in her music."

After reading through these, I wanted to call all of these kids' parents and say, "You probably think your teenager doesn't listen to you, or doesn't care about you, but they do. You shape their whole world." 

We read a poem in class today, and I wasn't sure how the students were going to react to that activity. We read it line by line as a class and then I had them listen to the poet read the poem herself on a recording. I was very surprised to find that as soon as Mary Oliver's voice filled the classroom, all 36 9th graders were silent and attentive.

The Journey - Mary Oliver

One day you finally knew

what you had to do, and began,

though the voices around you

kept shouting

their bad advice–

though the whole house

began to tremble

and you felt the old tug

at your ankles.

“Mend my life!”

each voice cried.

But you didn’t stop.

you knew what you had to do

though the wind pried

with its stiff fingers

at  the very foundations,

though their melancholy

was terrible.

It was already late enough,

and a wild night,

and the road full of fallen

branches and stones.

But little by little,

as you left their voices behind,

the stars began to burn

through the sheets of clouds,

and there was a new voice

which you slowly

recognized as your own,

that kept you company

as you strode deeper and deeper

into the world,

determined to do

the only thing you could do–

determined to save

the only life you could save.

Ninth graders are smart. They have things to say. They are top-notch.