The Project

I work with an amazing group of students, each who have so much to share and say. Some understand this concept and are more willing to share and let their voice be heard but others are more timid and muffle/ mute their words. So when thinking how can I get these wonderful young adults to let themselves be heard and express; “What’s important to them” I thought… BOOM!!! A blog.

The beauty of this “project” is that they are not tied or confine to a certain topic, which would normally obstruct their creative juices from flowing, but they can write about what is important to them. This provides an incredible forum so that these topics of interest can be disclosed through the eyes of young people who have a special outlook on life.

My class consists of a wide variety of characters; from a large intimidating looking guy who can be better described as a gentle giant; to my silent assassin, dubbed this title by his peers, because he does not talk but he will thrash them in any trivia style games and then giggle about it. From my gentlemen from the mean streets of Detroit: who will stay and open the door for his peers as they enter D Wing after lunch; to my class’ first lady: who has the look of a superstar but the heart of an angel. Or my novice athlete:  who has never played sports before but has found the beauty of lacrosse and uses it to vent his frustrations and anger. Or my self-proclaimed ladies man who is always willing to provide a hug whenever it is needed. …And then there is my future News Caster/Meteorologist, he is always on top of the time, weather and sports reports to the “T”.

Each one of these young adults have lived through experiences that have made them who they are today. Some have had it tougher than others and some have a fascinating outlook on things that you and I may see as trivial and ordinary. In our stereo-typical society we send our young people to school to learn, be taught and socialize all while making sure certain TEKS are being utilized. But as an educator, and a once troubled teen, I love the beauty of education and how it works in favor of the “adult” leading the classroom, because while we are educating the “masses”, we are secretly learning from our students.

This is their story!