I'm always a little apprehensive about the newspaper article assignment. It is a tall order, creating a public newspaper from articles written by eleven year-olds. This isn't a run-of-the-mill school newspaper. No athletic scores will be reported, no op-ed pieces on the pros and cons of uniform codes, no advertisements. This newspaper is an exercise in the sharing of goodness. Students are required to interview someone they feel demonstrates our school values: wisdom, community, spirit, respect, and righteousness, then write a 500-word article about that person. Every year, I worry about someone missing the deadline and being left out. I worry about the level of writing. Adult strangers across the country will read this newspaper and judge our youngsters on their abilities. I worry about students who don't read the rubric and miss critical elements.
Then the electronic essays and images begin rolling in to my Google inbox. I become a weepy mess of tears.
I don't cry from frustration at the volume of sixth-grade-level writing I have to grade, as might be imagined. The students have taken great pains to edit their work multiple times, carefully reading every suggestion I made. I cry from the incredible spirituality that pours forth from each and every article. I get to read about the local heroes. I read about grandfathers who share their love of humanity with their grandchild. I read about famous politicians (we have some MAJOR power players in this year's paper) who have taken time out of their busy schedule to talk openly and honestly with young people. I read about soldiers, doctors, teachers, therapists, coaches, volunteers. Amid the chaos and fear-inducing nightly news runs a steady and stabilizing energetic force of role models. Around every corner, in every neighborhood is someone doing his or her best to be the change we want to see in our world. By doing so, by living the example, our young people are learning how to live. Pardon me as I grab another tissue.
Then the electronic essays and images begin rolling in to my Google inbox. I become a weepy mess of tears.
I don't cry from frustration at the volume of sixth-grade-level writing I have to grade, as might be imagined. The students have taken great pains to edit their work multiple times, carefully reading every suggestion I made. I cry from the incredible spirituality that pours forth from each and every article. I get to read about the local heroes. I read about grandfathers who share their love of humanity with their grandchild. I read about famous politicians (we have some MAJOR power players in this year's paper) who have taken time out of their busy schedule to talk openly and honestly with young people. I read about soldiers, doctors, teachers, therapists, coaches, volunteers. Amid the chaos and fear-inducing nightly news runs a steady and stabilizing energetic force of role models. Around every corner, in every neighborhood is someone doing his or her best to be the change we want to see in our world. By doing so, by living the example, our young people are learning how to live. Pardon me as I grab another tissue.