Health & Fitness
Classmen Tier..... By Emma Anderson
A "kind-of narrative written in free verse." Well, that's how TALK author, Emma Anderson describes high school from her two weeks in vantage point. the writing is fun, refreshing and timely. Enjoy
Its been a few weeks since the Theater & Arts Leadership Kouncil (TALK) has posted something new on this blog, but as the submission this week will surely remind you, we're in back to school season. And many TALK teens have been rudely awakened from the summer with another school year and a whole bunch of extracurricular demands.
Just a quick note.. please come check out TALK at this year's Fall Fest in downtown Homewood. As you may know, TALK aims to hold our own All-Teen, Multi-Media Arts Fest next year and this is an introduction to that concept- only smaller. We'll have talented teen visual artists showing and selling their work, musicians, drama and literary folks as well as several features aimed at getting you involved. Come by the information tent to learn more and tell your teen to check it out too. They can even become an official TALK Kontributor and join the nearly 20 new Kontributors that were oriented earlier this week and who will be helping us at this Fall Fest event.
At any rate, I hope you enjoy the following refreshing and timely piece of teen literature about the high school experience, from one of TALK's talented teens.
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Classmen Tier.... By Emma Anderson
Everyone who's ever gone to high school
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Has told me
It's nothing like the movies.
If you get a 5 hour Saturday School,
Odds are,
You won't be left alone in a library,
And they'll be more
than five people.
Vampires
Probably won't be sitting next to you
During biology.
Lunchtime
Is called lunchtime.
Not
Musicaltheatredancenumbertime.
Oh, and there's homework...
LOTS.
OF.
HOMEWORK.
So, why do those movies
Exist in the first place?
Why would they create
Such well known stereotypes
And plot points that we grew up with,
Just to leave us at the front door of our high school
To learn the truth the hard way?
What are high school students
Really like?
Seniors
They don't even need to be in high school anymore.
They've written their portfolios, applied to colleges,
They're just waiting for acceptance letters;
Might as well fill the time with more school!
Some don't know what they're doing,
So the slower the school year goes,
The better.
There's excitement and fear as college gets closer,
But at least senior year was easy and underwhelming
Not nearly as hard as when the seniors were....
Juniors
The year where homework, tests, and exams
Reach an all time high.
SATs, ACTs, PSAEs
Just as you finish studying for one exam,
You have to duck your heads
Back into your study guides to prepare for
The next one.
Finally granted the name of
Upper Classmen,
Finishing up
Certain required classes,
Signing up for college visits
Just to be safe.
Senior year seems so far away
For the juniors,
When really,
It's just around the corner.
When you're a junior,
You can't believe that just a year ago you were one of the...
Sophomores
Junior year is defiantly harder,
And the excitement and adjustment
From last year is gone.
School is simply school again,
Only with a greater feeling
Of confidence.
A year of high school
Has grown on you.
And you could consider yourself,
An Upper Classmen as well.
Homework gets heavier,
And will get heavier from there.
Driver's Ed begins,
But anything is better
Than being a....
Freshmen
The one thing high school stereotypes
May of gotten right.
Freshmen
Sounds a lot like
Fresh meat
Doesn't it?
Freshmen
The youngest in the high school,
Fresh out of the homeyness
Of 8th grade year,
Where they could walk
Through the junior high halls
Like they owned the place.
Inexperienced and lost,
Trying to act older than they are
To blend in.
But it will always be like that
Won't it?
Freshmen
can't wait to be
Sophomores, Sophomores
Can't wait to be
Juniors, Juniors
Can't wait to be
Seniors
And seniors can't wait to be
Adults.
But
I think for now,
I'll enjoy what I am.
A Freshman.
Schedule in hand,
Loaded backpack,
Curious expressions,
And all.
A Freshman,
A high schooler.
Happy Homecoming Week 2012/2013!
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