Sophomores Honestly Speak Out Life’s Truths
Lilly Molini
A&E Editor
Last week, English teacher Blake Tobey’s sophomores were asked to put a new twist on their weekly blogs.
The students’ task was to complete a formal writing piece on their blogs that they create weekly. This assignment was different because students were given the option to talk about whatever they wanted and to make the project their own.
“The only requirement I gave the students was to write in a Creative Nonfiction style and structure,” Tobey said. “Many students really took advantage of the opportunity to explore the genre and produced very professional pieces.”
Although many students groan at the sound of “project” there were many students that were excited to roll with this assignment.
“I have to do a lot of things were I perform in front of others and I wanted to make doing that more comfortable for me,” sophomore Taylor Nielsen said. “That’s why I was excited to do this assignment.”
Many of the students took this project and ran with it as they let their true colors show through their works.
“I enjoyed this assignment, because you could be you and be open,” sophomore Tamara Tyshkun said.
Tyshkun used this assignment to put her feelings she's had for years on paper and to finally get them off her chest. Tyshkun’s older sister passed away in 2006, and that is the topic she chose to write about.
“I chose to talk about her because mostly everyone has gone through someone dying at some point in their lifetime,” Tyshkun said. “It was a very big part of my life, and I was finally ready to talk about it.”
Many other students chose to write about their families for this assignment to show what their relatives really mean to them.
“My family is a really big part of my life, and I wanted to write about how much they help me,” sophomore Zac Verkamp said.
Tyshkun is one of the many examples of students who has the confidence to share their story with their peers in hopes they can relate.
“I wanted everyone to hear my story because everyone has their own,” Tyshkun said. “Most people cover it up, like I do, but it’s best to reveal it, get over it and move on.”
A common truth is commonly disguised as an event in someone’s life that’s overlooked. Something as little as Tobey’s English class assignment can make something so seemingly small a huge impact on readers across the board.
