(Vol. 1, No. 1 - Fall 1996)

A Day in the Life of a Middle School Student . . .

We asked three Long Beach middle school students to keep school diaries for one day in May. Here's a slice of middle school life from:

Ryan Johnson at Hoover Middle School
Natalie Garcia at Franklin Middle School
Allegra Ban at Stephens Middle School

THE MIDDLE SCHOOL DIARY OF RYAN JOHNSON

Dear Diary,

My school day starts about 6:15. After I'm completely dressed in my uniform, I eat a fast breakfast of cereal, toast, juice and fruit and wash my dishes. Right before I leave my house, I gather all my supplies and feed my fish. My dad and I leave the house at the same time, so he gives me a ride to the bus stop. I arrive at school at about 8:30. As a student council member and president of the 8th grade, I have to be a hall monitor before schoo.. I do this until the bell rings.

Science class
Today we continued our study of physics in motion. Mr. Shinn expected us to learn about how speed, motion, and relativity tie into physics.We observed how a bowling ball might change speed as it rolls and what might stop it. As Mr. Shinn rolled the bowling ball, my classmates watched what would happen.

Then we reviewed the homework question: "What makes a rolling bowling ball hit a wall harder than a rolling marble?" When he asked questions about the homework, some of us tried to answer them.

Two minutes before the bell was supposed to ring Mr. Shinn gave us time to put our things in our backpacks. I didn't totally get the big picture of relativity. I'll ask about it tomorrow.

Algebra class
As Mrs. Weingartner got ready for class, the students wrote the agenda off the board into their binder reminders and answered the warm-up math problem. Then she passed out the kind of answer sheets we will have to fill out for the Golden State exam. She guided us step-by-step so we could learn to fill them out correctly.

After we finished and passed the test sheets in to her, she began reviewing with us for the Golden State exam, graphing inequalities, etc. She tried to review us on all we learned over the school year. Her lesson carried on into the passing period. When she was done we were excused.

Spanish class
Mrs. Covarrubias turned on the overhead projector which had the daily "diario" on it (a warm-up of Spanish review questions). Some students were asking their neighbors about problems they didn't understand. Some asked the teacher. After about five minutes, Mrs. Covarrubias reviewed the diario with the class. Next she instructed us to clear our desks, and if needed, to sharpen our pencils. Today we had a Spanish quiz. After the quiz, Mrs. Covarrubias gave us time to finish either our rough drafts for a recent project or our weekend homework. Today we didn't learn anything new.

Physical Education class
After the class had changed into P.E. clothes, Mr. Crabtree led us in warm-up exercises. Next , the girls and boys split into pairs of teams to play softball. Those in the outfield played the game attentively while those waiting for their turn at bat socialized and "goofed" around.

After the games ended and the period was near an end, we gathered all our equipment and sat down on our own roll call numbers (which were painted in rows on the cement where we did exercises). After a 10-minute bell rang, we went into the locker rooms and changed back into our clothes.

American History class
Today, Mr. Munoz was absent. Our substitute was named Ms. Abdallah. As we copied down the agenda from the chalk board, she turned on the overhead projector which had instructions on it. We were to read about "the 54th of Massachusetts," which was a topic that we are going to write about for a Civil War history project. I didn't know that this was the first all-black regiment that fought in the Civil War.

After our reading was done, we watched a short film about the same topic. At the beginning of class there was a little chatting; by the time the film began, most of us had read the worksheet and had copied the agenda.

At the end of the day . . .
As always, P.E. was my funnest and favorite class. History class was nice because we watched a film. Science class was interesting, too, because we did some experiments. I didn't quite understand what relativity was about in science class. That's something that could have gone better.

THE MIDDLE SCHOOL DIARY OF NATALIE GARCIA

Dear Diary,

Every morning after I get up and shower I put my hair in a ponytail. By the time that's done, I put my shoes on and make my bed. Now it's about 7 a.m., and I tell my mom bye. I go to school with my sister; her name is Gracie; she's in the 7th grade. When I get to school I walk to the front of the building to meet some friends. When I walk through the school, I see kids playing soccer, basketball, and Chinese jump rope. Everyone's always having fun.

Math class
Today we were preparing for our ITAS test. Before we start we get to see what we got on our math test. I'm not that good in math. I hope my grade is higher today.

I did better but still not good enough. After the test, our teacher gives us some math problems on the board. They're hard for me to do since I'm not that good in math.

About three kids didn't do anything but just sat there. It makes me mad because they just get away without doing the work, but when I do that I get in trouble. I don't think our teacher expected us to learn that much today. She mainly wanted us to do the problems. I didn't finish all of them, but I did what I could do and paid close attention. I wanted to ask her for help, but two kids were already at her desk.

This period is over and science is next. I can't wait because I like science a lot.

Science class
I learned about earthquakes today. Earthquakes are kind of cool, but I wouldn't like having one. We watched a video on earthquakes and answered questions. We all help each other out with the questions. I answered all the questions right. I listened to every little part of the movie and answered every question. I think it's an opportunity to learn about science.

Science is one of my favorite classes. I like learning about science. I want to be a lawyer when I get older, but sometimes I feel like I want to be a scientist. I might try to make a cure for AIDS or another disease. That's just one thing I might do, although I do plan on being a lawyer.

History class
We're studying the Civil War in class. Today we finished watching the movie Glory. I liked it, but I hated the parts wehre someone died or got beat. I don't understand why people have to be punished for the ignorance of others. I always look forward to watching the video. Everyone paid attention.

This movie was about battles-for example, Gettysburg, Shiloh, Chattanooga, and Fort Wagner. Mr. Valdez expects us to learn more about the battles. If we know one battle from another, we will learn more.

Peer Counseling and Conflict Management class
This is my favorite part of the day. It's a very helpful program. Today I got to speak with Jerren and we did an activity together; he's like a little brother to me. I'm supposed to be a role model to him. I see him every Thursday and Friday for 20 minutes. Other kids in my class don't like their students, but Jerren is fun to talk to.

At the end of the day . . .
The most interesting thing I did today was watch the earthquake video; I wish we could have spent more time talking about it. I like to learn new things about earthquakes. I really enjoy my science class. All the students in my classes behaved great today.

THE MIDDLE SCHOOL DIARY OF ALLEGRA BAN

Read an essay by Allegra published in the Congressional Record

Dear Diary,
My typical morning is very hectic. I am very sleep deprived, so I usually oversleep. I wake up around 6:15, wash my face and brush my teeth and get dressed very quickly. I usually run to the bus stop because I am so late. I take the school bus to school from Jefferson. I live in Belmont Shore, a long way away from Stephens. When I arrive at school, I stand around, talking and conversing with friends. When the bell rings I go to art class.

Advanced Art class
We begin first period with advisory -- a 25-minute period set aside to read or do homework. Some people read, although I don't. I work on a lot of projects for the community, usually during this time. Two weeks ago I helped paint a mural that will be part of the Long Beach Aquarium of the Pacific. Today in art class I will work on my watercolor fish. I have been in advanced art for two years so I have independent study. My fish has orange fins and a blue body. Inside the body are a moon and stars.

Today, I was expected to finish some of my fish, not really learn anything new. But the things I have learned this year have really helped me, such as the color wheel, various art techniques, etc. I think I did well today because I produced something beautiful. Art is one of the ways I express myself and is something I enjoy doing.

U.S. History class
As I walked into history class today, I stated that I wanted to be a Ph.D. So Mr. Casanave, my teacher, told me to go talk to the school counselor. He explained to me that I have another 10-15 years of school after high school. Then I went back to History and I watched Roots. We're watching that because it ties into the pre-Civil War era. While I was watching the movie I was finishing my dialectical journal. This is when you choose a quote from the selection and respond to it with thoughts and feelings, or with support and questioning.

Our teacher expected us to absorb from the movie information and events that lead up to the Civil War-to see some of the reasons the Civil War was fought. We watched Roots because the original book was written by Alex Hailey, who is related to the main character. Through stories he has heard he has recreated what the life of a slave was like during the pre-Civil War era.

I always learn in history because I think it's fascinating. By studying history we observe the mistakes made by early leaders. By studying these things we make sure we do not make the same mistakes.

English class
Our History and English teachers planned their lessons together. So in English today we talked about oral history and the Civil War. We talked about how important oral history was to the slave culture before the time of the Civil War. We read poems and did group work on these issues. We read a story and did a dialectical journal on the story. We also shared our own oral history and discussed "griots"-an African word for storytellers-in different cultures.

Most of the student in the class were doing cooperative group work. Some were goofing off. Yet most still accomplished the goal of the class, which was to finish our journal entry and to absorb the importance of the oral tradition. Part of what we learned today was how oral history is relevant to our lives here in the 20th century and how it connects time, space and people. My teacher, Mrs. Carla Watson, makes things interesting.

Spanish class
Today we practiced restaurant dialogue in our journals. Tonight we are going to a Spanish restaurant. Our teacher, Mr. Dennis, wants us to use our Spanish in a real-life atmosphere, so he has arranged for the waiters and waitresses to speak to us only in Spanish. I can't go because of the swim. We also were supposed to finish our family trees. We are studying Spanish family words.

Most of the students today are talking and playing, mostly trying to converse in Spanish, and laughing when we mess up. Some people don't really take this class seriously, and I don't know why. I think communication is important. Why not do it in more than one way?

Lunch!
We have a table (my friends and I) that we always sit at. We eat lunch in the same spots every day. I am a health freak, so I don't eat a lot of junk food; today I ate half a sandwich, a nutrigrain bar, an orange, and juice. We talk about all sorts of stuff. I usually just sit and listen to everyone talk.

Everyone is so concerned about boys and how they look and what others think of them. I'm just concerned about swim, and even more concerned about school. We talk also about our teachers (who doesn't). A lot of my friends really don't like school. I can see why; we're expected to be responsible and to do more work. Yet I like school because this is one of the only things I can do for my future. I might as well do a good job.

Science class
Today we learned about organic compounds. We learned that carbon is in 90% of all bonds because it bonds easily. We learned about saturation, unsaturation and supersaturation. The more hydrogen a molecule has in its outer ring, the more saturated it is. It's really hard, but Mr. Blanchard makes it easy to understand because he talks in words we (the students) can understand. We also learned about alkanes, alkynes, and alkenes.
Some students were listening and playing cards. (Hey, as long as we still learn, right?)

H saturated
|
H -C- H
|
H

H H unsaturated
| |
H -C = C- H

At the end of the day . . .
I really enjoyed algebra today. We reviewed for our test. Also, I love art. I think painting my fish was the best thing I did today. I could have paid more attention in science. I really like Mr. Blanchard.

After school, I get on the school bus, go home and go to swim. I get home from swim at 7:15 p.m. I usually eat dinner and do my homework. I watch TV for awhile, then take my shower and go to bed around 11:30 or 12.

I think my dedication to my life is very important. It helps me feel a sense of accomplishment, Like I'm doing something constructive. I love this feeling.

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