I am a hands on learner. I’ve always learned by making something. Its difficult for me to listen to a teacher lecture us and write down notes, I like to be able to make something that I’ll remember and learn from.
For sixth grade I went to a public school. I felt like I didn’t learn as much sitting in a classroom listening to a teacher talk to whole time. When I left that school and went to Mountain Middle School (a project based charter school) I felt like a learned more than I would in a public school. Being here at Animas High has given me different viewpoints on learning and social aspects.
The culture here at animas has a big difference from other public schools. I feel like I can be myself here. Everyone is nice to each other and we all have our place. Upperclassmen talk to lower class men which is a big deal in high school territory. I had a hard time making friends in Elementary school and the beginning of high school a lot of my old friends were at a different school or we had taken our separate paths. It was scary coming into a high school not knowing many people. My brother Gabe, who is a sophomore, helped me with this then when the upperclassmen came I talked to them and I made friends with a lot of them which was a great thing to have. I felt at home and having that feeling in school is a big deal.
Our teachers push us to do our best. I used to have stage fright and I didn’t like talking to a crowd. Being here at Animas you have no choice. Public speaking is something I love to do to get my voice heard. We have things like exhibitions and presentations within different classes. For a grade you must dress nicely our teachers make us dress professionally which will help me with different events in the future. One thing I love about Animas is if you feel you need help or need to get the word out animas offers after school hours for extra help and you can talk to a teacher if you want to get a word out.
Another amazing thing we have at animas is the student teacher relationships. At my old school, teachers wouldn’t even take the time to remember your name. I didn’t feel comfortable talking to them. If I had a problem I kept it to myself. At animas its a whole other story. If you have a problem you can talk to a teacher and they will help you with it. You can joke around with the teachers and talk to them about things most people don’t know. They make you feel safe and happy, it like having a friend with boundaries.