An Open Letter to my 8th Graders

Dear 8th Grade,

​Thank you. Thank you for allowing me to be your teacher. Thank you for loving me unconditionally, and forgiving me freely. Ours has not been a relationship where I have been only a teacher and you have been a student, but vice versa – you were my teachers, and daily I was your student. I was challenged to learn, study, and grow in my knowledge of people, places, and things. I cannot be grateful enough that I was given the privilege of knowing each and every one of you.

At the beginning of this year I told you that what I love about teaching 8th grade is that I am given the gift of letting you go. As much as I would like to hold on, and keep you here, letting you go means that you are ready. My telling the world that you are ready to move on requires saying goodbye. I have never been fond of or liked goodbyes, so I will say, “Fantastic human beings who captured my heart, you will always have first place as my students. No other group will compare to the Class of 2018. A class full of spunk, personality, and individuals who will fill the world as spotlights of good. Shine, beautiful people, shine bright!”

You are always building your brain capacity. Education is not something that just happens in school, learning happens everywhere. Remember Martin Luther King Jr. taught from a jail cell, Cesar Chavez dropped out of school at 15 and learned while being a migrant worker, Justin Dart Jr. considered himself a “super-loser,” until he lost use of his legs due to polio. Women including Claudette Colvin and Rosa Parks did their best work by sitting down, others such as Shirley Chisholm and Dolores Huerta by standing up. These people were activists and organizers cut from very different cloths. What made them similar is that they all found their cause. Find your cause. Find your why, and you will learn, and teach others, and in turn have an impact.

History is the story of us. It is the story of people and power. Continue to ask yourself critical questions, “Whose voice matters? What stories do we tell? Who tells the stories?” This year you explored the truth of the African Proverb, “Until the Story of the hunt is told by the Lion, the tale of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.” You asked if heroes and villains can be one and the same. You disputed facts that people said were indisputable. You were noble-minded, fair, and worked in pursuit of justice. I charge you 8th grade to always keep moving forward, go higher, and dig deeper. You are the people this world needs – men and women full of integrity, kindness, respect, curiosity, and resilience.

There are 19 things I never want you to forget:

1. WAIT: Ask yourself, “Why am I talking? Why ain’t I talking?” Ask, “How much space am I taking up right now, and are there other people in this room, in this space who may need to share their wisdom?”
2. Share your snacks! (Thank you Farhana!)
3. Make sure you are not always the smartest person in the room, because then how will you learn?
4. Be humble. Honestly, that may be the ticket to winning at life.
5. Love, love hard.
6. Be kind. This world is full of so much hurt. Smile at a stranger – you never know who needs this gesture of affection.
7. Be critical but not judgmental. Look at your own attitudes and behaviors before you comment on that of someone else. To be critical means to examine thoroughly – so examine yourself, then offer someone else advice.
8. Let go. Forgive. Holding on to hurt affects you more than the person who hurt you.
9. Be like a puppy in the pound. By this I mean be excited when you are with your friends, run to greet them, and let them know that they have your full undivided attention. Technology takes away your time and has made the ability to pay attention scarce or rare. (Hi Mr. Green!) 
10. Be rare. This means be different. My dear 8th grade – YOU are rare. YOU are a gem. YOU are loved.
11. Believe. The world has lost trust, and faith almost seems nonexistent. Dear people, do not forget to hope.
12. Know your worth. Some people will try to depreciate or put down your value, but know that you are MORE. I call it adding the “me tax.”
13. Do not waste your time or your talent. Use both wisely.
14. Life hurts. When you are hurting tell someone. Hiding it is no good. When you put stuff out there people can help you carry the burden. Know that people still care and want to make sure that at the end of the day you are okay. You may not be great, but you are OK.
15. Failure happens. Know that some failures take longer to get over than others.
16. No one is perfect. Instagram is a liar. Facebook is fake. Twitter is sometimes truthful.
17. Take a movement break. Run, walk, stand if you have been sitting for a while. I mean this metaphorically as much as I mean it physically.
18. Be accommodating and make modifications. If something is not accessible or there are barriers to your access, make a change. If there is something in your life you do not like figure out what resources you have to make it different. If you do not have the resources go to someone who does. We all have unique talents and abilities that are not meant to only help us as individuals but for the common good.
19. I do not think any teacher wants to be forgotten. But even if you forget me, do not forget that our class was not only about building capacity but character. The struggle is real. Diplomacy and discretion are necessary tools in your kit. Do not do anything that causes you to not be able to sleep peacefully at night or rob someone else of their sleep. If it hurts you, if It hurts your parents, if it hurts your family, or friends, maybe you should not do it, whatever the proverbial it is. Your actions have consequences, words can hurt, and healing takes time – so it’s better to just build a character you can count on.

 
I love each of you. I want your best. I cannot wait to hear what you are up to. Class of 2018, I expect GREAT things.
 
Yours truly,
Ms. St. Jean