Storytelling to Make Sense of the World

We are living through a historic moment. Years from now, parents will tell their children of the year when the Earth stood still. They will tell stories of tragedies and triumphs. Everyone will tell stories. Stories connect humanity. Without stories, we are empty. We listen to stories, so we can connect with others. We tell our stories, so we can heal. Every day, you are telling yourself a story from the moment you wake up until you fall asleep. Writer Joan Didion wrote, “We tell ourselves stories in order to live.” More specifically, we tell ourselves stories to make sense of things.

We tell ourselves stories so we can unpack and process what we have been through. In my opinion, the best kind of stories we have are stories from our childhood. These stories could be about the time you visited your grandparents and saw a movie with them. It could be about a time you spent a day with your friends at the park. It could be anything that was meaningful to you. It must be a story that left a mark on you, whatever that means. These are stories that helped us grow as people. They are a part of us. For this writing prompt, write about a day in your childhood that meant the world to you.

This writing prompt has three requirements:

1.    Write about a day in your childhood that was meaningful to you. Try to explore why this memory is so important to you.

2.    Write up to 800 words.

3.    Pour your heart out.

For example, when I was a child, my granddad and I saw the movie ‘Because of Winn-Dixie’ all the way back in 2005. It was a moment I still think about to this day. My granddad died a few years later. At his funeral, I sat in the pews of the church remembering the day he decided to accept my invitation to see this movie. I am Fijian and, in my culture, our grandparents are cherished and respected immensely.

When our grandparents spend time with us, we view it as an honor. In 2005, I did not understand the depth of the moment. In 2020, I still think about the great man who was my granddad and the few adventures we had together. We had a few more adventures that left an impact on my life. However, this one seemed to have a lasting effect because we were the only audience for the movie at my house that day. After my granddad passed away, I heard about all the good things he did for people. Strangers would tell me about his kindness. It is a privilege to be a part of a family with such a great granddad who truly believed in being a kind person of good character.

SMART Goals 2.0

This activity will help you to continue creating SMART goals during this pandemic! As a reminder, the acronym SMART stands for:

S: Specific

M: Measurable

A: Achievable

R: Realistic

T: Timely

Take a piece of paper and draw 4 or 5 boxes spaced out from each other. Title each box with something that matters in your life. Examples can be Family, Friends, Health, School, and so on. In your first box, answer the following questions:

1. What’s the first word you think of when you read the title of this box?

2. In 1 sentence, why is this box important to you?

3. What is one way this box has been affected by the pandemic?

4. Do you have a SMART goal for this box? If yes, write out the SMART goal.

An example can look like:

Continue the same method within each of your boxes, and you’ll have a visual plan for how to make your goals come true!

Pandemic Podcast

Do you listen to podcasts? They are like modern-day radio episodes ranging from a few minutes to over an hour! They have a host who typically interviews a person about a topic or two of interest to an audience. Or, some podcasts tell stories about historical events — such as the one living through now.

Directions: Picture this: You’ve just been awarded a free spot to offer the world a 30-day podcast series. You’re excited because you’ve been wanting to make an impact from your room despite quarantining, and luckily, you are able to do this virtually. Answer the following questions:

1) Who would you invite to have on the podcast as a guest?

2) What topics would you talk about?

3) Who would your podcast audience be?

4) How would your podcast be helpful to your audience?

5) What would your podcast be called?

6) Write out a the script for an episode of your podcast!

Bonus: Record a podcast episode on current events and send us your audio clip here to be published in our upcoming online gallery exhibition of student work.

Create a playlist for your book!

There are many things to be said about a great read. The perfect book can help you learn more about yourself and those around you, be a friend that is understanding and comforting, and even answer questions you never thought to ask.

But there is another form many will say can do the same exact thing – music. Music is a universal language where every single aspect like the lyrics, melody and instruments each communicate a unique message only the listener can understand. A great song, no matter how long after you were first introduced, can transport you back into a memory which brings back feelings of joy and content. Reading and music go hand-in-hand and this activity will help you bring together the best of both worlds!

Imagine someone wanted you to recommend a book for them to read but you could only describe the book using a playlist. There is never truly or wrong way to make a playlist, but these general questions will help you craft a soundtrack worthy of a book-to-film adaption.

• What songs contain lyrics that describe the overall theme of the story?

• The main character’s love interest or best friend is introduced to the audience, what song is playing in the background?

• When looking at the cover of the book what is the first song that firsts pops into your head?

• What year was this book published? What song during that time would describe the story? What song from another year would describe this story?

• What song would the main character listen to during this story?

Bonus:

• What song contains the name of the book either through the title or lyrics

• Design the soundtrack’s album cover!

How to set certain goals in uncertain times

“Life, with its rules, its obligations, and its freedoms, is like a sonnet: You’re given the form, but you have to write the sonnet yourself.” — A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L’Engle

We’re all experiencing a major life change at the moment, which is the perfect time for us to reflect and prepare for the future. Although what the future will look like when we emerge from this pandemic is still uncertain, we can still set certain goals for how we’d like to arrive in the new world.

Here, we’ll provide you the framework but what goal you set is up to YOU!

List out some goals you have for yourself for the next few months. Include ones that you’d like to work towards either during this pandemic or after it passes. Once you have an idea of what you’d like to accomplish, turn it into a SMART goal.

S: Specific. Be as detailed as possible when setting a goal, so your objective is clear and certain.

If your goal is to read more, consider: what types of book do you want to read? Does it have to be a book you’ve never read before to count toward your goal? Does listening to audiobooks count or do you want to read more physical copies of books?

M: Measurable. How will you know when you achieve your goal?

If your goal is to read more, decide HOW MANY books you want to read.

A: Achievable. Do you have the resources available to work toward your goal? If not, how can you get those resources? Is there someone you can ask for help?

If your goal is to read 100 new books, do you have access to a library card or the Libby app so you can check out books for free?

R: Realistic. Is your goal possible? Does it fit in with your other goals in life?

Think about your other commitments. When will you make time for reading? Is 100 new books realistic? Maybe you could start with 10 new books.

T: Timely. What is the deadline to complete the goal? Is that timeline realistic?

 Also consider:

• Why did you choose these goals?

• What challenges do you think you’ll face with these goals during this pandemic, and what are ways you can overcome these challenges?

• What excites you about working towards your goals?

Once you have selected your SMART goal, make an action plan for how you will achieve it!

Tell us what your goals are in the comments below.

If you were stuck on a desert island ...

You know the age-old, “if you were stuck on a desert island…” paradigm. Let’s remix that a bit and write about another scenario that’s all too real right now.

You’re stuck at home …

• What items are helping you survive?

• What item are you missing that you wish you had?

• What would you do if you didn’t have access to technology?

Be descriptive and include lots of details, then share your thoughts with us here.

Stay Social While Social Distancing

Recently I heard someone say: "We're physical distancing, not social distancing." We may not be able to see our loved ones in person right now, but that doesn't mean we can't stay connected. Reach out to someone and see how they're doing today! Text that friend you haven't talked to in a while, call your grandparents, check in with your teachers. 

Then, write about that experience. Pay attention to how it feels when you connect meaningfully with someone you care about. How has physical distancing shaped your relationships? What have you learned? Has anything changed?

We will get through this together!

Daily Reflection Journal Prompts

A few months ago, who knew the world would be what it is today? These past few weeks have been full of change, so let’s use this time to also be reflective!

Every day for the rest of the week, use a small piece of paper and write a response to that day’s prompt. If you’re stuck, set a timer for 5 minutes and start writing anything that comes to your mind.

• Day 1: What is the best thing that happened today? How did it make you feel?

• Day 2: What’s one thing from the past month that you’re thankful for and why?

• Day 3: What do you want to be when you’re older?

• Day 4: Look around the space that you’re in – what’s one object that makes you feel happy and why?

• Day 5: What is your favorite hobby as of right now?

• Day 6: Who inspires you and why?

• Day 7: What are you most proud of?

After you finish answering the prompt of the day, fold up your small piece of paper and place it in a container – it can be a mason jar, a small box or bottle, or anything else that you have at home. After the week is over, take out all of the pieces of paper, and spend some time reading and reflecting on what you wrote about in the past week. How do you feel about your responses?

Share your thoughts with us here.

Journal Prompt: HOPE

Did you see anything today that gave you hope? (example: news article, random act of kindness, funny meme on social media)

Write about what you experienced and why it made you feel hopeful. How did this feeling of hope change your perspective about our current situation? Will you think or act differently in the future?

Stages of Coping with COVID-19

It has been a couple weeks since our world turned upside down. Take some time to reflect on how you’re coping. Can you identify which zone you’re in now?

Journal Prompt: How have you been coping? What is bringing you the most comfort during this time? Have you been able to move out of the fear zone? What, in particular, are you struggling with? Is there anything that continues to worry you? What can you do to try to get to the growth zone? What are you learning about yourself as you move through each of these coping stages?