A Love Letter To Room 204

There are many memories I have of my time here at Troy High that I will keep close to my heart for the rest of my life. I will remember changing my daily route between classes in order to spend just another extra minute with my friends and I will remember all the games we played in class, when we were really supposed to be doing our work. I will remember the mural painted on the Cafeteria wall that has delighted my eye since the very first day I came here and I will remember the broken ketchup dispenser that has done nothing but disappointed me for that same period of time. I will remember the nook in the far corner of the library that reminds me of home and allows me to breathe after a long stressful day and I will remember the traffic at the steps of the main staircase where mighty sea currents collide violently at the ringing of each bell. And amongst this vast collection of images are the stories I share with this class. Room 204, its been an absolute honor to be one amongst you.

This class has been an incredibly unique experience for me during my schooling. A learning environment that’s not only engaging and fun, but filled with special people that are supportive and want you to learn and succeed. While I think that describes many of the classes I’ve taken during my time in the TSD, I don’t think I’ve found a class that has been a better example of all those characteristics than this one. So I’d like to highlight what I think makes this class so special from the smallest of details to the most important ones.

The Whiteboard

The very first thing I noticed when I walked in to this class on the first day of school was the blank canvas that stood before me. And more importantly, the fact that it wasn’t blank. Now I assure you, I’ve seen many whiteboards in my time… and when I think of a whiteboard, I think of the color white. But when I think of the whiteboard in this classroom, I always think of the color of black markers squiggling away. That’s because this whiteboard is never empty. From drawings of anime characters to depictions of popular memes to the display of Teddy’s home address, our whiteboard always has something on it. And while many of us have never added anything to the whiteboard or might not even have paid attention to the daily changes that occur on it, I firmly believe that it is a core component of what makes this classroom so special. The whiteboard encourages us to contribute to the discussion, reminding us that no input is wrong and every voice is encouraged to speak up. The whiteboard subconsciously reminds us that our class is the amalgamation of every single person’s thoughts and every single student’s voice. So thank you to the whiteboard for giving us the confidence to contribute to the discussion.

“Pods”

I’ve also been apart of many classes in which I have sat in a group or worked in small groups, but I’ve never been a part of a “pod”. I admit, I was skeptical at first. Why don’t we just call ourselves Table 3 or Group 5. What’s the whole deal with these pods. And yet, I think this is another small detail that has brought our groups together and in turn, our class together. Our groups aren’t merely a random assortment of students in our class. We are not colleagues or classmates. We are a family.

Discussions

Our class discussions, presentations, and restorative circles have also been an incredibly unique and engaging experience that I will cherish for a long time. I understand contributing in a group setting isn’t for everyone and it isn’t for me either but I’ve always found it fascinating to hear other people’s thoughts and reactions. We could all be reading the exact same poem but each of us can apply our own life experiences to the poem to come up with 20 different interpretations of it. By hearing the other 19, we not only have a deeper appreciation for the text but for our classmates and their thoughts. A deeper appreciation for life and a deeper appreciation for understanding and open mindedness. So while I admit, I prefer SBC time over a Socratic seminar, I definitely do not regret the time I spend thinking about something one of our classmates said in the seminar that stuck with me many hours after I had left school.

Blog Posts

Blog posts are in short, an absolute w. And yes, I understand this is getting quite meta considering I am writing this within a blog post so if this is making you comfortable, you have my permission to skip to the next section.

Blog posts allow us to express our thoughts in a manner few parts of my high school experience have allowed me to do. But it is not simply the idea of writing down our thoughts that makes it so special but the idea of interacting with each other’s blog posts as we reminisce over shared experiences and help each other grow with our writing. And shout out Ms. Liamini for commenting on every single blog post we’ve ever written. She doesn’t have to do that but I don’t know about you guys but it has definitely helped me get the motivation to put my best foot forward, knowing that there is always an audience for my work.

The People

There are many other details I’ve wanted to highlight about this classroom from the inspirational posters that cover every part of the wall (Shoutout my boy Thoreau) to the bars always available for consumption on the counter to the comfy chair next to the window that anchors the room down in a realm of coziness. But of fear that I’ve already bored you with this unnecessarily long blog post, I will now get to what I believe is what makes this class so special and what was the original inspiration for the stream of consciousness that has ensued above: the people. Each one of you bring to this class something very, very special. And as we all go our own separate ways in a few weeks, I think you all deserve to hear that. The following are the characteristics I appreciate about each of you and what I’ve noticed during my time with you guys in this class. I know you all are far more than the one or two words I’ve written below but I just wanted to thank you all for your friendship.

*please note that the length or order of the following segment of this post is not indicative of anything. I equally admire each and every one of you. 

Sonia - energetic and confident

Caleb - charismatic and inclusive

Avery - passionate

Emily - an independent thinker

Jacob A - always supportive

Arfa - peaceful and wise

Cynthia - a true leader

Grace - calm and collected

Jiong - funny and confident

Imaan - empathetic and supportive

Jacob S - hardworking and focused

Junie - compassionate

Kenzie - lively and determined

Yvona - kindhearted

Monte - driven

Akshat - caring and understanding

Ruthesh - humble

Arush - always smiling 

Teddy - confident and hardworking

Every single person in this room will continue to be the best version of themselves and continue to build communities that improve the lives of the people around them. That much I believe.