By Susie Rogers, ELA 5th-8th

WE ARE LEARNING TO:

develop a growth mindset for our lives by selecting one word to guide our year.

THIS IS BECAUSE:

one word can impact us mentally, physically, emotionally, relationally, and spiritually.

“Instead of creating endless goals and resolutions, they found one word that would be their driving force for the year. No goals. No wish lists. Just one word. Best of all… anyone, anytime can discover their word for this year.”

“One Word that Will Change Your Life”, by Jon Gordon, Jimmy Page and Dan Britton - “About the Book”

Our resolutions seldom work because they are based on the type of person we’re tired of being rather than who we can become. Plus, resolutions can be ‘broken’, leaving

no room for the process of growth… My One Word replaces broken promises with a vision for real change. When you choose a single word, you have clarity and focus. You are moving toward the future rather than swearing off the past.”

“My One Word”, Mike Ashcraft & Rachel Olsen - “Choosing Your Word”

  Enjoy the 7th grade students’ words and explanations. 

Abigail 

Growth means development. To me, growth means to advance, and when you mess up keep going even if you know that it’s going to be hard or tough. I picked this one word because I knew that it would help me throughout the year. I plan to grow continuously this year by learning from my mistakes. “Growth” is what I plan to remember throughout the year.

Olivia

My One Word to live by this year is “why”. I do not think very many people would think of this word because it is asking the question, not solving it. That is the reason I chose it, so when you need to remember what it is you are working toward ask yourself why. You will remember how you felt when you made the decision, and will return to that task with the same vigor you started with.

Daniel

The definition of determination is the firmness of purpose; resoluteness. Determination means to keep going and keep growing to me and to not give up. I plan to keep on going when things get hard and not give up. I picked this word because it tells me to not stop and it means to keep going. In a race, a runner must have the determination to keep going to the finish line and not stop before the finish line. Determination is a powerful thing that can get you anywhere in life.

John

NOW- I picked this word because it makes me want to do something immediately instead of waiting around and doing it later. This will impact my life in many different ways. Mentally it will make me feel accomplished; Physically, it would be more like a mindset to make you want to do something. It would also affect me emotionally by changing how I think about other people. It will make my family happy that I do things other than video games. Finally, it would make me pray more and worship God more as well.

Cooper

SMILE -I chose the word because it is easy to smile and it makes people feel good. What the word smile means to me is to always be positive no matter what. I plan to live this word by trying to stay positive even when things get rough

By Susie Rogers, 5th-8th ELA

Christmas break is a highly anticipated time that students look forward to all year. When Kevin, the Kindness Elf made his appearance the first of December, students excitedly looked forward to finding him and reading his charges. Kevin, the Kindness Elf, asked the students to practice their good manners, thank a teacher, compliment another student, talk with someone they didn’t know well, look up Christmas traditions, dare to challenge themselves in the future, and finally, read a book over their break! The tiny elf made some BIG fun within my classes and throughout the campus and brought smiles to everyone. The magical mood continued with a 7th grade class party and gingerbread house contest! Of course, Kevin the Kindness Elf had to join in the highly competitive decorating contest. Concentration, laughter, good-natured taunts, and candy thieves filled the room. We then had a fun and personal gift exchange where thoughtfulness was shown by all. Enjoy the pictures of our fun-filled day of fellowship and festivities!!

By Susie Rogers ELA, 5th-8th

The 7th graders were assigned a "Building Background" project before we started reading The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. They explored the music, the movies, the television shows, the fashion, and the important events in the 1960's. The students recognized the fact that even 60 years later, some aspects remain the same. By researching and presenting their information from the 1960s, they will be able to immerse themselves into the lives of Ponyboy, Sodapop, Darry, and Johnny in this classic coming-of-age book. 

  Students were then asked some difficult questions such as: being street smart is more important than being book smart, teenagers everywhere face the same problems, ​​loyalty is extremely important between or among friends, and everyone has felt like an outsider at one time or another.  After much back and forth discussions, all of them agreed to disagree. They did all agree that some of the same problems existed with everyone, and one statement truly resonated  with all of them. When discussing their responses to, “Everyone has felt like an outsider at one time or another,” my students unanimously agreed that they have all felt like an outsider at a point in their life.  With our class novel, they will explore the historical connections, the societal expectations, and family dynamics from then and now. 

For the second year in a row, seventh and eighth grade students hosted a pumpkin patch “field trip” for the preschool. Student planted their seeds over the summer, and they tended to the garden from July to October. The pumpkins were grown to be picked by our 3- and 4-year-old friends. Students each wrote and illustrated an original storybook, and they decorated a pumpkin to display at the pumpkin patch. Adding costumes, music, a hayride and snacks made the experience a delight for all!

“It was very fun growing the pumpkins, and reading to the kids was even more fun.” ~John

“The scarecrow dance was amazing.” ~Cooper

“I enjoyed the pumpkin patch, and it was fun to grow pumpkins.” ~Abigail

By Susie Rogers, ELA 5th-8th

Career Day will be in April for my 7th and 8th grade students, and to prepare, we will be having guest speakers throughout the year. I invited Jed Harrelson as our very first guest. Jed is a rising Nashville musician and spent his childhood days at St. James!  He and his brother, Hank, eagerly toured the campus with the 7th grade class reminiscing about their time here. When all of the middle school students gathered, Jed introduced himself and gave a little bit of his background. He then opened the floor for questions, and the students had a lot of them. 

Jed was asked, “When did you start playing guitar?” (8 years old) “Did you take lessons?” (self-taught) “What made you want to perform?” (saw the positive effect music had on others) “How did you react when someone didn’t believe in you?” (Keep going on- as long as you have the passion, don’t let anyone tell you no)  and “What is an average day/week like?” (4 days a week playing up to 8 hours a day.) *Disclaimer- questions and answers are summarized, not verbatim! Jed also gave the students wonderful advice to find something you love doing and make that your career, and if you have a bad day, learn from your mistake and simply keep trying. After fielding questions, Jed performed his new original song, “Olly, Olly, Oxen Free “ We just know it's going to be a hit! 

St. James Day School is not only fortunate to have such an impressive alumnus, but now the students will look back on Jed Harrelson’s visit and be able to say, “I remember when Jed came to see us when he was just starting out, and look at him now!” We all agreed that his talent and charisma will have his name in BIG lights before long. Thank you Jed for sharing your passion, your career, your advice, and your memories.  Listen to his newly released single, “Keep It” on Spotify, and check him out on Facebook: @JedHarrelson: A Music Collective.