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Freshmen and sophomores contributed to the story of Rowland Hall's 150th anniversary in an especially personal way—by sharing their own 150-word origin stories, ranging from the literal to the metaphorical, the stirring to the stoic, and the lighthearted to the solemn.

Each of us makes up part of our school community, the English assignment reads, and our stories are what make the school a community.

Having students write about themselves, their values, and their experiences helps them feel more part of a community, more invested in their learning, and more resilient in the face of big challenges.—English teacher Kate Taylor

"Having students write about themselves, their values, and their experiences helps them feel more part of a community, more invested in their learning, and more resilient in the face of big challenges," explained tenth-grade English teacher Dr. Kate Taylor, also a co-chair of the Inclusion and Equity Committee. "When we invite our students' stories into the classroom, we give them more permission to bring their full selves to class."

And from a technical point of view, the assignment helped students practice for their eventual college-application essays: they had to view language economically—writing concisely without sacrificing detail—and seek creative ways to reshape their prose to meet the word count, Kate said.

After Kate pitched the assignment to poet and ninth-grade English teacher Joel Long, Joel contributed questions from writers he'd worked with. Together, the teachers honed the description to elicit the kind of vivid detail they sought from their young writers.

Kate loved the results. "I learned a lot about how my students view themselves, their place in their family, their words and their silence, and their various passions," she said. "I feel like I know them better now."

150-Word Origin Stories Assignment

Our school is 150 years old this year. Each of us makes up part of our school community, and our stories are what make the school a community. This assignment asks you to tell a short story of your origin to help celebrate our school's sesquicentennial anniversary.

Assignment: Write an origin story for yourself. It must be exactly 150 words long and should be in a consistent tense. With this limited space, you will need to think of something to describe that is emblematic of that origin. Use concrete detail to create impressionistic images of your life, family, culture, and experience. Imagine yourself creating a microcosm of the story you want to tell about your origin.

Some questions to get you started (choose one or two, you won't be able to answer all of them in 150 words).

Questions from Melanie Rae Thon inspired in part by Anna Deavere Smith:

1. What were the circumstances of your birth? (Even if you don't "remember," you may know many things about this time!)
2. Are you different from other people in some way: clumsy or agile, sensitive to sound or light, susceptible to anxiety or depression, often sick, unusually strong?
3. Have you been labeled by parents or teachers or siblings or doctors?
4. Does the label help you rise to your most inspiring vision of yourself, or trap you in someone else's assessment?
5. Have you ever been surprised by your own strength or courage, or dismayed by your own failure to act with conviction?

Questions of Bhanu Kapil:

1. Who are you and whom do you love?
2. Where did you come from / how did you arrive?
3. How will you begin?
4. How will you live now?
5. What is the shape of your body?
6. Who was responsible for the suffering of your mother?
7. What do you remember about the earth?
8. What are the consequences of silence?
9. Describe a morning you woke without fear.

student voices