The Old New Thing

The wisdom of seventh graders: Designing an elective course

April 20, 2007 Apr 20, 2007 04/20/07

Raymond Chen

Last month, I spent a few hours reading essays written by seventh graders (ages 12 and 13) on the following subject: Electives are often fun and different from our normal core classes. Imagine you have been chosen to create one new elective for our school. In a multi-paragraph essay, explain what the new elective would be like and what ...

The wisdom of seventh graders and you: Design a course

March 23, 2007 Mar 23, 2007 03/23/07

Raymond Chen

I'm out today to volunteer with grading student essays. The topic the students were given is one that I suggested: "You have been chosen to design a new elective for your school. Describe what it would be." In a few weeks, you'll learn what the students wrote, but my question for you is what you would propose in your essay. You can answer the...

The wisdom of seventh graders: John Locke and influential persons

March 7, 2007 Mar 7, 2007 03/7/07

Raymond Chen

My friend the seventh grade teacher was leading the class in a discussion of the most influential persons in history, and after two days of the students collectively deciding whom they would put on the list, my friend revealed the list compiled by the author Michael H. Hart. The students felt bad that their collaborative list didn't match the...

The wisdom of sev^H^H^Heighth graders: It was not just white people who were helped by Martin Luther King

January 15, 2007 Jan 15, 2007 01/15/07

Raymond Chen

(Today is the birthday of the famed civil rights leader, the first time since 2001 that the federal holiday coincides with the correct historical date. It seemed an auspicious date to return to the time machine essay.) The eighth grade students were given the same in-class writing assignment as the seventh graders, with the same ground ...

The wisdom of seventh graders: What to do with a time machine (part 3)

December 6, 2006 Dec 6, 2006 12/6/06

Raymond Chen

(Continuing from part 2.) Here are more sentences from seventh grade time travel essays. Remember, these sentences are not representative of seventh grade writing in general; these are just the funny bits. World History The Future: Most students who travelled to the future wanted to meet themselves. Letter Format: Some students took ...

The wisdom of seventh graders: What to do with a time machine (part 2)

December 5, 2006 Dec 5, 2006 12/5/06

Raymond Chen

(Make sure you've read Part 1 for background information.) On the subject of where they would go in a time machine, many students wrote well-thought-out essays, beautifully composed. These sentences below did not come from those essays. I've categorized the snippets roughly by theme, though I had to guess at some of them since the ...

The wisdom of seventh graders: What to do with a time machine (part 1)

December 4, 2006 Dec 4, 2006 12/4/06

Raymond Chen

All the students at a local school were asked to composed an in-class essay on the following topic: "Your science teacher has invented a time machine. You have been selected to take the first trip. Explain in a multi-paragraph letter to your teacher where you will go and why." (Students were given two hours, plus one additional hour upon ...

The wisdom of seventh graders: Contributions to class discussion

August 31, 2006 Aug 31, 2006 08/31/06

Raymond Chen

(In the continuing sporadic series on the wisdom of seventh grade students.) My friend the seventh grade teacher once had to deal with a class that had gotten out of hand by assigning the students a short essay in which they had to address three questions: One of the more disruptive students answered the questions thus...

What seventh-grade students want to be when they grow up

April 3, 2006 Apr 3, 2006 04/3/06

Raymond Chen

Another episode in the sporadic series on the wisdom of seventh graders: The topic this time is "What do you want to be when you grow up?" The students really enjoyed this topic because, as one young man put it, "I could write a book about myself!" Here are what some students had to say. Spelling mistakes are intact, but ellipses are editorial...

Humanity’s greatest invention, according to seventh grade students

December 6, 2005 Dec 6, 2005 12/6/05

Raymond Chen

When I read that Ecologist Magazine is co-sponsoring an essay contest on the topic What is Humanity's worst Invention?, it reminded me of a related essay exercise assigned to seventh-graders by a friend of mine. The students (typically thirteen years of age) were given the topic What is humanity's greatest invention or discovery? Here are ...