by Shanika Rousseau

Created in Ms. Leatherman’s Art 1.

Assignment: Select an interesting viewpoint of the still life and render it from observation using colored pencils on drawing paper.

by Rebecca Martinez-Greiwe

Created in Ms. Leatherman’s Art 1.

Assignment: Select an interesting viewpoint of the still life and render it from observation using colored pencils on drawing paper.

by Nicholas Theodoris

Created in Ms. Leatherman’s Art 1.

Assignment: Select an interesting viewpoint of the still life and render it from observation using black and white charcoal pencils on gray paper.

by Nicholas Theodoris

Charcoal on paper. Nominated by Justin Parke.

by Kevin Flanagan

Created in Ms. Leatherman’s Art 1.

Assignment: Select an interesting viewpoint of the still life and render it from observation using colored pencils on drawing paper.

by Rachel Shulder

Created in Ms. Leatherman’s Art 1.

Assignment: Select an interesting viewpoint of the still life and render it from observation using colored pencils on drawing paper.

Nothing I can do in this world with my rights,
Wanting to be free and wanting to fly;
Can anyone tell me that I am going to be alright?

I’ve been tortured in my heart every night,
I go outside and yell until I cry;
Can anyone tell me that I am going to be alright?

Come, God, and shine on me with your bright light,
Thinking it would be better as time goes by;
Can anyone tell me that I am going to be alright?

Let me be free and let me find my new sight,
Leave me at my sight until I die;
Can anyone tell me that I am going to be alright?

I fight every day with all my might,
I won’t give up freedom, and still try;
Can anyone tell me that I am going to be alright?

Nothing I can do in this world with my rights.
Come to my heart, but don’t try to lie;
Guide my heart, God, with your almighty smite.
Can anyone tell me that I am going to be alright?

by Tae Cha and Greg Price

Written in Joslyn Wolfe’s English 11.

Assignment: Students were asked to identify the structure and organization of a villanelle. They then wrote a villanelle as a way to interpret and respond critically to aspects of Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God.

Flying a kite, writing my feelings in the sky for the birds to read. And helping the stars to smile and the sun to rise. Better than me keeping it all balled up inside, waiting for the moment to be let into this world which is cold and dishonest, but if I write my story in the sky then maybe a little girl in Darfur will stop crying. She’ll see that life is not all about guns and violence, that there is more to life. That you have to look and listen, feeling the simple things in life. Like the gentle kiss you get from the sun on your cheek, or the song that the birds and the trees make on a cold day. Or feeling the playful push that the wind gives you on your slow days. I can make a difference by writing my story in the stars, the same stars that helped the slaves find their way. They could help a lost child who needs a way out of the forest, out of their situation that could be their light to follow. If you wanted to make a difference, you have to first start from the inside and find your way out.

by Sahhara Sharpe

Written for the PTA Reflections writing project. Received awards from both the Howard County PTA level and Oakland Mills High School PTSA.

Kindness is helping the Special Olympics, exceeding your comfort zone.
Kindness is sitting with a classmate who is eating more.
Kindness is being open when you don’t get your way.
Kindness is smiling at a teacher who’s had a bad day.
Kindness is introducing yourself to someone who’s new.
Kindness is broadening your horizon from more than just a few.
Kindness is holding the door whenever you can.
Kindness is recycling those bottles so they’re not stuck in the sand.
Kindness is helping the elderly cross the street.
Kindness is smiling at everyone you meet.
Kindness is being excepting and preventing racism.
Kindness is helping a friend with your upbeat optimism.
Kindness is lending a hand to someone in need.
Kindness is planting a forest with one little seed.
Kindness is holding the books of a kid who broke their leg.
Kindness is helping them out with less than a plea or beg.
Kindness is opening your heart and opening your mind.
Kindness is doing your best to just be kind.
Kindness is helping others, you know what I mean.
Kindness is stepping outside what’s normal in your social scene.
Kindness isn’t building walls, but building bridges.
Kindness is knowing you’re affecting others with every decision.
Kindness is expressed through actions, words, or song.
Kindness is standing up for others and knowing right from wrong.
Kindness is making a difference and changing the world one act of kindness at a time.

by Jourdan Davis

Written for the PTA Reflections writing project. Received awards from both the Howard County PTA level and Oakland Mills High School PTSA. Selected to compete at the Maryland State PTA Reflections Level.

Having a heart of a champion when he came out of the womb
A youngster with determination and focus
Created as a prodigy ready to bloom

He was thrown into situations to meet doom
People trying to hold him back like mucous
Having a heart of a champion when he came out of the womb

But there is something missing in his life that has him stuck in a dark room
He feels as if there is a spell put upon him like some hocus-pocus
Created as a prodigy ready to bloom

A simple four-letter word that puts him in a gloom
Has him going crazy like a clown in the circus
Having a heart of a champion when he came out of the womb

Running over and sucking the happiness out of him like a vacuum
Head in a state that he feel concuss
Created as a prodigy ready to bloom

Waiting for it to hit him like boom
‘Cause if it misses, feeling will leave his body like a dead carcass
Having a heart of a champion when he came out of the womb
Created as a prodigy ready to bloom.

by Greg Price

Written in Joslyn Wolfe’s English 11.

Assignment: Students were asked to identify the structure and organization of a villanelle. They then wrote a villanelle as a way to interpret and respond critically to aspects of Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God.

The hurricane came, it came towards us.
I was so scared I couldn’t breathe.
But we decided to stay and sit in the must.

The hurricane came, it came towards us,
but we had everything we would need
and I was with Teacake, the one I trust.

The hurricane came, it came towards us.
I sat on the bed while Teacake took the lead
and I was with Teacake, the one I trust.

The hurricane came, it came towards us.
The water came and we couldn’t breathe.
The water came through and the window busted.

The hurricane came, it came towards us,
But I was with Teacake, the one I trust.
We decided to stay and sit in the must.

The hurricane came, it came towards us.
I was so scared I couldn’t breathe.
The water came through and the window busted.
I was with Teacake, the one I trust.

by Desiree Williams

Written in Joslyn Wolfe’s English 11.

Assignment: Students were asked to identify the structure and organization of a villanelle. They then wrote a villanelle as a way to interpret and respond critically to aspects of Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God.

by José Mendez

Pencil sketch created in Ms. Sunderdick’s English 10.

by Grace Dell

Glazed earthenware created in Ms. Leatherman’s Art I.

Assignment: Design a teapot that doesn’t look like a teapot.

by Christina Landeros

Pencil sketch created in Ms. Klinefelter-Lee’s English 12 Honors.

Assignment: Students studied Beowulf as an archetype of the depiction of war and warriors. In groups, students identified key descriptive text passages, illustrated them, and constructed class comic books retelling Beowulf’s story.

by Jose Mendez

Glazed earthenware created in Ms. Leatherman’s Art I.

Assignment: Design a teapot that doesn’t look like a teapot.