About Us

by Sabine 9/9/22

Oliver is a sixth grader. His favorite teacher is Mr. True. He said, ”Mr. True is funny, he reminds me of my fifth grade teacher.” 

Although Oliver likes Mr. True, His favorite class is Technology with Mrs. Wheeler. Oliver said, “I'm excited to start Coding." 

Speaking of coding, Oliver likes to play video games. He plays on his Nintendo switch, and one of his favorites is Cuphead. “I like how it challenges me, but I also like the art style and animation.” 

The art in Cuphead is similar to the cartoony style Oliver uses. Oliver draws a lot in his free time. “I make a lot of comics but never really finish them,” he said. For a while he made a character that he called Catsnake, a half cat and half snake that goes on various adventures. There is a lot of visual comedy in the Catsnake comics. 

Oliver also enjoys playing Dungeons and Dragons. He usually plays with his friends at a local game store. “Our campaigns aren't very professional so we usually end up messing around.” Some of the people Oliver plays with go to Sellwood.

by Laci 9/9/22

Liam is a 7th grader that is the youngest of 3. He has 2 older siblings, an older brother that is 20 and an older sister that is 16. When he's not in school he's hanging out with friends or with his white Labrador retriever, that's 9 years old.

“I really like my dog because he has a lot of personality,” Liam said.

When he goes to Alabama to visit family he goes to his favorite restaurant called Makata. Whenever he goes he gets a steak or some soup. His favorite video games are Subnautica, Minecraft, and Valorant. 

“I like video games because you can play alone or with friends.”

Liam loves the popular show Stranger Things and said he likes horror and suspense. He also likes The Good Place.

When it comes to school, Liam's favorite class is Block with Ms. Leishman. He likes block because he's familiar with his classmates in Block and he likes the subject.

His favorite part of the day is lunch when he can catch up with friends and eat yummy food. He eats cheerios and a protein bar from home for his usual lunch.

Some fun facts about Liam is that his favorite color is purple. He also likes roller coasters. He said, “I Like the thrill of them in my soul.” He's also really good with technology and computers as well.

by Elly 9/9/22

Sabine is an awesome 7th grader. Sabine likes California as a vacation place because her family lives there, and she used to live there. She likes being close to the ocean.

 She wants to live in the country. She loves animals, the outdoors, and getting away from screens. She loves camping in the wilderness. 

“I love to get my hands dirty,” she said. 

She has an older sister who's in high school. She has a younger brother in 4th grade. She also has 7 pets:  2 dogs, 2 cats, 1 parakeet, 1 tortoise,and 1 hedgehog.

She also likes playing soccer. She likes kicking things, and soccer helps take her anger out.

She has short brown hair and cute earrings with cute, stylish clothes. She likes the band Nirvana.

by Oliver C. 9/9/22

Bee enjoys school because it gives them a chance to hang out with their friends. They also have one sibling, and like all siblings, they do not get along very well.

Bee also enjoys band because of friends in that class. Bee plays the bass clarinet, but not any sports.

If Bee could say anything to the world they would say, "Stop killing each other for no reason." 

by Rose 9/9/22

June is a nice and fun sixth grader who has many hobbies such as reading, cross country, and soccer. She plays soccer on Tuesday and Thursday, and runs cross country on Monday and Wednesday.

She loves being in the defensive position. She said, “I love the feeling of being the ONE to save the goal.”

June went to Llewellyn for 6 years, and now her two younger sisters go there, Lucy (8 years old), and Anne who is 5. Both her little sisters look up to June, although June said, “I only look up to myself,” with a straight face.

June likes all of her classes, and loves homework like a true weirdo. Luckily, she hasn't had any locker troubles. 

She doesn’t like school shopping, but loves reading and her favorite books are The Keeper of the Lost City series. Her favorite song is "Believer", by the artist Imagine Dragons.

by Quincy 9/9/22

Audrey is an 8th grader who loves listening to music and hanging out with friends. Her favorite movie is called 10 Things I Hate About You because it has a light sense of humor. She plays volleyball and does track and field. 

Audrey's volleyball team is called “The Mac.” She went to Holy Family for 5th through 7th grade and already likes Sellwood more. 

While Audrey likes the beach, as well as volleyball, she has never played beach volleyball. 

Her favorite writing tool to use is a pen “because it just flows along the paper,” she said. 

by June 9/9/22

Rose is a very funny sixth grader who can ́t live without music.

She goes to Martial Arts training on Tuesdays and Thursdays, is in an all-girls club, and describes her teacher as  ̈cool ̈. She really likes art, and is a very crafty person in general.

Before Rose came to Sellwood, she attended a school called the Metropolitan Learning Center (MLC) from first grade to fifth (the school itself went all the way through high school). But when she moved at the end of fifth grade, she was more than an hour away, so she went to Sellwood for middle school instead. 

Rose is unique and has an interesting perspective on the world.

For instance, if Rose was locked in someone's locker, instead of yelling or shouting for help, she said, "In an emergency, knock on wood. It probably won't get any worse," she said with a laugh. 

by Zoe 9/9/22

Ms. Souther has been teaching for 21 years! She has taught here at Sellwood for 19 years, and her first two years she taught at Lake Oswego Junior High. 

Her favorite grade to teach is 8th grade because she enjoys helping them take their big transition into high school. “I love teaching 8th graders because they are funny and it's rewarding to see them gain and practice all the skills they will need in high school," she said.  

When she gets home after her day at work, she sits on her favorite comfy chair for about 15 minutes, says hi to her 11 year old cat Sterling and checks her social media. 

Ms. Souther loves reading, and one of her favorite books to read is The Hunger Games. 

“At the time it was published, it was such an original plot line and it combined some of the things happening in real life together with a dystopian fantasy world."

by Annabelle 9/9/22

7th grader Cate likes rock climbing, winter, and downhill skiing. 

With rock climbing, “I get to compete and do something I enjoy," she said. She is on a rock climbing team at ESAC (Eastside Athletic Club). "I just joined this year and am looking forward to competing with my team."

Cate’s favorite season is winter because she likes Christmas and winter break as well as snow and sledding. Another one of her favorite things to do in the snow is downhill skiing. “I enjoy downhill skiing, which I have been doing with family since I was three years old," she said. 

by Margaret 9/9/22

Zoe is a sixth grader at Sellwood Middle School who likes Publishing, especially interviewing people because it’s fun to learn more about them.

“It’s nice meeting new people,” she said, “And learning more about them.”

Zoe is also excited to make the yearbook and said Publishing is probably going to be her favorite subject in the long run.

Also, many students have been having trouble with their lockers, and Zoe thinks part of the problem is that they’re hard to find because it’s irritating that they aren’t entirely in order by number, but it helps that the first number has some relation to the floor it’s on.

Zoe also attended Lewellyn for Elementary School, and says that she didn't have any publishing or journalism related classes during school hours.

Outside of school, however, she has interviewed people in the neighborhood before.

Zoe is naturally organized and states that she “Can’t live without a clean room”.

by Liam 9/9/22

Laci is a 6th grader. This is her first year here and she says that it hasn’t been that bad so far. She thinks that the entirety of the period system for classes is a lot more confusing and complicated than what elementary school is like. She says it’s definitely a lot bigger than her old school, which was Lewis Elementary School. Her advice for new people to middle school is “don’t drop out of school” and to just find a good friend group and have fun with them.

Her favorite show is Stranger Things, and she said, “There is always something going on in Stranger Things, and that’s what I like about it.”

Although she doesn’t go that often, Laci also enjoys going to Disneyland. She said, “You can spend time with family or go on your own and still have fun.”

Laci is confused by the lockers at school and that it's a lot more complicated than keeping your bag with you in elementary school. Laci eats lunch from home, and she says that’s one of her favorite things during the school day, besides Mr Adam’s class. She said that she likes Mr. Adam because he is funny and he can still get work done while being funny, and that makes the class easier for her.

She wants to be a self employed photographer when she grows up.

She says that she would like to travel a lot and that it would be nice to be self employed. She also says that she likes animals and that it would be nice to take pictures of them. To make most of the money she would be working for people to take photos for them.

by Oliver P. 9/9/22

Alyssa’s favorite thing about school is making friends. She also has to solve problems, like her broken locker. 

At home she has nine siblings, a turtle, and a cat. The turtle’s name is Tank and the cat’s name is Gracie. She likes the turtle more because “the cat is mean.” 

She’s been playing softball for eleven years, and it sure shows! According to Alyssa, “I can hit four hundred feet in a softball game.”

by Elly 9/9/22

Do you know Macie? You should, she is pretty dope. She is a sixth grader.

Macie has cute hair. She has blue with a hint of green eyes, really cute shoes, and good fashion sense.

Macie's favorite show is Stranger Things. "It’s fun because  they have a deep history. You get really invested in the show," she said. 

Her favorite singers are Ava Max and Olivia Rodrigo.

Her favorite place to go to look for clothes is Buffalo Exchange and Clackamas Town Center. Buffalo Exchange is a great place to find things cheap and used. “You can always find interesting things at Buffalo Exchange,” Macie said. She likes the mall because they have a great selection of clothes. 

She likes getting fro yo from Nectar. Macie is really nice, and a great person to hang out with. Her 8 year old sister is named Elise. She has a mini golden puppy named Cedar. Her dad's name is David. He is a doctor.  Her mom's name is Kerry. She is an environmental engineer.

Her favorite Teacher is Mr. Olsen, sixth grade science teacher. She said she likes him “Because he is funny and open to doing things. I think that middle schools would be better, if they all had a teacher or two like him.”

Her favorite class is Publishing. “I enjoy having a voice in the media," she said.

by Cate 9/9/22

Annabelle is a sixth grader who uses she/her pronouns. Annabelle walks to school every day. “When I get home from school I like to make myself a snack and watch the junior baking show.

Annabelle enjoys doing aerial silks. She's been doing it for about a year and is a level two, soon to be a level three! Annabelle has aerial silks on Fridays and Saturdays. She said, “I enjoy aerial silks because I don't like most other sports and it's very enjoyable."

Annabelle walks to school and likes the teachers Mr. True and Ms. White. Some of Annabelle's favorite foods include pasta, sushi and fried rice. She said, “I like sushi because there is a wide variety of ingredients."

An interesting fact about Annabelle is that she is vegan.

Something that Annabelle does in the summer is that she goes to a lake cabin with family. It is a 6 hour drive to Blue Lake in Washington. She said, “A relative of mine built it for us and now we own it.” It is one of the highlights of Annabelle's summer vacation.

Talking about her family, she said, “I have one sister named Elsa, not the one from Frozen!” 

About her pets she said, “I have one cat and one dog. I like my dog more because it is more cuddly."

by Charlie 9/9/22

6th grader Hanna has two hobbies: playing with her friends and

sketching interior designs. She said, “I like sketching interior designs because I want to be an interior designer when I grow up."

While she plays with her friends and sketches designs she also likes

reading. In her free time she likes to read Spy School. She said she

likes it because it’s packed with adventure and mystery.

At school, Hanna has two favorite classes: Art and Block. She likes

block because the teacher is funny, helps her a lot, and they go on

walks every day. In art she likes it because she can talk to friends and

it’s easy to understand the teacher's directions.

At home Hanna has an older brother that likes to go mountain biking and she has two pets: a dog named Rocky and a fish. She also has

two favorite movies: Top Gun and Mission Impossible.

After school she has two sports: cross country and soccer. She’s been

doing soccer for years and the coach for the team is friends with her

parents and for cross country she's just started doing it.

by Audrey 9/9/22

Quincy is an 11 year old 6th grader. So far he likes middle school because it’s a lot easier than he thought it would be. According to Quincy, his mom prepared him for a “zombie apocalypse, not middle school.” His top three favorite classes are drama, publications, and science. He also wants to try baseball sometime.

He is very interested in cars and wants to go into that field for work. One of his hobbies is looking for cool cars around his neighborhood.

This summer Quincy spent most of his time as a counselor in training for the Sellwood Community House. He may become a counselor when he's in high school and enjoyed the program. He learned many things like leadership and how to work with young kids.

by Macie 9/9/22

Elly is an 11 year old girl who likes gymnastics, hanging with friends, and her Havanese dog, Chico. She is sassy, not a pushover, and very talkative. Her favorite class is publishing. She said, “I like taking photos of things and getting to know people better.” 

She has a sister in third grade named Ruby, and a brother in eighth named Trek. Elly is really good at balancing friends, family and school work.

When she is doing her homework she will usually listen to her favorite song, Sit Still Look Pretty". Or sometimes she will just bounce around in her room and listen to it. Gymnastics is her passion. She said, “I love flying through the air and flowing through the moves.”

by Sienna 9/9/22

Fleur is an 8th grader who loves soccer, specifically futsal. She started futsal in fifth grade and has never looked back. She has been playing soccer since 3rd grade and you can tell! She plays goalie or center mid.

After school she usually goes to volleyball practice, hangs out with her younger sister, Cora, and reads a book. She might even watch some TV. “My favorite TV show is Brooklyn 9-9, I just feel like funny shows are easier to relax to,” she said.

Fleur’s block teachers are Mr. Shelley and Mr. Sossel, Mr. Shelley for language arts and Mr. Sossel for social studies.

Fleur has some interesting facts about herself too, she is scared of possums after an unfortunate mishap, and refuses to eat coconuts! According to her they are bland. 

Overall, Fleur is a talented soccer player and a good big sister.

by Bee 9/9/22

7th grader Margaret's favorite class last year was science. She said, "I loved science last year with Mr. Olsen because I like hands on learning and we did a lot of it."

Margaret suggests a couple of changes for the school schedule. "For some classes I would definitely add more hands-on activities. I'd also add more time between classes because it's hard to get to classes on time when they're on a different floor than my locker. Finally, I'd add a swimming pool."

Margaret also plays ultimate frisbee. She says "I mostly like it because it's a no-contact sport and I don't like touching people in sports."

She says that she is more of a country person than a city person, stating that "I like the country because it has has a lot of plants but the city doesn't."

by Hanna 9/9/22

6th grader Charlie is a very active kid. He has been playing basketball for 3 years! Even though he does basketball he still does cross country running for the school team.

With his hair up in a ponytail you can easily spot him in your classroom. 

“My favorite teacher is probably Mr. Olsen because he doesn't give out too much homework and the class work doesn't seem hard and he is just nice," Charlie said.

Charlie is an indoor/ outdoor kid and he likes both. “Sometimes I like to stay inside, but I like to go outside to get fresh air.”

“My favorite book is probably Storm Keepers Island or Hunger Games. I like Storm Keepers Island because of the way the author writes. It leaves me wondering what will happen next,” Charlie said. 

Charlie's favorite place to go is England or Washington. “I go to England a lot because my dad is from England. I also like Washington because of one restaurant we go to after we hike. It is a nice refreshment.”

by Fleur 9/9/22

Sixth grader Sienna was born in Washington DC, to her parents who are both writers. She lived there until age 4, and was very fond of the area, as she said, “It’s a really big city with a lot of diversity."

Now, Sienna lives in Portland with her parents and two younger siblings. She also has an Aussie doodle named Otto. Sienna and her younger sister spend time together by watching Stranger Things. She also enjoys funny shows, especially Modern Family.

Sienna is a very athletic girl. Her favorite sport is cross country. “I’ve been doing it since I was 6 and I feel like I'm better at it than the other sports I play”. She also plays basketball and track.

Sienna competes on the school's cross country team, and spent a part of her summer at a track camp.

Any student at Sellwood middle school loves going to Tea Chai Té, and Sienna is no different.

She enjoys spending time with her friends during and outside of school. Sienna also loves traveling. She has been to Italy, and was stung by a jellyfish while swimming in the Mediterranean. She described it as “less painful than a bee sting” so she must be very tough.

She said that she’d love to visit Mexico one day because she loves warm places with beaches.

I asked Sienna what she thinks about Sellwood Middle School so far. “It’s definitely a new experience for me,” she said with a laugh, “but I’m adjusting and I like it so far.” Her favorite class is block with Mr. Adam because he incorporates fun into every lesson.