High School Essays

What does it mean to be an adult? 

What moments mark the transition between childhood and adulthood? In this unit, students explore these essential questions and reflect on their own coming of age. Students read short stories, non-fiction articles and a book that illuminate both the exhilaration and the pain of that transition. They met characters who experienced painful realizations about the world around them as they struggled toward independence. Students discussed the role of risk-taking in the journey to adulthood and considered the unique challenges teens face as they come of age in today’s society. At the end of this unit, students wrote an extended essay explaining their perspective on what it means to come of age. 

Students wrote an essay in response to this prompt.  They were required to use evidence from the texts that we read in class to support their thesis.

"Write an essay in which you explain your perspective on what it means to come of age and how we become adults. Use evidence from multiple unit texts and your own experiences to support your argument."