I absolutely love that so many of you have either finished The Outsiders or are farther into it than you thought! It's such an amazing and timeless story that middle schoolers have enjoyed for over 50 years.

    In the comment section of this blog, tell me why you think the story has been a favorite of students for such a long time. Also, tell which character you connect with the most. Give examples to support your ideas.

Today, you need to write your first blog post! If you're stuck on how to start, maybe you could try one of these:

1. Write about why you love the topic of your blog. Why did you pick this topic? Explain your past experience with it.

2. Write a "How To" blog post with something connected to your topic.

3. Write about something new or current within your blog topic.

4. Write about something that's heavily debated in your blog topic.

5. Write about your favorite things within your blog topic. Make a list and explain why you love those things!

Before you start, tell me what you're going to write about in the comment section of this blog post!

"Progress is impossible without change, and those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything." -George Bernard Shaw

     I absolutely LOVE the fall. While I'm definitely someone who enjoys all four seasons, there's something special about fall. I love the cool mornings, the changing leaves, the smell of tobacco barns, and the gorgeous sunrises and sunsets. I consider myself lucky to live in a world where October happens every year. 
     For me, fall is inevitably a time when I think about change. Maybe it's the changing temperatures and changing leaves that are the catalyst of these thoughts; I'm not quite sure what causes me to contemplate this each and every year at this time. But I do. And this year is no exception. Obviously, you all know my family's life is about to change in 6ish weeks. Bringing a new baby girl into the world is exciting and nerve-wracking all at the same time. Our family will change, but change for the better! Even though this is an obvious change, there are other changes I think about that are less obvious to those who see my big belly every day. 
     This year, I've been thinking about all the changes I've experienced, endured, and become better as a result - moving to new states, becoming a runner, pursuing my passion to teach middle schoolers, becoming a wife and parent to name a few. When I think back to when I was in middle school and high school, I made big changes in my life when I joined the pompon squad, decided to date, became part of my youth group's band, and enrolled in my first honors English classes as a sophomore. All of these changes helped me grow and progress as a person. Some of those changes were smart, others not so smart. But with each change, I learned. That's what I love most. As I look back at my journals from those times in my life, I can now plainly see the good and bad decisions I made with each change. I can also see that I learned from them. I now know that dating the guy I chose to date in high school was definitely not the smartest change I made, but after I healed from our break-up, and obviously 15 years later, it's clear that I learned to NOT make those same mistakes again. I think that's why I love that quote by Shaw at the beginning of this post. 
     "Those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything." How true that is. In whatever you want to do, you must be willing to change your mindset. Without it, progress is not possible.


What changes in your life have you learned the most from? What changes do you hope to make this next nine weeks in your academic life? What about your personal life? What changes do you need to make in your mind to make progress?