Aidan, Grade 8
As I became a member of the direct message I have seen how hard people really work on their articles and how much time goes into it. My first article to publish was about tigers den and it felt amazing. I felt challenged by my ASIAC interviews as it was very nerve-racking.
Anya, Grade 8
Working for the Direct Message has taught me to think about things with a broadened perspective. When reporting on things, I have been able to think about how not only I, but other students would perceive things such as news. I published my first article in 7th grade, and as soon as I clicked that “post” button, I felt like a reinvented person. I now had this opportunistic platform to share my voice on the world wide web. I feel like challenges for me always arose when I would be trying to figure out the voice for an article. Was it authoritative, was it casual, was it the perfect umami blend of these two, and what would make the formula for the perfect article. Overall, this class has changed my way of life, teaching me things I will be able to use in my day-to-day life.
Beeri, Grade 7
The ways that showed me many ways to pass information and it gave me a better perspective on the school.
It was really exciting it wasn't good but publishing it gave me a really good and proud feeling. My article was “Movies to Watch”.
It was challenging having a deadline for the TDM IRL and it was challenging because I didn't have ideas for what to write so it was kind of hard.
And lastly, I just wanted to say that this class was very fun and very creative.
Carmin, Grade 8
Being a part of the direct message has given me a chance to see what goes on behind the scenes. I lived interviewing different people and getting to know them. Or being the first to know what the next news and 90 will be.
When I got to the TDM magazine, I was very excited to see the page that I had worked so hard on.
It was even more exciting than publishing my first article (the Shrek play article). Sometimes, it was challenging to come up with ideas to write about, but once you had an idea, it was so much fun.
I would recommend this class to anyone who is interested in writing articles. Overall, it was a great class to end the year with.
Cooper, Grade 8
I feel like being on TDM has gotten me more involved in the school. It’s required me to interview people around the middle school, often people who I don’t usually talk to. It’s also gotten me more aware of things that are happening around the school. The first article that I posted was about the new board games in the library. This was something that I was passionate about and something that I really wanted to write about. I was very proud to post the first article of the year. Getting started with the live interviews for ASIAC was difficult. I felt intimidated by the people from the other schools. However, once I got started with it, I felt comfortable and got into a rhythm. It turned out to be one of my favorite things I did for this class.
Ellen, Grade 7
It made me realize that not everything is perfect and sometimes you just need to deal with it. I didn't post an article. I was going to but it got canceled for academic games which I don't even know anything about and I was not happy but I tried anyway. I think that media publications were amazing and really enjoyed being in this class, but the air conditioning was bad and I kept getting heat waves which was unbearable.
Hwang, JunHa
I realized that there are many things that happen behind the scenes to make things happen like the yearbook or planning school events. I published my first article last year in semester 2. Coming into this class with prior experience, I tried something new for my first article. Instead of writing about something happening at school, I did research and wrote an informational piece. It was helpful to try something new. I felt challenged to follow the deadlines because I usually struggle with deadlines. However, I think I have improved in following deadlines in this class.
Karam, Grade 8
Being a part of the TDM team has really changed my perspective on responsibility. Working through this class and all the different types of projects with deadlines, I have been able to experience how important consistency and reliability are. My first ever article was about books to read for middle schoolers. I spent a couple of classes coming up with the idea but once I had it I was eager and excited to finish and upload it. The biggest challenge that I faced was definitely coming up with ideas for articles. I took on a lot of articles that Mr. Currey suggested we do but coming up with my own ideas definitely became easier with more practice and experience.
Lincoln, Grade 8
The Direct Message has really helped me think more about the events going on around school and the news in general. It really made me think about how much work goes on to make these articles and the events. My first article was about lockers which really surprised me because it really made changed my viewpoint about the article when I did my first interview. It really showed how an article can change in the process of making it. I found interviews, in general, to be pretty challenging as they made me realize how it can be to make it to a deadline in time.
Oliver, Grade 8
The Direct Message has helped me has changed my perspective on the school
Publishing my first article felt like I had taken a weight off my shoulders and helped me realize it isn't that hard to create an article. I didn't expect us to have to do work outside of class during break and at first, I found it a challenge but then I realized it wasn't that hard.
Seojin, Grade 7
While creating direct messages, I felt that there were many things happening in the school that I did not know about, and I was interested in publishing new articles and informing interesting facts. I felt proud of myself when I first published an article, and the first article I published was Safety Tips for WOW Trip. While taking this class, I challenged myself to write articles that others did not, and I tried to achieve that challenge.
Sojeong, Grade 7
After I joined TDM, I had many chances to look at what is going on in the school, and interviewing other students and teachers. I didn’t have any special thoughts about school, but knowing what actions do school do for students and interviewing people. My first article was Humans of Middle School. I interviewed my best friend, Uije. It was fun to write an article about her. Publishing my first article made me feel super proud of myself. I’ve felt challenged in Media Publications class. Finding a subject to work on and getting information from unknown people was challenging. For example, I was to write articles about Upcycling Mela, and the 6th graders whom I interviewed are totally new to me and haven’t met before. However, I could finish it by getting help from my partner.
Sophia, Grade 8
Being part of the Direct Message has helped me to understand the students and teachers better, I got the opportunity to talk to people and go to events that I normally wouldn’t. My first article was about the visiting author Mitali Perkins, I got the chance to interview librarians teachers, and students. and I got to know the author a lot better. I felt proud when my article was published. My biggest challenges were interviewing people and getting responses, and deadlines, but I feel like I have improved and grown from this experience.
Unhyun, Grade 8
As I joined and was a member of a direct message, I had a lot of chances to write an article and interview teachers and students. I published my first humans of middle school and I interviewed like the day before. I was nervous but when I published my first article I was so proud of it, and feel satisfied. I felt challenged in my first article because I wasn’t feeling confident. But Karam told me that it was good enough so I published it.