Eighth graders embraces Goals 2 and 3 with motivational TED Talk-inspired speeches

Have you ever felt compelled to action after listening to a TED Talk? The intended purpose of these presentations - which often go viral - is to inspire and motivate the audience. Knowledge is power and can be paid forward in many ways - big and small. That’s Goal 3 in action. ⁠
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Today was the first day of the eighth grade presentations, TED Talk-style. Students have been researching and analyzing a social issue of their choice that faces today’s society. Examples include fast fashion, climate change, girls’ mental health, Type 1 diabetes, banned books, and stereotypes in our culture. By living out Goal 3, they have become fierce advocates for not only making people aware of the problem and its causes but also how we as a society can help to eradicate the problem. Below, Karina and Zion shared reflections on the skills they learned and the overall experience presenting on a topic of personal interest: ⁠
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Karina: “What I’ve enjoyed from this experience is that I’ve gotten to use my freedom to do my own research on a topic that I knew no one else was doing. I’ve learned that you need to do a lot more than just look at an article. You have to annotate and know the importance of the information on it. Overall, I’ve had so much fun working on this independent project.”⁠
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Zion: “I have learned that it is important not to procrastinate when writing and preparing for my speech and to ask your classmates to help read because they might see some errors that you may not be aware of. I enjoyed writing my speech because I know many people who can relate to the topic that I chose. I learned that there are a lot of topics in the world that need to be addressed and shouldn’t be a secret. At first, I thought writing a speech and presenting it would be really stressful, but after writing it, I feel confident and proud of myself.”⁠