RevolTeens: Let’s Hear from the Teens, by Teen Librarian Christine Lively

This month has left me feeling deflated, frustrated, and angry. The news of another teen killed by police officers, the ongoing mental health crisis caused in part by the pandemic, and the constant barrage of rising gun violence, racist attacks, and assaults on trans rights has left me feeling that what the world does not need right now is an opinion column written by a white, cis-gender, heterosexual woman.

So, let’s hear from some teens instead.

I am a librarian at Wakefield High School in Arlington, Virginia just a few miles outside of Washington DC. Our school, like most high schools, is usually full of every type of teenager there is – from shy quiet studious kids to loud boastful life of the party kids. They are all still kids, though and trying to find their way through. It’s easy to forget that the teens we serve have obstacles, hopes, dreams, and fears that they bring with them every day. Sometimes, we adults need a reminder of what they are going through.

So, here I present the Wakefield High School Theatre Arts III and IV classes original production of “Growing Up.” The show written by the students explores the experience of leaving childhood behind which was entered into our state’s one-act play festival. “Assertive, articulate, and heart-wrenchingly real, Wakefield High School’s “Growing Up” is an enriching treatise on the beautifully tragic growing pains that compose adolescence.” according to reviewer Sean Gillen, Oakton High School.

In these performances, you’ll find the emotions, experiences, fears, and dreams of actual teens.

Please watch and listen to our teens.

“Growing Up” by Wakefield High School Theatre Arts students.

About Christine Lively

Christine Lively a school librarian in Virginia. I read voraciously, exchange Christine Lively a school librarian in Virginia. I read voraciously, exchange ideas with students, and am a perpetual student. I raise monarch butterflies, cook, clean infrequently and enjoy an extensive hippo collection. I am a Certified Life Coach for Kids 14-24 and my website is christinelively.com. Christine blogs at https://hippodillycircus.com/ and you can follow her on Twitter at https://twitter.com/XineLively.

Filed under: RevolTeens