Part Two: New York Stories, circa 2007

PART TWO:
Here are the stories from the teenagers of 2007.

Assignment: Read any three "Individual Stories." You may also listen to the audio interviews. If you miss class, read the stories at home. Do not read the "Things Kids Have to Face" section yet. We will be reading it in class.

INDIVIDUAL STORIES:
My So-Called Gossipy Life

'If I'm Not Busy, I Complain That I'm Bored, but When I Am Busy, It's Like, Oh, My God.'

'I Was the Most Athletic Girl, the Best Girl Playing Sports.'

'My Family Has High Hopes for Me Because They Know I'm Going to Do Great Things.'

PIN MONEY
Angst Amid the Artichokes

'You Don't Have to Do Bad Things to Be in a Gang. You Don't Have to Do Anything You Don't Want to Do.'

SOPHISTICATED LADIES
Girls, Mean and Otherwise

'A Lot of Girls Like Me Because I'm Original and Enthusiastic and Also Because I Like to Play the Piano.'

'We're Always Talking About How We All Want to Have Boyfriends, and How We Have So Much Love to Give but No One to Give It To.'

THE HANG
The Island of Black Jeans

'My Parents Had This Big Argument Over Whose Fault It Was, Why I Chose to Be This Way.'

'Our Year Is the Most Competitive Year in the History of College Applications. Or Something Like That.'

'Some People Are Like, "Why Are You All Dressed Up in School?" but People Judge You by the Way You Take Care of Yourself.'

'I Had to Work, Because if I Didn't, There Wouldn't Be Food on the Plate.'

AUDIO INTERVIEWS WITH KIDS:
Wild At Heart, At Seventeen


THINGS A LOT OF KIDS HAVE TO FACE:

UP AND ABOUT
University Blues

ALL DRESSED UP
The Best of Times, the Worst of Times

Where They Were, on That Day


ASSIGNMENT: My New York

Write your own "My New York" story. Write about a part of your life in this city: Something that happened, some memory, some group of friends, something that took place in a specific neighborhood or place. Capture it in a bottle, like the Sandman did in "Ramadan." We can capture a moment like that through vivid and compelling writing.

Remember, New York City is any place within the five boroughs: Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, The Bronx and Staten Island. New York City also includes the "Other Islands," such as Roosevelt Island, Riker's Island, Ward’s and Randall's Island, Ellis Island, and Governor's Island.

You will write a first draft of your essay. It should be approximately two typed pages (Times New Roman 12 point font, 1.5 line spacing). That should be about four handwritten pages, written on 8.5 x 11 paper in normal-sized handwriting. Then, in your second draft, you will express yourself using more sophisticated vocabulary and descriptive imagery to enhance your story.