• These Are the Good Old Days

  by Jasmine Huang

  We shared a name, a summer program, and three years of being best friends. Jasmine and I were an unbreakable duo, and our friendship was the only thing I could count on every single summer—until COVID hit.  In March 2020, the news of school being canceled initially excited me.

• Humanizing Helena

  by Evangeline Mujica

  CRASH! It was as if I could feel it plummeting toward me right before it happened—and yet, the chandelier never fell. It crackled and swayed above my head, its bright golden lights engulfing my field of vision. The crescendoing organ, meanwhile, made all the seats in the theatre shiver.

• At War With My Phone

  by W.I.

  In the fall of 2023, I was in 9th grade, and my TikTok algorithm was set to funny memes and trends like Lebron James, Chipotle girl, the TikTok rizz party, brainrot, popular dances, and boy bands. My friends and I watched the 60-second videos on the bus to school in the morning, during lunch period, and even in school before the phone ban was implemented two years later.

• Chatbot Comfort

  by Lylagrace M.

  Names have been changed.  When someone asks if I use AI, I lie. I say, “No” or “Rarely.” Despite the fact that so many use it, there’s still a stigma. Especially if you’re using it as a counselor.  I’m not socially inept: I don’t flee to AI because I have no one to talk to.

• Being Creative, Getting Paid

  by Anonymous

  Names and identifying details have been changed. One of my earliest memories, from when I was 3: I dunked my hands into the paint can and watched them disappear into the blue liquid. My sister Stephanie and cousin Axel were covering each other and the floor with blue handprints and footprints, giggling loudly, and I joined in, slapping blue onto everything around me.

• I Don’t Want AI to Do My Thinking

  by Maggie Crary

  It’s been only two years since I first heard a teacher warn students not to cheat using AI. Since then, as I’ve learned more, it seems so obviously wrong and contrary to education itself. It strikes me as an attack on thinking, because AI can read the book for you and then write your essay about it.