Written by Maggie Smith
This past June, Justin Choo, a 7th grade student at Rise Kohyang Middle School (RKMS), attended a Life Experience Lesson (LEL) trip to San Francisco with approximately 30 of his classmates. This particular LEL trip is awarded to the top 6th grade students from RKMS each year based upon achievement of academic and behavioral goals. The experience offers the students opportunities such as biking the Golden Gate Bridge, visiting Alcatraz, and practicing their etiquette at a formal dinner.
I had the pleasure of chaperoning this trip, and Justin was in my student group. It was amazing to see my students explore everything around them with a wide-eyed wonderment that never seemed to fade. Even after riding nine miles on bikes to cross the Golden Gate Bridge, not one of them complained.
As part of RKMS’s mission to prepare students for college, the trip also visited UC Santa Barbara and UC Berkeley. For many of the students this was their first time setting foot on a college campus, and Justin and his classmates had lots of questions for me about tuition, exams, and dormitories. They also had a blast rolling down 4.0 Hill at Berkeley, hoping for a little luck to get straight A’s during their 7th grade year.
The LEL trip provided many other great opportunities for our students as well, and I encourage you to take a look at Justin’s “Prezi” presentation for an in-depth look at the trip and all of the experiences it offered. Justin has entered his presentation in a contest, and you can view and vote for his Prezi here until Friday, December 4th. Please support Justin and his amazing reflection on his Life Experience Lesson trip!