Every year, I try to find something to look forward to as motivation to get out of bed and go to school that day.  Freshman year, it was the prospect of meeting new friends. Sophomore year, it was leaving school early to go to doctor’s appointments. Junior year, it was Mr. Eldridge’s 5th period AP Language class.

It was different from my previous English classes, which I’ve also had great experiences. However, instead of simply taking notice of the same old holy trinity of “syntax, punctuation, diction”, Mr. Eldridge taught us to not ask what was written in the article but why the author decided to write their article as such.

The homework and classwork were deceptively short; the attempt to annotate a simple 5-line excerpt or single-page passage resulted in heated discussions during lunch, temple-massages, and reflections scrawled all over the paper. Even after what seemed like thorough analyses of the writing, Mr. Eldridge would immediately point out something all of us should’ve, but hadn’t, noticed. And I never had so much fun being frustrated. It was mindblowing to finally take notice of some hidden structure that was so obvious but still overlooked. That showed me there was always more to learn, more hidden meanings and pieces of knowledge waiting to be uncovered. Even now, when reading poems or stories casually, I’ll take notice of specific stylistic choices the author made (which is great, if not distracting when I am engrossed in reading).

What is most unique about his class, however, is the idea of community, a word that would instantly incite many flashbacks in Eldridge veterans. The curriculum went beyond teaching strictly writing skills and reading analysis to discuss important views on things such as duty to fellow man. For the duration of the year, the theme of community stuck with me the most, not because it was one of the most touched upon subjects, but because his class became a reflection of what we learned. Never before had I been in a class where the students felt so comfortable with one another. This isn’t just because the class coincidentally was comprised of social individuals who were friends with one another – the first day of school is evidence of that. But somehow by June, Mr. Eldridge had turned the class into an incredible learning atmosphere promoting collaboration and friendliness. Students knew everyone else in the class and could strike up a conversation with them at any time.  Almost every classmate I’ve talked to has agreed that what they appreciated a lot from his class was how communal the class was, making it easier and better to learn.

It is hard to put into words how important Mr. Eldridge and an hour of AP Language a day was to me. I am so grateful to Mr. Eldridge for creating such a great class for me to look forward to. Because of this experience, my empathy and passion for learning have increased many times over, and I can’t thank him enough.

-Ailin Atasoy, 12, Pow Wow, Staff Writer