In 20 Years, I Hope Children My Age ...

In thinking about the next U.S. President and the way the country will be impacted by new leadership, Grade 6 students responded to prompts including, “Twenty years from now, I hope children who are currently my age will describe our country as …” and “What do I need to do to help my vision for our country in 20 years to come to life?” Here, a collection of their responses, all of which you can see on the bulletin board outside the Grade 6 English classroom on the third floor.


“I hope that in 20 years, children my age will describe our country as free, diverse, accepting, peaceful, kind, open, interesting, and helpful. This vision is vital to everyone feeling good in our country. It is essential that we employ these sorts of values every day.”
 
“Twenty years from now, I hope people will help the environment and will at least try to use inventions that pollute the air less, to help climate change and try to lessen the greenhouse effect. The Paris Agreement won’t be needed and there will be a more affordable way to make solar panels and although we may never be able to fully go off of fossil fuels, we can cut the consumption of them by at least more than 50%.”
 
“Twenty years from now I hope that children who are currently my age describe our country as peaceful, strong, equal and hopeful.”
 
“In twenty years, I want children my age to describe our country as safe. No matter their gender, identity, history or ideas, everyone has a right to feel protected …. They should know that no one will hate them for expressing their thoughts, ideas and opinions. They should know that they will not be harmed for letting their true self shine.”
 
“Twenty years from now, I hope children who are currently my age will describe our country as equal …. I want to hear that the respect for women has changed and women are considered just as amazing as men. I want to hear that the LGBT community gets the respect they deserve.
 
Let’s look at each other and be amazed by the differences.
Let’s look at what’s on the inside.
Let’s not judge people by their race, looks or gender.
Let us become the America we claim we are.”
 
“I want them to see all types of people on the street: short, tall, white skin, brown skin, all races, Mexican, Asian, American, and African. I want them to smile and think, ‘what a wonderful country.’”
 
“When I think of America, I think of diversity because of all the different cultures and beliefs there are. If we want to become more diverse and more strong, we need to be open-minded and look at both sides of a story. We can teach children to respect each other, but also fight for what they believe in. By doing this, we can have the bright future we are looking for.”
 
“So, what can we do? …. We need to work so that every soul on the planet feels comfortable and knows that they are capable of great things, no matter their race, ethnicity, political views, sexual orientation or opinions …. We also need to keep an eye out for any mean, sexist, racist, or discriminating terms that people use. We need to remind others that everyone is different, and that encouraging the slang that can hurt others is not a way to help.”
 
“One thing that gives me the courage to stand up is the fact that I am not alone. I think that many people feel the same way I do about a lot of issues.”
 
“We can always improve our country, and we can always be working to be better. You can do it. I can do it. We just have to fight for what’s right, speak our minds, and make our country as the people want it.”
Back

The School at Columbia University

556 West 110th Street
New York, NY 10025
212-851-4215
Contact Us
Community
Collaboration
Diversity
Innovation