What does it mean to be American?

In our English class this year, we have been working on a variety of things. This recent project was about what we thought it meant to be American. What we all thought it meant to be American is to have freedom and to live an American Dream of your own.

By Angelo H., Lucy G., Vance T., Kendal H. from Royal Oak High School in Michigan

This podcast gives you highlights of our group discussion. 

This is an edited version of our discussion.

Royal Oak High School

Tenacity City

Grade 9 ELA Miller

More responses from Royal Oak High School

Surprise Me

Unity in America

My piece is about my observations in the world of politics, and how much more conflict there is than cooperation.

Being Creative is More Than Just a Hobby

This essay is about the link between being creative and a happier, more successful life.

Critiquing The White American Creed

This piece is about how many white Americans believe that being American means you have to be white and you have to promote certain cultural values. This can be shown by the political actions of the U.S. in the past and in the present.

A Country of Immigrants

Through the experiences of talking to my mother, who was born and raised and Ukraine, I came to learn an important lesson on what it means to be "American".

How Being A First Generation Can Affect Views on What it Means to be an American

An examination on the similarities of how children of immigrants view their privileges and what it means to be an American.

Tell the truth.

The importance of what it is to say the truth, giving a different point of view to the stereotype that most people have on this subject.

The Falsity of The American Creed

This argument highlights and explains the way that diverse Americans (particularly immigrants) may view the false or fake ideas promised by the American Creed. The argument will delve into issues of incarceration and racism seen in America.

The American dream

My essay is about how racism affects the American Dream. I talk about a celebrity who deals with racism everyday, I also talk about my relative and his point of view on things.

Diversity and Tolerance in America

Diversity is debated in America. This essay shows the validity of those who support and don't support diversity, and how diversity creates tolerance.

Creating Understanding, One Story At a Time

Political polarization has become a huge issue in our country and by telling our own personal stories we can help to create a greater level of understanding to combat this issue.

Diversity Through Art

Diverse americans use music to express themselves and get points across that otherwise might have been ignored.

My American Creed

My piece is about how I believe if you’re determined, you don’t have to be born in America to achieve the American Dream.

More responses about "freedom"

Surprise Me

A Better Life

United States is a free country and that's why people have been immigrating since 1500, to be free and find a better life.

Freedom

Some people come from places where their voices will not be heard. This is about a girl who seeks freedom similar to how it is in the United States.

Is the American Creed the Villian against Race?

Your race may affect whether you receive the American Creed.

My American Creed

My essay is about my life and what me and my family think about what makes us American. I told about what my family thinks about my American Creed.

My American Creed

My American Creed centers around the idea of individual freedoms. Everyone should have the right and opportunity to pursue their dreams. No person should ever feel unimportant in this world. We should all feel like our chance is waiting for us to achieve our American Dream.

American Freedom

Freedom is an essential aspect to the life of all Americans.

America the Beautiful

“America the Beautiful”...this song is one of if not the most patriotic songs held by this great nation, but what is it that makes this nation so great?

Freedom

Freedom is important to America.

America

This is a poem about what America is, and what it should be to make it a great place to live.

My American Creed

These things all show my American Creed but we all have FREEDOM of speech, religion, press and bear arms.

The Creed of The Past, Present and Future

As we have wrapped up our unit on the American Creed, we wrote an expository essay in which we wrote what the American Creed means to us personally. I wrote that the American Creed encompasses our past, the present, and the future, as well as everything America was meant to be.

My American Creed

My American creed is doing whatever you want no matter what language you speak, what race you are, or even what country you came from. I also think that my American creed is freedom for everyone.

The American's dream

My American Creed is that Americans have had the opportunities to work hard to take advantage of the markets and systems in America so that they can achieve their life goals and dreams and do what they love.

Writing our Future: My American Creed

My paper talks about the freedoms you have being an American and how you are different from other people.

American Creed-Freedom

A Simple summary of American freedom and how we are fortunate to have these freedoms.

How freedom is an essential aspect to American life's

American lives are lived with freedom and sometimes we take that for granted and I believe if we didn't have that freedom are lives would be completely different.

Our Family's American Creed

There are many ways I connect to the American creed. I connect by my Native Americans heritage, my grandparents who served, and also our grandparents who made many contributes to Kentucky.

Freedom, Opportunity and the American Creed

My piece is about the history of my grandparents and how their lives in Italy were able to connect to my American Creed.

Home of the Free Land of the Immigrants

My piece discusses the anti-migrant stigma that has re-developed in America.

My American Creed

I love to be American creed like home, school, football, freedom, and family. These things make me a American.

Creed of Rights

My American creed is that anyone and everyone should be able to do what they want, regardless of societal limitations. But, as you'll see, even I'm limiting myself with my current creed. Let's change that.

Lucy Impacts America

We used Photoshop to create an image of someone we feel impacted America. I chose Lucille Ball because I grew up watching I Love Lucy and knew that the show was a big part of other peoples' childhoods as well as mine.

American Creed Assignment

My american creed is that i have freedom,equality, and justice. I'm proud to be an american because people can accept me or others for who i am or others like gender, culture,food,language, Etc without force of others around me.

American Creed

America is a country that has been a home to many different cultures and heritages. Many immigrants have chosen America because of the freedoms and opportunities to have a family and start a new life here.

Writing Our Future: American Creed is part of the National Writing Project’s family of youth publishing projects, all gathered under the Writing Our Future initiative.

Writing Our Future projects are designed by educators for educators and the young people they work with. Intended for use in schools, libraries, and other educational settings. All projects are COPPA compliant and educator-managed. NWP is committed to supporting young people’s writing and civic participation by providing a safe and supportive environment for youth writing, media creation, sharing, and publishing.