Dear Seventh Grade Students,
Welcome to seventh grade English at Lefler Middle School. My name is Mr. Bax, but you may call me “Bax” for short. I am looking forward to having a fun and exciting year as we learn and grow together. This year, we will be working out of a textbook titled Elements of Literature that has many wonderful stories, poems, essays and other selections to help you learn and grow as a student. This textbook has many thinking, writing, and grammar activities. We will also be using a spelling book titled Everyday Spelling, of which many of you may have used the 6th grade version of last year. Reading books of your choice on your own time will also be required, but I will tell you more about that later. I have supplied you with an English folder and journal, which you will use to document your writing during this school year. First, before any of this can begin, I would like to take some time for us to get to know each other better (after all, we will spend around 9,000 minutes together this year!) Writing letters is a fun way to communicate (just look at how many notes get passed by middle schoolers each day). Writing is a big focus of this class. I have a good sense of humor, and this will not necessarily be your “typical” English class, but I expect students to work hard and be respectful, just as I will do for you.
I am originally from Lincoln. I grew up in a small house (three bedrooms and two bathrooms) with four younger brothers and five younger sisters. Can you believe that I am the oldest of ten kids? I am twenty-four years old, and my youngest brother, Teddy, is nine. I actually have a little sister, Hailey, who is the same age as you are! She goes to Irving Middle School, just like I did. I also attended Randolph, Yankee Hill, Lakeview, Roper, Park, and Lincoln Southeast. That’s seven different schools, all while living in the same house! After high school, I went to the University of Nebraska- Lincoln where I was a trumpet player in the Cornhusker Marching Band for two years. I love Husker Football! Other people from my immediate family include my mom, who is a nurse, and my dad, who is the owner and head coach of the Lincoln Magic Volleyball Club. I am married to Katie Bax. She is a nurse at Saint Elizabeth’s Regional Medical Center, where she sometimes gets to care for Nebraska football and volleyball players. We got married over Thanksgiving Break last year, and had 350 guests at our wedding. That’s huge! I had to go back to school two days after we got married, but I was greeted back by many students telling me “Congratulations!” We took our honeymoon over Christmas Break to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, where it seemed like we were always walking. We also got to try many different new types of food and I swam in the ocean for the first time. It was a blast!
My summer was very busy, as I decided to teach summer school at Lincoln North Star. I taught tenth grade English each day from 8 o’clock in the morning until noon. Then, I would go home and usually take a nap or surf the internet. I also decided to try to get back into shape, so I went on a very strict diet and have lost 20 pounds. I feel so energized! My wife and I also went on a trip to Johnson lake in Lexington, NE for a weekend in July, where our friend Kara’s family owns a cabin. More recently, we returned from a week-long trip to New York City to visit Katie’s friends. While we were in New York, we visited many neat places, such as the Museum of Natural History, Central Park, and The Metropolitan Museum of Art, which was doing a display of works by Pablo Picasso. We also did a lot of shopping, but the only thing I came home with was an “I Love New York” t-shirt. On this vacation, we walked a lot. Katie and I have just recently decided to begin our search for our first house. It has been very hectic so far!
My favorite hobby is surfing the internet. While I am at home, if I’m not doing anything else, I’m probably sitting on the couch with my laptop looking at my favorite websites. My second favorite hobby is cooking. While I have not had any formal training, I feel that I am a pretty good cook (if I follow a recipe!) I usually make supper (not dinner, as that is lunch) for Katie and myself, but sometimes she helps out. Usually, if Katie has to work late, I don’t even start making supper until 10 o’clock at night. I am extremely excited for the College Football season to begin, because I think this will be another great year for the Huskers. I feel sorry for my downstairs neighbors on football Saturdays, due to the fact that I’m usually jumping around and screaming at my TV. I cried when Texas beat us in the Big 12 championship game last year. Katie was very concerned. On top of those hobbies, I also like to hunt deer and fish.
Well, there are several other things about me you may be curious about, but I’ll wait to see your questions in your letter. I am eager to read about and get to know all of you better. This will be the first permanent writing sample to go in your folder, so make sure to do your best. I know you will!
Sincerely,
Mr. Bax
