Middle School Creative Writing and Derek Jeter

You might be wondering what Derek Jeter has to do with middle school creative writing. I’ll start by saying that our task as educators is to bring the world to our students. Derek Jeter is not only a Hall of Famer, he’s also a model human being and a perfect example of how dreams come true. Then, creative writing is not just about writing interesting stories. It’s about creating your life through writing. Let’s expand on this.

Creative Writing in 7th Grade

Jeter’s biography fits perfectly in our recently completed 7th Grade Creative Writing Block. Middle schoolers, especially in seventh grade, are increasingly emancipating themselves from parental authority. If you’re a parent in this situation, you know what I mean. Part of the reason is that youth between 14-21 become more interested in truth and the future. They naturally start to think seriously about what they will do as adults. Middle schoolers are on that cusp, and they can feel it coming.

Thus, it’s a perfect time to focus on what they wish for. Is there any force in the soul that charts our way more than focusing on what we wish for? As they say in the East, “As you think, so do you become,” and thus do we focus on it during our 7th Grade Creative Writing Block.

Derek Jeter’s Wish

Derek Jeter’s Hall of Fame baseball career didn’t start in 1995 when he got to the majors. It began in the early 80s when he proclaimed to his fourth grade class, “I will play shortstop for the Yankees one day.” Miraculously, or perhaps scientifically depending on how you look at it, his wish came true. Of course, Jeter didn’t merely wish for this. He followed it up with action throughout his youth. The more people doubted him, the harder it made him work – such a brilliant example of emotional intelligence.

His parents also supported him and never once doubted he could achieve his dream. “Can’t” was not a word allowed in their household. Furthermore, even though Derek was a naturally gifted athlete, his father never let him win at anything. Derek had to earn the win.

When, at the end of high school, Jeter was in line to be a draft pick, it seemed certain he would be chosen within the first five rounds. The Yankees had the sixth spot. Miraculously or perhaps scientifically (again), a twist of events left him free as a pick by round six, and the Yankees scooped him up without a second thought. The rest is history.

His distinguished career lasted eighteen seasons until his retirement in 2014 at the age of 40. He had a lifetime batting average of .310, 3465 hits, 260 homeruns, 5 gold gloves, and led the Yankees to 5 World Series championships. Jeter was inducted into Hall of Fame in 2020.

Creating a Life Through Writing

It matters not whether students love baseball, as I do, or not. Extraordinary human beings arise in all walks of life, and the education of youth between the ages of 7-14 should be saturated with the telling of their biographies. During these years, the soul capacity for feeling – in plain words, the heart – is being cultivated, and biographies teach more than anything else we bring. Young students want to know above all, “What does it mean to be human?”

I have taught and will continue to teach that to be human is to be creative, that we are always creating consciously or unconsciously. It is all a question of towards what we direct our creativity. Thus why it is so paramount we teach youth to direct it constructively. Middle school creative writing is an important way to do that.