A Teenager’s Guide to Alaska

       Imagine living in a place where in the winter the sun rises at eleven and sets at three and only sets for a few hours in the summer. Imagine a place where you are constantly surrounded by beautiful, towering, snow topped mountains. Now imagine living in a flat land with five huge and beautiful Great lakes. If you were a fourteen-year-old teenager, where would you rather live?
“I moved to Alaska when I was one from Maine,” Caleb Bizzarro said, “ And even though I loved Maine I really love Alaska.” Caleb’s family moved to Alaska because his parents didn’t like the harsh winters in Maine. He has lived in Alaska for thirteen years, but has been back to Maine many times to visit family.
       A normal school day for an Alaskan fourteen-year-old living in Fairbanks Alaska is much different than a normal school day for a fourteen-year-old living in Marshall Michigan. The amount of hours in one school day is different and the class sessions are also very different. “A normal school day for me is riding the bus to school, having two subjects, a break, math, lunch, history, and then I have a science class. My school is unique because we have elementary and the middle school students in one school. I also am in one classroom for six hours,” Caleb said. Most middle school students in Marshall switch classes more often than Caleb’s school in Fairbanks. Even the school hours are different. “My school in Fairbanks starts at nine and goes until three-thirty.” Students at Marshall Middle School go to school from seven forty until two twenty five. School life of most Alaskan teens and Michigan teens is probably the biggest difference in each lifestyle
       Sports are usually a big part of a teenager’s life and most Alaskan and Michiganian students schools have the same sports, although some are unique to Alaska. “We have snowboarding and skiing as school sports. We also have soccer, football, track, and basketball,” says Caleb. Michiganian teens have most of the same sports as Alaskans, although skiing and snowboarding reflect Alaska’s long, cold winters.
       Music is another huge part of most teenager’s lives, but this is probably the most similar interest between Alaskan and Michigan teens. “Most of my friends and I listen to Rock and Alternative. Some other students listen to Hip Hop, Rap, and a little bit of Country.” Most all of Michigan teens listen to at least one of these music types.
       “ I love the Mountains in Alaska and I never get sick of them but if I had to move anywhere else besides Alaska I would move back to Maine, but I would defiantly love to visit Michigan someday,” Caleb said.