This year, classrooms at the Met are focusing on inquiry based projects that push student thinking. On September 14, 2018, juniors at the San Diego Met High School spent the morning interviewing survivors of 9/11 in preparation for performing verbatim theatre projects. Each of the 8 visitors who came to campus had a unique first-hand experience. Visitors included a drummer who found himself working as an ironworker, a teacher who was teaching 11th grade US History just south of the Pentagon and a Brooklyn native who was in bootcamp on 9/11. Students spent the morning interviewing their guest with an eye towards understanding the unique perspective of their interviewee. Students were also listening for impactful moments which could be developed into a performance piece for verbatim theater. In verbatim theater, a student will choose a 1-2 minute piece to memorize and perform. The goal of the project is to support students in building empathy and perspective through the lens of a first-hand experience. Students enjoyed the chance to get to hear what it was like on that day and many expressed surprise at just how different the US was before and after 9/11.
This unique experience, crafted with the help of their teachers, Brianna Matranga and Alicia Colby, afforded Met juniors the chance to get to live history through the eyes of those whose lives were deeply affected by the events of 9/11.
