On April 5, the seventh graders went on a field trip about the book “Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet” by Jamie Ford, which they analyzed in class. On this trip, students learned more about the book they read about in class.
“I was the main organizer, and I worked with Mr. Faucher,” English teacher Heidi-Marie Wiggins said.
As the book’s story took place in Seattle, it seemed convenient to visit where it took place.
“I think it was pretty helpful because I was able to see the true image instead of what I just imagined based off of the imagery and things that were going on [in the book],” seventh grader Sulekha Hassan said.
The Wing Luke Museum is a history and art museum focusing on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders in Seattle.
“The 3D models of the internment camps,” seventh grader Mateo Andrade said was the most important part of the Wing Luke Museum to him.
The International District is the center of the Asian American communities in Seattle.
“I sensed some excitement of being off campus,” Wiggins said.
“Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet” won the 2010 Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature.
“The most important part of the trip for me was the tour. But also I think, getting off campus and experiencing a rich event in our city with the whole seventh grade, that was also really important. Having an experience-based day is important to me. I wish we did it more,” Wiggins said.
For the first part of the day, students traveled in two groups. One for touring the Wing Luke Museum, and the other for the walking tour.