I grew up in the small town of Marine City, Michigan with my family of four: my dad, mom, and brother. Growing up, I feel that I had a great childhood experience. From Kindergarten to 4th grade I was homeschooled, and then I transferred to a charter school called Merritt Academy in my 5th grade year. In the 7th grade, I transferred to Marine City Middle School, but after 2 years of attending I transferred back to Merritt Academy and stayed there until I graduated in 2014. The reason I share this information is because I feel that my grade school experience was very diverse - having learned in multiple school settings. This enables me to understand children's school experiences in mutliple school settings, as well as understand how different types of schools generally function.

I can't help but include a brief summary of my own experience in these settings. Homeschooling is a completely different experience when compared with a public or charter school education. In this setting I learned how to study on my own without allowing myself to get distracted, which became benificial to me later on in life. The charter school I attended was extremely pleasant and welcoming, and though it was much smaller in many ways than a public school, I have never regretted my decision to attend that school. Public school was a completely different experience for me. I must be honest: It was miserable; it was threatening and cruel. Yet I am thankful for this experience because from it I gained an understanding of what children might experience at school and inwardly when ostracized by their peers.