What do you get when you combine sixty-three student authors, more than seventy diverse characters, and an airplane where time mysteriously repeats itself? It’s not mischief and mayhem, but rather the GIS Grade 10 World Literature class book entitled Skylocked!
On March 25, 2025, the library hosted all grade 10 students, their advisors, and nearly 20 staff parents for the book launch event. As the students approached the library without knowing about the surprise event, the supportive group of staff parents formed two lines facing each other and held their arms upward to form a tunnel. Each student walked through the tunnel to enter the library while their parents and advisors cheered them on.
The students had not yet seen their class book, so this event was to honor the students’ achievement while unveiling this polished gem. Mr. Jeffrey Sootheran, head librarian, gave a warm welcome and a toast later on. Mrs. Kristen Frantz gave an encouraging speech to her students. Everyone grabbed a glass of sparkling juice to raise during the toast before Mrs. Frantz and Mr. Sootheran removed the cloths from the black display shelves, revealing the students’ book. At that moment, every student cheered. Then they lined up to sign the library’s archive copy before receiving their own personal copies.
Since there are many staff children in tenth grade this year, it was delightful to have support from several staff members as they attended the event. Nadine Agenbag, the Home & Distance Education director and parent of a tenth-grader said, “The book launch was a wonderful celebration of a dedicated teacher and the Grade 10 students sharing the experience of seeing their own writing come to life.” Torrey Sharp, Physical Education teacher and parent of a tenth-grader said, “Seeing the students’ smiles as they entered the library for the book unveiling, knowing they not only accomplished the goal but did it together was very special as a parent and teacher. It’s important to celebrate our victories! Really proud of them for their hard work and collaboration on this project. A celebration well earned!”
A couple of students shared their positive feedback about the event. Galilee Wood said, “The party was a surprise for us, and that made it really fun. I was shocked by how official it was with the sparkling apple juice and all the people. It made us feel special and like we did something really good.” Ben Lester remarked, “I think that the best thing about this entire book project is seeing a physical representation of the collective efforts of every single person in the entire class of 2027. Flipping through all of these chapters is like taking a look into each individual student’s personality and seeing a piece of themselves. Having a book that everyone in my 10th grade class has contributed to is something that I personally will hold onto for a long time. I’m really happy with the way it turned out and how everything came together!”
Skylocked is now available at the GIS library, so stop by to check it out for an intriguing read and to see what happens to the array of personalities on this airplane that doesn’t seem to be getting anywhere in time.
