At his school's fifth grade promotion ceremony, Jackson Tint presented this incredible speech about the distinction between important activities and world-changing activities. Read it, and you might find yourself contemplating Jackson's wisdom the rest of the day.

May 2, 2012

Hello. My name is Jackson.  Thank you for being here today to help the class of 2012 say farewell to our Canyon View Family.  This is a quote from Steve Jobs the co-founder and former CEO of Apple:

"It’s a disservice to constantly put things in this radical new light--that it’s going to change everything.  Things don’t have to change the world to be important."

I am very fond of that quote.  I think it perfectly represents our graduation from elementary school today. Steve Jobs said  things don’t have to change the world to be important and I agree. This ceremony may not change the world, but it is definitely important--for us. This will probably be one of the most important events in our life, and also one of the most memorable. This is the time when we go from being just kids to being adolescents on the way to adulthood.  Some of us may get there later than others, but we’ll all arrive there eventually.  

Canyon View’s education has helped us achieve many goals that may or may not change the world but are still important. For example, without an educational foundation, you can’t move on to greater things. We can’t do algebra until we learn how to count. We can’t be amazing writers without learning the alphabet. We can’t win the Nobel Prize in science without learning the scientific method. We can’t make history until we learn history.  

One of the things at Canyon View that helped me on the way to becoming an adult was being a member of the Tech Team.  First, I enjoyed it a lot and I was excited to do it.  Computers are one of my favorite things on the planet. Secondly, I felt like I belonged. Everybody around me was interested in computers just like I was. Third, I learned responsibility because I had to be at school early and show up on time.  I also had the responsibility of making sure the announcements went smoothly.  On my first day I messed up, but after that I asked some questions and then I felt confident that I knew what I was doing. Tech Team didn’t change the world either, But it changed me. I would also like to thank Dr. Bartlett and Mr. Ruiz for making Tech Team possible.