The Heart of the Hive: Mrs. Hayes Reflecons on 75 Years of BHS

Grisel Gonzalez
Editor-in-Chief
  Walking the halls of Bonneville High today, the glow of Chromebooks and the sounds of weekly ‘song bells’ mark a stark contrast to the school’s opening in 1951. To celebrate this remarkable journey, Mrs. Hayes, a 10th grade English and ninth grade creative writing teacher at BHS, reflected on the school’s evolution and gathered advice for future students. Hayes attended Bonneville herself and mentions that the biggest advancement has been technology. Hayes loves the fact that every student is now able to carry around and use their own personal Chromebook. Furthermore, she also appreciates the projectors and programs that teachers are now able to have in order to make learning more visible. Another new addition at BHS that Hayes enjoys is the traditional warning bell being replaced with amusing and lively songs such as Taylor Swift and Queen each week. However, regarding the technology advancements, Hayes does not like the fact that many students now use AI to write their papers, making it hard to distinguish their work from AI’s work.
  While the tools in the classroom have changed, the unpredictable nature of student-teacher relationships remains the heart of Hayes’s career. Hayes shares that her most memorable experience at BHS was an interaction between her and a student. Her story begins four years ago when she told a student that he was not allowed to leave class to get a drink of water. Her student then declared that if he was unable to leave the classroom for a drink of water, he would take a drink out of her water bottle. She playfully scolded him and challenged him that he would not dare; however, as soon as she turned her back and began her lesson, he did in fact take a drink out of her water bottle. Hayes laughs as she recalls, “I will never forget that!” Other fond memories that Hayes has are all the lip sync battles she has participated in for the entertainment of her students. Lastly, she mentions that she has witnessed various “aha moments” with students when they grasp a concept in class. She has also received some amazing thank you notes from students, letting her know that she is making a positive difference at BHS.
  Hayes’s advice for current students is to “spend less time on your phones. Do this for psychological and academic reasons. One way to make this happen is to turn off all the notifications on your phone except texts. Prolonging attention span is the key to succeeding in school and in relationships.” Beyond the classroom, Hayes reflects on her hopes for the next upcoming years at BHS: “Having a solid work ethic is invaluable in today's workforce. I love seeing students try new, hard things, be vulnerable, and find out how many awesome things there are to do in this world if we just get off our screens and do something with our own two hands. I would be proud to have many of my students as neighbors and peers someday.” Specifically speaking about Bonneville, Hayes declares that there are several opportunities at BHS that can help students see what they like, and what they could tolerate in a job someday. She shares that sports and clubs help students learn to work together to accomplish something amazing. She continues to state, “I hope every student tries at least one or two extracurricular activities during their four years of high school.” Hayes reflects on Bonneville High School, feeling that it is unique compared to other schools due to the large variety of classes, sports, and clubs that bigger schools have but the strong teacher-student or coach-athlete connections that smaller schools have. All in all, Hayes finishes by exclaiming, “I’m proud to be a Bonneville bee and proud to be teaching Bonneville bees!”

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