March 2024

Web Submission:

Hello. Fellow Crime Junkie and teacher here.

Last month I listened to your episode about Mya PeƱa and Emma Walker. This episode was so powerful and it got me thinking. I teach high school English, and since this episode was centered around high school students I REALLY wanted to incorporate it within our class somehow. I went back and forth with myself, especially with the climate of the House Bill 1134 here in Indiana, and debated getting ā€œin troubleā€ for sharing the information. Then in true Crime Junkie fashion….. I said ā€œscrew that, if I can help even one kiddo it’s worth it!ā€ I will deal with the repercussions.

So, I listened to the episode with my 11th grade classes. It fit in perfectly, since we just started our narrative unit. I obviously discussed the greater narrative techniques you all use; such as foreshadowing, hooking the listener (reader), tone etc. BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY, I got the word out to students. It was very powerful! I have since had several students come up to me and tell me thank you for letting them listen to the podcast. They tell me their stories, and I have even had some ask me how to help their friends in similar situations.

As my day went on, I introduced the story for the 4th time that day, and somehow in this class, I began telling them my own story of domestic violence. They had so many questions and I did my best to answer what I could, we definitely bonded and had ā€œa momentā€ that day in class.

All in all, I am sharing this to let you know, the word has been shared with even more listeners and you all are helping in so many ways. I wanted to say, Thank You, from me and my 11th grade students. I am so glad I was able to share my favorite podcast with my students and get a powerful message out there. There were many lessons taught that day in class. Thank you for your time.