A group of Annapolis Middle School (AMS) students decided they wanted to know more about the teachers and staff that worked in the school, so they took the initiative and did a series of interviews with some of the teachers and staff they were interested in.
This conversation is with Ms. Bonnie Millener, also known as Ms. B, the Choir and Music Teacher at Annapolis Middle.
Hello, we were wondering how 7th grade was like for you when you were in 7th grade?
I loved 7th grade. 7th grade was like the first year of my life where I had drama happen in my friend group’s and that’s like the main thing I remember. So school was pretty okay and I got good enough grades. Then, the rest of my life started to become a little more interesting, because it’s where you start having friend problems, people started dating each other, and friend groups break up and get together, so while I look back on 7th grade it was definitely just a lot of drama. *Laughs*
Where were you before you started working at AMS?
I was in a lot of different places to be honest. I went to college in Washington state and before that I lived in the Chicago area of Illinois for pretty much my whole life. About a month ago I drove all the way here from Washington in my Honda.
What led you to the music profession?
Well I’ve been in music my entire life. I was raised with it. I was in church choir and many other choirs. I did absolutely everything I could all through school to be connected to music. I was in choir, band, orchestra, and drama. So when it came time to pick a profession, it was pretty much just “what kind of performing art do I want to pick?” I’m pretty attached to all of them, but I really do like choir and that’s what I teach now.
What was your favorite thing to do as a child?
My favorite thing as a child? Do you mean my hobbies or the things I did outside of school? Umm, I was really involved at school, so a lot of the things I liked was at school. When I was outside of school I really liked just getting home and relaxing. I usually liked baking things and bringing it to school for my friends and a lot of the time I would come home from school and just watch things like “The Nanny” on TV. *Laughs* I don’t know if any of you know what that show is at all, but that was my favorite show when I was your age.
Now a fun question, do you have a favorite sports team? If not, what was your favorite movie or drama show?
So I guess my favorite sports team would be the one my dad rooted for, which was the Buccaneers, but I am definitely more into like movies and TV. I would say my favorite movie is “The Devil Wears Prada” and my favorite TV show right now is “The Umbrella Academy”.
This is our final question, what was your backup plan if music didn’t work out for you?
There wasn’t one. Music isn’t something that works out for people. It’s something you choose to make your whole life and there are so many different careers in it that there was no way it wasn’t going to do some element of music.
Thank you for the Interview Ms. B
No problem, I enjoyed it.
Oliver S, Student intern