Water bottle flipping entails throwing a plastic water bottle so that it spins in the air and lands upright, explained Friends Academy fifth grader Liam Cogliano.

Cogliano focused on the 2016 trend of water bottle flipping for a presentation he gave on February 2, before attempting the phenomenon himself. He got it on the second try.

"It's a good way to kill time. It's a good way to have a friendly competition with your friends, and there's a lot of science behind it," concluded Cogliano.

Cogliano was one of 22 fifth graders to present in front of peers, parents, and staff in the school's auditorium on February 2. The English assignment was to lecture in the form of a TED Talk on something that could fit into one of three categories — the lives of teenagers, technology and science, or social justice. TED Talks are lectures series given by authorities on varying topics.

While the students were not given a time limit, they did present slides and wear a microphone. English teacher Marlaina Trepanier said the assignment was inspired by a variety of short essays that students had been reading in class.

"I wanted to share as many voices as possible," said Trepanier, explaining that the stories demonstrate the importance of believing in your own voice, as well as the change that language can affect. She wanted students to think about why they had chosen their particular topics, and what message they wanted to convey.

“I was looking for a way to pull together this power of language. Meshing fiction and nonfiction is a skill. If you can command that, it’s a power,” she said. Trepanier explained that students also developed researching, writing, and public speaking skills for this project.

“They were really willing to put themselves in it, and they asked a lot of good questions,” said Trepanier. “I was really proud of them. I know I was asking them to do something really hard.”

Trepanier introduced the students by saying that she too is uncomfortable with public speaking, but has gotten better over the years. Trepanier — a Dartmouth High grad — studied English in her undergraduate program, and focused on creative nonfiction for her masters degree. She said that it was fun to collaborate with students.

“I got to teach something I worked really in depth on, using a creative voice to talk about nonfiction,” she explained. Other students’ topics included how to motivate yourself, Mars exploration, and segregation in sports.

The students started working on the project in October. Trepanier said that the while this assignment is a first, she hopes to make it an annual eighth grade tradition.

Abigail Shields debunks the negative stereotypes surrounding teenagers by pointing out that there are a lot of influential and world renowned teenagers.