Big Kid, Small Chair: Ossmar Zapata

Class of 2008, Part 1: In His Parents Shoes

06/04/2008

Some students coast through school with no problems. Others need to learn English. Sometimes they move from town to town. And some kids get in big trouble before they figure out what to do. That's Ossmar Zapata. And this month he graduates from Beverly Park Elementary School near Seattle. KUOW's Phyllis Fletcher has part one in our series on the Class of 2008.

TOMORROW, THE YOUNGEST OF SEVEN GETS READY FOR HIGH SCHOOL, IN PART TWO OF OUR SERIES ON THE CLASS OF 2008.

OSSMAR ZAPATA TRIES TO PUT HIMSELF IN HIS PARENTS' SHOES. WHEN HE TALKS ABOUT THE THOUGHT PROCESS THEY GO THROUGH WHEN THEY DECIDE IF THEY SHOULD LET THEIR 12–YEAR–OLD SON GO OUT ON A SATURDAY, OR ASK HIM TO WORK.

ZAPATA: "If I should let him go or not. . . or maybe if I let him go, they'd get in trouble, and if I didn't get him go, maybe. . . ."

OSSMAR TRAILS OFF. . . HIS PARENTS' DILEMMA TAKES HIS MIND–AND HIS WORDS — IN CIRCLES.

ZAPATA: "And they tell me that I need to think, you know, before I say something or do something. 'Cause I would probably not get in trouble as much, too. But yeah, now I don't really get in trouble, like I was saying."

HIS TEACHER ROSEANNE ESPOSITO AGREES. HE DOESN'T GET IN TROUBLE ANYMORE. ALTHOUGH SHE SAYS IT HASN'T ALWAYS BEEN EASY.

ESPOSITO: "Um, easy, has never been my criteria for best student, so. He's very social and knows how to deal with people, which I really think is helpful with the middle school age. He's academically really bright. Certainly a great student to have around."

AND TO UNDERSTAND HOW HE'S COME AROUND, YOU HAVE TO WALK IN OSSMAR'S SHOES.

HE WAS IN MIDDLE SCHOOL IN WENATCHEE.

ZAPATA: "When we got here, I think it was on the weekend or something."

THEN HIS FAMILY MOVED TO THE SEATTLE AREA IN OCTOBER.

ZAPATA: "And then on Monday, we went to the district. They asked me what grade I was in, and then I told them 6th. They said 'that's Beverly Park Elementary.' And I'm like, 'are you sure it's elementary?' and they're like 'yeah.' And I'm like, 'OK, I'll just go anyways, 'cause I can't do anything about it.'"

IN MIDDLE SCHOOL, HE HAD A LOT MORE FREEDOM. HE GOT TO RUN TRACK. AND HE FIT IN WITH THE BIG KIDS.

HE'S PUSHING 5 FOOT 6. GROWN–UPS SOMETIMES THINK HE'S 18.

SO GOING BACK TO ELEMENTARY WAS AWKWARD.

FLETCHER: "'Cause the chair seems kinda small for you."

ZAPATA: "Yeah, they're kinda small and I'm kinda tall. So it kinda hurts your bottom, and then, yeah, and your back too sometimes."

WHEN HE WAS ABLE TO GET HIS BOTTOM INTO A COMFORTABLE SEAT, THE ACADEMICS WEREN'T ALWAYS UP TO SPEED WITH WHAT HE'D BEEN LEARNING AT HIS MIDDLE SCHOOL IN WENATCHEE.

ZAPATA: "I kinda wish that they had algebra here, 'cause that was kinda fun. Yeah, I wish the science here was like the other science that we did over there, 'cause kinda like the other science better."

LIKE GEOLOGY. A WORD HE STRUGGLES TO REMEMBER AS HE TALKS ABOUT THE MOVEMENT OF MOUNTAINS AND ROCKS.

OSSMAR WAS BORN IN OREGON. HIS FAMILY MOVED BACK TO MEXICO AND THEN TO WENATCHEE. HIS PARENTS WORKED IN ORCHARDS, AND HIS DAD DID LANDSCAPING. OSSMAR WENT TO SCHOOL, AND TRIED TO STAY OUT OF TROUBLE.

SOMETIMES, HE COULDN'T.

THE WORST TIME WAS LAST SCHOOL YEAR. WHEN HE AND SOME FRIENDS BEAT UP ANOTHER KID. THEY GOT SUSPENDED.

HIS PARENTS WERE BEYOND UPSET.

OSSMAR: "When I was suspended, they took me to work for, like, my punishment. I gotta go help 'em out. And they're, like, 'if you stay out of school, you're gonna have to be working. Um, and then it's not gonna be very fun, 'cause you're not gonna be able to finish school."

IT'S A PUNISHMENT A LOT OF IMMIGRANT FAMILIES RESORT TO. "YOU DON'T WANNA GO TO SCHOOL? FINE. YOU CAN WORK HARD, LIKE US. IT WON'T BE FUN, AND YOU WON'T BE HAPPY."

ESPOSITO: "What's a little bit sad about what messages they're giving to their kids is that somehow they're not successful."

ROSEANNE ESPOSITO IS OSSMAR'S TEACHER AT BEVERLY PARK.

SHE TEACHES EVERY KIND OF KID. AND A LOT OF KIDS FROM IMMIGRANT FAMILIES. LIKE OSSMAR. SHE'S HEARD ABOUT THE WORK PUNISHMENT.

ESPOSITO: "I do hear that a lot, and I hope that parents recognize more that sometimes you can have families and parents that are better off, and are not giving them the best messages. And so I, I hope that they recognize that theirs are just as important, and sometimes better."

ESPOSITO SAYS OSSMAR'S PARENTS' MESSAGE MUST HAVE WORKED.

SHE SAYS HE REALLY PROVED HIMSELF THIS YEAR, ESPECIALLY IN MATH. REMEMBER, HE ACTUALLY LIKES ALGEBRA.

ESPOSITO: "You know, you can get a lot of kids that understand math, but will still say 'I hate math.' Even though they're good at it. And he is somebody that really enjoys figuring out a problem. So I think one of the things I really hope for him is that he's challenged."

IF HE IS, MS. ESPOSITO SAYS OSSMAR WILL LOVE 7TH GRADE.

WHEN OSSMAR REFLECTS ON HIS PARENTS, AND THEIR PUNISHMENTS, HE SOUNDS LIKE HE'S ALREADY IN MIDDLE SCHOOL.

OSSMAR: "I sometimes get mad at my parents, but I know they're just trying to help out and stuff, so. That's what my mom says. She says she does that 'cause she cares about me and she tells me the right things to do."

OSSMAR ZAPATA GRADUATES THIS MONTH FROM BEVERLY PARK ELEMENTARY IN SOUTH PARK.

PHYLLIS FLETCHER, KUOW NEWS.

© Copyright 2008, KUOW