School: Minister Destiny Testimony Schools Track: Youth Month: 7 of 12 (self-paced: all sections are posted, and you learn at your own pace) Presented by: Minister Destiny Marie Morgan, Muslim Ordained Minister
This lesson is educational information and is not legal advice. Laws vary by state. If you are in danger right now, call 911.
Before you start
- This space is private. Your answers are checked in your own browser as you go; your progress and scores are saved only on this device.
- We never ask your name. Not here, not on the certificate. If you earn a certificate, you download it first and write your own name on it after.
- How you pass this month: Take the Month 7 test at the end and score 80% or higher to earn this month's certificate. You can retake it as many times as you need — each retake presents the questions in a different order, with the answer choices in a different order too.
- No judgment. Trouble at school or trouble at home does not make you a bad person. This lesson is about safer choices and getting support early.
- If you are in danger right now: call 911. You can also call or text 988, or text HOME to 741741 for the Crisis Text Line, any time, day or night.
The lesson
1. What trouble at school can look like
Trouble at school is not one single thing. It can start small, like being late many days in a row, missing homework, or arguing with a teacher when you are already stressed. It can also be bigger, like a fight, leaving school without permission, damaging property, or being accused of taking something that is not yours. Sometimes the trouble is really about school itself. Sometimes school is just where feelings from home, friendships, or exhaustion finally spill over.
It helps to name what actually happened, plainly and without extra labels. "I left class without permission three times this week" is clearer than "I am a problem student." A clear description points to a clear fix. A label just sticks to you and follows you into the next classroom, even when your behavior has already changed.
Schools usually respond in steps. A teacher may talk with you first. A counselor or administrator may get involved next. There may be a meeting with a parent or caregiver, a behavior plan, detention after school, or, for serious safety issues, a suspension where you are sent home for a set time. Each school has its own rules in a student handbook, and those rules matter. Ask for the rule in writing if you do not understand why something is happening.
2. Why early help works better than waiting
Small problems are easier to repair. A missed assignment can become a plan. A misunderstanding with a teacher can become a short, calm conversation. When a problem is hidden for weeks, adults tend to find out all at once, and the reaction feels much bigger. That is why telling a trusted adult early is a strength, not tattling on yourself.
Pick an adult at school who has been fair to you, even if they are not your favorite teacher. That might be your school counselor or nurse, a coach, a librarian, or a teacher from a past year. You can start simply: "I am getting into trouble and I do not want it to get worse. Can I tell you what has been going on?" You do not need a perfect speech. Honest, short sentences work best.
If you have an individualized education program, a 504 plan, or other school supports, those supports are part of the picture. Meetings about discipline should take your learning needs and health needs seriously. A parent, caregiver, or trusted adult can help you ask whether your plan was followed and whether it still fits. You are allowed to ask questions about your own education.
3. The pause plan for heated moments at school
Most school trouble gets worse in about thirty seconds. Someone laughs, a comment lands wrong, a hallway gets crowded, and pride takes over. A pause plan gives your brain a job other than reacting.
Try these steps, in order, when you feel your body heating up:
- Stop talking. Close your mouth on purpose so a sentence you cannot take back does not slip out.
- Put space between you and the problem. Step back, turn toward a safe direction, or walk toward a classroom, office, or other supervised place.
- Slow your breathing by letting the breath out longer than you take it in, for several rounds.
- Use a short, neutral sentence if you must speak: "I need a minute," or "I am going to get an adult."
- Go to an adult before you go back to the group. Explain what happened in plain facts first, feelings second.
- Do not record, post, or forward the conflict. A video turns a bad ten minutes into a problem that keeps spreading for weeks.
What not to do matters just as much. Do not bring friends in as backup for a fight. Do not threaten someone in writing, because messages can be saved and shared. Do not leave school grounds in anger without telling an adult where you are going — leaving turns a discipline issue into a safety emergency, because now nobody knows where you are.
4. If you are called to the office or accused of something
Being called to the office can feel frightening even when you did nothing wrong. You still have choices that protect you.
Listen to the full question before you answer. It is okay to say, "I need to think about that for a minute," or "Can my parent or caregiver be contacted?" If you do not understand a word or a rule, ask what it means. If you are asked to write what happened, stick to what you saw and did yourself, in order, without guessing about other people's motives.
Be truthful without adding extra admissions about things you do not know. If you made a mistake, owning your part early, calmly, and once is usually stronger than a long chain of changing stories. Changing stories makes adults doubt even the true parts. If you believe an accusation is wrong, say so clearly and ask what evidence the school is using and how you can respond.
Ask three practical questions before you leave the meeting: What happens next? How long does it last? Who can my family or I contact if I have questions? Write down names, dates, and what was decided while it is still fresh. Paper helps memory, especially when you are upset.
5. Why young people think about running away
Running away usually starts as an attempt to solve a feeling, not as a plan for a new life. The feeling might be shame after trouble at school, fear of a punishment at home, anger after a fight, grief, or a belief that nobody will listen. Some young people leave because home itself feels unsafe. Those reasons deserve to be taken seriously, even though leaving without a safe place creates new dangers very fast.
It is important to separate two situations. If home is unsafe — if someone is hurting you, threatening you, or you are afraid to be there — that is not ordinary disobedience, and you need adult help and protection. Tell a trusted adult, your school counselor or nurse, or call Childhelp at 1-800-422-4453. If you are in immediate danger, call 911. If instead the problem is a painful argument or fear of getting in trouble, leaving overnight almost never makes that conversation easier. It adds fear, police involvement, and lost trust to the original problem.
In Massachusetts, when a young person leaves home and cannot be found, adults will usually try to locate them and return them to a safe setting. Police, family, and the school may all become involved. This information is general information only, not legal advice. What matters for your safety is simpler: the streets, cars, stations, and strangers' homes are far less predictable than the problem you left.
6. The real risks once you are out the door
The first hours away can feel quiet, which can fool you into thinking you have solved something. The risks build as the night goes on. You need food, a bathroom, a place to sleep, a charged phone, and a way to stay warm or cool. Friends may help for one night and then face their own parents' rules. Hiding in an empty building, a car, or with someone you barely know puts you where no trusted adult can find you.
People who offer a ride, food, or a couch may be kind — and some are not. A person who quickly offers everything you need, asks you not to tell anyone where you are, or wants photos, secrecy, or favors in return is showing red flags, no matter how friendly they seem. You never owe anyone your body, your silence, or your location for helping you.
Other warning signs to act on right away include: your phone is dying and no one knows where you are; the place you planned to stay falls through; someone pressures you to use alcohol or drugs to relax; or you have medication you need at home and no way to get it. Any one of these means it is time to call a trusted adult, call 988, text HOME to 741741, or call 911 if you are unsafe.
7. Safer choices that still give you space
Wanting space is normal. The goal is space with safety attached to it. Try these options before leaving, or use them if you have already left and want a way back:
- Ask a trusted relative or a friend's parent, through your parent or caregiver or another trusted adult, if you can cool off at their home for a few hours in the open — not as a secret.
- Go to a public, staffed place during open hours, like your local library, and use that time to call a trusted adult and make a plan.
- Write the unsent version of what you want to say first. Read it later when you are calmer, and turn it into a shorter, safer conversation.
- Agree on a cool-down signal at home: a word or gesture that means "I need twenty minutes alone in my room before we talk."
- If you have already left, send one locating message to a trusted adult right away: where you are, who is with you, and that you are willing to talk about a safe way home.
A return is not a defeat. Many families and schools will focus first on the fact that you came back safely if you come back quickly and honestly. Waiting days to be found makes every conversation harder.
8. Repair after trouble — how trust is rebuilt
Repair has three parts: acknowledge, restore, and change. Acknowledge means naming your part without excuses: "I left class and scared people because nobody knew where I was." Restore means fixing what can be fixed — returning property, cleaning up damage you caused with adult guidance, or apologizing directly and briefly to the person affected. Change means showing a new pattern over time: arriving on time for two weeks, checking in with a counselor on Fridays, keeping your phone put away during class.
Apologies work best when they are specific and short. "Sorry for everything" is hard to believe. "I am sorry I shouted at you in front of the class. Next time I will ask to step out and get the counselor" tells the listener exactly what you understood. You may not control whether the other person accepts the apology right away. You do control whether your next actions match your words.
Keep a simple record of the good stretch that follows. Dates you attended, assignments you finished, meetings you kept. If an old label comes up later, that record shows growth in facts, not just promises.
Words to know — Month 7
- Suspension — being sent home from school for a set time because of a serious rule issue.
- Detention (school) — staying after school or during a set period as a school consequence; different from court detention.
- Behavior plan — a written plan that names a problem, the supports offered, and the steps a student will practice.
- Trusted adult — a grown-up who believes you, does not hurt you, and will act to help.
- Handbook — the school's written rules and procedures for students and families.
- Restore — to fix what can be fixed after harm, such as returning property or making a sincere apology.
- Red flag — a warning sign that a person or place may not be safe.
- Cool-down signal — an agreed word or gesture that means someone needs a short break before talking.
Myths vs facts — Month 7
- Myth: Running away makes adults finally leave you alone. Fact: Leaving usually brings more adults, more worry, and harder conversations — plus real danger while you are gone.
- Myth: If you admit any part of a mistake, you will be blamed for all of it. Fact: Owning your own part, clearly and once, usually makes the true parts of your story more believable.
- Myth: A friend's couch in secret is a safe long-term plan. Fact: Secret stays fall apart quickly and leave you without a trusted adult who knows where you are.
- Myth: Asking a counselor for help means you are in even bigger trouble. Fact: Counselors are there for early help, and asking early often keeps a small problem small.
What would you do? — Month 7
The situation: You got into a shouting match with a teacher after she took your phone during class. You walked out of school and are sitting behind a store two streets away. Your phone is at 12 percent. A friend texts that you can hide at his cousin's apartment tonight, but you have never met the cousin, and your friend says not to tell anyone.
Walk it through:
- Name the risks you can already see: a dying phone, an unknown adult's apartment, and a secrecy rule from someone offering help.
- Use the battery you have left for safety, not for posting or arguing. Send your location and what happened to a trusted adult.
- Decline the secret apartment stay, plainly: "I can't do a place I don't know with no one told."
- Walk to a staffed, public place nearby and call your school counselor or nurse, a trusted relative, or 988 for help planning your next step.
- Return with an adult involved, then use the repair steps: acknowledge leaving, restore calm with a specific apology for shouting, and agree on a phone plan for class going forward.
Try this — Month 7
Build your own "pause card" on paper or in your phone notes. It takes about five minutes.
- Write your top three warning feelings: for example, hot face, racing thoughts, urge to shout.
- Write your three pause moves from this lesson that fit you best.
- Write the names of two trusted adults — one inside school, one outside school — and how to reach each one.
- Write one public, staffed place near your school or home where you could go during open hours to make a safe call.
- Read the card once when you are calm, so it is familiar when a hard moment comes.
Resources to keep — Month 7
- Emergency: 911
- Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: call or text 988
- Crisis Text Line: text HOME to 741741
- Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline: 1-800-422-4453
- National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233, or text START to 88788
- A trusted adult, your school counselor or nurse, and your local library can help you find local support during open hours.
What you earned / what's next — Month 7
✅ Month 7 complete (test score 80% or higher): You can name how school trouble grows, use a pause plan in heated moments, explain the real risks of running away, choose safer ways to get space, and repair trust with specific, honest steps.
What's next: Month 8 — Your Body, Your Health, and Questions You Are Scared to Ask: plain, factual answers about body changes, hygiene, seeing a doctor, and body safety, with no shame attached to asking.
Minister Destiny Testimony Schools — Youth. Lessons are educational information, written in plain language. If you or someone you know is in danger, call 911. Help lines: 988 (call/text) · Crisis Text Line (text HOME to 741741) · Childhelp 1-800-422-4453.