On Friday, I had the privilege of visiting two different schools that were participating in the Amazing Shake.

For those who have never heard of the Amazing Shake, it was started by the Ron Clark Academy in Atlanta, Georgia. Students in grades five through eight compete in various challenges that teach them “soft skills” and the ability to adapt to hard things that come their way.

My first introduction to the Amazing Shake was in the spring of 2019 when Wahluke Junior High, in Mattawa, started posting pictures on Facebook of their students competing at the national championship in Atlanta. When I looked up the Amazing Shake, I knew right away that this event was something special. And of course, I did a story on what the school was doing.

Fast forward to last week. I got the privilege of watching the Wahluke Junior High gauntlet in action. The gauntlet is a series of stations, in this case 23, where students are faced with a wide variety of challenges. While they are able to prepare for some of the stations, a vast majority are a surprise. The students have no idea what they will encounter.

When I talked to Andy Harlow, the principal of Wahluke Junior High, about the event, he said that the gauntlet is designed to be difficult and allow students to struggle. He said that he tells his students that they will fail. Their biggest challenge is to put themselves back together and keep going. He hopes that through the Amazing Shake, his students will learn grit and resilience.

I also had the privilege of watching the top three Royal Intermediate School sixth-graders compete in the final round of their school’s first Amazing Shake. These students had competed in the gauntlet a couple of days prior. They had also been faced with other challenges, such as interacting with employees of the YMCA in Wenatchee and showing off their fine dining skills at a pizza shop.

Chris Palmer, the leadership teacher at Royal Intermediate School, has been working with all the sixth-grade students since the beginning of the school year on “soft skills” such as eye contact, handshakes, how to have a conversation and dining etiquette.

While I only saw the top three students compete in the final round, all of the sixth-graders competed in the first round. Palmer told his students that they could all walk away with their heads held high because of the good job they had done.

I think the thing that impresses me most about the Amazing Shake is not the event itself, although it is impressive to watch; it is the way students are using the skills they have learned outside of the competition.

In December, I visited Wahluke Junior High to interview their robotics team. Even the shy students who probably didn’t really want to talk to me were practicing the essential elements necessary to having a conversation. All of the students kept eye contact with me. They could confidently answer my questions. I was very impressed. Later I realized what school I had visited and that it was what I should have expected all along from these students.

I really hope that the Amazing Shake will continue to grow and that eventually all students will be required to participate in the event.

Rachal Pinkerton may be reached via email at [email protected]. Her co-workers are consistently impressed with her soft skills.