Michael Oher was brought up in the rough part of town. His mother was a drug addict and his father was nowhere in sight. He was taken from his mother and brother at a very young age and was put in many foster home but he was a runner. Every time he was put in a new home he would take off in the middle of the night and find his mother and take care of her. That was who he was, a caring person with protective instinct. Michael Oher is a great example of the "High 5 Principles" because of ho he is.
Michael follows his heart a lot during the movie, he has a lot on him and he knows what he has to do that is best for him and the people around him. One example from the movie where he follows his heart is when he is choosing his college that he would like to attend for his football scholarship. His new family, the Tuohy's, all went to Ole Miss and that is the college he chose. People were questioning him and the Tuohy's for persuading him to make the decision on Ole Miss. In the end, Michael said, "all the questions you asked me were why they wanted me to go to Ole Miss, not once did you ask my why i wanted to go." That was exactly it, they never asked Michael w why he chose that as his college, when they did finally ask he said, "because that is where my family went, that's where they always went." Michael followed his heart in sticking with the school he wanted where his family went when everyone else questioned him.
The change Michael had to deal with was constant but the biggest change he had to deal with was moving in with the Tuohy's and beginning his life there. He was a very tall, broad black boy who was brought up in the rough part of town who was now living with a rich white family. He changed to a new Christian private school that was pretty much all white kids who starred at him. He had to deal with the people from his town making sexual comments about him and his new family. All things that he could have expected happening. But he handled it amazingly by sticking by his family and being proud that he was a part of the Tuohy's. As well he had a second family, his football team. He had never played football with a team before and didn't know the rules and what he had to do. But in no time, with the help of SJ, he was their star player and had over twenty colleges offering him a scholarship.
The biggest challenge that he had to face was probably academic wise. He was finally at a school that could offer him education, something that he didn't have before. But this was all new to him. When he started his scores were very low and he didn't know how to read. He didn't know anything from previous grades because he had not attended school; but he could right. He knew how to write and express his feelings on a piece of paper. The teachers had to help him and adapt to his different abilities and when tests or exams came around, they gave it to him verbally compared to written. He had to learn everything from scratch and that is a challenge when you are in such a higher grade level than a younger one.
The biggest journey he had to face that he knew would have side affects would be moving in with his new family. Leaving "Hurt City" and moving in with a rich white family would have some complications from other people and their judgements. He expected the people he knew from his old home would make comments that he was using them or as they said in the movie, that he would "tap that". All things Michael would never do. He loved that family and would do anything to protect them as we saw with him and SJ in the car accident and when those comments were said to him, he beat those people up. But he also knew that the Tuohy's friends and family would have something to say about their new son. He was a very tall black boy. They thought that they were just doing this as a charity thing and that they were doing it to look good. That wasn't the case, they loved him as their own and thought of him as their own. They took him off the streets, gave him clothes, gave him a bed, and more importantly gave him love and affection; something he lacked of from childhood. Michael expected the comments, but he ignored them.
Michael's biggest allie in my opinion would be SJ. He was the one who first talked to Michael at the new school, who helped him with learning football, and more importantly introduced Michael as his big brother. Michael and SJ did everything together, they were inseparable. SJ looked up to Michael, but Michael also looked to SJ when he needed him for something. They were attached at the hip, Michael would do anything to protect SJ as we saw in the film during the car accident. Michael stopped the air bag from killing him, something that not many people have a reflex fast enough for. Michael loved SJ and SJ loved Michael.
That his how Michael is a great example of the High 5 principles.
Michael follows his heart a lot during the movie, he has a lot on him and he knows what he has to do that is best for him and the people around him. One example from the movie where he follows his heart is when he is choosing his college that he would like to attend for his football scholarship. His new family, the Tuohy's, all went to Ole Miss and that is the college he chose. People were questioning him and the Tuohy's for persuading him to make the decision on Ole Miss. In the end, Michael said, "all the questions you asked me were why they wanted me to go to Ole Miss, not once did you ask my why i wanted to go." That was exactly it, they never asked Michael w why he chose that as his college, when they did finally ask he said, "because that is where my family went, that's where they always went." Michael followed his heart in sticking with the school he wanted where his family went when everyone else questioned him.
The change Michael had to deal with was constant but the biggest change he had to deal with was moving in with the Tuohy's and beginning his life there. He was a very tall, broad black boy who was brought up in the rough part of town who was now living with a rich white family. He changed to a new Christian private school that was pretty much all white kids who starred at him. He had to deal with the people from his town making sexual comments about him and his new family. All things that he could have expected happening. But he handled it amazingly by sticking by his family and being proud that he was a part of the Tuohy's. As well he had a second family, his football team. He had never played football with a team before and didn't know the rules and what he had to do. But in no time, with the help of SJ, he was their star player and had over twenty colleges offering him a scholarship.
The biggest challenge that he had to face was probably academic wise. He was finally at a school that could offer him education, something that he didn't have before. But this was all new to him. When he started his scores were very low and he didn't know how to read. He didn't know anything from previous grades because he had not attended school; but he could right. He knew how to write and express his feelings on a piece of paper. The teachers had to help him and adapt to his different abilities and when tests or exams came around, they gave it to him verbally compared to written. He had to learn everything from scratch and that is a challenge when you are in such a higher grade level than a younger one.
The biggest journey he had to face that he knew would have side affects would be moving in with his new family. Leaving "Hurt City" and moving in with a rich white family would have some complications from other people and their judgements. He expected the people he knew from his old home would make comments that he was using them or as they said in the movie, that he would "tap that". All things Michael would never do. He loved that family and would do anything to protect them as we saw with him and SJ in the car accident and when those comments were said to him, he beat those people up. But he also knew that the Tuohy's friends and family would have something to say about their new son. He was a very tall black boy. They thought that they were just doing this as a charity thing and that they were doing it to look good. That wasn't the case, they loved him as their own and thought of him as their own. They took him off the streets, gave him clothes, gave him a bed, and more importantly gave him love and affection; something he lacked of from childhood. Michael expected the comments, but he ignored them.
Michael's biggest allie in my opinion would be SJ. He was the one who first talked to Michael at the new school, who helped him with learning football, and more importantly introduced Michael as his big brother. Michael and SJ did everything together, they were inseparable. SJ looked up to Michael, but Michael also looked to SJ when he needed him for something. They were attached at the hip, Michael would do anything to protect SJ as we saw in the film during the car accident. Michael stopped the air bag from killing him, something that not many people have a reflex fast enough for. Michael loved SJ and SJ loved Michael.
That his how Michael is a great example of the High 5 principles.
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