The first day of school this year was truly a remarkable experience, so I think it’s time we look back on it together. It was especially exciting for me; all the things I missed so much were finally coming back. My summer felt empty without the crossing guards yelling at parents to pull all the way around when dropping their kids off.
How I missed that feeling of forgetting my ID card and pacing awkwardly by the door until someone else has to enter the building. That rush of sitting in the car with your mom at 8:24 still at the bottom of White Oak in the line of cars. That awkward closed-mouth smile you exchange with acquaintances in the hallway between classes. The uncomfortable 15 second catch-up you have with your 8th grade teacher every other month. That necessary light jog when you’re going from P.E. to math class. What would Edgemont be without all of these classic panther moments? It felt great to have all of these lovely traditions back in my life, especially because last year, we didn’t get to soak them up as much as we had in other years.
The first day of school is also filled, of course, with some of our favorite everyday occurrences. I haven’t gotten through a first day without hearing “You’re not *insert previous grade* anymore, you’re *insert current grade* now!” from multiple teachers. Personally, I wouldn’t want it any other way. This type of phrase immediately encourages me to step up to the academic level that I should be at according to my grade level.
I particularly love when my teachers jump right into the material on day one without any sort of introduction to their class and then assign homework. Having hours worth of work on my first night was super motivating and nudged me right back into my school groove.
I don’t know about you, but I think the first day of math class is a particularly outstanding experience. Every year, I go in with such confidence, only to remember that I don’t remember anything from last year and, therefore, cannot do this year’s material without reviewing.
Now, I, of course, cannot end the article without talking about how pleased I was about returning to the 9-period day. Having all classes every day is great because it causes such a large amount and such a diverse variety of information to be in my head at the end of each day that I literally feel myself getting smarter. Additionally, the four minute transition time is a great way to speed up students in the hallways, and it leaves plenty of time to get all the way across our California style campus.
Arguably the best thing about the return to school post-hybrid learning was the new cliché sayings it brought about. I mean, I cannot tell you how many times I heard a teacher say something along the lines of “Wow, I can’t believe the whole class is in person,” or “It feels so weird to be able to stand in the front of the classroom without having to manage a Google Meet.”
Walking from class to class, we were able to pull our masks down, and I saw my friends’ faces for the first time! I made sure to tell all my friends things such as, “I cannot believe I’m finally seeing the lower half of your face,” and was met with an overwhelming amount of similar sentiments throughout my day.
It’s good to be back.
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