Our first day back was a hit. Although our halls were first riddled with drowsy eyes and slow walkers, we were quickly excited by the morning activities. Freshmen were set with the task of making structures out of rubber bands and skewers that could contain four out of five group members. Meanwhile, the Commons were filled with excited teens, a lot of hugs, and chaos. The rest of the school was quickly put to work making safe containers for eggs. Little did they know these containers would be tossed off the roof by the one and only Ms. McFarlane, our English and Journalism teacher.
This event, The FlugTag Egg, was designed by Mr. Darragh and Mr. Nystrom. The two worked together to cook up this riveting first-day activity for returning (and new sophomore students at ACC. It was chaotic yet educational, and no one expected that it would end up with the drop-off lane being covered in egg yolk.
Groups of around six were given eggs and choices from a large range of supplies. Many groups went with a winged mound of tape, as I called it, one of which actually flew. Most of them were accompanied by the sound of eggs splatting on the ground. These contraptions sported cardboard or paper wings in attempts to fly through the air.
Mr. Jordan, the Health and PE teacher, had the task of putting each car in a box and, one by one, allowing Mr. Godfrey, Ms. Montgomery, and Ms. McFarlane to lift them up to the roof via a DIY pulley system. Students cheered in the drop-off zone as eggs flew across the front entrance.
Sophomore Griffin Lambo said, “It was awesome, I’ve never done something like that before.” Another, a junior, Ellie Rawlings, remarked, “This was by far the best first day activity we’ve ever had.” Clearly, this activity had some sort of positive effect, and now we are ready to crack into the school year.
This activity was a great way to represent our values and ideas of education, being interactive and fun here at Tech. Everyone knows ArlingtonTech is unconventional, and starting our year off with a unique collaborative activity was the perfect way to show off who we are. Our school spirit is through the roof, and I believe it’s because we are through the roof as well.
We’ve all been told “The sky’s the limit,” but here we are given no limits. No bounds hold us back from doing what we want to do or being what we want to be. As we dive into this school year, I ask you all to see past the negativity and stigma around the start of school and open your eyes to the environment you are in. Every opportunity is awaiting you, and the rest of our year will only get better.
Soon enough, we will all be hard at work, learning new curricula and being chased by journalism team members with a new survey. An exciting school year is ahead of us, and the journalism team is eager to write all about it!
