The importance of goofing around

Eighth graders are Gordon’s oldest students, and there are some experiences set aside just for them.

 

One was Friday, when they took on the faculty and staff in soccer.

 

Another was today, on Halloween.
 

Eighth grade advisories each organize a theme for their costumes.
 

This year, there was a group of insurance company spokepeople, the residents of Sesame Street, a crew of brand mascots, and some off-brand Avenger-wanna-bes.

 

On the afternoon of Halloween, the eighth graders then gather in the theater to perform skits for one another.

 

There are judges drawn from the staff, but—spoiler alert—there are no prizes, there are no losers, and there is no real competition. 

 

Instead, there’s just good clean fun.

 

There’s some dancing.

 

There’s some silliness.

 

And, this year, there was the exciting tale of the Vindicator’s battle against Cannos of outer space in his evil plot to turn half of the world into beans.

 

Later this year, eighth grade will have the privilege of going to Georgia and Alabama to meet with civil rights activists.

 

They will each have an extended service learning experience at a local nonprofit, they will choose a gift to leave as their legacy at Gordon, and they will design tiles that will be permanently installed on campus.
 

Then, they will be honored by the entire faculty at a moving Commencement ceremony carefully crafted just for them.

 

There are many complex lessons coming their way.

 

For today? The lesson was simply that their teachers enjoy goofing around with them, and want them to have fun.

 

For a fourteen-year-old, that’s an important message to get from the adults that surround you.

And it's a lesson they'll draw on in the months, and years, ahead.