Friday will be the first day of school for most eighth-graders at Great Bend Middle School, but members of the Student Council arrived a day early Thursday to help welcome seventh-graders to their new school.
For the transition into middle school and high school, incoming students in grades 7 and 9 attend a one-day orientation, allowing the older students at GBMS and GBHS an extra day before diving into the routine.
GBMS Counselor Sheryl Neeland said some parents hoped to join their seventh graders in the school Thursday, but that was discouraged. The transition from elementary to middle school officially puts the students in the “big kids” category.
There was a lot to learn, from navigating the hallways to learning which classroom they’ll be in for each hour of the day. There’s a 13-page handbook for GBMS students (33 pages for GBHS students) and all high school and middle school students are supplied with a Chromebook personal computing device.
But years of experience have taught the educators that the day can’t be all about lectures. The students need some fun activities, too, for meeting new friends and enjoying their new school.
That’s where the Student Council members had a chance to shine.
We joined the 7-3 group (one of three seventh-grade “cores”) in the late morning for a Rock, Paper, Scissors Showdown outdoors on the practice field. Students were divided into teams and spent a few minutes hopping along a path of hula hoops on the ground. When one student’s path intersected with a person from another team, they engaged in a game of Rock, Paper, Scissors and the winner advanced, earning points for his or her team.
The Stuco members set up the course and guided the seventh-graders through the activity. Before they started, two of those eight-graders talked to the Great Bend Tribune about what they hoped to share with the newbies in their role as ambassadors to GBMS.
“I want to show them it’s not as scary as it seems,” Reese Bullard said. “It’s really a safe environment and a lot of fun.”
Fellow Stuco member Jocelyn Ward said her message to the seventh graders is, “they should try their hardest and have a fun seventh-grade experience.”
Instruction Coach Tami Scheppman is one of the Stuco sponsors. She explained that 20 Stuco members were chosen from more than 60 applicants. Students who wish to be Stuco members in the eighth grade must fill out an application and submit a teacher’s recommendation toward the end of their seventh-grade year.
Over at Great Bend High School, the incoming freshmen also had a lot to learn about their new school but had some fun, too. They got together in the GBHS Auditorium in the afternoon for a Q&A session where they learned the school fight song and some class chants.
Preschoolers and K-6 students also returned to school Thursday.
