As the school year shuffles to an end, it looks quite different.
This year there will be no photos of the kiddos walking into school on their last day or stepping off the bus for the final time. No backpacks to empty or lunchboxes to wash out until August (we hope!). No last day of school outfit to lay out for the next day.
For most high school graduates, virtual ceremonies featuring pre-recorded diploma distributions and speeches will mark a milestone that they looked forward to for many years. No live “Pomp and Circumstance,” photos with classmates or relatives post-commencement or class mortarboard tosses.
So what’s a student to do? How about rising above the chaos created by the coronavirus and make the end to the school year your own?
The quest to make the most of the lemons thrown at students is alive and well in Schuylkill County. A Facebook page enabled users to adopt seniors, kindergartners and those students who will move from elementary to middle/junior high school. Students or their families posted information and photos, and page members could “adopt” students by presenting them with a care package of sorts. Hundreds of students from all over the county were embraced.
Families are decorating their homes for their graduates as well, from typical graduation flair and balloons and streamers to personalized banners. School officials are also visiting graduates’ homes and presenting signs to put on lawns and porches, bringing more recognition to these students who are missing out on traditional rites of passage.
Well, what about those students whose school years are just ending without a significant move to the next level? How about putting together that last day of school outfit anyway, and taking a photo next to the laptop where the last three months of instruction occurred? Head outside and have your student hold up with their hands the number for the next grade level. Jump in the air in celebration and snap a photo of it. Have a last day of school luncheon on the patio or deck or, go for a hike or swim (weather permitting).
Whatever you decide, make the ending to this crazy school year special in your own way. It is definitely one to be remembered!
The mom of a dancing teen and a tween who enjoys scouting and hockey, Katie Campomizzi-Clews is a copy editor at The Republican-Herald. She began her career at The RH as a staff writer following graduation from Lycoming College, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in mass communication with a minor in psychology. She shares her experiences of balancing work and parenting and takes a look at issues, events and trends concerning parents and children.
