Seniors Tell Memories, Traditions

As seniors end their high school careers, many reflect on their cherished memories and traditions from lower school. From the fifth grade play to Olympic Day, many students share similar sentiments surrounding their favorite times in lower school. 

Annabelle Swigert ‘22 says, “My favorite lower school memory was definitely the fourth and fifth grade buddies. Having a buddy gave me a sense of responsibility and I loved playing with the younger kids.” Fourth and fifth grade buddies served as an opportunity for students of varying ages to connect and spend time with each other. Moreover, this acted as a chance to be a leader for the older students. 

Another common highlight from lower school was Olympic Day. One day in the spring, kindergarten, first, and second grade students would travel to the Highcroft campus. Meanwhile, third, fourth, and fifth graders would stay at the Blake campus to participate in fun events like hurdles or the 50-meter dash. Will Rosenblum ‘22 liked this event because “it was just kind of fun to compete and it was outside and the whole school was there.” This event was an excellent time for the two campuses to connect and celebrate.  

Lucio Bollettieri ‘22 reflects on his favorite memory, stating, “In the winter there would be this section of forest that kinda separated the edge of the Blake property from the parking lot and that’s where, when they would plow the parking lot, they would push all the snow there and we called it snow mountain. The faculty would let us get on and play and run around on this mound of snow.” 

Continuing, Bollettieri shares how his class got imaginative, “Sometimes there would be ice on the mountain and we would shave it off and it would be money. So you would go mining for these chunks of ice and you would trade. So yeah, snow mountain was just this really long ten-foot hill.” 

Bollettieri adds that another one of his favorite memories was the lower school news skits, describing, “It would be the comings and goings of lower school and there would be a bunch of skits… like announcements and everyone hyped it up so much.” He explains, “They would go to a class and interview the teacher and interview the students. It was adorable and the fifth graders would be excited because they’re making it.” 

Ben Lim ‘22 reminisces on one of his favorite memories, stating, “[In] Fifth grade when we got to do a kickball game against the teachers at the Blake campus, we were like the first grade to win because we were cool.” The kickball game consisted of the fifth graders being split into four teams against the teachers, which created a fun form of competition. 

Emily Rotenberg ‘22 says her favorite memory was “doing the fifth grade play because it was funny watching everybody act because not everybody had done that before and we got to bond over it and it was just something fun that we got to do.” The fifth grade play is a capstone that both campuses participate in. The Blake campus and Highcroft campus put on different plays, but it’s a great time for the fifth graders to work together before heading off to middle school. 

In the end, it is clear that lower school holds key memories for many members of the class of 2022. As graduation gets closer and the closing of the Highcroft campus is on many people’s minds, it is essential to share and reflect on these memories.