Sixth Through Eighth Grade Students Attend Surprise Spring Fling Dance

First dance in two years due to pandemic

March 24, 2022 • Saved under AE/MS
By Kasey Schoch
Ember Morgan, Bria Tremblay, Arianna Johnson, and Sofia Johnson have some fun at the photo station at the AE/MS Spring Fling dance held in March. Captions and photos: Kasey Schoch

The one thing sixth through eighth grade students have been asking for over the last two years is a dance. It is something that they have always looked forward to and typically happens four or five times each academic year. Students were able to attend an outdoor movie night back in October, but the possibility of a dance has been out of reach to them for far too long.

Eighth graders Declan Bisson, Aiden Whitman, Donovan Simard, Tony Mori, Caden Heath, Isaac Norris (seventh grade), and Carter Wheeler try their hands at the photo station at the AE/MS dance. Caption and photo: Kasey Schoch

 

Hannah Churchill and Ethan Dukette get their glow bracelets on before heading into the dance. Caption and photo: Kasey SchochFinally, on March 9, the middle school teachers at AE/MS surprised them with the announcement that there would be a dance on Friday, March 18. Students cheered at the news and quickly began making plans. Eighth graders had not experienced a dance since February 14 of 2020, and both sixth and seventh graders had yet to have the experience.

Coincidentally, remote learning began on March 18, 2020. Although unintentional, this dance marked the two-year anniversary of COVID-19 being a guiding factor in their social and academic lives.  It seemed as if they had reached the end of a very long two years and were being given the opportunity to celebrate.

The Spring Fling Dance was attended with excitement and enthusiasm. About 90% of the middle school students were in attendance, and there were even a record number of chaperones on hand, as staff members were just as excited to see them all enjoy the event. 

All dressed up and wearing giant smiles, these students made the most of the two-hour social event that they had been craving for so long. One student even proclaimed, “This was the best night of my entire life.”
After two hours of singing, dancing, laughing, and lots of silly photo booth photos with their classmates, students left the gym still overjoyed. They thanked their teachers repeatedly for taking their time to plan, set up, and chaperone the dance. 

 

As for the teachers, they left with some pretty big grins on their faces as well. It would seem that things are finally back to normal at AE/MS.