At 2:30 p.m. every Friday, the quiet, empty corridors of the school are interrupted by four calm chimes of a bell. What follows these chimes is quite the opposite as a mad rush of student as their feet squeak and scramble against the school floors, pushing their eighth period classroom doors violently and making a mad dash for the buses.
After five long days, thousands of students can finally experience whatever the weekend has to offer them. Their daydreams on the bus ride home may consist of putting Star Wars Battlefront II into their XBox Ones, meeting friends at Cheeburger Cheeburger or simply laying down on the couch to take a long nap.
However, what remains to be thought about is what their teachers are doing on the weekends while their students are enjoying their freedom from the bondage of classwork. What happens to them when the last student leaves on Friday? “I’m not exactly sure,” sophomore Kavya Mishra said, “but maybe they grade papers and take their kids out to activities.”
For social studies teacher Anne-Marie Steppling, the weekend is about having fun and having a healthy break from teaching and grading papers. “I like to relax with my family, run with my dogs, watch a movie or a few episodes of a TV show,” Steppling said.
Whenever the weekend comes around, laying low seems to be a habit that is shared among both students and teachers. “I don’t do anything too special or exciting,” junior Samuel Lee-Xie said. “I usually go into my garage and watch anime on Saturday nights, which is what I look forward to most.”
On Sundays, math teacher Chris Tucker goes for long drives or to church where he gets to hang out with friends he has there. He values the time that he gets in catching up with them and giving them updates on his family. “I enjoy talking with my friends about the crazy things our children do,” Tucker said.
Although most students and teachers may appear to be outgoing on the weekends, Mishra argues there is a divide in the levels of active motivation between them. “I feel like high schoolers like to party while teachers stay home more often than them,” Mishra said.
Because every student is different, activities vary even based on an individual’s personality. “I guess it depends on the kid,” Tucker said. “Some might rather do homework or jobs, sit around or stress about grades.”
On the contrary, Steppling sees extroverted tendencies in the majority of her students. “I think they do lots of things on the weekends like go to movies, dinners, lunches and shopping centers.”
No matter the age, student or teacher, the weekend is one two-day period where students and teachers are just people. Both student and teacher enjoy quality time with their friends and family and might even greet each other with an awkward wave on the sidewalk if they happen to pass by on an off-day. “I enjoyed my weekends when I was a kid,” Tucker said, “and I still enjoy them similarly now.”
Brian Myers
Features Editor
