Every year our school spends a day at Squantz Pond.  We all do our best to pull together as a family and become closer in our school.  It’s one of ACE’s traditions for the past fifteen to twenty years.  And for about five or six years before that, ACE went to Sherwood Island as a tradition to pull the school together.  Our principal, Dave Canavan stated that he likes going to Squantz Pond every year because, “It brings the group together and gets people familiar with the school.”

At Squantz Pond every year we do a series of activities as a whole school and in guidance groups.  When everyone first arrives we all go to the beach and circle up.  To introduce the new students to the old students, we all get in alphabetical order by the first letter of our first name and go around one by one.  Some students even go into the middle of the circle afterwards and try to name everyone. Then we re-order everyone by their birthdays to see how many people have the same birthdays.  It’s just a simple way to learn everyone’s names and something small about them so that we can be brought together by what we all have in common.  After we learn everyone’s name and birthdays we do one thing together to come together.  We did one giant lap sit.  Richard Espinal stated, “Around 80% of the people participated.”

When everyone split up into our guidance groups each group does special activities just to bring everyone in that group closer together.  We do human pyramids, make banners, do the trust fall, and just talk and share some things about us that nobody else in the group would know.  Erica Lameira said, “I think it‘s good, because it‘s a nice way to start off the year.”

After all the activities were done, everyone just hung out with everyone else.  They got to know new people, and reconnect with old people.  Sani Nabi stated that his favorite part of the whole experience was that everyone got along.  Terquidra Bradham stated that her favorite part was, “When I ate on the dock and sat in the lifeguard chair enjoying the scenery.”

At the beginning of the day everyone seemed like they wouldn’t like going to Squantz Pond, but by the end of the day everyone seemed like they had a good time and like they were happy that they went.  Ryan Laskowski stated that, “This trip brought us all closer together as a school.”  Dave Canavan, stated, “This year was the best year that we’ve ever had as a school.”

When asked if the students had overall enjoyed themselves on the annual trip to Squantz Pond all the students seemed to have agreed that they had.  Terquidra Bradham also stated, “Yes I did, it was a carefree day away from the normal routine of class work.”  And it definitely was.