As winter term has come to an end, students and faculty members are looking forward to the spring. After months of cold and snow, they yearn for warmer weather, Spikeball, and sunny afternoons on the Circle.  Many highly-anticipated events also take place during the last term of the school year.

          Students eagerly discuss the last couple of dances of the term, including Spring Formal and Events Dance. Spring Formal takes place in an enormous white tent on the Circle, where students stay out and dance to music, enjoy cookies and candy, and take pictures with a beautiful sunset as the background. On the other hand, Events Dance has been a long-running tradition at Groton where it is the Fifth Formers’ responsibility to determine and plan out the location and theme of the dance: the location is always kept a secret and revealed only minutes before the dance itself. Some previous locations have been the Gemmell-Hughes’ barn and the Fives Courts. Students often look forward to attending these events, as they are great ways to relax and spend time with friends after a busy week of classes.

          Another exciting event planned out for students is Spring Fling. Fifth formers plan outdoor activities for the entire school to compete against in their respective dormitories. Such activities include dodgeball, tug-of-war, and a relay race. “It’s a great time not to worry about school and have friendly competition with other dorms,” Dan Herdiech ’18 says. Warm weather and competitive spirit create a fun atmosphere for both students and faculty. Furthermore, there is always a mystery event planned out as one of the activities, which adds an exciting twist to Spring Fling.

          One of the most noticeable changes in the spring is that students tend to spend more time out on the Circle. “Last year I remember about twenty kids in our form played football on the Circle, and it was a lot of fun. I definitely do spend more time outside than in any other term,” Shane Kim ’19 says. Other students enjoy bringing out blankets and reading on the grass or playing Spikeball, even during the school day. “Everyone’s on the Circle playing Spikeball and bringing out couches…it’s a good time for the whole community to get together,” Sam Girian ’18 remarks. Spikeball becomes an enjoyable past time for students in all forms. “I like playing Spikeball, even though I’m really bad at it, because it’s a fun and relaxing way to not take myself so seriously. I ripped my favorite pair of jeans playing Spikeball,” Claudia Oei ’18 says, laughing. During the spring, the Circle does bring the school closer together as students and faculty members are seen spending more time outside.

          Certain teachers even allow class to take place outside in the sun and warm breeze. “Reading outside on the whispering bench with Mr. Capen’s Fifth Form English class was fun,” Matthews Higgins-Iati ‘17 reminisces about last year. Gisselle Salgado ’17 mentions, “Last year, I had Spanish outside and it just put everyone in a great mood.” Indeed, what better way is there to spend class time?

          Students in all forms look forward to the spring not only for the nice weather, but also because this term reminds them of the happiness that they feel when they are surrounded with friends who are practically family. Piper Higgins ’17 says, “I like spring term because everyone realizes that with Prize Day approaching and the end of the year approaching, that everything they do could be the last thing they do. It feels a little bit more nostalgic…people are more inclined to be together…with an ending in sight, you just want to savor it.” Thus, with the end of the year gradually creeping closer, it is important to immerse yourself in the fun activities planned out specifically for the spring. In addition, students should enjoy being outside and spending time with their closest friends before everybody departs from the Circle for the summer.