On top of all of the great academics and sports teams offered at Magnet, the events that students may participate in are another amazing aspect of AMHS that some may often overlook. Whether students embark on a five day long trip to the Florida Keys for their biology class, the Blue Ribbon Award Celebration Week to celebrate the amazing qualities of our school that just recently for recognized on the national level, Spirit Week to show the student body’s support for our football team, or anywhere in between, Academic Magnet will make sure that the experience is as fun and enjoyable as possible to contrast the moments students must spend studying because after all, this is high school, so having to study classwork material during free time is inevitable. This is especially true since time spent studying is likely at a higher volume than traditional high schools, but Magnet does a very good job at offsetting this time with great events.

This year on November 8, Academic Magnet High School held the annual Freshmen Carnival where this year’s freshmen were able to enjoy fun activities as a grade. This event allowed for all of this year’s Freshmen to meet new people or to reconnect with familiar faces, possibly ones from Summer Scholars a few weeks prior to the start of the new school year. This year, the Freshmen Carnival took place in multiple different locations on campus, but mainly in the gymnasium and gym lobby. This experience was organized by Assistant Principal Johnson, the AMHS PIE, and so many others. 

The Freshmen Carnival is a great opportunity for the freshmen to meet new people and interact as a group and as a way to hang out with people that students will be friends with for the rest of their next 4 years and through college. The carnival this year included countless activities and a vast array of food options, making it nearly impossible for students attending to become bored during such a lively event. Some activities during this year’s carnival were karaoke, obstacle courses, bouncy castles, and games like Family Feud on top of others. No one can deny, however, one of the most important aspects of any carnival is the food options they have. Magnet did not disappoint at all. On top of all of the games and different activities students could participate in during the time at the carnival, a bunch of different food options were also provided. When looking through photos of this vast array of snacks to munch on, one that really stood out with the pizza. Sure wish they had saved us a slice!!

Many teachers and staff members stayed after school on Friday, November 8th to help make the Freshmen Carnival a very enjoyable and memorable experience for all of the new Freshmen this year. It’s events like these that allow students to form great memories in high school on top of meeting new people and creating a joyful environment with the class.

We asked the freshmen which part of the Freshmen Carnival was their favorite and it was truly a mixed bag of answers. There was a wide variety in their answers, which we believe truly showed that the carnival had something to offer for every different kind of student. From the food to karaoke, everybody had some part that they enjoyed.

Both the freshmen Gray and Caleb said that their favorite part of this event was the karaoke in the lecture hall, though Gray said he was sadly cut off during his performance. Sorry Gray!! Karaoke is a magnet classic, we even remember some karaoke back at our Summer Scholars. Being encouraged to sing at 7:45 in the morning to a bunch of strangers definitely forced everybody to wake up and get out of their comfort zones, though personally, we were never brave enough to sing on stage in front of everyone, so great job to Gray and Caleb!

Many others thought that the games were the best part. Spencer Wilhelm said that his favorite part of the freshmen carnival was the obstacle course, and on the other hand Molly Janech thought that the game where you pressed the button once they had turned on was lots of fun. Griff Polk was very energetic in their response: “I’m a big nut for this kind of thing – I loved Family Feud. My team was pretty good, however I did notice that some of the answers were kind of unreasonable, but it is kind of expected because there was no actual surveying. But it was fun anyway, and my team won.” Congrats on the win to Griff’s team, it seems so well deserved!!

Kyan Dushak kept it real when they said that the food was the best part of the event. Looking through the photos, we can see what looked like some really good pizza and a whole table of snacks. It seems like the freshmen were definitely fed well during this event! Yum yum yum!!!

I would have to agree with Leah Whipkey when she said that her favorite part was the calmer time at the end of the carnival where she could just “hangout with friends, play the games, and have fun”. Some of our best memories were from the quiet times where we could just speak with our friends and form deeper connections. It warms our hearts thinking how many friendships were formed at this year’s freshman carnival, especially friendships that will last an entire lifetime. 

So when we finish up our analysis of the freshman year classic, we can safely say this Freshman Carnival was a hit. From superb food to fantastic games like Family Feud, we think the freshman class should say a big thanks to Mrs. Roop and all the teachers who helped out at this year’s carnival. We cannot imagine the hours of work and dedication that is required to pull off an event like this, but if anyone one could fill Mr. McCormick’s shoe it is Mrs. Roop. So freshman, if you see Mrs. Roop in the halls, make sure to say thank you and tell her how you had an amazing time!