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Exeter High School Student-Run Newspaper!
Ms. Christians' Honors Sophomores are reading The Catcher in The Rye, and much of their discussions about Holden have centered around Holden's lack of human connection. These discussions got them thinking about human connections in their own lives. After watching a TED Talk by Ivan Cash, a man who designed his own projects to bring strangers together, they were inspired to facilitate human connection within the walls of EHS. Read on to find out more about their efforts!
1. Asynchronous Conversations
by Zack Radzom and Curtis Kimball IV
One of the main things which gets in the way of human interaction is social awkwardness and low self-esteem. People are not likely to engage in conversation with strangers for fear that it may be uncomfortable, or they may embarrass themselves. This social anxiety prevents many people from engaging in social interaction.
Those who are unable to interact with others end up as loners without companions and allies to help them through the day; this means that they will have no one but themselves to rely on. The Alpha students who have been able to make many friends make it harder for the loners to find a friend as sometimes they will criticize those looking to make friends to show their dominance.
This happens a lot at school, the tendency of people to stay in groups makes starting a conversation difficult, especially for new students. However, school also puts us in contact with large amounts of people everyday, so it should be an ideal place to interact. So, our challenge was to get around the barriers stopping this interaction.
The internet is another place where we are in contact with many people at a time, many of them complete strangers. This is very similar to school, but the difference is that social interaction happens all the time on the internet. People have no fear of judgment, and will share their opinions very freely. The main difference between interaction on the internet and in real life is that people get to be anonymous. The concern about being embarrassed or uncomfortable is removed, thus allowing people to freely voice their opinions as well as not having to be ashamed of the way that they look.
If we want to facilitate social interaction, we can remove that face to face component from school interactions. This led to our idea: asynchronous conversations. We wrote fun, interesting questions and conspiracies on sticky notes, and left them on our desks for people to respond. When we got responses, we would write back, and sometimes others would as well. This would start a conversation that progressed over the course of the day, and required no face to face interaction. We didn't even know who was responding to our questions, and we didn’t need to. Some of our more interesting notes include a debate about the shape of the earth, and if aliens exist.
If you ever feel like having a conversation, but can’t work up the nerve to do it in person, just leave a note, and see what interesting responses you get. Some responses are very unique: Glooks the monkey, for instance, was created completely un-prompted.
2. Conversations about Phone Lockscreens
by Neila O’Brien, Mia Chiumiento and Reese Moores
With COVID-19 still being in our lives, it is more important than ever to make connections with others. We experimented with one strategy to make these connections: we walked the halls of Exeter High and asked students if they were interested in showing us their phone lockscreen and telling us a little bit about the image. We gathered four people's phone screens and listened to their stories. Their unique lockscreens and backstories allowed us to get to know our classmates.
The first two people we asked showed us their screens. One girl set her lockscreen to the Avengers’ cast; she told us that it represented her favorite movies. With this one conversation, we found information about her likes and interests that would have been hard to find out in a first conversation without this ice breaker. After this it allowed us to further our conversation and become more acquainted with each other.
The second person showed us his phone, and the lockscreen showed a selfie that someone took at a party. He shared that it made him laugh, and that it was something fun he could look forward to seeing. This, again, allowed us to spark a further conversation and helped us relate to him more and understand his personality.
The third person who shared their screen had a picture of a mountain range from one of their favorite trips. Not only did this show a peer's interests, but it also revealed experiences more personal to them and created a common ground because we also love the outdoors and our conversation went on for a while after this.
The fourth person had a lockscreen image of a painted collage, which showed us a glimpse of her attributes and creativity, which we also had in common.
This experience has helped us grow, and this exercise was key to learning how to grow our conversational skills because it provided a stepping stone for meeting new people. Meeting new people exposes you to new knowledge; so the more people you meet, it increases your knowledge of different subjects. It also opens your eyes to different perspectives, and it improves your communication skills. Using this phone screen icebreaker could make someone more comfortable when you are communicating and will allow you to be more open to trying new things.
3. Listen to the EHS Playlist
by Annastina Tan, Ella Hale and Lily Gordon
We asked 22 EHS students to shuffle their Spotify playlists and show us their first song, which we combined into one playlist. Not only did we make connections with others when asking them to shuffle their playlists; but, also, the final product—the playlist—can be a way to facilitate connection! There are numerous health benefits to music, from memory improvement to lowered anxiety. One study shows music can improve memory, help treat mental illness and boost motivation. Specifically dopamine is released in the brain when listening to music. It also boosts oxytocin which is a chemical that creates the ability to connect to others.
Music is an integral part of EHS culture and our daily lives, so a playlist is quite fitting to represent the spirit of EHS! From rap to Christmas songs, our playlist encompasses the diversity of the music tastes found within EHS.
Take a look around you; chances are, there is a student nearby with their headphones. In school, students have made music a primary source of entertainment. So, why not make it a bonding experience as well?
Our playlist allows for the exploration of not only new styles of music but also the diversity of people behind them. Each song is a window into an unknown peer at EHS. Who knows? A new favorite song could be waiting!
4. Pictures with People
by: Ethan Bernich, Brigham Ellis and Cole Thomas
5. Giving Out High Fives
by Sean DeLello, Declan Bonner and Mike Ellis
Since March of 2019, COVID-19 has had people trapped in their homes away from everything and away from other people. We may not have fully realized it then; but after months of social distancing, the necessity for human interaction is clear. So how could we bring back some connection?
Our idea was simple: go out and give people high fives in the hallway. Originally, we wanted to offer hugs; but, obviously, that isn’t the best thing to do when we’re in the middle of a pandemic. So instead, we changed our idea to give high fives.
We went out into the hallway at school and encountered a bunch of people out in the hallway walking somewhere. With most groups, we stopped them and asked if they’d like to be a part of our project to facilitate human connection. If they agreed, we gave each of them a high five and asked them how they felt after. Feedback was positive, as they said it either boosted their mood, self-esteem, or just made their day feel a little better.
High fives may be small gestures, but they are powerful. People may think high fives only actually benefit the receiver of the kind gesture because they are the only one being recognized. However the high five also benefits the person who gives the high five too. According to 15Five, sending or receiving high fives is known as a way of expressing gratitude. It is a known fact that the people who express their gratitude experience more positive emotions. Put simply, it is a healthy thing to experience positive or happy emotions, so go out there and give someone a high five!
For everyone in our world, not every day is a good day. But sometimes these small gestures, like a high five, can make a big difference.
Highfive.MOV6. What's Your Top Three ________ ?
by Andrew Nicholas, Taylor Schwalje and Stephen Casaletto
In this new age, phones, video games, and other forms of technology have become a distraction and a method of prevention for classic human connection. Our group composed a plan to get people to step back from their technology and asked for peoples’ “top three” lists on a variety of topics, such as your top three favorite movies, TV shows, snacks, sports, etc, to gain information on their opinions and try to connect.
Throughout the year in our English class, we have been debating certain topics and the “rankings” for each topics such as, top three Star Wars movies or top three superheroes. This ultimately influenced our idea to ask people about their opinions. Therefore, we created several topics and created a spinning wheel to determine what topic the participant would be asked to rank. In turn, we would be forming a connection, gathering information, and creating a discussion.
Each group member, both outside of school and inside of school, went around to our peers and spun the wheel to ask people about their top three of the subject that was chosen from the wheel. At first, some people were confused when approached, but others understood what was happening. Overall, we got good responses and positive feedback. With a topic set for the participant, we all thought it was a good way to connect with new or even old friends. Lastly, it was a way for us to make friendly conversation.
Instead of going on your phone when others are around, try and create real conversation by asking for others’ top three. While it seems relatively straightforward, a simple question of what your top three movies are could possibly form a permanent relationship. See if their opinion is similar to or different from yours and see if you can connect with them!
7. Fun Fact for a Mint
by Bailey Hoch, Sophia Nadeau, Laurel Gauthier and Sophia Sardinas
Walking through the halls people are seen as strangers; we wanted to change this. The peer interaction between students is very limited due to phone use, COVID and even more. By learning more about people, and meeting new people it can make the EHS environment more welcoming and friendly. Our idea to encourage social interaction involved offering mints to people in exchange for one fun fact about themselves. This would facilitate an interaction as well as an opportunity to learn more about people. This activity took place over the course of 2 days in the EHS library, 27 students and teachers participated.
Some of the students had unique facts that you never would have guessed. For example, one librarian said they met Buzz Aldrin. Buzz Aldrin is 91 years old and was the 2nd person to ever walk on the moon back in 1969. Another student confessed to having eaten a glowstick recently, which is not recommended. One student that was asked for a fun fact told us a more personal fact: they had been born with a heart murmur, which is a heart defect that can lead to death. The facts ranged from misshapen pinky to almost dying from the flu. By asking all these people to share a fact with us, we learned more about the students and teachers at Exeter High School. A simple activity like this helped deepen the bond between students at EHS and we recommend that all schools partake in activities like this.
We learned that someone at EHS has…
met Buzz Aldrin
could flare their nostrils
been born with a heart murmur
had nine teeth pulled
broken their collarbone
eaten a glowstick
gotten stitches in their tongue
has a twin
taken Honors Geometry as freshmen
four dogs
practiced juggling
only been stung by a bee once
a cat named Z
never broken a bone
scoliosis
ridden dirt bikes in their freetime
played lacrosse
has a twin
a passion for drawing
almost died from the flu
done lifting and plays field hockey
a favorite pair of red socks
the middle name of Pope
become a ballerina
watched all of Criminal Minds
failed drivers their drivers test
lived in four different houses
8. Introduce Yourself with a Debate
by Evan Nicholas and Dhruv Penumatsa
Another way you can connect with your peers is to introduce yourself with a debate. For example, you could go up to someone and ask them “What flavor is a tootsie roll?” or “Does pineapple go on pizza?” We came up with this idea from our lunch table. At lunch, we always debate with our friends, and we really get to know each other from it. One time we spent the entire day talking about whether apple sauce cups should go in the refrigerator or in the cabinet. One thing you should consider is that the topic that you choose to “debate” about has to be relevant and appropriate. We asked a total of ten people, nine responded positively and one didn’t—they just walked away; but overall it was a success. Debating also helps both you and others gain empathy. According to the Cornell Speech and Debate Program, debating helps you put yourself in other people’s shoes so you can see where someone else’s answer is coming from. If you want to make new friends, get to know someone more, or just talk to someone new, you could definitely use this. More examples could be “Is a hot dog a sandwich?” or “Marvel or Star Wars?” or “If you stack two lasagnas on top of each other, is it one or two lasagnas?” Therefore, if someone is really interested in a topic or both you and the person you are talking with disagree, it can help both people involved to get to know each other really well.
9. Tell Us a Joke
by Morgan McGibbney and Jack Fabiano
Jokes and humor are all something which people share, and humor is a common language. So we thought of asking people to tell us their best joke they can think of as a way to connect. In order to get the best answers, we asked a variety of people for their best joke. We questioned classmates, peers and friends all with the exact same question. ‘What is your best joke?” Overall, we didn’t get many good jokes or punchlines. What we did receive was a second of people’s time, and a brief moment of conversation. Even when people didn’t have any humor to share with us, they still talked with us in some form. Even when people didn’t have a joke to share, they were still often eager to talk with us, or at least make some attempt at humor. Some of the most notable attempts include asking “Why did the chicken cross the road?,” which did end up getting a laugh from us. Despite not having a joke on hand, people still didn’t mind talking to us. This is a good indication that a common subject, such as humor, can be a valid way to connect with people we otherwise wouldn’t interact with. A question as simple as “tell me a joke” has the possibility of reaching out and making connections which we don’t normally make.
10. Icebreaker: Find the Person Who...
By Claire Mosher and Alison Bernard
We decided to facilitate human connection through a team-building activity. This activity was a variation of icebreaker bingo where participants have to go around the room finding someone who identifies with a fun, personality fact on their bingo card. Instead of just having random facts, we decided to make it personal and have a specific fun fact for different people in the room. After we decided to do this, we realized we didn’t really know the people in the room all that well. Yes, we knew their names and faces; but we never actually talked to them. This forced us to go around the room and ask for fun facts from the class, and it allowed the other people in the room to interact with each other. Everyone learned something new about people along the way.
This activity turned out to be a big success,—a lot bigger than anticipated, actually. Our English class has proven to be most comfortable talking to the peers with whom they are already grouped. However, once we gave them something new to do, most of the class participated and broke out of their comfortable groupings. We saw people talking to each other who sat on completely opposite sides of the room or who didn’t know each other's names. We also saw the class begin to help each other find the answers instead of leaving every man for themselves. They even thought to include Ms. Christians in the people they asked, which we personally thought would be a tricky one to guess.
The biggest takeaway from this activity is that people aren’t necessarily isolating themselves from each other; they just haven’t been given the opportunity to come together. Once given a fun way to learn more about people, everyone was all for it and seemed to have fun doing so. This is a great way to connect with people who you otherwise wouldn’t have talked to. You can try asking your teacher about planning and playing this activity, and then watch everyone slowly start to connect with each other.
11. Icebreaker: Trivia
by Molly Elliot, Sam Sides and Alli MacDonald
By using trivia and the competitive aspect of teams, people can communicate in a small time frame sparking communication and team building. The original idea of Icebreaker Trivia was inspired by the game show Family Feud. Family Feud uses trivia questions that are asked in front of a live audience, and the game contestents have to guess the answers. Unlike Family Feud, our game introduces trivia questions that are narrowed down to the general teenage group. We looked at many different trivia questions and settled on some that seemed interesting and acceptable for the age group. Another source of inspiration was Mr. Doucet, who inspired us to split the group of students into two teams and have smaller groups of competition within the larger groups. In Mr. In Doucet's class, we tend to bond really well because when we go over homework or learning the material, he makes it into a competitive game that gets us to participate. Ice breaker games in general help introduce everyone and make some people more comfortable. However, because our game doesn’t require you to talk about yourself, there is no pressure to introduce yourself personally. By requiring team communication, the game will connect people and create bonds that set the tone for the rest of the year. Now, knowing how fun human connection can be, give it a try playing Icebreaker Trivia!
Here’s how to play:
Split room into two teams.
Give each person in each team their own number.
Call one number and the people assigned that number from both teams should race to get the question in order to bring it back to their group to discuss.
Communicate with the team for the answer.
One team member should run up to the board and write down the answer.
The team member should put the marker down to signal "submitting" their final answer.
Here are some trivia questions to get you started:
Which Home Alone movie did Kevin go to Chicago in? Answer: None
How many gifts in total were given in “The Twelve Days of Christmas” song? Answer: 364
What popular Christmas song was actually written for Thanksgiving? Answer: Jingle Bells
Who killed MacBeth? Answer: Malcolm
Which country is Ed Sheeran from? Answer: UK
Which animal can be seen on the Porsche logo? Answer: Horse
Tom Holland won a Teen Choice Award for which film? Answer: Spiderman Homecoming
Which country is responsible for giving us pizza and pasta? Answer: Italy
Which planet is Earth closest in size to? Answer: Venus
What country has a unicorn as part of its national emblem? Answer: Scotland.
12. Take a Compliment
by Sam Rider and Clare Hannan
Coming up with an idea about how to connect people at EHS wasn’t an easy job. With so many different directions to choose from, we weren’t sure where to go. But after thinking about it, we decided it would be best to try to build people up with complements. At first, we wrote down some compliments and passed them out to people. These were meant to be passed from person to person but to be honest, I don’t think it worked. After testing a few approaches to complimenting, we settled on a flyer style. Using a couple of pieces of paper, we wrote the words “Take a compliment” and wrote compliments on strips at the bottom of the paper that were meant to be torn off. Compliments included, “You’re a good friend,” or “You’re so pretty.” This way, people could tear compliments off and keep them or give them away to others.
We feel that this could be beneficial because it gives people the opportunity to remember something about themselves that they love. Maybe by seeing these compliments people will realize that they, too, can receive them. They could also be a nice thing to give to a friend of yours or even someone you don’t know. By giving someone a handwritten compliment it could make their day. According to research in neuroscience, receiving a compliment releases the neurotransmitter dopamine which is associated with motivation, focus, and positivity. Studies also show that offering compliments work better at improving the performance of other people than criticism or negative remarks. So all together, offering people a small compliment can greatly improve their day, and even yours.
13. Compliment Exchange
by Ari Pompeo and Maggie Young
Connection is about the little things. Whether sharing a snack with a friend over a movie, or exchanging a smile across the room with a stranger, little moments can lift us all up. And an honest, random compliment is one of the best little moments of connection.
According to an article by the BBC, many people do not compliment others simply because they are afraid of being “clumsy, patronsiding, or fawning.” However, studies show that once you are able to get by the awkwardness of talking to strangers, giving compliments not only can improve the mood of others, but your own as well.
Personally, we have found that a simple compliment such as “Your hair looks really pretty today,” can instantly improve someone's mood and feeling for the day. You can feel better knowing you’ve helped someone else. According to NBC News, “In this way and others it’s not just the receiver who walks away better off. Compliments benefit the giver, too. Being in the habit of giving compliments helps us notice and appreciate what’s good and what we like in those around us.” By simply complimenting someone, your own mood can improve, too, and you never know how large of an impact a nice comment can have on someone.
So we have a challenge for you: Today, go out and give five compliments. But not just to your friends or people at school. Give five strangers, five complete strangers a compliment. Maybe a woman on the bus, or the jogger that goes down the street. Maybe a kid at school you’ve never talked to before. No matter who, you can take the chance to spread some positivity around, and make everyone's day a little bit better.
14. Positive Affirmations
by Max Sherman and Max Shairs
The past couple years have been tough on people's mental health due to COVID. People need more motivation in their life and just a little message can change someone's day around. So what better way to do that than by putting up positive messages and quotes around the school from famous people? We are planning on hanging the messages up all around school making sure people see them because they can make just the difference in someone's day whether they are laughing at it or taking the message to heart.
Little messages can have a long lasting effect on someone. It is something that not only helped us through things like quarantine, but it also helped improve people's overall moods. One of our positive posters contains a message from Snoop Dogg, who we are sure everyone is familiar with. He says, “You might not have a car or a big gold chain, stay true to yourself and things will change.” This reminds you that even if you do not have the nicer things or more expensive things in life, if you keep yourself in a good mental state, things will change indefinitely for the better. We are hanging the positive posters up around Exeter High School and encourage you to look for them. We also encourage you to make your own positive message that means something to you. The message doesn’t need to be from anyone well-known—as long as it carries a good intention and good meaning for the viewer, then the message has done its work.
15. The Snowflake Project
by Colleen Bartel, Carey Power, and Kassidy Hall
When faced with the task of facilitating human connection at EHS, we immediately thought of the fact that school is seen as a negative place. Many kids feel forced to be here and would rather be doing something else, so what would make EHS a more positive place? We decided a visual representation of inspiration would be beneficial. Then, there was the question of where to put the words of inspiration and who will write those words? We were stuck and in need of inspiration ourselves. After talking to our administrator, Mrs. Carr, she encouraged us to think outside the box. We developed the idea to cut out snowflakes—in the spirit of winter—and asked people to write down words of encouragement to be pinned on a bulletin board. We received snowflakes with words including: “I am proud of you,” and “You are the best part of someone’s day.” This way, when kids walk into school in a negative mindset, this bulletin board can remind them that we are all in this together.
If you are feeling positive, write on a snowflake and stick it on the bulletin board in the upstairs F wing.
16. Pass on the Humor
by Anika Delli Colli, Izzy Steiner and Naomi Johnson
Masks, social distancing, and electronic devices have hindered true human connection; and with that, it becomes harder to facilitate it moving forward.
We wanted to initiate human interaction by spreading laughter and conversation in a natural way. We know how people can feel stressed, overwhelmed, or in need of comedic relief; especially in school. We wanted to take a creative twist on traditional sayings such as, “You got this,” or “You’re awesome,” while still retaining the uplifting message. We decided to write funny inspirational quotes on sticky notes and put them on desks. On the back of the notes, recipients were encouraged to pass it onto someone else's desk. Research from Mayo Clinic suggests that laughing triggers the release of endorphins into our brains. It is also proven that laughter can relieve your stress response by decreasing heart rate and blood pressure as well as aid muscle relaxation, which reduces some of the physical symptoms of stress. All of this makes it easier to spark conversation.
The results of our project exceeded our expectations. In some classes, people would talk in groups about what they had found on their desk, and ended up being shared with the whole class. Others shared a laugh at the sarcasm in the quotes with the person they’re sitting next to. Some people even went on to tell their quotes to friends outside of class.
Sometimes people can put up barriers because they don’t have things to talk about or they are anxious about the potential awkwardness. This small action can break those barriers by giving people an opportunity to strike up a conversation or share a laugh with a classmate; and hopefully, it makes each person’s day just a little bit better.
Ask your teacher if it would be okay to place funny notes on desks. It can be a joke, or try something like what we did; you never know what connections could come from it.
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