There is a time-honoured tradition at independent schools…it’s called Grad Prank Day. For whatever reason, it seems to have fallen on the last day of classes for the grade 12 students. Now, because we are an IB school, and exams start in May, Grad Prank happens earlier in comparison to other independent schools. This does not take away from its humour, relative importance in the grad’s lives, or the creativity.
My stance on grad prank is as follows: I actually enjoy the tradition a lot, however, there are a few stipulations that must be adhered to.
The first is that the prank must be creative. “Been there, done that” is not cool. Come up with some new stuff, never before seen here, never before done here at the school. You will earn the appreciation of others younger than you. In high school, that means you will be talked about as setting the bar.
The second is that the prank must be funny. Gross is not funny. There is this tendency for kids to believe that making a mess is funny. It’s not. It’s just plain gross. For example, saran-wrapping the toilets is messy, not funny.
The third is to ensure that no one is harmed in the process of the prank. Either in the planning or execution. Remember, people have feelings and it’s not necessary to hurt anyone in order to get a laugh.
The fourth is not really a condition, it’s more like an understanding. Whatever mess you make, you clean up. Now students can appreciate the merit of the first two conditions, however disagree with the third. They think someone else should clean the mess up, maybe the grade 11s, however, that tradition has never been started and will never continue…because let’s face it, no one wants to clean up someone else’s mess. So just think – less of a mess means less clean up.
This year’s grad prank, in my opinion, was definitely worthy of being talked about. Here are some of my favourite examples of what they did:
1. They tin-foiled the Principal’s office. Every square inch of it. Accessories too.
Mr. Hamilton in his tin-foil office
2. They filled the Vice-Principal’s office with pink packing styrofoam.
Ms. Gin floating in a sea of pink
3. They thanked the Student Services Department.
To the grads of 2010, you were definitely creative and got a few laughs out of me – Well done!
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