North Forsyth’s Homecoming week is next week, from Aug. 19 to Aug. 25. To celebrate camaraderie, a spirit week has been organized with distinct dress-up themes for each day. However, the school isn’t taking full advantage of the opportunities a spirit week provides. The themes this year are repetitive, outdated and lacking in creativity.
Tuesday, Oct. 21: Lock in, Twin
Twin day has potential because it lets students pair up with their friends and find a unique outfit. However, the fun mostly comes from the outfit itself, rather than the fact that it matches with someone else. A person’s twin is not noticeable unless their clothes are distinct enough to stand out, which usually isn’t the case.
Wednesday, Oct. 22: Western VS Sci-Fi
The theme for Wednesday is much more creative, as it’s a chance for students to explore with cowboy hats or tin foil to put together a fun costume. While it allows students to pick a side, that’s where the rivalry ends. The title implies that there’s a competition between the two genres, but it’s not executed very well. In past spirit weeks and football games, we’ve had Western as a theme, but never just Sci-Fi. There’s some sort of disconnect between Wednesday’s theme and boosting school spirit.
Thursday, Oct. 23: Teacher-Student Swap
Teacher-student swap is a classic theme. Lillie Loscavio, a senior on Student Council, offers, “It gets everyone involved and can be really engaging.” She has a point that this theme is more engaging because anyone can participate in the other themes, but this involves a direct swap between students and teachers, creating a more comfortable environment within the school.
Friday, Oct. 24: Class Colors
Since the Homecoming game is on Friday, the spirit week theme should elicit loyalty and excitement to be part of the North community. As a concept, class colors should do just that. Nothing screams “school pride” like the colors that represent the school itself. However, North’s colors aren’t well-suited for such a theme. Freshmen, sophomores and juniors all get assigned white, black and gray, respectively. While these are the school colors, they’re not very inviting. Not many kids will get excited about wearing their assigned color of gray to “represent” their school.
Instead, the school could consider other classic themes–that aren’t used as often at North–such as character day, crazy sock day or superhero day. I think a lot of themes that were popular in elementary school would allow students to relive the whimsical days of their childhood.
The school could also take advantage of the Homecoming theme this year. Creating a dress-up day revolving around the City of Lights would be creative and unique. Since the Homecoming theme should fluctuate over the years, a spirit day like this will always be a fresh opportunity.
The Homecoming spirit week themes aren’t bad at all; they allow students and staff to embrace North and express their devotion. Ultimately, this is an opportunity for the school to be creative and give students something new. Every student has seen these themes before, so it wouldn’t hurt to incorporate new, inspiring themes that get students excited for Homecoming.
