AHS students have not yet had a full snow day, as there has not been very much snow to frost the school grounds and cancel class lately. However,many have seen an abundance of snowmen located in every corner of the school during the past few weeks.

The snowmen represent each R5 class and students were instructed to purchase paper snowflakes during lunch for 25 cents each and stick them on their class’s snowman.
What is the purpose of this decorative scheme? To prepare for Battle of the Classes, which took place on Jan. 14.

Fire code restrictions state that no more than 1,357 people can be packed into the gym, which is where Battle of the Classes took place. This meant only about half the school was able to participate in the event.

In past years, the issue was resolved by a first come first serve basis where teachers received an e-mail and the first teachers to respond were granted access to the event.

“If teachers aren’t sitting at their computers right when the e-mail is sent out, then it is not fair to them,” junior Leadership member Kelly Goodison said.
Teachers cannot be expected to sit at their computers all day. Most of them are actively teaching at the whiteboard or engaging with students’ classwork.

The e-mail strategy would create a disadvantage to teachers who may not have access to a computer at all times such as physical education teachers or performing arts teachers. It would also create an unfair advantage for those who teach computer based classes such as business and technology courses.

The snowflake solution was a fair alternative to the technique used in the past. Not only did it give each teacher an equal opportunity to have their class attend the event, but it gave students a role in the decision-making.

Students who would have really liked to experience Battle of the Classes but could not in previous years because of teachers who restricted their entry could now take charge instead.
All they had to do is buy snowflakes for his or her class rather than rely on their teacher to sign them up..

Most students would rather have gone to watch or even take part in the battle rather than suffer through long and boring class time.
Many students had made remarks about how they planned on creating their own snowflakes and sticking them onto their class’s snowman.
This tactic definitely did not earn anybody a spot for Battle of the Classes.

The Leadership committee tallied the purchases made for each class rather than counting the actual snowflakes that appeared on each snowman to avoid fraud.

The money raised will be “used to buy something beneficial to [AHS],” Goodison said.The whole idea of the snowmen was creative and effective because it encouraged students to actively take part in planning and attending school events.