Close
high school seniors’ school years with a perfect picnic. Read these ideas to create a wonderful afternoon, full of new memories.
Host a perfect picnic to close a senior class’ school career. Give finality to those thirteen long years a class has spent together. The graduation ceremony holds meaning, but it is formal and stiff. Young high school students want to eat and chat with their friends, as a class, one last time.
A picnic makes for a fun afternoon for soon-to-be high school graduates. It creates an everlasting memory and provides different closure for them than the actual graduation ceremony. Senior classes often have extra funds at the end of their year, which can afford them a fun and relaxing afternoon, which they deserve. Continue reading for steps in hosting a perfect picnic for seniors.
Basic Decisions
Decide on the time and location. A convenient time for the picnic is after graduation practice. Seniors will be together, and they will already be signed out of school. Another option is holding the picnic on the last day of school, or late in the evening, after graduation. These might be problematic, as students may already have commitments. A final option is to host the picnic on the weekend. Again, students may be busy with work or other plans. Pick the time that is best for your situation.
Look at location options specific to your school. The class might spread out a few dozen blankets on the football field or sit in the stands. Some schools do not have an on-site sports area, so the cafeteria or physical education gym may work. Schools may also be willing to provide buses to take students to a local park. If students are no longer “technically” students, they could also find their own transportation.
Determine who will serve the food. The class sponsors may be willing to do it, but if they are teachers and the picnic takes place on a school day, they may be unable to do so. Parents may volunteer, or a group of teachers could rotate.
Announcements
Announce the senior picnic at senior meetings. Create posters and hang them around the school. Make an information sheet and mail it to students, or deliver them in senior classes.
Invite people who helped the senior class. Send invitations to teachers and administrators. It may be appropriate to invite school board members and non-faculty coaches as well. Think of previous years and extend requests to teachers from elementary school.
Menu
Decide the type of food to serve. An old-fashioned, stereotypical picnic includes fried chicken, potato salad, lemonade, and apple pie. Stage a backwards-breakfast picnic and set up waffle makers, omelet skillets, and donut trays. Finish off the breakfast picnic with orange juice and fruit.
Build a sandwich line, with every possible topping imaginable. Buy an assortment of breads, meats and cheeses. Bring different flavors of salad dressings, mayonnaise, mustard and ketchup. Set up varying vegetables, from pickles and tomatoes to lettuce and spinach. Give the students plenty of options so they can build picturesque, enormous sandwiches. End the picnic with an ice-cream social and again, line a table with every imaginable topping: nuts, chocolate, caramel, fruits and whipped cream.
For classes with extra money and supervisors with little time, order takeout. Is there a rule that a picnic must be barbeque-type food? No, so order a few dozen pizzas and wings. Call in multiple types of Chinese food. This also easily allows for vegan and vegetarian dishes for classes with students on specific diets.
The menu does matter, but the message of a senior picnic stands as that the class spend time together, for perhaps the last fun time.
Entertainment
After eating, students may lounge, or they may want to play. Map out a bags tournament. Set out board games on tables. Bring a checker and chess set and play in gorgeous, outside lighting. Use the school supplies for entertainment as well. Borrow the science lab’s binoculars for bird watching. Set up a volleyball net or bases for a slow-pitch softball game. Finally, bring a camera and document these seniors’ final, childish fun. Post the pictures on a free blog or social networking site.
At the close of their senior year, students are heading off to jobs, colleges and huge responsibilities. Graduation finalizes a bit more of childhood. Make a perfect ending with a perfect picnic.
Lauralee Moss, a secondary language arts instructor, has taught for over a decade. She has a B.S. in English Education and a M.A. in Teaching and Leadership; visit her blog for more ideas or store for great products.
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A few years ago my school did a school grounds beautification day. The students painted rocks to go in the school yard. We cleaned up and picked up trash, and then they planted bulbs. Many students had never done this before, and it was a learning experience. Which way do the bulbs go? How do they grow? How many do we need? How close can they go? How do we make a straight edge for a border? Again, measuring, writing, science, agriculture, soil erosion?
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