The bell rings, and you and all your classmates scramble to get out of class, dashing towards the quad for lunch. You arrive with your group of friends, only to find a crowd, bigger than the one at disneyland, crowding the entire school yard. As you look around for a place to sit, you realize…
THE TABLES ARE FULL!!
This is a very common situation, and I know, as this is exactly what happened to me on my first day of school. I ended up sitting on a cement bench. It wasn’t exactly bad, but it could’ve been better. This is a common struggle for us underclassmen, and we are new to this whole situation. Now, my number one pointer to help you successfully find a good seat during lunchtime is to become best friends with the president of ASB and have them save you a spot! They TOTALLY aren’t super busy! Also running to the tables will DEFINITELY increase your chances of finding a table. Yeah totally. However, many tables are “claimed” by the older students at our school. So if you happen to go to one of those seats, I highly recommend you move. We don’t want to disrespect the authority of the upperclassmen.
Now, to help some of you new students, I interviewed some students about their experiences and tips about our lunchtime.
One 8th grader named Lupita said, “It’s kind of different from elementary school, here we get to pick our own seats. I like that we could sit on the grass, hang out, and the supervision isn't that strict. I usually sit in the bleachers next to the tennis court, or in the grass. Really wherever it’s shady. The first day of school it was kind of hard to find a place to sit, since we were new and all, and all the seats were taken. But it got easier to find a place to sit.”
It may be harder to find a table, but at least there are other options, like sitting in the grass, on the floor, or on benches! Lupita here has almost always been able to find a place to sit. And most people have similar experiences.
A 7th grader whose name is Sofia said, “It’s definitely really crowded and there’s not a lot of tables for two thousand kids. Sometimes there aren’t any tables, especially during the first days of school, so we [Sofia and her friends] just decided to eat lunch near the south gym. It’s fine for the most part. Maybe if we get some more tables that would be good.”
Our new students may need some help during lunch, so I interviewed an older student, as he has been here at Eagle Rock for a long time. His advice and experiences are valuable to us new students!
Owen, a 10th grader said, “This year my friends decided to stop sitting on the grass next to the tennis courts and move to a table because we're 10th graders so we decided we had the authority to do so. We kinda got alpha’d by some little kids but it’s fine cause we can sit on the tree planter thingy nearby. It’s sort of an unspoken rule that people generally go to the same place for lunch every day. Sitting on the grass was a very educational and humbling experience and you should do that if you're a 7th or 8th grader.”
Like Owen mentioned, older students usually have priority in choosing a seat. So, if you are new to our school and have a hard time finding a place to sit during lunch, it’s ok! You’re not alone. It’s happened to all of us, as we were all new to this school at one point. Remember, school just started a few weeks ago. This situation is still pretty new to a lot of us. Give it some time, and you’ll get a better hang of it. I hope this article informs you and will help in your lunch endeavors. Trust me, you will find a seat one day!