Starting on May 17, Lake Central hosted its first ever De-Stress Festival in Rooms J102 and J103. The festivals harbored many stress-reducing agents, such as DIY stress balls, coloring books and visits from dogs.
“Our students are tested out; we’ve been testing [them] for the past six weeks or longer. Finals are coming up, it is the end of the school year and this is a really stressful time of the year for kids. We wanted to do something to make sure that everyone knows there are ways to de-stress by making the stress ball or by coloring,” Mrs. Melissa Rettig, Guidance, said.
Students were allowed to de-stress in the Library during their lunches or any free time that they had throughout the day.
“I think this type of stuff is really good for our mental health. It is a good energy booster; this gives us something to look forward to,” Alexa Adams (12) said.
For the first few days, students were given the opportunity to create a stress ball using a balloon and Play-Doh. Therapeutic coloring books were also supplied to students.
“I think that bringing in this stress relief stuff helps kids get through finals. There are a lot of packets and stuff that people are thinking of and bringing people’s minds off that helps,” Megan Helfers (12) said.
Along with the stress balls and coloring books, two dogs were brought into the Library on the final day of the festival; students were able to sit with the dogs while their owners talked about them.
“The dogs were [nice]. They were super cute and it was super stress-relieving. Nothing relieves stress more than a furry little guy who just wants you to love him,” Meghan Teumer (11) said.
In the future, Lake Central hopes to host more De-Stress Festivals as many view the liberation of stress a key component to a healthy student.
“We have talked about different things we can do next year, too. It was mentioned that we could use [packable] sand. We wish we could use bubbles to help students de-stress and breathe. We all need to just remind ourselves to breathe and it will be OK,” Mrs. Rettig said.
