A Week Of Spirit At HANC

Every Adar, right before Purim, HANC has spirit week. Spirit week, meant to be fun and creative, is filled with daily costume prompts and unique activities. 

This year, it started off with culture day on the 27th, where students and faculty showed pride in their own unique culture and heritage. This day was so interesting because we were able to see the origins and cultures of our friends, classmates, and faculty, and gain a better understanding of the rich cultural diversity of the school. 

For “Tourist Day,” students pulled out their fun, often beachy touristic attire. Students and faculty alike walked around the school with fanny packs, cameras, and other touristy things for a day of sightseeing at HANC. Then, of course, Jersey day, a classic and favorite, was on the 1st and ended the first week of spirit week. Students and faculty represented their favorite teams. Around the school, you saw basketball, soccer, hockey, baseball, and a dizzying array of other sports jerseys. In addition to being fun, this also led to unexpected conversations and new understandings of each other’s backgrounds. 

Following grade color day was school spirit day in honor of the annual teachers vs. students basketball game. Almost everyone showed extraordinary school spirit and wore their HANC merch and the gym was rocking! 

Finally, the last day for spirit week was dress-up day on Shushan Purim, the 8th. Students and faculty dressed up in fun and creative costumes, from simple costumes to huge inflatable ones. There really was no limit!

When I was interviewing students and faculty on what their favorite spirit day was I got a plethora of responses. Many people had different favorite spirit days. Some enjoyed culture day the most because they love showing off their origins and cultures. Others really enjoyed jersey day and showing off their favorite teams and players. Some also enjoyed grade color day and seeing their grade together and united. 

Additionally, I asked students what spirit day they would like to bring back. The most common answer was pajama day.  Pajama day is so fun because you can wear your favorite pajamas to school, and be comfortable all day, without judgment. Another day students wanted to bring back was twin day. Twin day is also super fun because students and faculty have fun twinning with friends. Overall this was a very fun spirit week and Shushan Purim. I can’t wait to see what fun things we will have next year!