Floral Park Memorial’s Class of 2025 has much to be excited about. These first few months have been about getting use to life after elementary school, and crossing the bridge into 7th grade.

We asked many of our classmates questions about the transition to find out how they were adjusted to life in a junior-senior high school. We concluded that many 7th graders were in agreement on a number of issues.

At the start of the year, most were overwhelmed by the noise and the amount of people in the halls. Several students said they were surprised by the amount of work, much more than what they were used to in 6th grade. (This is a subject that we will explore in greater detail for The Shield later in the year.)

“I am surprised at the amount of time between bells,” said Christopher Santander. “I am also surprised with the number of essays and amount of writing in my classes.”

Most people we talked to said they joined many clubs such as band, the art club, various sports and the very popular junior booster club. We heard from many students about the importance they place on maintaining high grades, at least in the 80s. Finally, when we asked people how they felt today compared with the first day of school, we heard comments like “more confident,” “less afraid,” and ” I feel like I have a lot more freedom.”

FPM is a great place for students. We look forward to continuing to share stories from the Class of 2025 in the future.