The end of summer marked an exciting fresh start for students.
The Green Bay Area Public School District opened its doors to students for the first day of school with welcome programs.
"First day of school is always a ton of fun here because it’s our chance to welcome back the children and the families," said Aldo Leopold Community School Principal Trina Lambert.
Staff welcomed students at Aldo Leopold with a lip-sync performance on the school playground.
"The teachers and I had some props and flags and some suns, and we danced around to the song 'One of Us'," Lambert said. "It's just a real welcoming song in letting children know they belong here."
Principal Lambert said it's the 40th anniversary of Aldo Leopold Community School and they decided to "spice things up" with a flash mob.
She said the students miss each other over the summer and gathering this way gives them the opportunity to start the day with a celebration.
New 6th graders at Franklin Middle School arrived at 7:30 Wednesday morning at the school gymnasium for a special program called “Where Everybody Belongs."
"We have students coming from multiple different schools right now so it's trying to get students familiar with other students," said Franklin Middle School Principal Jackie Hauser.
Students attended a 2 hour welcome program.
"We played games with them," said Franklin Middle School 8th grader Olivia Waubanascum. "We just interacted with them. We helped out some of the teachers here."
Activities were guided by 8th grade "Where Everybody Belongs Leaders" like Olivia.
"I think it was pretty good today, meeting new people and playing all the games," said Rashad Rice a new 6th grade student at Franklin Middle School.
Principal Hauser said 8th graders serve as mentors for 6th graders to help them feel more comfortable. The program continues with other activities throughout the year.
