Having school spirit is not a skill or characteristic that every student possesses. Spirit days, activities, and pep-rallies are opportunities to have fun, dress up and express oneself with little to no consequences. Students wearing themed outfits or colors adds a fun element to having to go to school for eight hours a day. Going to out-of-school activities like games and competitions to support the teams make them feel appreciated and motivated.

The whole point of having pep-rallies is not to get out of class, but to hype up the students and players before the game. It is also a chance to give recognition to other organizations and give special shout outs. When students just sit there, it makes the whole thing lame and a waste of time. Everyone should always cheer and participate in pep rallies, even if they don’t actually care, because maybe their enthusiasm will cause a chain reaction.

At the last pep rally, the sophomore section had no spirit and didn’t participate in the chants nor cheering for their fellow athletes on the floor. Meanwhile, on the other side of the gym the juniors and seniors were going crazy, jumping and yelling showing their support. The 10th graders had the opportunity to get as loud as they wanted, yet didn’t take it. It was really sad to see them seemingly not care. It was however their first real high school pep rally due to COVID-19, so they most likely weren’t sure what to expect.

Having school spirit is not a difficult task, especially when surrounded by so many others. Even if you don’t necessarily care for sports, faking it is not asking for much. Most people’s adrenaline usually gets going when there are people around that are excited or energetic, naturally that makes others do the same. At football games, the student section has recently had less spirit as the games have continued and just turned into a time to hangout with friends. Maybe the student section regaining their hype could help varsity football get back on their game and bring home some wins.

If someone is having an off day or not really feeling the energy at the moment “faking it till you make it” can actually help. If crowds will just continue to do that, then eventually, it will just happen naturally and become second nature.