Going back to school can be an exciting time for students, especially for those heading into middle school.

“It’s 215B,” said Javion Edwards, as he looked for his first locker at Stephen and Harriet Myers Middle School. “So it should be on the bottom.”

Edwards, a sixth-grader, was taking his first steps inside his new school on Wednesday. It's part of a Transition Camp the district is hosting for new sixth graders.

“I’m really excited about the different classes, new teachers,” Edwards said. “I mean who wouldn’t be excited, right?”

The camp is designed to help Edwards and his classmates hit the ground running on the first day of school.

“They have a lot of anxiety,” sixth-grade math teacher Ray Parker said. “This helps alleviate some of that anxiety for them.”

Coming off two challenging academic years with the ongoing pandemic, faculty and staff said the camp is an invaluable experience that gives them an opportunity to learn about and connect with their new students.

“We get to interact with them, have the conversations that you don’t necessarily always get,” Parker said. “You have 42 minutes with them, and then they move onto another class.”

Parker used baking to jump-start the minds of his new students and promote teamwork.

“When they were virtual, they didn’t have that where they can interact with other kids,” he said. “Seeing them interact with each other again, it's a great thing.”

While Edwards enjoyed some time in the kitchen, baking and math is not his true passion. He said he’s looking forward to some of other classes.

“I like art,” he said. “Orchestra is beautiful.”