Seniors: It’s been 13 years since kindergarten! What’s it like 13 years later?
James Hedderman, a 5-year-old kindergarten student at the George F. Willett Early Childhood Center here in Norwood, lives a completely different school life than the Seniors of 2026 vividly remember. From the memorable times of trading snacks to the surprising new elementary school layout, kindergarten is far from what we remember.
As seniors are in their final stretch before graduation, many traditions are held to remember their younger years fondly, such as the Elementary walk. This walk is a joyous time used for seniors to walk through their old elementary schools right before their big step into college. But a lot can change in the elementary school environment after 13 years.
If you remember walking into your elementary school and struggling to hang up all of your belongings in a large pull-out closet with the oldest hooks, kindergarteners in 2026 have no idea of that struggle. At the Willet, students “put [their] stuff in the cubbies” that are assigned to each student, said Hedderman.
As soon as they’re situated at this time of year, students begin their “projects”. They’re given glue sticks, crayons, and use their work blocks, then are told to “figure out something” according to Hedderman. No warm-up, no buzz word: just glue sticks, crayons, and an active imagination.
However, kindergarten still consists of fun floor time on rugs! For seniors, many remember those A through Z rugs that every classroom had.
“I remember racing with my friend to get my initial on the rug because we both started with the letter E”, said Emma Lazarus, a 2026 senior.
But, to unfortunate surprise, the memorable rugs are no longer in most classes. Instead, teachers still use a large block rug; but instead of letters, they’re colors. But rugs aren’t the only thing that have changed; even the games they play at recess, the physical education, and the way they learn have evolved.
In gym class, Hedderman’s favorite activity is to do gymnastics. In gymnastics, they stretch, compete to see who is the most flexible, and play “a game where we throw a ball and knock down pins!”, said Hedderman. I’m not quite sure how some form of bowling correlates to gymnastics, but according to Hedderman, that’s what gymnastics includes.
The biggest change in elementary school has been the vast use of technology. Each student at the Willet has a Chromebook. Although they “don’t use it every day”, said Hedderman, they use it a lot whenever it comes to math. At the Willet, they use ST Math, an online website that is “designed around how the brain works” (Mind Education) through visual applications and a mascot that guides children through their problems, named Jiji.
“I remember starting to use Chromebooks in Fourth grade,” said Cayden Bell, 2026 Senior.
Luckily, children at the Willet find ST Math and Jiji fun and educational. Hedderman loves ST Math so much that, in the interview, Hedderman insisted on using my phone to play some ST Math with Jiji.
Although most 2026 seniors can barely remember their kindergarten days, it is widely known to be a very fun time in an educational setting.
Similarly, the first thing Hedderman said in the interview was “school is fun!” So at least the energy, motivation, and happiness to go to kindergarten haven’t changed.
