Students and faculty at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School participated in Take Your Child to Work Day on Thursday, April 25. Students were excused from school to attend their parent’s work and participate as long as they filled out the appropriate form and called the school so it would not affect their 10-10-10. Teachers and staff also invited their children on campus to experience what it is like to be a high schooler on a day filled with entertainment and games.

“I went to work with my mom at the hospital; she’s a nurse,” sophomore Agnes Stephen said. “I think Take Your Child to Work Day is a really cool idea because people can get some experience and knowledge about a certain job. I saw how a hospital functions up close, which was good for me because I also want to go into Med after college.”

Each year, a theme is chosen for Take Your Child to Work Day for students of MSD teachers. This year, the theme was “Inspire 2 Aspire” and the activities were centered around inspiring the children to apply collaboration and cooperation skills to their future careers.

Spanish teacher Rebecca Hernandez and Latinos in Action students organized the event along with assistant principal Kristine Knapp. LIA students helped create posters and flyers for the event, and Hernandez sent a Microsoft Form to teachers which they could use to sign their children up for the various activities.

“We wanted to do something special for the staff that brought their children to work with them,” Hernandez said. “I worked with other teachers, like Mrs. Knapp, and came up with some ideas
that we thought would be fun for everyone.”

Children began their day in room 512 during fifth period, baking and decorating cupcakes with MSD students from the Culinary program. Before decorating cupcakes, the children were able to learn how to use icing and practice with the help of MSD students.

“My favorite part of making the cupcakes was actually getting to know the kids and seeing how similar they really are to their parents,” sophomore Lucas Alvarez said.

Then in sixth period, the children participated in a variety of field activities with MSD students from Latinos in Action. These activities included a potato sack race, an egg race, duck duck goose and more. LIA offered chips to the children.

“I liked seeing all of the kids having fun,” senior Marissa Varona said. “It’s just so cute to see them and it’s really fun.”

After the field activities, students made slime with MSD students from the Teaching Academy during seventh period. They used liquid glue, food coloring, baking soda, and contact solution to make their slime. The kids also were offered face paint, done by MSD student volunteers.

“My favorite thing today was the facepaint; I really loved it,” Cooper Tracey said. “I made a butterfly and a heart, but the heart washed off.”

Children ended their day in the auditorium, where they were able to watch a rehearsal of the Drama program’s upcoming performance of “Goosebumps the Musical.” The Drama program provided goody bags for the children. The goody bags contained candy, stickers and mini toys.

Take Your Child to Work Day, also referred to as Take your Sons and Daughter to Work Day, is an annual event held on the fourth Thursday of April. Its purpose is to provide insight into what it is like in the workforce and encourage children to think about their future. However, it can also give kids a glimpse into what their parents do on a typical day at work.

“I got to hold the door for my dad, which was cool,” Tracy said. “I saw that [my dad] is really fun and has good students. He lets them do whatever they want in their free time. When I grow up I want to be a bone fossil scientist.”

Others were inspired by their parents to think about a career in teaching.

“My dad teaches history, but I want to be a science teacher,” Ernie Rospierski said.

Take Your Child to Work Day provided entertainment for the young visitors on campus. MSD hopes to host another event next year and get more kids thinking about what they want to do when they are older.