In April 2022, sixth grade teacher Mr. Edwards emailed Superintendent Orr, about an upcoming event that our students had to see; the total eclipse of the sun. The eclipse would happen on the day we returned from spring break.
When he asked if the district could adjust the school calendar, he was met with a response he didn’t expect, perhaps a field trip was in order for some of our students.
Sixth grade teachers began discussions last spring to develop a plan. They would need an indoor space in case the weather was cold and wet, and a controlled and safe environment for the students. Charter buses with bathrooms would be a requirement. During the 2017 eclipse, there were stories of motorists knocking on charter bus doors in the middle of the highway begging to use their bathroom.
Mr. Bishop, one of our sixth grade teachers, solved several of our problems when he reached out to SUNY Plattsburgh to see if they would host us. Not only was Plattsburgh in the center of totality, but we could dovetail the eclipse experience with a college visit. To our delight, SUNY Plattsburgh went out of their way to accommodate our SGF students. SGF was given use of two lecture halls, got a campus tour and lunch through dining services, and viewed the eclipse from a large field.
At 7:45 a.m. 220 sixth graders, 25 high schoolers, and over 20 staff embers boarded charter buses for the drive to Plattsburgh. All of wore matching t-shirts designed by our art teacher, Mr. Porter.
Upon arrival, our group took campus tours, did an eclipse ‘escape room’ in the lecture halls, and ate lunch at the student union.
Sixth grader Chase commented, “I really liked seeing the campus and the food was amazing!”
“I loved experiencing the different activities, like getting a tour of the campus and all the fun games,” remarked Guin.
At 2:15 p.m., all gathered on the rugby fields and basked in the warm spring sunshine. Solar viewing glasses were distributed and the excitement grew and grew as the sun shrank and shrank. The temperature dropped, and folks started putting on sweatshirts. The lighting got dimmer and the parking lot lights came on.
Finally, totality occurred and the crowd erupted with screams of excitement and disbelief.
“The eclipse felt more real than looking at the photos and it was the coolest thing I've ever seen,” Ryan said.
“When it was a full eclipse, I saw a red solar flare on the side of the sun! I thought the diamond ring effect was pretty cool too!” recalled Mark.
“The 360 sunset was breathtaking!” added Mackenzie.
Aiden summed up the day with a suggestion for all. “I would one hundred percent recommend seeing an eclipse to anyone who is interested. It is a magnificent experience like no other. I will remember this experience forever!”
The entire sixth grade is so grateful to the South Glens Falls School District administration for supporting this trip. The district provided the majority of the funding and went out of their way to make this trip possible.
As best said by Amelya, “It was a once-in-a-lifetime amazing moment I will remember forever!”
