Seniors welcome freshman siblings

Sibling dynamics change as brothers and sisters take on high school together

At six in the morning your alarm goes off. You pull yourself out of bed and hop in the shower. Half way through, the water runs cold. You scream to your brother who took one before you, annoyed he used up the last of the hot water. You dry off, get dressed, and pour yourself a bowl of cereal. You open the fridge and reach for the milk. A drop remains in the bottom of the jug.

Again you look to your younger brother who grins back at you, pleased with your frustration. Storming out of the kitchen you are done with him for the day and it’s not even seven o’clock yet. It’s finally time to go and you breathe a sigh of relief that you can catch a break from him. Then you remember it's your first day of senior year, and his first of freshman year, and you're his ride.

Many people have siblings who they argue, laugh and grow up with. However when those siblings attend school with you, things can be different. For many seniors, their underclassmen siblings are in the same school as them for the first time in eight years. This experience is foreign to many of these sibling duos and they are adapting as they go.

With the seniors taking the majority of their classes at the North Campus, some of them don’t see their younger siblings after dropping them off in the morning. Many seniors noted that although they would like to see their siblings a bit more at school, overall they like the separateness of the different campuses.

“Being in the same high school hasn’t had any effect on us because he has six hours there and I have six hours here...but if I had an hour over there I’d say hey” said senior Hunter LaVigne about how being in the same high school has affected his relationship with his younger brother Evan LaVigne.

On the other hand, some individuals wish they were able to see their sibling more during the day and feel as though they are missing out by not being in the same building as them for the majority of the school day.

“When I go over to the main campus, I like to feel cool because I'm the senior and he's the little freshman, so I try and act like the big dog towards him,” said Damien Pham.

Freshman who are getting their first taste of high school have said that their transition into the new school has been made easier thanks to their older siblings who are veterans to the building. Cassius Blankenburg, younger brother to senior Janya Blankenburg said that Janya was a big help when it came to navigating high school.

“She told me where the freshman classes are, like how they are all mainly in one hall, and also like where the lockers are. She helped me a lot, I thought I was going to be lost.”

Other freshman who sought out answers about high school from their older siblings said they were mostly willing to help answer their questions and provide them with advice.

“Though he did get irritated with some of my questions, he did help. I didn't know how nutrition break worked or how the hallways worked, and he showed me a little bit,” said Karley Simmel about how her older brother, senior Kennedy Simmel aided her during her transition.

Though being in the same high school can present challenges, most Holt High School sibling duos say that they like having their brothers and sisters close by throughout the day. Senior Lizzy Wieber said that out of her three younger brothers, she is closest with freshman brother Jimmy Wieber.

“We are so similar, we both play soccer, and we both have the same thought process... he is the only sibling I really get along with, just because he is getting older and now we relate more,” said Wieber.

Despite the different campuses and schedules being in the same school is helping many sibling duo’s find time to spend together.

Kennedy Simmel said, “Were not as close as other siblings…but driving her to school everyday is allowing us to get closer”.