BY ANUSHA PERINKOLAM
The annual egg project kicked off on March 18, which explains why many students walked the halls with eggs in tow. The project requires students to participate in a weeklong trial where they must care for an egg as if it is their child.
The egg project teaches students how to responsibility for caring for a child. Students can pick partners to raise the egg with or they can raise it alone. The project aims to assist students in understanding the growth of young children through eggs. “The culminating assignment is to create a digital scrap book including all aspects of their project and a reflection essay on parenting,” said Gina Ricci, one of the AP Psychology teachers conducting the egg project.
The tricky project does come with a few advantages. Nurturing an egg for an extended period resembles caring for a child. “The benefits of doing the egg project include teaching you how to be more careful with developing young minds and making you more responsible,” said Caitlin Laflower, who completed the project with her friend, Kayla Hennessey.
The project requires the egg remain uncovered while walking in the hallways or attending classes, so students must not only exercise caution to prevent dropping the egg themselves but also ensure that incoming students do not bump into them, causing the egg to fall. “One thing that makes me weary is making sure that no one harms my egg,” said Echo Prado Roberts, whose egg, Ruben Luna Naveh, lived in a comfortable mushroom plush.
Bringing a “healthy” egg to AP Psychology class for a wellness check earns students points, but the teachers may deduct points for many reason. One such way includes leaving the egg unattended. “I do not want children; knowing how stressful just keeping an egg safe is, that opinion hasn’t changed,” said Ashley Photis, who named her egg Thalia, after the Greek muse of comedy.
Egg daycares came in handy when students needed to take part in class but still wanted their eggs safe. Some teachers set up small places for the eggs to get taken care of without the students losing points. “Most classes don’t have daycares, but, in classes like gym, they have daycares, so [the egg] doesn’t break and is well protected,” said Kaavya Sheth, who named her egg Elggsa, after the Disney princess Elsa.
On March 26, the egg project officially ended, relieving all the Psychology students of their parental duties. However, throughout the project, students gained insights into the challenges of parenting. Although they said farewell to their “children,” students hopefully carry a deeper appreciation for their own parents, and their personal growth through the project.
Posted on 4/16/24
Photos by Anusha Perinkolam
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