BY NICHOLAS LUCCHESI
On January 23, Jonas Salk Middle School students visited Old Bridge High School’s Esports class in the Esports arena. The class set up multiple stations to educate middle schoolers on different aspects of gaming.
Before the visitors arrived, the Esports class spent time finding different ways to portray different gaming messages for each individual station. “We planned out what the children would do when they came here by pooling together all our minds to find activities that relate to both esports and mitigating toxicity while gaming,” said senior Resean Torruella-kee.
Once the middle schoolers arrived, the Esports class assigned each group of visitors to a member of the Esports class. The students discussed different games to make them feel more comfortable. “My favorite part of the event was interacting with the groups,” said junior Carlos Cornish. “There were six groups each at six activities where we played some games and talked about mental health and physical health with gaming and how it can affect us.”
After the students got to know each other, they broke off into different stations where they learned a different key aspect of gaming. “The goal was to help teach middle schoolers in the Esports environment about safe gaming practices, battling toxicity, and working with your own health, while also being in a fun environment,” said sophomore Dominick LoCurto.
Along with learning about toxicity in games, the Salk students also learned about cooperation in games. “[Esports] students also selected games intentionally based on their ability to promote teamwork, cooperation, communication, and healthy competition,” said Esports teacher and coach Robert Weiss. “Chosen titles included Super Smash Bros., Mario Kart, and an indie game called TowerFall, giving students opportunities to try games they may not have previously experienced.”
To finish the event, the students completed ice breakers and reflections to check their knowledge about everything they learned. “To conclude the experience, Salk students were awarded certificates recognizing their completion of the OBHS Gaming Wellness Fair,” said Weiss.
The Esports class hoped Salk Middle School learned about the importance of mental health along with being physically active for their games. “I hope that they learn that esports is just not gaming and being lazy. You gotta be healthy and active,” said Latrell Alexander.
Posted on March 9, 2026
Photos by Nicholas Lucchesi
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