The class of 2016 got a head start on their high school careers on Aug. 24 during freshman orientation day. Students new to Harker arrived early to attend library and technology training sessions. All grade 9 students then convened in the gym to meet with their advisors and advisory groups. After making their introductions, the students in each group sat in a circle and played games to help them get to know one another. All the while, the students were helped along by the Harker Link Crew, grade 11 and 12 students who assist incoming freshmen with their transition to the upper school.

Later, they headed to Davis Field to participate in some fun team-building activities set up by Apex Adventures. The warm late-summer weather was the perfect environment for outdoor fun, as students were divided into teams and competed in games that required teamwork and cooperation to complete. One required teams to fill tubes with holes punched in them with water by plugging the holes with their hands, while another placed a student in a large wooden triangle who attempted to walk across the field while teammates used ropes to balance the triangle on its two “feet.” All the while, students laughed and cheered one another on as they worked together to complete each challenge.