Story By Trent Burkowsky 

When you walk past Woodland’s Media Center it’s impossible for it not to catch your eye. The display cases outside showing off relevant and current events using pictures, props and decorations are entertaining. But until you walk inside you won’t know about one of Woodland’s hidden gems. 

There are countless activities in the Media Center for students like Ethan Baluha and Kaylan O’Meara and staff to participate in during free blocks to entertain and engage the school community.

Every week there is a new question where students and staff can show their opinion on this or that. 

“The weekly question is my favorite. I always try to come to the library for my study hall and always do it on my way in,” Baluha said. 

For example recently the question was Spotify/Apple music or the radio. Students and staff choose between these two options and place a packing peanut into one of the vases to show their support. 

There is also a community puzzle where students can try their best to help complete when in the Media Center. Students don’t know who worked on it before them or who is going after them but work as a team to complete it. Every time the puzzle is completed it is replaced and started again. Another puzzle activity is sticker art, where you add a colored sticker to the right spot and at the end you have a picture.

 These activities give students the opportunity to take their mind off stressful school work. 

“Coming in here really gets all the stress off of me,” Baluha said. 

The activities and environment  help to keep them more motivated, disciplined and engaged to do their work when it can get challenging. 

“Being with my friends and looking away from my computer calms me down from the classes I had before and takes my mind off the classes I have coming up. The break definitely helps with my grades,” O’Meara said. 

A fun activity that doesn’t need much thought is water painting. There are brushes and boards in the back of the Media Center that can be painted with just water. Students can use their creativity to create imaginations of anything they want. When they’re done the board quickly dries and the picture disappears. 

Baluha and O’Meara both said that they didn’t know about every activity the Media Center has to offer. Some of them include friendship bracelets and perler beads. For the friendship bracelets it includes supplies like beads and string. Here students can share a special moment with a friend making bracelets for each other. The perler beads is a common craft where you design a character using different colored plastic beads, then heat them up to form a one solid character.

Finally there is an abundance of board games students can pick and play with their friends during a free period. The games range from as simple as tic tac toe to complicated “Hawkopoly” ( Woodland version of Monopoly).