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A Spork-Free Classroom the spork game at chs is on and some teachers are choosing to make their classrooms spork-free

The spork game is a tradition among seniors at Community High School (CHS). The game starts in February and lasts until the end of the school year. Each senior pays five dollars to get a spork and the winner of the game receives all of the money at the end. As the competitiveness grows, so does the amount of spork-free zones in classrooms.

Emma Hamstra, an English teacher at CHS, has decided to make her classroom a spork-free zone.

“I don't want people getting stabbed in the middle of Shakespeare,” Hamstra said. “The only people that should be stabbed in Shakespeare are Julius Caesar, not students.”

Hamstra expressed her concerns about the safety of the seniors during the game. Getting sporked while driving or sleeping has become a possibility.

Hamstra’s classroom is packed with 37 desks. There is no room to lunge one way or another to spork someone safely, so making the classroom a spork-free zone was the apparent decision for Hamstra.

“If we let sporking happen here, all chaos would ring and kids need to save space,” Hamstra said. “They shouldn't have to be worried about their spork in the classroom.”

Hamstra understands just how competitive the spork game can get because she played a similar game to the spork game in high school.

“It lasted for like nine months and I was like the third to last person eliminated,” Hamstra said. “I was very upset.”

Hamstra has an appreciation for those who are committed to making it to the end of the game. She advises them to keep it taped to their hand and not let it go.

Laurel Landrum, a Spanish teacher at CHS, has also decided to make her classroom a spork-free zone, regardless of her own aspirations to be a “sneaky” player.

“It helps students focus on Spanish,” Landrum said. “Instead of being anxious about whether or not they're going to get sporked.”

Over the years, Landrum watches the spork game with each senior class. She hasn’t personally seen any foul play, but she has undoubtedly heard of it. The students’ competitive spirits have always shown through their game tactics. Landrum recalls stories of people climbing through windows and sneaking up on people, even sporking people in their sleep.

The game will continue throughout the end of the school year until one senior is left holding a spork to be crowned the winner. However, there is often more than one person left once school is over so the prize is either split or a deciding factor is created.