The Day of Pranks

April Fools’ Day looks different for everyone. Yet, how does Air Academy High School take on this tradition?

April Fools Day photo. Image sourced from Flickr licensed by creative commons.

April Fools’ Day photo. Image sourced from Flickr licensed by creative commons.

April Fools’ Day is one of the few holidays that is recognized and celebrated around the globe. The history of the holiday has roots in Rome, Persia, Britain, and France making it difficult to pinpoint its direct origin. People celebrate this day by playing pranks and humoring those around them through embarrassment. 

Though much of the history of April Fools’ Day may relatively be a mystery, many cultures around the globe have shared a form of a prank day.  

“Prank day or whatever they use it as can be pretty brutal. I know we have a culture of it, apparently if you go on a tour with different groups it’s a thing to play pranks on each other,” Air Academy High School history teacher, Ronald Gorr, remarked.  

For many people, April Fools’ Day goes forgotten as another day of the week whereas for others, it’s a day of harmless pranking. 

“My dad opened the door and a pie fell down onto his face,” junior Maya Brokaw stated. 

Brokaw goes on to say how she has never had a prank pulled on her that compare to those has pulled in the past. 

“I love pranking either way,” Brokaw declared. 

However, teachers at AAHS  do not share those same ideals. 

“I am not a fan of April Fools’ Day because I think it encourages pranks and deceit. Which when, while they can be fun can be really harmful,” English teacher Katie Klostermann expressed. 

The sentiment of not enjoying pranks is shared through multiple departments. 

“It can be fun but a lot of people overdo it though,” math teacher Madison Lightfoot commented. 

April Fools’ Day allows people to pull pranks with little consequences in return. 

“April Fools’ Day is the day of the boy who cried wolf,” Klostermann claimed. 

Desk wrapped in tin foil. Image sourced from Wikimedia Commons, licensed by creative commons.

As a day for the boy who cried wolf, people are not taken seriously and treated as though everything around them is a prank. For some, this means having their vehicles moved so they believe it had gotten stolen, for others it may mean a lack of life-saving attention. 

“When I was in high school, someone brought their cow into school as a prank. It was a big issue cause cows can’t go downstairs. So as a prank they brought their cow but the consequence was that they had to have a forklift upstairs to bring the cow out,” Lightfoot mentioned.

Gorr explained how he did not know much surrounding the day and does not participate as for him and his busy schedule the holiday gets left forgotten each year.

“I did have a twin once come in as their sister. They were like, “April Fools’” and I didn’t even know it was happening,” Gorr said. 

For some, April Fools’ Day creates another reason to pull jokes on family. 

“My family was never big on those [pranks] it was the generic pranking your older brother and stuff but there was no specific day about it, it was whenever you could get it,” Lightfoot commented.

As the day approaches students are preparing their pranks.

“It’s the day where I can get to prank anyone I think about pranking. I’m going to make it kind of like home alone but a lot less scary and dangerous,” Brokaw remarked. 

Saturday, April 1st marks 2023’s April Fools’ Day. Though the student body may not be in schools to pull their pranks, students will find family and friends to enjoy the day with.