MESA, AZ — It’s the last week of school for many Arizona students. Kids are saying goodbye to another academic year, and ABC15 sat down with several Mesa students to see how the school year went and what they learned.
In May of 2024, ABC15 talked with five Mesa Public Schools students, twin kindergartners, a sixth grader, an eighth grader and a high school senior.
One year later, ABC15 talked with those same students. Everyone, of course, is a little older and a little wiser than they were last year.
“I think this last year I was so wrapped in my own head, I didn't do that much, but I think next year I’m just going to focus on enjoying it all,” said Ariana Frader, who is now a 9th grader at Red Mountain High School.
Seventh grader Sam Okland was a sixth grader last year and went on to Fremont Junior High. He told ABC15 it was a change from elementary to middle school.
“I definitely expanded my brain. All your teachers, they all have different teaching methods, instead of elementary school, it's just one [teacher],” Okland said.
Montana Maslonka was a senior at Red Mountain High School last year. She now attends Auburn University in Alabama, trading the desert for humidity.
Now, as an adult, she said she’s learned a lot in the last year, really, about herself. She said the biggest adjustment was not having her family and friends around who knew her.
“Just seeing how we're all still learning, no matter how old we are, I think it's really special, and I think that's been something that's really, really changed in my life,” Maslonka told ABC15.
For twins Silas and Sander Blokker, they told ABC15 they learned about coins in first grade and are excited to move on to second grade at Las Sendas Elementary.
“A dime equals 10 cents. Fun fact, it's the smallest coin but it has not the smallest value,” Silas said.
“Penny’s the second smallest,” Sander added.
While this week marks the end of another school year, they’re all excited for the summer and will be ready to head back to school in a few months to continue learning and growing.
