Although a new school year always brings change, this year has been especially difficult for CRLS students. The bell now rings at 8:30, lunch blocks start five minutes earlier, and students are confused and upset. The school day starts five minutes earlier, and yet it ends at the same time that it always has. This has left students wondering, where did the five minutes go? “I’m so confused,” Liv Hendrickson ’26 told the Register Forum, “they just disappeared.” Were these crucial minutes stolen? Have they been taken hostage by the administration? Or, did they just get up and leave? The Register Forum investigated.
When asked, students and staff offered various theories. “I think that the five minutes went to Mr Gehant picking a new bowtie,” Michael Cook ’25, told the Register Forum. This seemed to be a likely theory until Mr. Gehant was seen on October 4th, 2024 without a bowtie. So, where else could these mysterious five minutes have gone? CRLS teacher Mr. Montero offered a different idea, “I think it’s a time-turner situation, like in Harry Potter.” The Register Forum currently has no evidence to prove or disprove the use of any time-altering devices at CRLS.
The lack of answers has left some students feeling hopeless, wondering if they will ever get an explanation to this crucial question. Finn Graham ’26 explained, “I’m upset. I don’t understand where the five minutes went, and I’m disappointed that there are no answers.”
This same frustration has led one student to take action. Nicholas Rosenberg ’27 told the Register Forum, “I don’t think the five minute difference matters very much now, but they’ll probably add another five minutes next year and the year after until eventually we’ll be here all day. That’s why I’m protesting by being five minutes late to first period every day.”
Despite the stress and uncertainty that these difficult times bring, students and staff have shown their resilience, coming up with creative ways to use the extra five minutes. “I use them trying to find my sanity,” said Avery Fearing ’26. Others are using them to ponder important things about life. For example, Mr. Watter, a history teacher at CRLS, said that he uses the five minutes “thinking about how I am brat,” whereas his co-teacher, Ms. Kaplan, said that she uses the five minutes “thinking about how Mr. Watter is not brat.” Still others have found ways to be miraculously productive during these mysterious five minutes, such as Penelope Kibbe ’26, who told the Register Forum, “These five minutes are different. You can just feel it.”
Although it appears that we may never find a conclusive answer as to where in the school day these mysterious five minutes have gone, the ability of CRLS students to adapt in such trying circumstances is awe inspiring. But, students should not have to continue to wonder where the five minutes went. Answers should be provided by the administration, and soon, before another five minutes vanish into thin air.
