There’s no hiding from the fact that the moment Covid-19 swept us off our feet and threw us into a full-on quarantine that there were some massive changes looming upon us.  Undeniably,  most students were going to have some difficulty adjusting to those changes. 

So; how exactly did students cope with quarantine? 

Having gone from a busy school life to an online school life, no social life, and danger shadowing every public location you visit, students have no doubt been transformed into entirely new people.  Fascinatingly, research points to there being multiple categories each student has morphed into.  As a matter of fact, there are ten well-known types and more to be discovered!

You might be wondering what these types are by now. Let’s begin.

The Procrastinator

Widely recognized as the most common type of student over quarantine, the Procrastinator has watched every Netflix series and explored every Youtube channel while slouching between the cushions of their couch.

One student from our high school named Kielyn Demoura fits in well with this category.  On an Instagram survey, she noted that what took up most of her day was ¨netflix and facetiming friends.¨ 

While students of this type knew they should be seizing this opportunity to clean or learn how to cook, they simply couldn’t find the motivation.

The Foodie

Next in line comes the Foodie.  This type of student behavior shares quite a few characteristics with the Procrastinator due to their idle tendencies.  However, they come with a twist; snacks are added to the jumble.  

Chips, chocolate, and cheese; all commonly consumed in order to pass the time. 

Snacking is a well-established coping mechanism to millions around the planet, especially for young adults. Causes of this behavior include boredom, stress, and anger. 

Due to quarantine having been the definition of boredom, stress, and anger, it’s no surprise that this happened to quite a few people.

The Nocturnal One

Nocturnal: adjective; done, occurring, or active at night.  Sound familiar?  According to an online survey created by a student of Liberty North, Elaina Gorton, more than two-thirds of students went to bed after 12 a.m!

These particular students ate breakfast when their parents made dinner and ate once again under the cover of midnight.  What they did while the others of the family were asleep is unknown.

“I normally went to bed around 8 am and woke up at 4:30 p.m.” said Oakmont junior Ally Lewis in an interview. When questioned, she explained, “The day is boring, and there aren’t many other opportunities to do this.”

Several students who took a survey mentioned that this was their favorite part of quarantine.  However, all but Ally said that they sincerely hope this does not happen again.

The Rapunzel

The fourth type of student over quarantine is called the Rapunzel.  Without a busy lifestyle, they had nothing to do- so they gave themselves something to do.  

Baking, cleaning, and even attempting to learn a new language were frequents on a survey asking what each student did over isolation.  Additionally, many students created their own movie or Youtube channel out of boredom.

Reasons for this behavior?  Some parents believed their child disliked being alone with their thoughts.  Others simply believe that their child missed the stimulation they got from hanging out with friends.

Either way, the Rapunzels are no doubt grateful- yes, GRATEFUL- for the return of school.

The “Let Me Treat Myself”er

Similarly to the Rapunzels, these students had mastered the art of boredom.  The way they differed however, is that after they cleaned out their entire room, they decided to fill it back up.

It is unquestionable that such a thing could result in an extreme loss of money.  So much time on your hands- and no distractions to stop you.

This happened to one senior at our high school, Regina Cerasuolo, who allegedly spent over a thousand dollars on stuffed animals, room decorations, and clothing during quarantine!

“So it wasn’t bad that I spent it,” she said. “That’s what I keep telling myself!”

The Sport

Now, we are delving into the rarer half of the ten types of students during our quarantine break.  

The first runner-up on this list is the Sport.  Without a sports season to fill up their schedule, many of the athletes of our school decided to train like crazy.  

Whether they had a sibling to practice with or not, these students determinedly went outside every day to shoot some hoops or spike a few volleyballs.   Nonetheless, they eventually got bored and went inside to watch some more sports.

The Glower-Upper

From cutting their own hair and buying a new closet to doing Chloe Ting workouts day by day, students of this type used multiple tactics to improve themselves, primarily their appearances.

As a result, this group is divided into two: those who succeeded, and those who gave up halfway.

One of these poor students, Oakmont freshman Leanna Klettke, said that she attempted to glow up during quarantine but failed.  

As a matter of fact, she commented something along the lines of: “You should just rename this category Leanna because this totally describes me.”

The Workers

Seniors and juniors make up the majority of the Workers.  These fierce students seized the opportunity of a lost social life to fill up their time with work, work, and work.

Most of these young adults took it upon themselves to become essential: delivering pizzas, scanning groceries, waiting at restaurants- you name it!  They performed these jobs for the wellness of their elders, who should not be working at this time due to Covid-19. 

Luckily, students of this category seemed to have done their tasks safely, as there are no reports of the coronavirus among our students as of right now.  Thank goodness!

The Political Activist

Students of this type did a different kind of work than the Workers themselves but work all the same. 

On any social media site- mainly Instagram or Twitter- these particular teenagers spent hours scouring for political posts, quotes, and issues to report.  From then on, these posts would be compiled and shared on that student’s own socials.

Apart from this, the occasional meme- related or not- would also make its way into that student’s daily collection.  

Then and now more than ever, these students were essential players in our community despite being one of the smallest groups.  Perhaps in the future, they will become even more important- as actual members of our government.

The Spiritual One

Finally, we have reached the last and rarest type of student over quarantine.  These students actually worked for inner improvement.

Most of these students found themselves consumed by their own thoughts once all exterior distractions were eliminated.  As a consequence, they turned all their attention inside.

This then led to them taking ten personality tests, participating in hours of meditation, adopting a greenhouse of plants, and reading a library’s worth of self-help books. 

Like the Rapunzels, these insightful kids are likely happy to have a little more change in their daily lives because of school.

Now that we have explored the ten main types of students over quarantine, perhaps you’ll come to the conclusion that you are exactly one of them or a combination of a few! Either way, it is incredibly interesting to see how students fared during our quarantine.