Senior year is a time for students to make sure that they are prepared for entering into the “real world.”  One of the most important aspects of adulthood is being responsible, and one of the best ways to acquire this trait is by learning about childcare.  When taking health classes, most seniors will participate in a project that is supposed to help them master responsibility.  This project-carrying around flour babies.

Students get to decorate their flour babies and a large variety of ideas are often expressed.  There are so many unique ways to decorate them-from celebrities like Michael Jackson and political figures like Bernie Sanders, to fictional characters like Minnie Mouse and Gollum from The Hobbit.  The different ways of decorating them are very entertaining for everyone, and if you get lucky you just might have to carry around twins!  For the future flour baby parents out there, senior Meghan Barnett advises that people “get creative when decorating their flour baby because it will make it more fun!”

Besides decorating the bag of flour, students are required to carry it around with them everywhere and collect stickers from the “pediatricians and grandmother” who are really just designated teachers.  After completing the project, senior Taylor Sauter decided “she likes children just not when they’re her own.”  Many students gave the similar opinions of the project and they all seem to share the same verdict: it doesn’t teach much about childcare but it does give an accurate idea of responsibility.

As for what happens to the baby after the project-it is usually baked into a delicious dessert that is enjoyed by their parents.  “Best baby we’ve ever eaten!” says senior Sruthi Boddapati.