Each trusty, overstuffed, zipper-strained Jansports is a staple of teen life. They hold the essentials of survival: notebooks, chargers, gym clothes, and forgotten snacks. But for middle schoolers, a backpack is more than just a school supply; it is a portable filing cabinet for their lives.
With many students only cleaning out their bags when summer arrives, The Howl decided to dig into the depths of DCIS student backpacks to uncover what is really inside. We asked three students to pull out random, long-lost items and explain the stories behind them.
The Archaeological Dig
Seventh-grader Carter N. pulled out a collection that could rival a recycling bin: an old, ripped paper towel roll, a stick of deodorant “that has been lost for three months,” and an empty orange juice bottle “from September.”
In between passing periods and the rush to get out of class, it is easy for things to be shoved into a bag and forgotten. Carter admitted that on a messiness scale of one to ten, his backpack “would probably be like an eight.”
The forgotten treasures are not limited to this year, either. “One time I found an assignment from third grade in there,” Carter said.
Lost and Found (At the Bottom)
For sixth-grader Ryan L., the most random item uncovered was, frankly, confusing.
“[It was] my TV remote,” Ryan said. “I was just trying to look for a pencil.”
In the chaotic rush of getting to school, items can easily be misplaced, and that definitely happened to Ryan. “[My first reaction to finding it] was to keep it in there because [in the moment] I didn’t want to take it out.”
Ryan admits that in the rush of the day, a little chaos is sometimes normal, adding that he usually only “clean[s] my backpack out at the end of the school year.”
The Mysterious Swaps
Sixth-grader Alicia J. opened her bag to find something that wasn’t hers at all: “someone else’s P.E shorts.”
All middle schoolers know the stress of changing in the locker room, where it is hard to remember to bring P.E. clothes home on the weekend. Items can be lost or swapped very easily. Alicia confessed her bag is messy “because I haven’t cleaned it out since the beginning of the school year.”
More Than Just Books
When people think of school supplies, they often picture fresh notebooks and sharpened pencils. But as the debris from Carter, Ryan, and Alicia’s bags showed, what truly defines a school day is the chaos that shapes a person’s backpack.
These bags contain the household items, forgotten trash, and swapped clothes that help them navigate the turbulent and often unpredictable world of middle school life.
What’s in your bag?
