Plains students bring in holiday break with superhero games

PLAINS – Students of Plains High School and Middle School closed out the term as super heroes with fun and games during the annual Brain Bash.

The students were organized into a variety of teams, each named for a super hero; there was a team for Batman, Spider Man, Captain America and Wonder Woman among others.

The teams circulated between 13 different stations around the school with 14 minutes to play each game. At each station, there was a sign directing the groups on where to go for the next one. 

The gym had a form of human bowling, where students were rolled across the floor and had to knock over cans. In the shop was a giant game of Operation while the science rooms were turned into a shooting gallery. There was also a break station where groups could have a snack and watch super hero cartoons. 

Members of the Jobs for Montana Graduates club, along with the faculty, ran each station’s games; Carley VonHeeder and Shannon Dimond acted as the villains running the challenges. The pair operated the scoreboard and issued challenges to the groups.

Keeping to the super hero theme, throughout the day people from each group would occasionally get kidnapped by the villains; when this happened, they would go to the art room and have to win games to rejoin their group. This was not the only challenge, though, and occasionally people would be penalized with a handicap like having their hands tied or being blindfolded.

“It’s kind of like an obstacle for them, which makes it a little different from previous years” said Shyanne Cerrolia, the JMG faculty advisor.

This also adds to the enjoyment of the games, since, while a pain to deal with, it adds an element of unpredictability and is something new for the groups to work around. 

Dimond recalled the bash was fun every year and something everyone looks forward to each year. She said they usually found games online to play or recycled popular ones from the year before.

The Brain Bash has been happening for approximately 20 years. Thom Chisholm, superintendent at the Plains School, recalled the first one was held during the 1994-95 school year.