What’s the best way to spend a free block?
Free blocks. Rare. Precious. Gone before you even figure out what to do with them. Whether you’re in 7th grade, 12th grade, or anywhere in between, we can all agree: they don’t come often, and when they do, they are gone in the blink of an eye .
Some even think they are a fairy tail. Earl E Demise (name changed for anonymity) insists, “We don't have free blocks.”
A total of 19 people responded to the poll, with 26.3% of responses coming from 9th graders and another 26.3% from 7th graders. The rest from students across grades 8 through 12.
So we asked the Newman community: What’s the best way to spend a free block? Here’s what you had to say:
1st Place: Study and Homework (42.1%)
The majority of students said they’d rather knock out some work than get buried later.
Aster Evans ‘26 put it best: “If I do all of my work during my free period, I don’t have to do work later! It makes life so much easier, especially doing the full DP.”
Maura Keimig ‘26 added, “As a DP student we hardly have any free blocks, maximum 1 a day and not every day, so having time to get homework done is a necessity with our workload.”
And one student made the most practical point: “You can save time at night by doing your homework in your free instead.”
2nd Place: Hanging out with friends (21.1%)
Socializing came in strong, too. Sometimes you just need to decompress or complain about your workload with someone who understands the pain.
And the rest? Pure chaos, but in a good way: It’s not only about the choices but it’s also about the context our participants offered.
– Cardinal Cares (1 vote)
Shoutout to the enthusiastic voter who wrote: “Cardinal Cares is great, and everyone should join and do it!!!”
– Get food or drink (1 vote) - we hope you saw our article on the best place to get lunch!
– Take a nap (1 vote), signed with “sleep deprived.” - we feel you!
– Watch your favorite show/movie (1 vote)
– Go home (1 vote) – living the dream.
– Attend a class you’re not in and pretend you belong there (1 vote) – what could go wrong?
– Computer programming because why not (1 vote)
Owen Kelley ‘28 said: “It makes me feel like I’m doing something without having to do homework (because let’s face it, homework is boring, even for me).”
Whether you're a 7th grader dodging your next class or a DP student praying for a moment of peace, free blocks are what you make of them. Study, snack, sneak into a random classroom. It’s your time. Use it wisely... or don’t.
