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Troy Elementary first grade teacher Cameron Wooley handed out “jitter juice” to her first grade class, a concoction that the students said “took away their fears and nerves.”

In reality, the juice was a mix of lemon lime soda, Hawaiian Punch and sprinkles, but the students were confident that the juice really did help to calm their first day jitters.

Wooley didn’t drink the juice despite it being her first day as well – Thursday was her first class as a teacher after obtaining her Master’s in elementary education from Troy University in July.

“I absolutely did have first day jitters,” Wooley said. “I did not make enough juice to enjoy a cup, but watching them enjoy it helped to calm my jitters a bit.”

Wooley said many teachers use the drink to discuss the nerves that young students are feeling about coming to school for the first day.

New Pike Liberal Arts School principal Eric Burkett said he had already been able to get comfortable ahead of his first school day in the month since his hiring – no jitter juice needed.

“It’s been a very smooth first day and I’m excited to get the year started,” Burkett said. “I’ve gotten a lot of support from the parents and the community. With open house the other night having such a big turnout, I’ve had the chance to meet the majority of students and parents in the month that I’ve been here already.”

Pike Lib will have its first full day of school today.

Students also returned to classes at Charles Henderson Middle School and Charles Henderson High School ready to get back to work.

“It’s an exciting time,” said Dr. Lee Hicks, superintendent. “To see our students come back and to see our teachers coming back is always a good feeling and I’m looking forward to what the year holds for us. Our teachers have prepared with how hard they’ve worked in the past few weeks and throughout the summer; we’ll keep pushing forward and we’ll keep improving.”

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