In addition to jerseys and spirit day swag, the senior class is making a new senior fashion statement: goggles and floaties. These accessories also function as protection in a grade-wide senior assassins game.
Senior assassins rose to popularity among senior students in the United States in the early 2010s through social media and shows like Gossip Girl and iCarly. The basic goal of the game is to get a target eliminated by splashing water on them, typically with a plastic water gun. However, players are safe from elimination when wearing various items that change as the game goes on, including goggles, floaties and oven mitts.
“It seemed really fun, and a really great bonding activity for all the seniors that everyone else was doing,” senior Amalia Netter said.
The game is entirely student-organized, with no affiliation to JDS. Seniors Lilah Waldman and Jonah Mellen came up with the idea and co-organized it. They first heard about it through TikTok and Instagram and thought it would be a fun opportunity to bond with their classmates.
“No grade had really done it before that I knew of, so I talked to people and I was like, this is something super fun we should do,” Waldman said.
When creating the game, Waldman and Mellen first sent out a Google form to their grade asking students if they would be interested in participating and how they would like to play. They then downloaded the app Splashin, where seniors are assigned targets every week and can see their target’s locations so they know where to eliminate them.
Students also have to make sure the eliminations are captured on video and uploaded to the app as proof that players successfully eliminated their targets. Safe zones where students can’t be eliminated include the school building, sports practices, games, jobs, Shabbat and Jewish holidays and anytime someone is driving. In order to play, students had to pay a $3 buy-in that goes toward a $180 cash prize for the first-place winner.
Waldman thinks the most memorable part of the game is the unlikely and quirky experiences that came out of it.
“When you remember it [the game], you’re gonna be like, ‘that was so ridiculous that I just drove to somebody’s house at seven in the morning to get them out when they’re going to the car on the way to school,’” Waldman said.
Waldman had a challenging experience trying to eliminate her target, as her target was usually only at their house. One day, when she checked their location, she saw they were at a rock climbing gym. Confident in her ability to have the element of surprise, Waldman drove to the gym expecting them not to be wearing any sort of protection. However, her efforts proved to be futile, as when she arrived her target was one step ahead, wearing goggles while climbing.
Senior Josh Dori was hesitant to join the game at first, but now finds fun in the unexpected adventures and the memories the game brings. Dori once showed up to his target’s house and ended up talking with their entire family and going on a 20-minute walk with his target before finally eliminating them.
“It becomes a memory that you guys share together,” Dori said. “The game has done a really good job staying in the spirit of fun, and it’s given our grade pretty funny videos to watch of people getting out.”
As of Dec. 10, there are 10 players left in the game after 13 rounds, and 47 people who have been eliminated. The game ends in a water gun duel between the final two players.
“We all know we don’t have a ton of time left at JDS,” Dori said. “So the days that we remember the most are these days where Splashin has brought us together, and all the unlikely but really positive experiences that have brought us together through the game.”
