The floats may glide smoothly on parade day, but getting them there is anything but simple.
In the weeks leading up to the parade, students across campus worked late nights, carefully crafting the floats that will represent their grade. From sketching designs to gathering supplies, the process is as much about teamwork and creativity as it is about school spirit.
The freshman crew of about 25 students started working on the float on Aug. 31 to reflect “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” to fit Cal High’s homecoming theme, “At the Movies”. To pick the design, the team voted on the film and then looked for inspiration.
Students created their favorite aspects of the movie, working after school and during weekends, using tissue paper, paint and cardboard to bring their vision to life.
For freshman Hannah Mauro, the hardest part wasn’t the building but deciding on a film that was easily recognizable, easy to recreate, and not by Disney.
“Helping with the float shows school spirit,” Mauro said. “Not only with giving devotion to spending time making a float for others to enjoy and see, but to also make a float that represents our class.”
Mauro said the process to float-making was first to come up with the design, then use tape to mark spots on a board with specific colors and tissue paper to create their picture. Then, they made the boards and, by using a primer to create a clean slate, drew the design on the board.
After that, all they had to do after was paint, assemble the float onto a U-Haul and add a couple of props.
The freshmen may be new to float building, but they aren’t alone in the challenge. The sophomore class has also been tackling the feat, using lessons learned from last year.
For the sophomore class, float building meant pushing last year’s learning curve and aiming even higher. This year’s sophomore float theme was “SpongeBob.”
Sophomore Yasmeen Sakhi, a volunteer who worked on the float, was excited to see the end results and hoped everyone enjoyed their hard work.
“It also shows how invested we are in celebrating our school spirit,” Sakhi said.
After the sophomores wrapped up their float, the juniors took the spotlight with their own bold creation. Their float stood out for its “Despicable Me” theme.
From painting details to last minute fixes, juniors showed determination to make their class spirit shine, meeting every Monday, Wednesday, and Sunday since Sept. 1. To bring their design to life, juniors relied on simple but creative materials, such as wooden boards, paint, chicken wire and tissue paper.
Junior Luke Sims said four wooden boards were used to make up the backdrop of their float, which was painted to match the theme. Students also used chicken wire, which they weaved with tissue paper to make a skirt.
“[Float building] demonstrates how members of each class come together to create something unique and win the class competition,” Sims said.
Sims said creating the skirt was the hardest part as it was highly time consuming and required multiple people to get it done. As for junior Lana Vu, the hardest part was to write “2027” with a foam pen on the skirt, as it was something they worked on every meeting.
“The Homecoming parade is an event that many people look forward to each year,” Vu said. “It brings the school community together because there are so many extracurricular activities that are showcased. It gives everyone a sense of pride for the teams, groups that they are a part of.”
Vu said the process of the float making starting with buying the materials, which became a large Amazon order of tissue paper, chicken wire and other accessories. After acquiring the materials, they painted the float boards and dyed pieces of wood to assemble a house-looking structure to go along with the boards, and used spray foam to write “2027” on the skirt.
They then got a trailer and zip-tied the skirt to the front of it. Finally, they assembled the boards and added additional accessories.
For their very last homecoming parade, the seniors poured everything they had into their float. Their float stood tall as the final reminder of the class’s creativity and unity before graduation. This year’s senior float was built around the theme of Super Mario. Senior Abbey Arteaga said they searched everywhere for inspiration.
“Scrolling on Pinterest became my new hobby.” Arteaga said.
For materials, they used paint for the boards, backdrop and details, and napkins to create the skirt.
“It’s so much fun to watch,” Arteaga said. “No matter what, you can definitely see our strong Cal spirit whether we are a sports float or a class float” said Arteaga.
