Near the end of the school year, fourteen students representing all six of the district’s elementary schools and William Floyd Middle School participated in the annual Amazing Shake competition, which features students participating in simulated social situations designed to test their manners, discipline, respectfulness and social skills. Two students from each school participated in the districtwide competition with the top three highest-scoring students earning the opportunity to work at TJ’s Hero Shop for one final test to determine the overall champion.

The first round of the competition had students “Work the Room” and engage in conversations with several of the Amazing Shake judges. Students were rated on their ability to apply the “SPECIAL” conversation guidelines they had previously learned about, an acronym for: Shake hands, Posture, Eye contact, Charm, Introduction, Ask a question and Lean in and listen.  

The second round of the competition, “The Gauntlet,” tasked students with thinking on the fly as they played specific roles in several real-world scenarios. There were 14 scenarios overall, some of which included a principal mediating an altercation, a real estate agent selling an abandoned home and a government official hosting a press conference. Students had two minutes to respond to each scenario and were rated on their composure, the sincerity of their responses, and their overall creativity in playing the role.

The final round of the competition was a two-part challenge titled, “Wow the Crowd,” which was centered around public speaking. Students wrote a speech about a famous quote and why it was important to them, then delivered it on stage, where they were judged on their ability to communicate effectively and confidently.

All 14 of the students put forth a fantastic effort in the competition.

The three highest-scoring competitors were Gabriel Deutcsh from Nathaniel Woodhull Elementary School, Anastasia Piotrowski from Tangier Smith Elementary School, and Kaleb Spencer from the William Floyd Learning Center.

As the top-three scorers in the competition, Gabriel, Anastasia and Kaleb had the opportunity to see behind-the counter at TJ’s Hero Shop and spend an afternoon working with the staff to determine who would finish as the Amazing Shake champion. Each student took turns filling up side sauces, stocking the cooks’ station with bacon, and assisting at the front counter. All of the students excelled in their roles, making the task of choosing a champion very difficult.

After much deliberation, the TJ’s staff and Amazing Shake advisors selected Kaleb Spencer as the 2026 Amazing Shake champion.

Congratulations to Kaleb and all of the participants in this year’s Amazing Shake!