To unlock a box with a mystery solution, English 10 teacher Cathy Sabol and US History teacher Pate Thomas combined their classes to prevent a fake World War III.

“My clues deal with World War II, [the events following] WWII and stopping WWIII, as do Mr. Thomas’,” Sabol said. “We just wanted to do something together and allow students to work together with different people and have them move out of their comfort zones.”

Students in Sabol’s classes recently finished reading books about the holocaust, while students in Thomas’ US History studied WWII. Both teachers decided to collaborate on this assignment since their curriculums aligned.

“I am excited to work with people to figure out how to open the box because working with [others] allows for good teamwork and allows for people to put their minds together,” junior Cali Javellana said.

Students had to answer four riddles, and each one corresponded to a specific lock. Some riddles were located in the classrooms, while others were in the hallway. Once students found the correct answer, Sabol would quiz their group on the steps taken to find it to see if anyone cheated.

“Overall, I am extremely happy with how everything went for the breakout box,” Sabol said. “Most of the students have gotten very far and have solved many of the mysteries and riddles.”

Two years ago, Thomas and Sabol coordinated the same activity, but they could not continue with it last year because there was not enough time. This year, Thomas’s students are being given extra credit points for their attempts.

“After reading some of the most famous books written about the Holocaust and WWII, I am excited to see if I am capable of stopping of WWIII with nothing but my wits,” sophomore Jennifer Shelley said. “I am aware that solving riddles and finding solutions to complex problems is nothing compared to actually stopping a World War, but I want to see how far I am able to get in the time allotted.”