The air outside DeMello Elementary shimmered with soap bubbles and summer anticipation as the final school bell of the year buzzed on Friday, June 13, marking the end of the school year for Dartmouth Public Schools.

Students spilled out of the building wearing paper crowns, hugging friends and teachers while carrying home their projects as a bubble machine churned out streams of iridescent spheres into the warm breeze. The sidewalk buzzed with joy, a gentle chaos of goodbyes, giggles, a few tears and chants of “No more school!”

Lined up at the curb, yellow school buses waited with doors open — ready for the final ride home, a tradition that at DeMello turns into a parade. 

Teachers and staff gathered with handmade signs, waving and cheering as each bus looped through the school driveway, out to Dartmouth Street and back again. Children pressed their faces to the windows, waving their arms out as the crowd clapped and called out farewells.

As the celebrations dissipated and the buses rode off, a few students remained, getting ready for their own ride off into the summer. But for these fifth graders, this meant closing the chapter on this part of their childhood as they say their final goodbyes to DeMello.

Standing beside their bikes, a few paused to share their thoughts on the milestone moment.

“It’s happy and sad,” said Whitney Walsh. “Because we are leaving DeMello and leaving school.” Her favorite memory, she said, was wrapping presents for families in need during Christmastime.

Gracie Rezendes admitted she was struggling with the goodbye.

“I’m really sad to leave because there’s just so many nice teachers and I just really love this school,” she said. 

Rezendes added she’ll especially miss her fourth-grade teacher, Mrs. Baker, who is retiring this year. And of course, her fondest memory of DeMello would have to be when she and her peers had the opportunity to throw water balloons at Baker and another teacher at the end of last year.

“It was very sad,” Nora Perry echoed. “I’m going to miss the teachers and the school a lot.” 

For her, the best memories were the field trips, especially this year’s visit to the zoo.

As for Lily Pavao, with her mom previously serving as school principal, she noted, “It’s very sad for me. … This is the first time in 14 years that we won’t have somebody in my family here.”