When kids reach high school and they enter the next level of classes, it quickly becomes clear that it will be very different than middle school life.
A lot of kids have homework and sports to worry about, but not everyone fits into the same box.
Between classes, hobbies, and a boyfriend, Lakeland High School junior Kylea Bartram keeps herself busy.
She has mostly college classes on her schedule, but one of the two that isn’t is her acting class.
Bartram has been in acting her whole high school career, and it has become a class she cherishes.
The family atmosphere surrounding the class makes acting a core memory of Bartram’s high school life.
“We’re all super close. The scenes flow really well because we were all friendly with each other,” Bartram said.
Over her time in acting, Bartram has performed in _ different plays. She has played as background and side characters, and even had to switch to play a male character at one point.
There have been a large variety of plays, with things like The Little Mermaid, Radium Girls, and Anne with an E making appearances.
Even though most of the class is done within the class period during school hours, the dress rehearsals and plays take place after school. Rehearsals take a few hours to make sure everything is just right for the performances, and the play lengths vary depending on the play itself.
These few hours after school are a time for working out the little details; Bartram said that rehearsals spent perfecting everything, making sure lines are memorized and everything is going according to plan.
Acting has been a large part of Bartram’s high school life, which is why it will feel like part of her is missing her senior year; she has to drop the class to make room for the other classes she needs to graduate high school with her associates degree.
Aside from acting, Bartram splits her time between homework, hobbies, and her boyfriend.
Reading and making nails are the two big hobbies. Every free moment she has, Bartram has a book in her hands or headphones.
Some of her favorite series are the Fourth Wing and A Court Of Thorns and Roses series.
Bartram also makes nails for her friends and family as a favor as well as for her own personal events. She’s made birthday and homecoming nails for her friends and herself. She even did her own nail set for the 2026 prom, which let her get them exactly how she wanted them.
Bartram also has a boyfriend, who has already graduated. She spends a lot of her time at his house, just hanging out and doing their own thing while being in the same space.
“I like hanging out with him because of his morals, but I fell in love with him because he’s really sweet and kind and funny” said Bartram.
Bartram is a busy person, but she still manages to make time for the things that matter.