Being at the end of the alphabet sucks

The kids headed back to school this week and it came with the coming dread of Beans science experiment.  At  Meet the Teacher night this year the teachers said for each students, Star Student Week, they would be asked to show off a science experiment.  Initially we were really excited by this, then we found out that Star Student was in alphabetically order.  We have spent the last few weeks pouring through the internet looking for something that hasn't been done yet, that will be ok to do in a classroom.  These are the conclusions from Bean, everything cool has been done and explaining (insert thing here) is way too tough for me.

Seeing that I married into this Z based last name I never considered how much alphabetical order is a pain when you are at the bottom of the ABC food chain.  There are advantages to being at the end of the alphabet, every year we know what the kids student class number will be, the highest number in the class. This science experiment though is really making it tough.  We are now looking beyond Mythbusters, since everything that a 9 year old could do has been done and have moved on to Penn and Teller. Bean is talking about doing the balancing the beer bottle.  I can't quite remember what this one is, but the internet shall provide, like always.  The thing I wonder about though is what other impacts and creativity will we have to come up with in the next few years since we are the end of the alphabet.  Sitting in either the last seat or front seat are a give in of alphabetically order, but what about the picnic game.  How do you play the picnic game with the letter Z, I am going on a picnic and I am going to bring a Zebra?  For tests will they have to go last and watch everyone crash and burn around them, for presentations will everyone be drooling asleep on their desks when they finally stand up.  Honestly I am not sure if that last thing is really a negative, I could have used more uninterested people when I gave class presentations.

I am sure we will find an experiment and it will be cool, but man this going last thing bites. Maybe next time she will get to go first.