VIDALIA — When bells rang at 7:50 Friday morning, the 2007-2008 school year officially began for Concordia Parish students.

At Vidalia Lower Elementary, students and parents wound their ways through the halls looking for classrooms, occasionally calling out greetings to old teachers or familiar school friends.

Seven-year-old Seth Stanley said he is excited to be back in school and looks forward to the year.

Chance Cavin, 8, is in the same second grade class as Stanley, and said he too is excited about the school year.

“I’m excited about making new friends, having fun and making good grades,” Cavin said.

Christie Anderson, Stanley and Cavin’s teacher, said she looks forward to working with her class.

“They look to be a pretty good group,” she said. “In the past, I had a class come in hanging from the walls.”

While the students worked on a crossword puzzle about reptiles, Anderson said it takes students a few days to adjust to being back in school after the summer.

“They come in quiet and sleepy from the summer,” she said. “Next week they will be back to their normal selves.”

The rest of the first day would be spent reviewing class and school rules and showing students around the facility, Anderson said.

Concordia Parish School Board Academic Director Paul Nelson said the first morning went by with only a few minor hiccups.

The biggest first day challenge would be when students got out in the afternoon, he said.

“As far as bus routes go, some of the younger students might get on the wrong bus and not necessarily know how to tell a driver to get them home,” he said. “It might be hard for a driver to find the blue house by the big tree.”

The school system has an enrollment of approximately 3,900 students this year, Nelson said.