43
'Great' grandparents
Photo
Neighbors | Submitted.Josh Juliano (center) invited his grandparents, Norma and Alan Granger, to Hilltop Elementary School’s Grandparents Day program March 23.
Photo
Neighbors | Abby Slanker.Hilltop Elementary first-grade students broke out into small groups, class by class, to perform songs with movement, including dancing, hand clapping and skipping during the school’s Grandparent’s Day.
Photo
Neighbors | Abby Slanker.Hilltop Elementary first-grade students Adam and Allison Schrock (center) showed their grandparents, Richard and Lucille Pavlock, their classroom during the school’s annual Grandparents Day March 23..
Photo
Neighbors | Abby Slanker.Hilltop Elementary School first-graders performed their Grandparents Day program March 23. The students invited their grandparents to the school for the program and a visit to the classrooms.
By ABBY SLANKER
As Hilltop Elementary School first-graders entered the gym to perform their Grandparents Day program, flash bulbs were going off everywhere and it was as if the paparazzi was in town.
Only this paparazzi consisted of friendly, proud, loving grandparents who just couldn’t contain themselves with their cameras and video cameras.
The students didn’t disappoint – their excitement shown by huge smiles and big waves.
Cathy Mowry, Hilltop Elementary principal, welcomed the grandparents to the program and said the children had been working hard to prepare for the program, which was directed by music teacher Tom Scurich.
“Our students are all treasures and they have had fun learning through music,” said Mowry.
The program started with the Pledge of Allegiance and was followed by the students singing their school song, “Hilltop Elementary” and then “You’re A Grand Old Flag.” The children then broke out into small groups, class by class, to perform songs with movement, including dancing, hand clapping and skipping. Songs included the sea shanty “John Kanaka,” “Four White Horses,” the traditional Irish song “Rig a Jig Jig,” “Draw a Bucket of Water” and “Circle Round the Zero.”
“This is such a wonderful crowd with wonderful support of our students. Thank you for accepting their invitation to our program. Music is such a vital part of life. It is everywhere. And movement is such an integral part of music for children. It contributes to the growth and development of our students, as music also envelopes other subjects. But, most importantly, the children are having a lot of fun with music and learning at the same time,” Scurich said.
Scurich asked the grandparents to join the children in a canon of “Row, Row, Row Your Boat.” When it was over, children and grandparents applauded each other. The students received a standing ovation from their audience after concluding the program with “God Bless America.”
Before taking their grandparents on a tour of their classrooms, the students presented Scurich and accompanist Roni Sue Gregory, who has been a staple of Grandparents Day, with mementos of their gratitude.
In the classrooms, the students introduced their grandparents to their teacher, showed them their desk and presented them with a gift as a souvenir. And all the while, the grandparent paparazzi continued to capture memories of this special day.