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NEWS
Hometown Elementary School hosts Halloween celebration
Hometown Elementary Students celebrate a healthy Halloween on Friday, Oct. 30, 2009 with a costume parade, physical fitness games and nutritious snacks.
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HOMETOWN, W.Va. -- On Friday, Oct. 30, Hometown Elementary School was taken over by a large cast of characters rarely seen together at one gathering.
It was the annual Halloween party for the Hometown Elementary students, and many of the parents lined the parking lot, aiming cameras as the children walked out dressed as their favorite movie, book or cartoon character.
Parading around the school parking lot were pirates brandishing imaginary swords, ninjas ready to do battle and a bride who practiced walking down some future aisle. The school was patrolled by Star Wars characters, Transformers and even Superman and Batman, who appeared in time to keep the Joker and Lex Luther from disrupting the celebration.
Representing the Old West was a lone cowboy followed by Davy Crockett wearing his trademark coonskin cap. To scare up some excitement and create a haunting atmosphere, ghoulish goblins, ghostly specters, spiders, skeletons and a bevy of witches sent up shivers as they made their way around the parking area. Even the Wolfman and the Mummy made a special daytime appearance.
And that was just the beginning.
Mixed with the scary and creating a definite buzz were a couple of bumble bees, a cheerleader, camouflaged hunters and soldiers and a 1960s go-go dancer. Disney Princesses added a touch of elegance to the spectacle, along with dogs, cats and ballerinas who were sprinkled with some disco magic. Adding to the fun was Cellblock Psycho, dressed in an orange jumpsuit, and a student wearing a large red bottle with "Ketchup" printed across the middle. Even some of the staff good-naturedly dressed for the occasion.
Just about the cutest, however, was a toddler ready for trick-or-treating in a pumpkin costume.
Following the parade, the students filed into the school and lined up in the cafeteria to show everyone their costumes and introduce themselves, then pose for a photo op with the parents and teachers.
According to Principal Carol Graham, the celebration began on Wednesday with students from each grade carving and decorating their own pumpkins. The finished pumpkins were then displayed in front of each classroom. On Thursday, the groups got together to plan for the following day.
"They planned everything for the costume parade and the activities they would be doing," Graham said. Activities included musical chairs and a game where students balanced a balloon on their foreheads. The fifth-grade took its game to a higher level by adding dancing to some Halloween hits such as "The Monster Mash" while attempting the same balancing act.
Important for any party is the food. In keeping with the school's efforts to promote and provide healthy snacks for the students, fresh food was served.
"Basically, we were trying to do fruit and vegetable snacks and raisin oatmeal cookies," Principal Graham said.
She said that for the last few years, the staff has been encouraging the students to eat healthful foods and to get exercise. This covers everything including the popcorn snack, sold every day, which is popped in olive oil with low salt content.
As for the exercise, Graham explained that four years ago they started "Mighty Milers," a New York-based physical fitness club that was started by and includes people who have competed in the New York Marathon. Graham said the group promotes physical fitness in the nation's school systems.
"All students are members of the club and have club cards where they accumulate points through activities, and receive certificates and medals," Graham said.
In conjunction, the school participates in Cardiac Kids, a program developed by West Virginia University Pediatric Cardiologist William Neal that identifies youngsters who are at risk for heart disease. The school partners with physicians, nurses, physician assistants and nutritionists at WVU who provide nutrition and health information to the students.
As if on cue, student Gavin Winter, 9, walked into the cafeteria to show Graham his costume, which consisted of green sweat pants and sweatshirt with paper cauliflower, lettuce, carrots, a tiny plastic bottle of salad dressing and a bag of croutons attached to his clothing. He was carrying a salad bowl.
Graham laughed about his timing, but said it made her realize their emphasis on healthy eating was getting through to the students.
