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Loudoun schools participate in American Education Week
Piles of Oreos sat on desks in Erin Hernley's fourth-grade classroom Nov. 18 as students ripped them in half and scraped the icing to mimic the eight phases of the moon.
The activity at Balls Bluff Elementary School in Leesburg was part of American Education Week, celebrated in Loudoun County Public Schools Nov. 16-20.
“I liked getting to sculpt things. It's very interesting ... how they change by the sun's rays,” said student Emily Frank.
Nearby, at Frances Hazel Reid Elementary School, first-graders made “talking turkeys” out of plastic cups with hand print paper feathers.
“I learned the true meaning of Thanksgiving,” said first-grader Katleyn Marshall.
American Education Week features special activities and invites parents to come watch their children's working habits.
“The classroom teachers decide what activity they're going to do. We can invite parents in to watch,” said Melinda Carper, principal of Balls Bluff Elementary School. “It's a lot of work for the teachers.”
The teachers invite the parents to see how their students are progressing in their class. This allows the parents to get a hands-on experience with their child's education.
“It's important for students to have American Education Week because the parents get to see the children's standpoint in the class and the education that they're receiving,” Hernley said.
“It makes everyone feel at home having their parents there to help,” said Meghan O'Hara, a first-grade teacher at Frances Hazel Reid.
The children enjoyed the chance to show their parents around.
“I think the kids really like to show their parents what they're doing and who their friends are,” said Tracy Sheppard, a mother of one of O'Hara's students.
Kelly Smith, a mother in Hernley's class, said, “It's important to recognize education. When they tell you what they did [at school] it's always something neat like this."
The kids were excited to have their family involved in their activities. For them it was a chance to reverse roles and teach their parents for a change.
Frances Hazel Reid first-grader Sam Watkins said, “I'm proud that my grandma was here to see some of the things that I could do.”
Tamar Dorsey and Michael Carter are juniors at Briar Woods High School and Loudoun Valley High School, respectively. They participated Nov. 18 in the Loudoun Schools Business Partnership's annual Job for a Day program.
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