It was 50’s Day at Washington Primary School last week as students came dressed in the attire of that decade, danced to the music that was popular way back then and immersed themselves in numbers, numbers and more numbers.
Elementary math coach Christine Lofaro came up with the idea and Principal Marsha Neville and faculty members quickly signed onto the initiative. Some of the outfits were striking, especially for the girls, with lots of pinks and poodle skirts, long dresses and a ton of fabrics and pleats, leather jackets and all kinds of bright colors and patterns.
Washington’s boys’ came decked out, too, with dress shirts and pants, smart suits, fedoras, rolled up dungarees and white socks, white tee shirts, shirts cutoff at the shoulders and all sorts of other period wear.
Faculty members gathered in the school gym early in the morning for a group photo. The incredibly authentic outfits simply demanded it. Mrs. Neville wore one of the most eye-catching combinations with red lipstick to match.
Washington's students got into
the swing of 50's Day.
As students entered the building they were treated to 50’s music over the public address system. That same music blared all day long in the gym, where students bounced, threw and caught balls 50 times. They jumped rope, performed jumping jacks and engaged is all kinds of other activities, all to the count of 50.
In classrooms, students embraced numbers while playing a variety of math related games. There were puzzles, problems, playing cards, dice and even mock clocks, which students set to the appropriate time on command.
Many parents and grandparents visited Washington during the course of the day to observe some of the classroom activities. They all got a kick out of the teacher and student outfits.
One fourth grader in the gym asked if the satellite radio station playing 50’s music could be changed to something else, but his classmates quickly explained why that simply wasn’t possible on this special day.
Many students spontaneously danced to the music, even a group of boys, which was a little surprising since elementary school girls have been much more likely to feel the urge to dance than their male counterparts. But, on this day, everyone seemed to be in the mood.
“Everyone had a blast,” Mrs. Neville said. “It really was a lot of fun and the kids learned a lot, too.”
