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Principals reward reading
Hampton Oaks Elementary students rewarded for reading more than 1 million minutes in MarchDate published: 4/14/2009 BY JEFF BRANSCOME The assistant principal at Hampton Oaks Elementary School acted goofy on Friday morning--literally. Cynthia Aref wore a hat designed after Walt Disney's "Goofy" character She and Hampton Oaks Principal Daria Groover dressed up in several costumes before hundreds of students. They put their dignity aside to reward the kids for reading more than "We're a little off the wall today," Groover said with a laugh. The principals took part in seven competitions based on books, including "Balto" and "Mighty Jackie the Strikeout Queen." The game in which Aref wore a "Goofy" hat had the principals in a sled dog race. They pulled small carts with a string and maneuvered them around three cones. The principals were delivering medicine to an Alaskan town, according to the game's story line. They tied because each delivered three shoe boxes, which symbolized medicine. During the next game, based on the book "Gold Fever," they panned for marbles with their feet. Aref collected 10 marbles--three more than Groover. Groover said her pan's water temperature hindered her performance. "That water was freezing," she said. Physical Education teacher Allen Hicks, who was the emcee, painted his face red and wore a Washington Capitals cape. Other teachers wore football jerseys. Midway through the game, Hicks teased Groover because she was behind in the competition by two points. "Mrs. Groover, you're going to have to do better than you're doing. Look at that," he said, pointing to the scoreboard. The kids loved it. "That's a side of him we haven't seen before," said Groover, who went on to lose the competition. "He's usually serious." Two years ago, the principals rode motorcycles in the school's parking lot after students met reading goals. This year, the kids read about 1.4 million minutes in March. Groover gave them weekly updates on the number of minutes they had read. They missed their goal the first week but picked up the pace, Groover said. "When the kids know that there's a goal at the end it does motivate them," she said. Jeff Branscome: 540/374-5402
Read more stories about Stafford Date published: 4/14/2009
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