LM_NET: Library Media Networking
- Subject: HIT: Principal Stunt Read. Challenge
- From: Cathy Hay <Abbott1029@AOL.COM>
- Date: Sun, 1 Dec 1996 19:20:03 -0500
Dear Group, December 1, 1996
Thanks so much to everyone who contributed ideas. What follows are the
responses I received. If anyone sends others along I will certainly pass
them along too.
Cathy Hay
Abbott1029
Subj: Reading Ideas
Date: 96-11-09 13:07:30 EST
From: lybbym@ptd.net (Anita Mentzer)
To: Abbott1029@AOL.COM
>Hi! To stir up interest for a Jan.-March Reading Incentive program for our
>middle schoolers (6-8th grade), my principal is willing to challenge the
>students with some kind of "fun" stunt etc. She is a good sport but I don't
>think bathing in chocolate pudding would do for her. Please any and all
>ideas welcome. I'll post a hit. Many thanks.
>Cathy Hay
>Abbott1029
Hi Cathy,
Our former principal (a woman) has spent the day sitting on the school roof
- "read to the rooftop".
I read about another principal who waited tables during the lunch
period.(in a tuxedo) The kids loved bossing him around and telling him to
clean up after them! This second idea got alot of news coverage in the
local paper. Cant' wait to see your hit!
-----------
Subj: Re: TARGET: Ideas Principal Stunt-Read.Challenge
Date: 96-11-10 11:14:03 EST
From: mejay@umd5.umd.edu (M. Ellen Jay)
To: Abbott1029@AOL.COM (Cathy Hay)
Hi,
I can not tell your type of community from your address so some of this
might not be appropriate but in the past few yrs our principal has milked
a cow and another time learned to play an instrument (just enough) to
perform with the school band. The last two yrs we have had an end of the
yr. celebration involving the whole school -- Readers of the Roundtable
we held a Renaissance Festival with a dozen or so skill games or craft
booths designed and run by parents for groups of students in 45 min.
sessions throughout the morning. Afternoon we had the state champ
jousters put on a tournament for us in the playing field. LAst yr. for
Oceans of Opportunity we had Neptune's Nonesuch which was a morning of
water games and a local dentist came in the afternoon and shared his
scuba equipoment and video tapes of shark hunting. This yr. we are
Digging into Reading with a mining theme and we will have a gold rush
focus for the end of yr. event. Only students heo have participated are
allowed to participate in the games part. We have a basic requirement
for each marking period and they must have reach it at least twice. Oh
yes the first yr. we did a thematic approach it was a frequent readers
idea in which you earned mileage by reading. 3,000 pages got you around
the world with stops in California, Japan, Australia, Kenya, Switzerland
and back to Washington D.C. We had a "Read" White and Blue event during
which each grade level performed a patriotic song or poem for the rest of
the school and then a local performer (stilt walking Uncle Sam magician)
performed and we ended with red white and blue popsicles. All this was
done outside. We also have a father who's business is to shoot aroel
photographs. He came and we had the whole school form block letters READ
in the driveway in front of the school. He took our picture and I gave
parents a graph paper layout of who was where if they wanted it.
Pictures were sold as a PTA fund raiser. Sure we will kep coming up with
ideas to keep the kids reading.
Ellen Jay
mejay@umd5.umd.edu
---------------
Subj: Re: TARGET: Ideas Principal Stunt-Read.Challenge
Date: 96-11-10 15:22:49 EST
From: Mary Sci
To: Abbott1029
The principal at one school in our town spent the day on the roof of her
school (in the Spring). She had her lawn chair and her book and it attracted
much publicity.
In the middle school, the principal and the vice principal (male and female)
wore their pajamas to school for the day.
Mary Sciaino Seth Boyden School Maplewood, N.J. 07040
-------------------
Subj: Re: TARGET: Ideas Principal Stunt-Read.Challenge
Date: 96-11-10 22:48:16 EST
From: mjoffre@icanect.net (mjoffre)
To: Abbott1029@AOL.COM
How about reading up in a tree or on the roof? Without compromising
personal safety though! It's a highly visible stunt the local media seems
to love!!
--------------------
Subj: Re: TARGET: Ideas Principal Stunt-Read.Challenge
Date: 96-11-11 10:12:38 EST
From: murrellpa@urbandale.k12.ia.us (Paula Murrell)
To: Abbott1029@AOL.COM
In our of schools (k-5) the principal agreed to "kiss a pig" She is also a
good sport and when the time came we found a cute little piglet that spent
the day in school and our principal "kissed" the cleaned up little pig at an
assembly. In another of my elem. buildings, the principal (a man) had "Cut
off the principal's tie" He obtained cast off ties from various locally
famous sports figures and other figures of local interest. Whenever the kids
reached a certain level of reading towards reading a million minutes
(every
100,000 minutes, I believe) he would wear one of the ties and a selected
student (or the celebrity if possible) cut off the tie in the middle. Both
were a lot of fun. I have heard of a school in ehich the principal ( a
jogger) agreed to run a specified distance ( I don't remember exactly what it
was) if the goal was reached. Paula Murrell, Urbandale, Iowa.
--------------------
Subj: Re: TARGET: Ideas Principal Stunt-Read.Challenge
Date: 96-11-11 10:19:27 EST
From: PDY_ACA_JH@nwoca.ohio.gov (Joyce A. Hintz, Library/Media Specialist,
PDY Schools)
To: Abbott1029@AOL.COM
Our elementary principal used a dunk tank one year.
Another time, he ate his lunch on the roof.
Hope this helps Good luck
Joyce A. Hintz
--------------------
Subj: Re: TARGET: Ideas Principal Stunt-Read.Challenge
Date: 96-11-11 10:48:54 EST
From: cskiles@mail.win.org (Cheryl L. Skiles)
To: Abbott1029@AOL.COM (Cathy Hay)
For our Accelerated Reader challenge, our principals have volunteered to
dress up like clowns and pass out candy to all students if the points
goal is reached.
Cheryl Skiles <cskiles@mail.win.org>
John Weldon Elementary School Francis Howell School District
St. Charles, MO
------------------------
Subj: Re: TARGET: Ideas Principal Stunt-Read.Challenge
Date: 96-11-11 20:20:45 EST
From: cbarnett@ipa.net (Cassandra Grace Barnett)
To: Abbott1029@AOL.COM
Dear Cathy,
My principal kissed a frog - not just any frog, but one of those
great big bullfrogs. It was a hoot! She had a roll of paper towels to
wipe her mouth, a can of Lysol to disinfect everything and she wore rubber
gloves to hold it. It took a good 2 minutes before she could bring her
lips to that frog. The kids were chant "Kiss the Frog, Kiss the frog!" We
had some band kids from one of the junior highs playing drum rolls. It was
great. We videotaped the whole thing and it made the local news. There's
a pig (Mr. Rumphus) in town that has a costume for every holiday. We're
trying to get Mr. Rumphus for the next time.
Hope this helps,
Cassandra Barnett
-----------------------
Subj: Re: TARGET: Ideas Principal Stunt-Read.Challenge
Date: 96-11-11 21:13:33 EST
From: lhgh@chelsea.ios.com (Janet Hawthorne)
To: Abbott1029@AOL.COM
Cathy, One of the principals in my district spent the day on the school roof.
Even his desk was there compliments of the custodial staff! The kids loved
it.
Good luck! Janet Hawthorne
__________________
Subj: Ideas Principal Stunt-Read Contest
Date: 96-11-13 13:33:23 EST
From: byrnes@oe.k12.mi.us (Sue Byrnes)
To: Abbott1029@AOL.COM
Ms. Hay,
Here at Ovid-Elsie, our 4th-6th grade building is doing an "Abominable
Snowman" principal reading incentive. The kids receive tickets for their
reading efforts, then once a week two names are drawn for each class.
These students get to shoot shaving cream at the principal (evenutally
encrusting him in white and creating the abominable creature). As an added
incentive, the teacher from the classroom that reads the most will have a
shot at
their beloved boss!!!! This is kind of messy. This particular principal also
does a tie-cutting incentive. As each child reads a required # of pages, they
are given a slip. This slip entitles them to cut 1" of tie off in the lunch
room. Of course, the public forum only adds to the incentive. Good luck--a
willing principal is a huge help with incentive programs!
Sue Byrnes, Library Assistant
Ovid-Elsie JR/SR HS Library
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