IN Bethel Park Summer 2014 | Page 59

who told the students that “aside from eating healthy and exercising, there is no healthier habit than reading.” The Drama Club was initially approached by Memorial’s Accelerated Reader Committee to come to the school to speak to the students for 10‑15 minutes about the importance of reading, but the high school students wanted to do much more than that, so they wrote two age-appropriate assemblies (one for students in grades K-2 and the other for students in grades 3-4) that included re-written song lyrics to songs the students would know, costumes, props, skits and audience participation. Every student received a blue wristband with the “Feed the Need to Read” slogan on it. The program was so well-received that the high school students were asked to perform the assembly at Lincoln, to reward the students for surpassing the school’s Accelerated Reader Test goal. The students were challenged to take 1,000 AR tests in one day, but the students demonstrated how much they’ve been reading this school year by taking over 1,600 AR tests! Performing a Charlotte’s Web skit are BPHS students (front row): Ian Maerkle and (back row, left to right): Patrick Raymond, D.J. Miller, Cam Nickel and Wally Donnellan. Patrick Raymond is one of the Book Busters. Lincoln students hold a sign that says, “YORF.” It means You Only Read Forever. BPHS English Teacher Christopher Nagel as his alter ego, “MC Reads-A-Lot,” interacts with Memorial students during the program. Bethel Park High School students enjoyed performing for the younger students. Bethel Park | Summer 2014 | icmags.com 57 B E THE L PARK S CHOOL DIS TR IC T B ethel Park Elementary Students learned how to “Feed the Need to Read,” thanks to a wonderful, original program presented by the Bethel Park High School Drama Club. The High School Drama Students (better known as the Shake-A-Leg Players) visited Memorial and Lincoln Elementary Schools to present two assemblies that were designed to encourage students to read! The high school students, wearing t-shirts that said, “Feed The Need To Read,” presented an originally scripted program, filled with skits, songs and dances that had the elementary students on their feet--clapping, singing and dancing to re-written songs such as “Readin’ Bethel Style” (“Gangnam Style”), “Book Busters” (“Ghost Busters”) and “R-E-A-D” (“YMCA”). Skits included the Book Busters finding a book-eating caterpillar hiding among the elementary students, two reading frogs and a slew of frog puns, a milk and cookie-loving mouse, Pete the Cat and his white shoes, Charlotte and Wilbur, and Junie B. Jones, to name a few! Moderating the assembly was MC Reads-A-Lot, better known as BPHS English Teacher Christopher Nagel – Bethel Park ELEMENTARY STUDENTS FEED THE NEED TO READ