Grandparents Day Triumphs At PES
PIERCETON — Grandparents Day is a special event hosted by Pierceton Elementary School . And PES’ staff took time to explain the value of having a grandma and grandpa come to school with the students. Even when a student doesn’t have their own grandparent present, other grandparents were willing to step up right away to make sure every child had someone they could celebrate with for the day.
“It was cool to see all the grandparents that were here, kind of, offered to show their love and affection for another child. They didn’t want anyone to feel excluded. And the other students even, were ‘hey come and join my grandparent!'” explained Stephanie Boggs a second grade PES teacher. “Showing that love of learning with anyone in the room, it was nice to have that love of community brought into our classroom, because that’s what we strive to do everyday.”
One set of grandparents traveled from the Carolinas according to teacher Susan Slocum. They had planned to surprise their grandson who hadn’t seen them since the previous Thanksgiving in 2016. “When he saw her, I mean he just literally, you know, squealed and ran clear across the room,” Slocum reflected, visibly moved by the moment, she continued, “I literally, it brought tears to my eyes.”
At first glance, the value of having a grandparent in the classroom was meant to benefit the students, but interestingly, it was also a moving and important opportunity for grandparents to leave having felt the impact of their relationship with their own grandchildren. Debbie McClelland was one of the grandparents visiting the school and she shared a little about her grandson, Kindergarten student Leo McClelland. “Leo’s favorite thing about his grandpa was learning how to shake hands. Oh my goodness! That was valuable to hear out of this little boy’s mouth, because we really didn’t know that that was so important to him!”
Each classroom provided fun opportunities for grandparents to mix and mingle together with the students. Students in Jenni McCammon’s classroom made a fun cut-and-paste project and traced outlines of their fingers onto paper, while first grade students decorated and frosted sugar cookies. Some grandparents even had a chance to experience recess for the first time in a long while!
Patricia Coplen had 9 family members present, with some being grandchildren and others nieces or nephews, “Seeing the look on the grandkids’ face(s) when I walked into the room, it was just amazing! Because they get all excited. It makes them happy and that makes me happy!”
The event occurs annually at PES and is hosted by the PES PTO.