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As the gym floor filled with colorful blankets,
picnic baskets opened and dinner was served. Friendswood High
School PALs were on hand to distribute pre-printed slips of stationery
and pencils so that families could write a note of thanks to
a soldier serving on active duty overseas. Mr. Hoose arrived
early to sign the 150 reserved copies of his book so that our
picnickers could read along as he presented the story that's
made a ten-year march around the world, selling over 100,150
copies in 9 different languages.
Under the direction of Laura Rachita, the
Treble Makers third-grade choir served as the perfect warm-up
act while families finished up their gourmet to go. They sang
four of their signature songs to set the tone for a fun family
outing with a character theme. When the thunderous applause abated,
our administrators, Lee Whitlock and Lynn Hobratschk, briefly
role-played a little sibling rivalry to share with the crowd
how the KELSO's Choices problem-solving system that we use at
school might be helpful at home as well. Each family was given
a KELSO's Choices Wheel mini-poster as well as a six-inch golden
ruler inscribed with the message, "We measure our character
by the Golden Rule."
After a quick stretch break, Mr. Hoose shared
the story behind penning his award-winning gem, how his little
girl squishing ants on the sidewalk one day was the inspiration
for the book, which began as a song that he could sing with his
older daughter and co-author, Hannah. He then sang an entertaining
version of the book in character, playing both the Kid and the
Ant. It was a heartwarming moment when he asked the audience
to join him on the last line and together we sang, "What
do you think that Kid should do?" Mr. Hoose then announced
the upcoming national essay contest designed for K-3 students
to answer that very question; you can visit www.heylittleant.com
for more information and to enter online. To conclude, our guest
speaker solicited more audience participation by singing interactive
favorites like My Bonnie Lies Over the Ocean and Head, Shoulders,
Knees, and Toes, Knees and Toes.
The Character Crew at Westwood thanks Phillip
Hoose for traveling from Maine to picnic with us, Laura Rachita
and the choir for their gift of song, our PALs for helping manage
book orders and distribute papers as needed, the PTO for purchasing
the rulers, Jane Ann Quevedo for her fancy design on the notes
for our troops, Terri Brady for lending us her son's guitar,
Nancy Glaze for capturing the excitement of the event on film,
and all of the families who helped make our inaugural Family
Character Night a huge success.
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