On Thursday, December 20th, 2018, at 9:00 o’clock in the morning, the elementary put on “Twinkle and Shine,” a holiday program performed by Fair Grove’s first graders.

Every year, each elementary grade level performs a specific program; this year the first graders happened to be the students who held their program around the time of Christmas. Cindy Sparks, the elementary school’s music director, stated, “It [the program] is about finding the light in each of us that makes us shine.”

In order to prepare for the program, the first graders had started to learn numerous songs back in October. The following songs were performed in the program: Gotta Get a Tree, A Living Christmas Tree, The Light at the Top, Twinkle and Shine, and (W)rap the Halls. Cindy Sparks saw each and every first grade class, and practiced with them once a week. On average, she spent fifty minutes with each class, trying her best to prepare the students for their momentous program. Additionally, they had countless rehearsals throughout the last three days prior to the program. In regards to the speaking parts, the students started to memorize their lines back in November. Cindy Sparks remarked, “My favorite part of the program is that every child is involved in every part.”

First grade teachers Amy Crandall, Amber Highfill, Erin Hart, and Catrina Gore helped the eighty-six students receive and select a role for the program. Some of the available roles for the program included birds, other woodland animals, elves, trees, stars, and Santa. The parents were in charge of and were responsible for coming up with a design for their child’s costume, as well as making it. Some of the costumes were constructed out of cardboard and an arrangement of colorful construction paper, while other costumes used masks and festive clothing apparel.

All in all, the program was a tremendous success. The students were extremely happy to have had the opportunity to perform in front of all of their teachers, fellow classmates, parents, grandparents, siblings, and all of the other people in the community! Fair Grove’s first grade students do not have another large event or activity scheduled at this time.