After the years spent under Covid restrictions, most test results showed that middle school students were falling behind in their reading levels. This year it was decided to try and be much more rigorous in the area of reading.
Grade 8 students were assigned to read "The Hobbit" by J.R.R. Tolkien. In preparing for class reading and integrating the reading with our ELA standards, we discovered that there is an actual International Hobbit Day on September 22 - the supposed birthday of Bilbo and Frodo Baggins. This date happened to match an early release day on our school calendar, so voila!
The idea was hatched and our first Hobbit celebration party ensued. Ms. Kylee Slough is a "super-fan" of Tolkien's works and quickly volunteered to host the party in the library. She led the charge in decorating and creating a festive environment for the students. Several mothers of the class members volunteered their time to help decorate and prepare snacks. A few students dressed up for the event by wearing elf ears; one even had a dragon costume.
The students wrapped up the time by competing in a riddle game. There were 4 teams of students and each team received the same 5 riddles. All of the teams were able to get at least 3 of the riddles, and our "champion team" completed all 5 in the challenge. All-in-all, our first Hobbit party was a positive experience; hopefully, there will be more celebrations to come.
