Berkley School's field day had a makeover this year and was better than ever.
The event was held Friday, June 10 and had several new features. First, the entire school participated at the same time instead of being broken up into two parts. The PTO funded the rental of two inflatable stations, an obstacle course and slide. Also, the PTO provided a grilled lunch of hamburgers and hot dogs.
Physical education teachers Mark Mongiardo and Kelly Streicher were the organizers of the event which ran smoothly. A total of 19 stations were set up on the rear field, in the front of the school and in the gym. A staggered start was used so that children would eat lunch in two shifts. K-2 began the day at 9 a.m. and ate lunch at noon. Grades three through five came out at 9:30 a.m. and ate lunch at 12:30 p.m.
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The inflatables were a huge hit and added a new element to field day. Some of the other popular stations were Tug-o-war, Water Trot and Hurdles.
The physical education teachers appreciated the help they received from the high school baseball team whose members ran the stations. Mongiardo is the coach, and he has been using their help at the Gibbs’ field days since 2007, but this was the first year the team assisted at Berkley’s field day. Members earned community service hours if they are enrolled in that program at the high school.
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The lunch was a big hit as well. It was organized by exiting PTO president, Kristin Becker, and a large group of parent volunteers helped to prepare and distribute lunch to the students. Ali McMahon worked the grill where she cooked a total of 400 hamburgers and hot dogs, all donated by ShopRite.
Mongiardo summed up the sentiments that he and Streicher shared about the day, “We think that Field Day 2011 was a tremendous success for the entire Berkley School Community. We received nothing but positive feedback from teachers, faculty, students and parents. We worked hard to make this a great Field Day and we feel that we achieved our goal.”
Upcoming Berkley Events:
- June 21: Last day for students. 12:35 p.m. dismissal.
- June 22: Last day for teachers.
- June 27 - July 29: Berkley hosts New Milford Recreation Summer Camp. 9-12:30 Monday - Friday.
