A STAR SPANGLED CELEBRATION IN HATBORO-HORSHAM SCHOOL DISTRICT

HATBORO, PA---“During the summer of 1813, I was busy sewing two flags for Fort McHenry in Baltimore,” Mary Pickersgill explained to a class of Crooked Billet Elementary School students. One of the flags would become the inspiration for Francis Scott Key’s Star Spangled Banner. On Sept. 12th and 13th, Crooked Billet and Pennypack Elementary School children celebrated the Star Spangled Banner’s 200th birthday.

The celebration, organized by music teacher and recent Grand Champion of Learning medallion honoree Jessica Welch, unfolded over two days. On the morning of September 12, students met the historical figures: Francis Scott Key who wrote the National anthem and Pickersgill who sewed the flag that inspired the song.

In the afternoon Crooked Billet and Pennypack students assembled on their playgrounds to sing the anthem and recreate the original flag with 15 stars and 15 stripes. The human flags took shape as students lined up in colored shirts and teachers held large stars.

On September 13, 107 students attended the Camden Riversharks game to sing the National anthem.

Welch organized the two-day event to provide a historical context for the National anthem. “I wanted students to have an understanding of what the words to the Star Spangled Banner mean,” she said.

Students enjoyed meeting with the people who played a key role in an historical event. “We were able to bring history to life,” Welch said.

CAPTION: Cooked Billet students and staff come together to create a human American flag