Students, staff and parents of Soldotna Montessori Charter School gathered Wednesday to celebrate the holiday season with a balloon parade inspired by the iconic Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
An array of Mylar helium balloons — including Thanksgiving staples like turkeys and pumpkins, as well as horses, a unicorn, a spaceman, Hello Kitty and the Avengers — were paraded about by the Montessori kindergartners, who followed a path marked by cones in the playground while festive music played. Around the path were the older students, parents and some staff from the school, waving and cheering the children on. Santa Claus even showed up to hold down the back of the line.
The kids made three rounds around the path, then all of the students gathered together and sang a Thanksgiving-themed variation of “Over the River and Through the Woods,” led by Principal John DeVolld. The song still featured a trip to grandmother’s house, but concluded “Hooray for the pumpkin pie!”
“We did this last year for the first time and had so much fun that we immediately decided it was a tradition we wanted to continue,” kindergarten teacher Sarah Miller said.
Reach reporter Jake Dye at jacob.dye@peninsulaclarion.com.
Soldotna Montessori Charter School kindergartners parade with balloons around the school playground on Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2022, in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
