“Before there was a movie… there was THE BOOK!”  This is how we began reading aloud The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg.  Before we read the book, however, my aides and I knocked ourselves out to give our students a memorable book event for Christmas!  Repeating what we did four years ago (when the movie was new) we turned the stage at two of my schools into a train car.  My aide, Ellen, created nighttime windows complete with snow and stars which we pinned to the stage curtains down two sides.  White Christmas lights were strung everywhere (also pinned to the curtains).  And, yes, we set this up at the 4th/5th building for a Dec. 17th performance, tore down and set up at the K-3, 6-8 school for Dec. 18.   (NOTE:  The photos do NOT do justice to the actual ambience since the flash wrecks the actual lighting!)

On “Polar Express” Day, students and teachers were invited to wear their pajamas.  (Dress code still to be followed, of course, when choosing jammies.)  The conductor (a former principal at HGS and a former teacher’s husband at RGS) went to each classroom, blew a train whistle, and “conducted” the students to our Polar Express.  As the students entered the library (at HGS) or the gym (at RGS) the instrumental “suite” from the movie soundtrack was playing. 

As soon as all students were seated our conductor punched tickets and then announced that we were off!  (Tickets were printed on gold paper and distributed ahead of time.)

The plan was for me to be seated (in my jammies) and sitting quietly at the front of the “train car”.  As soon as we were “rolling” I would stand up and begin reading the book aloud.  Unfortunately I developed a terrible case of laryngitis.  Fortunately my aides Ellen and Margaret jumped in at each school and performed the read aloud.

After the story the conductor led everyone to disembark.  Each student received a bell as the song “Believe” from the movie soundtrack played them off the train.  I passed out the bells whispering ”Merry Christmas”… not knowing about my laryngitis, students would whisper it back! 

After passing out bells to the first group one first grader received a bell that didn’t ring.  Her teacher quipped, “you must not believe!”  “But I DO!” she wailed.  We immediately replaced the bell for the young believer and then sorted through them all before the next group came.  There were a handful which didn’t ring. 

When we did this four years ago I did it only for K-3… but I chose to include the whole school(s) this time and I did not regret it.   Four years ago, few students had seen the movie.  Now most have seen it… and don’t remember there was a book.  My eighth graders loved it as much as the little guys.  (Although I confess I saved the bells that didn’t ring and distributed them to select junior highers!)

One of them, after sitting down, remarked to me, “this looks like you guys went to a lot of work”.  (How wonderful for him to notice!)  A younger student said “this was better than the movie”.  (The book ALWAYS is!)  Another quipped, “this was faster than the movie!”.  But no one topped the kindergarten girl who four years ago, as the final words of the story hung in the air, peered up at me through her coke bottle glasses and sincerely vowed, “I believe!”

I believe, too.  I believe in books and the power of reading.  I believe it is worth my time and effort to create a memory for my students.  I believe in young people because they aren’t finished yet.  And I believe in He who was truly the first gift of Christmas over 2,000 years ago in Bethlehem. 

Wishing you and yours a blessed Christmas.