A Parade of Counties at Morgan Elementary

By Lisa England

Media Coordinator

Morgan Elementary School

Everyone Loves a Parade!

Fourth-graders across our state concentrate on learning more about North Carolina as a part of their curriculum. The recent North Carolina County Float Parade at Morgan Elementary is the culmination of weeks of letter-writing, research, and creativity for the fourth-graders and their families.

This is a collaborative effort between Lisa England, Morgan’s media coordinator, and the fourth-grade team: Angie Keaton, Ashleigh Maine, Erica McIntosh, Angela Sams, Glenda Vaughn and Joanie Williams.

This annual event provides a multi-faceted project that covers everything from learning to write and mail a business letter to their individual chambers of commerce, researching their county in media classes, computer lab, and in their classrooms, and using the materials the students receive from their county to create a shoe box float that promotes and advertises their assigned county.

All 100 counties are represented in this endeavor. The students, teachers, and everyone who visits the parade throughout the week learn some pretty unusual and interesting things about our state.

This activity is something that students look forward to as they move into fourth grade. Promoted as a family project, everyone is encouraged to jump in at home and work on the float together. 

Any materials may be used to create a float that applauds what makes their county great, what type of industry might be important to the economy of the county, famous people, and maybe a few little-known, outrageous facts, like Caldwell County’s “20 Miles of Furniture” that brings thousands to visit each year, Polk County’s The Gorge: The Steepest and Fastest Zipline Canopy Tour in the U.S., or the fact that John Coltrane, the most famous jazz saxophonist in the world, and Andre the Giant were both born in Richmond County! Some families even take the time to visit the county before they begin to create the float.

Some floats have battery-operated light features and recorded music and sound recordings. Each year the level of creativity increases and it is easy to imagine how the effort the students put into this project will help them in the future.

The floats are judged for ribbons and special recognitions that are awarded for each class. In addition to the first, second and third place ribbons, the awards handed out this year included several honorable mention awards, art awards, media information awards, and creativity awards. 

Lisa England, media coordinator, and the fourth-grade teachers try to remain unbiased and turn the judging over to other staff members who are given the criteria for the project.

Photos of each float that won an award and its creator are sent to the counties they represent. Many county offices have asked about purchasing the floats in the past to have on display. So far, the floats have remained with the families. 

The winning floats will be on display in the media center for the next week. Come by for a visit!