Strafford News

A dogged effort by several of Gonic School’s third-grade students paid off Monday morning when the inaugural pet parade rolled by.

At the start of the school day on Monday, June 12, students lined the fence near the building to cheer passing cars filled with dogs, cats, guinea pigs, and even a miniature horse. The parade also featured an appearance by Rochester Police K-9 Ripley and the Rochester Fire Department mascot, Marshall.

Before that could happen, though, students had to convince Principal Greg Brown it was a good idea. To do so, they worked with Reading Specialist Kate Snow to write persuasive essays — drafting and editing them over multiple sessions before presenting them to Brown.

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While intrigued by the idea, Brown needed more convincing and so he challenged students to defend their stance in a debate-style presentation, after which he was convinced that Gonic School indeed needed to host a pet parade.

In all, 21 vehicles were decorated with posters sharing information about the approximately 30 family pets on display.

“The students did an excellent job writing and presenting persuasively, and the pet parade was a great event for our school community,” Brown said. “I want to thank everyone who volunteered to take part, and I’m looking forward to seeing what idea our students come up with next.”

Original source can be found here.