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Family Folk Night Connects Second Grade Students, Families

The first Family Folk Dance for second graders was held at Frank G. Lindsey on April 24, 2025.

Beginning in September, second-grade students from Buchanan-Verplanck and Furnace Woods Elementary Schools will unite at Frank G. Lindsey to begin third grade. The students will continue as one class through high school, and the getting-to-know-you process began during the debut Family Folk Night organized by music teachers Rebecca Correllus and Nathaniel Wardlaw.

The first Family Folk Dance for second graders was held at Frank G. Lindsey on April 24, 2025.

The event, which was held, fittingly, in the Frank G. Lindsey gymnasium, welcomed more than 150 visitors, including second graders, their parents and some siblings. They enjoyed several fun folk dances from various cultures, first listening to instructions and watching demonstrations before participating in them.

Family Folk Night was attended by several other K-12 music teachers, many elementary school teachers and staff members, and Hendrick Hudson High School Principal Lauren Scollins, among others.

“We wanted this to be something that was joyful and a community-builder for the children and families of the second-grade class,” said Correllus, the music teacher at Buchanan-Verplanck Elementary School. “We thought that folk dancing was just a special way to do it.”

The students have been learning folk dancing in their general music classes at both schools. The teachers have collaborated on the curriculum and wanted to join forces on an activity that could underscore that.

“Nate and I are very much on the same page,” Mrs. Correllus said. “We work well together, and to see all of the other staff members from the music department who came out and supported this was really fantastic.”

The first Family Folk Dance for second graders was held at Frank G. Lindsey on April 24, 2025.

The Hen Hud Elementary PTA provided refreshments, which were available in the cafeteria across the hall free of charge. Additionally, the Hendrick Hudson Parents Committee on Music greeted visitors in the hallway at a table that provided information on joining PCOM and organized a prize raffle.

Mrs. Correllus said more than 60 families signed up to attend the event, which the teachers hope can continue in future years and help bring second graders from the two schools together.

“We want to help create that unity between all second graders,” Mr. Wardlaw said. “It was wonderful to see them come together before coming here for third straight. We thought it was special to bring them together through music.”

The first Family Folk Dance for second graders was held at Frank G. Lindsey on April 24, 2025.
The first Family Folk Dance for second graders was held at Frank G. Lindsey on April 24, 2025.
The first Family Folk Dance for second graders was held at Frank G. Lindsey on April 24, 2025.