Special Events

5th and 6th graders spend 2 nights and 3 days camping at Fowler’s Hollow State Park in Blain, Perry County. Students sleep in tents, go on hikes, take outdoor classes, gather wood for the campfire, help prepare and clean up all meals, and cook meals over an open fire. The camping trip is a complete outdoor immersion experience and a favorite Londonderry tradition. Parents are welcome to attend and help chaperone!

Fall Gathering was originally created as a 40-year Londonderry birthday celebration. It is an evening to invite all members of our community to gather on our playground, sit around campfires, enjoy s’mores, listen to music (sometimes live!) and begin friendships with other families. Students run in the dark with glowsticks, dance, and play. Parents may choose to donate a homemade soup or pie for a soup and pie contest. Fall Gathering has become a favorite community-building event for many of our teachers and families!

Preschool and kindergarten parents will receive details from their child’s teacher about the exact days and times of their class Halloween party, as the day and time may change based on student enrollment schedules. 1st – 8th grade students will have a regular class schedule in the morning. At 1:00, they will change into their costumes, and they will parade around the circle in the front of the building as preschool and kindergarten classes cheer them on. After the parade, they will gather in the multipurpose room for food, music, and games. A few classrooms will be set up with quiet activities for students who find this event overwhelming. Parents are welcome to volunteer in classrooms, come to watch the parade, and join us in the multipurpose room for all the Halloween fun!

Each preschool and kindergarten class will perform a skit, song, or act out a favorite story. It is a wonderful first experience for many students to feel what it’s like to perform “on stage.” Students help decide their role and costume, and can even help create scenery. These plays also provide a “trial run” for the larger all-school musical in the spring as students build their confidence as they practice singing, dancing, and acting in a smaller, more familiar place. The best part of these plays-they are always fun and adorable!

 Winter Festival has been a favorite tradition since almost the very beginning of Londonderry! Winter-themed activities are offered for students; a hot café and bake-sale items are available to purchase for lunch, and the Scholastic Book Fair is open. The always-favorite gingerbread house making is set up in the Art room; class gift baskets are raffled off; and there is lots of fun for all! Winter Festival needs many volunteers for it to be successful- parents and teachers to make and donate food items to the café and bake sale; parents and teachers to help in classrooms to work the activities; parents and teachers to help procure items for gift baskets, and many hands are needed for help with clean up and set-up. There is a nominal admission fee which covers the cost of all the activities and additional costs for food and books. It is often our largest fundraiser of the year. We hope to see you there!

International Day is a day to celebrate people from all over the world! Classrooms choose a country or culture to study, and students prepare for International Day by studying the country, customs, food, and favorite past times of that country. On the morning of International Day students travel to all the different “countries” and participate in a craft or activity from that country. In the afternoon, they travel again and sample food from all the countries. Parents are welcome to join their child in school to participate in the festivities with their child, or to volunteer to help in the classroom or help chaperone children as they travel the world!

Parents meet with teachers to discuss their child’s progress. Discover what your child is learning, see samples of their work, and discuss goals you and the teacher have for your child. In-person conferences on conference day are preferable, but teachers try to be flexible by offering after-school and/or virtual conferences when necessary.

History Fair is alternated with Science Fair every other year. Students complete individual projects based on the theme of the History Fair each year. The themes for History Fair are usually very broad, and students will study and create a project based on their own interest within the theme. Projects can be anything from a tri-fold board display (like science fair) to a live performance, such as a skit or a rap, to a creation of a web site. Like Science Fair, this is primarily an at-home, long-term research project- teachers provide guidance, but most of the work is completed outside of school.

Students celebrate Valentine’s Day by celebrating kindness and friendship. On Valentine’s Day students will exchange valentines, enjoy some games and goodies, and participate in a book exchange. Prior to the party, each student will pick the name of another student in the class, and they will buy a book for that student. We try to keep this secret, so the students don’t know who picked each other, and on the day of the party, they exchange books! It is a wonderful way to celebrate kindness, friendship, and a love of reading.

Since our first performance in 1991, every student in the school has participated in our annual all-school musical. The musical is a mandatory part of our curriculum. Every classroom has a scene and a dance; there is a chorus, ballroom dance, and sometimes even a live band! The 5th – 8th graders can choose to be part of backstage crew where they will oversee the scenery and props; and a few of the 7th / 8th graders can learn sound and lights. It’s a full theater production every year and often becomes a favorite memory (along with camping trips) of our alumni!

Students in 2nd – 8th grade will take standardized tests called the Iowa Tests. Students will take the tests only in the mornings and will have a regular schedule in the afternoon. We ask students to prepare by getting good sleep, eating a healthy breakfast, and arriving to school on time. Iowa Test results will be reviewed at end-of-the-year Parent/Teacher conferences.

Londonderry celebrated its 50th birthday in September of 2021 and held a great celebration in the spring of 2022. This year, we get to celebrate 20 years in our building! For the first 30+ years of Londonderry’s existence, we rented space in various buildings in the Harrisburg Area. When a group of parents and teachers made a goal of owning our own building, it took 10 years to reach that goal! In April 2004 we moved into the Leed- certified, green building we now call home! Look for details coming home this fall for this yet-to-be-named celebration.

Arts Festival is set-up in the same way as International Day, except its focus is on the Arts! Cindi, our art teacher, along with parent and teacher volunteers, frame and hang several examples of each student’s artwork that they completed over the school year. You will see drawings, paintings, sculptures, and pottery the school is transformed into an art gallery! On the day of Arts Festival in the morning, students travel to all the classrooms to participate in an art activity in the style of a famous artist; and then in the afternoon, they travel again to all the classrooms to sample an “artsy” food. There is also a silent art auction made up of items created by each classroom. Even if you can’t make it the day of Arts Festival, make sure you plan to spend some time during the last few weeks of school admiring all the artwork displayed around the whole school!

Parents meet with teachers to discuss their child’s progress. Discover what your child is learning, see samples of their work, and discuss goals you and the teacher have for your child. In-person conferences on conference day are preferable, but teachers try to be flexible by offering after-school and/or virtual conferences when necessary.

 Any student in 5th – 8th grade who is not returning to Londonderry is invited to participate in graduation. Londonderry’s graduation is often an emotional evening but can also be light-hearted and fun! Graduates are asked to “give something of themselves” back to Londonderry. We want them to leave us with something that will always help us remember them. Sometimes they leave us a speech, a photo collage, a piece of art, or a live performance displaying their talent in music or dance. It is a night where students’ true selves are shown, and you will likely not see a similar graduation ceremony anywhere else!

All families are invited to attend our final event of the year! Bring blankets and lawn chairs and enjoy the day with other families on our playground. The school provides a “main course” for lunch, and each class is asked to contribute a side. We are usually lucky with the weather on picnic day but in the event of rain, the picnic will be held on the same day inside. We hope you can join us to help celebrate another great school year!