Edgewood fifth graders hold Cancer Awareness Party
Edgewood Elementary School's fifth grade classes went head to head in athletic challenges as part of their Cancer Awareness Party (CAP) on Tuesday, May 1.
The CAP started as a Genius Hour project in Lindsey Martin's fifth grade class, when her students decided to research several types of cancer. Martin said the idea came from student Wes Burgess, whose mother Shannon Burgess was a fourth grade teacher in Homewood and passed away due to bone cancer roughly two years ago.
Martin said the class researched skin cancer, bone cancer, lymphoma, breast cancer and lung cancer. They took the initiative to organize the CAP as a way to spread awareness to other students. The day honored not only Shannon Burgess, but also current fifth grader Jack Mitchell, Edgewood counselor Alison Hill and Martin's friend Meredith Vlahos, all of whom are fighting cancer.
"This grade is impacted by cancer greatly," Martin said, adding that her students were passionate about their Genius Hour project.
The Cancer Awareness Party divided fifth graders into five teams — each wearing the color associated with one of the five cancers Martin's class researched — and they competed in a relay of events:
- “Slam Dunk Skin Cancer” basketball shoot
- “Flow Through Lymphoma” sack race
- “Tackle Breast Cancer” football throw
- “Strike Out Bone Cancer” baseball throw
- “Sprint Past Lung Cancer” lap around the track
The winning team was the group representing breast cancer, who all dressed in pink.
Martin said she loved seeing the students' work to organize the day pay off, as they did the work almost entirely by themselves.
"I got tears in my eyes, I really did," Martin said. "Everybody came together, everybody was happy.