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Wayne Elementary student: Eclipse is a 'once-in-a-lifetime thing'

As the solar eclipse reached its peak totality, Wayne Elementary School Principal Marybeth Whitney-DeLaMar asked the hundreds of students gathering outside to pause and observe their surroundings.

They became silent as they noticed birds had stopped chirping, the temperature dropped, and the skies got darker the more the moon covered the sun.

"Whenever we can help kids experience something and you have that hands-on learning, it totally trumps anything that you get from a textbook," Whitney-DeLaMar said.

Cloud coverage didn't diminish students' enthusiasm as they watched the skies intently through their eclipse viewing glasses. Cheers and excited chatter erupted among the crowd whenever a bright orange sliver of sun would emerge through the hazy skies.

"It's a once-in-a-lifetime thing, so it's really cool," said fifth-grader Lorna Bellas, 11.

Many Wayne teachers have been incorporating the historic celestial event into their lesson plans since school started last week. Whitney-DeLaMar went from class to class explaining the importance of the eclipse and warning of the dangers of looking directly at the sun without protective glasses, which she purchased for the entire school.

Third-grade teacher Janie Kidd took her lesson a step further and spent several days teaching students about the phases of an eclipse. Her class tracked the path of totality, practiced wearing their solar glasses and watched NASA's live footage throughout the day.

"I've been a teacher for 33 years, and this is something we've never been able to do," she said. "It was a really wonderful way to begin the school year."

  Isabella Barthel and her second-grade classmates at Wayne Elementary School don protective glasses as they watch the solar eclipse. Rick West/rwest@dailyherald.com
  Fifth-grade students at Wayne Elementary School don glasses and watch the solar eclipse from the school's playground. Rick West/rwest@dailyherald.com
  Third-grade students at Wayne Elementary School secure their protective glasses to watch the eclipse. Rick West/rwest@dailyherald.com
  Third-grader Avery Stokes clamps down on her protective eclipse goggles at Wayne Elementary School. Rick West/rwest@dailyherald.com
  Kindergartner Sophia San Fillippo cranes her neck to watch the solar eclipse at Wayne Elementary School. Rick West/rwest@dailyherald.com
  Fourth-grader Rocco Bucaro and his classmates at Wayne Elementary School came out periodically on Monday to check out the eclipse and record their observations. Rick West/rwest@dailyherald.com
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