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Cooper’s got talent

School of rock

-Messenger photo by Hans Madsen
Bruce Hartley, Cooper Elementary School principal, demonstrates one of his talents, rope jumping, during the Tuesday afternoon staff talent show.

The staff at Cooper Elementary School does have talent — and not just for teaching, mentoring and leading.

They can sing, dance (sort of), jump rope and, in a small group, do a synchronized swimming routine on dry land too.

Principal Bruce Hartley introduced the acts at the staff talent show on Tuesday.

“We have a lot of wonderful acts today,” he said, adding, “I can do a few things too.”

Then he demonstrated.

-Messenger photo by Hans Madsen
With her phone supplying the music, sort of, Cooper Elementary School counselor Sam Harms, left, along with school secretary Lacey Utley, do their best to perform the song “Do You Want to Build a Snowman?” from the movie “Frozen” during Tuesday afternoon’s staff talent show.

“I can yo-yo a little bit. My yo yoing isn’t that great, though. I can juggle a little bit too. Not very well and not very long.”

Then he demonstrated his jump rope technique and finished with a sing-a-long of “New York, New York.”

This was followed by student teacher Bella Chou, who shared her talent on the piano.

A group calling themselves the J Team, led by school nurse Juli Springer, performed some basic cheers.

Then first-grade teacher Jeanna Gronbach was puntastic. “Do you know your ABCs backwards?” she asked the audience. “Can you say your ABCs backwards?”

-Messenger photo by Hans Madsen
The grand finale at the Cooper Elementary School staff talent show was a simulated synchronized swimming number complete with “water” and fish tossing. Participants included Carol Tell, a fourth-grade teacher, right, and Collin Boekhoff, a third-grade teacher, in the turtle float. Delia Hoffman, Jen Blackmon and Carly Prior are kneeling “under” the water and teacher Cheryl Trunnell, waves in back.

“I do and can,” she said.

Turning around, she began.

“A, b, c, d, e, f, g,” she sang, “now I know my ABCs.”

Then she turned and faced the audience.

“Zyxw…” she sang.

-Messenger photo by Hans Madsen
Cooper Elementary School second-grade teacher Jordyn St John gets a little help from her son, Karver St John, 5, as they help demonstrate their talents in the staff talent show Tuesday afternoon.

Hartley tried his hand at comedy, bringing one student up to help with the joke.

“How do you spell most?”

“How to you spell post?”

The student got both right.

Then the punchline: “What do you put in a toaster?”

Things broke down then. Waffles? No. PopTarts? Uh-uh. Hartley got everything but the right answer. Toast? No. The correct answer?

“Bread,” Hartley said.

Later, the dry land synchronized swimming commenced.

Set majestically to “Chariots of Fire,” it featured the rarely seen and very difficult simultaneous two fish trout toss, a group effort to simulate the rowing of a canoe, and the most difficult, 12 legs wiggling above the water at once.

The audience of students were treated to a new version of the “12 Days of Christmas” called “My Teacher Wishes for Me.” The last refrain was sung slightly off time and off key.

“Grow something you like, meet up with your friends, do some swimming, see you at the fair, go to the library, continue to be kind, be a problem-solver, read lots of books, get out and play, enjoy the sun and I hope your summer is fun.”

The program ended with a rock classic, Alice Cooper’s “Schools Out.”

It was performed by retiring teacher Cheryl Trunnel who will be living a line of the song today as she teaches her last class.

“School’s out,” she sang, “forever.”

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