Hearst School’s new gym getting a workout

DCPS wasted no time in putting Hearst Elementary School’s beautiful new multipurpose room to use.

The multipurpose room, which serves as both a gymnasium and cafeteria, opened in January, and in February, the school was one of the hosts of the city-wide elementary-level playoff games for the boys and girls basketball teams.

Hearst boys’ basketball team warming up (photo by Jacqui Allen-Settles)

While the Hearst girls went out early, the boys went on to win the Northwest Championship on their own court (and then won the city championship game held at another school).

Hearst staff, Owl mascot and parents cheering on the kids (photo by Jacqui Allen-Settles)

The room also includes a full-size stage that the Pre-K and Kindergarten students used in mid-February to hold a “fashion” show describing the four seasons and the appropriate clothes worn during each of those seasons. Ms. Prince and Ms. Whittaker’s Kindergarten class performed an opera on March 4th called the Banana Bread Men, which is based off of the Gingerbread Man. The kids spent weeks working on the content and the songs with Mary Gresock of the community initiatives program at the Kennedy Center.

The kids (and staff) are thrilled to have an indoor space large enough to run around and play games in. When there is inclement weather, the kids have indoor recess and physical education classes in the new space rather than in their classrooms. Additionally, Principal Jen Thomas said the school musicals and chorus performances will occur in the new space, and it is likely the Pre-K, Kindergarten and fifth grade promotion ceremonies will take place there as well.

Above the multipurpose room is a large art classroom that doubled as a meeting space for parents during the school’s recent “Academic Parent Teacher Team” meetings. There’s also a large library that has computer and Kindle carts and currently holds 12,000 books but has enough space for 18,000 volumes.

“We have room to grow,” Thomas told Forest Hills Connection.