The senior cafeteria was filled with the smiling faces of cheerful young children dressed up in their best Halloween costumes last Tuesday night. North Penn’s own Youth Education Association Club hosted the event, encouraging all children enrolled in Kiddee Korner to come with their parents and get into the Halloween spirit.

Kiddee Korner is a preschool administered by Mrs. Beth Light and Mrs. Kathleen Noce and is open to the public as a free source of education from years 3-4. Taught by high schoolers, it gives North Penn students real world experience in taking control of a classroom and the best ways to teach young kids.

Students teaching the children formed a group known as the YEA Club, which meets after school on Wednesdays. The club hosts events such as the annual Halloween party and a huge graduation at the end of the year for all the children moving onto kindergarten.

The Halloween Party began with all the club members gathered at the entrance of the senior café to greet the families with friendly smiles. Music played in the background as crafts, food, and games were set up. The party even featured a face painting station.

The club members, also clad in costume, helped the young children make crafts and spent some quality time with them the entire night. The fun included games like a bean-bag toss, a mummy wrapping contest, musical chairs, and freeze dance, as well as a kid-friendly menu of everything from cupcakes to cantaloupe.

Dressed as Elsa from Disney’s Frozen, senior and club treasurer Victoria Horrell looked just like the real snow princess, wearing her hair in a braid with a sparkly blue dress. Between games of bean bag toss and sharing cupcakes with her little friend, Abigail, Horrell was pleased to have the opportunity to work with children.

“Being here is such a fun experience. Getting to see all the kids dressed up and having fun is so cool.”

Running the show was Light, representing a mad scientist with her lab coat and gloves. She warmly greeted the children and kept her cool while orchestrating the chaotic party. Light is an experienced teacher, and with nineteen years under her belt, she continues to spread her knowledge and enthusiasm for her job.

“I really love the relationship I have with the students. I love seeing the ‘lights’ come on, since I have the name Light,” laughed the teacher. “I love when I see they’ve learned something and that they’re applying it in a hands-on way.”

The event was in the works for quite a while in order to prepare all the elements involved. YEA Secretary senior Alice Blurton said it took her and her fellow club members several weeks to plan out this exciting evening. She thought the party was an excellent way for kids to partake in the fun of the Halloween festivities while still in a safe environment.

“It allows the kids to wear their costumes somewhere, so if their parents don’t want them out trick-or-treating, it’s a way they can still have candy and experience the fun of Halloween.”

This year’s YEA Halloween Party brought a multitude of families and their children out to North Penn High School to celebrate this mysterious, thousand-year-old holiday in a kid-friendly way. The exuberant atmosphere surrounding the kids who had a chance to imagine themselves as their favorite characters and connect with their high school buddies could only be described as magical – for, as the saying goes, “There is magic in the night when pumpkins glow by moonlight.”