Catch up on the biggest stories in Moorestown this week.
A Moorestown resident and teacher has got trees taking in Cinnaminson, and a William Allen student debated at a national competition. Catch up on everything from the past week in the Weekly Roundup.
Westfield Friends School teacher, students making trees talk
Moorestown resident and third grade teacher Patricia Lyons applied for and received a grant from the Friends Council on Education to bring her horticultural tag idea to life at Westfield Friends School. With that began a year-long lesson on horticulture and tree stewardship for her students, which culminated in the creation of the school’s “Tree Walk,” a series of horticultural tags affixed to trees around campus that when scanned have Westfield students deliver information about the tagged tree with the walk open to the public throughout the summer months.
Debating it: William Allen student represents school in national competition
Vinay Panayanchery, who just graduated from eighth grade, is the first student to represent William Allen Middle School at a national debate competition. Students from more than 150 schools across the nation participated from June 20 to 23. Between 100 and 150 hours were spent preparing for the competition, Panayanchery said. When preparing for any competition, Panayanchery’s research is extensive. He said for any competition, debaters are given a list of potential topics, and he prepares them all. For the national competition, Panayanchery prepared 40 topics ranging from engaging China on human rights to physician-assisted suicide. For the semifinal and final rounds, competitors debate topics that are up for debate by Congress.
MoorArts and Parks and Rec. bringing ‘horror’ to Moorestown
In Moorestown, there’s no shortage of options for those interested in participating in theater, and for the first time, two of Moorestown’s local theater organizations are joining forces to create a musical with a production value that surpasses anything either group has done previously. On July 27, 28 and 29, the Moorestown Parks and Recreation Department and MoorArts will present their take on “Little Shop of Horrors” at the South Valley Elementary School Auditorium. Theresa Miller, Moorestown’s director of Parks and Recreation, said both the Parks and Recreation department and MoorArts hope to show the community they don’t have to pick or choose between groups.
