Friends, family and teachers gathered in the Clark County Fairgrounds Fine Arts building for an hour of fun and music during the Grant M. Bowler kindergarten graduation held Thursday, May 22.

Kindergarteners made their way from the elementary school next door and filed into the packed building one by one to be greeted by hundreds of eager spectators. Each child in the six classes was dressed in a paper costume lovingly handmade by the teachers. Butterflies, ladybugs, crickets, ants, bees and spiders all made their way up to the stands by the stage at the front of the building.

Principal Kelby Robison welcomed the attendants to the Ladybug Ball and specifically dedicated the gathering this year to the Hardy family, expressing how Emmie and Case Hardy were a dearly beloved part of their school community and were missed.

What followed was testament to not only the excitement of the young students but the hard work, passion and dedication of their teachers. Preparation for the show included over a month of practicing every day in classrooms to learn the songs, which was followed by weeks of taking students into the cafeteria to practice standing and singing on risers with the rest of their peers. Teachers then guided students off the risers and onto the stage in order to perform – with fun choreography unique to each class – a designated song in the lineup, from the dance of graceful butterflies to the marching of ravenous ants. Their hard work paid off in wiggly bug antennae and the songs of their students, to the enjoyment of all who watched.

Songs included a rousing rendition of “You’re a Grand Ol’ Flag” and “A – You’re Adorable” before jumping into the story of Ladybug, the frazzled host of the Ladybug Ball, and her many colorful guests, including musical crickets, mischievous spiders and heroic bumblebees alongside the butterflies and ants. At the end of the performance, attendees were given a last encore in celebration of students moving on to first grade, in a parody of the song “Old Town Road.”

As the Ladybug Ball came to an end, students and parents were encouraged to go home directly from the Fine Arts building. Guardians were able to go to teachers along the edges of the building and pick up their children, who are excited for the fast-approaching last day of school.