TEACHERS KISS A PIG TO REWARD YOUNG READERS

Hartwood Elementary School students aren't hard to entertain.

Show them a pig in a baby carriage, and they’re hooked for hours – especially when their teachers have to kiss the 115-pound porker.

The Stafford County school yesterday hosted Paul "Farmer" Minor and Daisy "The Famous Pot Belly Pig." The two, along with a piglet, captivated more than 500 students in the cafeteria.

Kids sometimes chanted "Kiss the pig!" as more than 30 teachers walked onto a small stage to give the swine little pecks.

The teachers made a deal with their students in mid-February: Meet reading goals for a month and we’ll pucker up.

"Sometimes, I think we can become a little complacent about day-to-day work," Hartwood Principal Catherine Walker said. "You need a little spark."

Minor and his pigs visited Widewater Elementary School on Wednesday. He travels the country and encourages students to "pig out on reading."

Before the kissing, Minor talked about 14-year-old Daisy's past, which includes stays in five-star hotels, a visit to the U.S. Capitol and an appearance on the Montel Williams show in New York.

Daisy, who has a fuzzy black coat, lay on a baby carriage next to Minor's white rocking chair. She rarely moved and seemed to have her eyes closed the entire event.

Meanwhile, Minor acted like Mr. Rogers, except he wore overalls and a flannel shirt instead of a cardigan. The kids loved his act, even when he made a cheesy joke about Daisy sleeping on his bed.

"That's what they call hogging the bed," he said to laughter.

The cheers increased as Walker, who was the first to kiss the pigs, asked teachers to fulfill their promises.

One teacher applied lipstick and another put on fake lips. She took off the lips after students protested.

"That's the closest I’ve ever been to a pig," said teacher Deborah Stilwell.

The top student readers, including one who read 57 books in a month, posed for pictures and kissed the pigs at the end of the event. Six-year-old Madison Hyatt was one of them.

"She woke up and she said Ms. Ellis gets to kiss a pig, maybe I do too," said her mom, Kim Hyatt.

The appearance lasted more than two hours. Every student was able to pet the pigs on the way out of the lunchroom.

"It's silly stuff, but that's what makes it fun for the kids," Minor said.

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