Goochland Middle School transforms gym into Las Vegas-inspired blacklight club for unique learning

GOOCHLAND, Va. -- Goochland Middle School turned their gymnasium into a blacklight wonderland to excite and inspire their students while learning all sorts of subjects.

"Our students are truly missing the socialization, the dances, the socials, the clubs, all of that," said Goochland Middle School Principal Amy Potter. “So, Coach Hansen, the PE department chair, decided to collaborate with other departments."

Hansen put it this way: "We decided that we were going to change the entire gym and the whole idea, originally, was to create a Las Vegas style club in a middle school, as crazy as that sounds."

Goochland Middle is a hybrid school. With masks and social distancing, administrators wanted to come up with a fun way for its 250 in-person students to learn.

The blacklight gym incorporates all kinds of learning. PE with the cardio drumming, music lessons on how to stay on beat and even art classes.

“Students designed all of the blacklight art with blacklight paints,” said Potter. “And our PE students too, they went down to the art wing and designed all of the artwork that you see."

You could say it was a sound investment.

"We’re trying to create something that the kids would look forward to," Hansen said. “Something they would remember from this year other than wearing a mask and all the other things that we have to do this year."

Building good memories with the blacklight gym while building better minds.