If our Lights On Afterschool festivities were Times Square on New Year’s Eve, the ball has dropped.

The cats are out of the bag. The book tour has finished to rave reviews.

It’s been quite a show.

The annual nationwide celebration in late October of all the joy and strength that community schools bring to their neighborhoods cast spotlights throughout LINC’s programs across multiple school districts.

Some of the stops along the way hit a hopping dance party at Faxon Elementary in the Kansas City Public Schools.

Mad Science’s smoking ice, aeronautics and cotton candy entertained the crowd at Dobbs Elementary in Hickman Mills.

Cookie-making, fruit kabobs, crafts and Fitness4Ever marked the celebration at Conn-West Elementary in Grandview.

We saw carnival games (and more) at Topping Elementary in the North Kansas City School District.

Children’s books and family resources went out with families at KCPS’s Trailwoods Elementary.

There was arts fun and natural fruit smoothies in KCPS’s Melcher Elementary.

And a beautiful Día de los Muertos celebration at KCPS’s James Elementary.

Similar scenes played out at most of LINC’s more than 40 before- and after-school program sites.

Catch some of the action from the previous week of Lights on Afterschool celebrations here.

And scroll on down to see our photo gallery.