The principal of a Massachusetts elementary school said he dressed as Lady Gaga to make good on a deal with students to read a total of 10,000 books.

Justin Vernon, principal of the Roger Clapp School in Dorchester, said he bet his kindergarten through fifth grade students at the start of the school year he would dress as Lady Gaga and milk a cow if they collectively made their way through 10,000 books, WHDH-TV, Boston, reported Wednesday.

Vernon said the students picked his punishment for losing the bet.

"Of course they wanted to yell out the most ridiculous thing possible. So milking a cow came out, dressing like Lady Gaga, there were other options that came out but this is the one that stuck," Vernon said.

Parents said the bet did wonders for their children's interest in reading.

"My daughter's reading went through the charts because of it," parent Theresa Davis said. (c) UPI