For half the morning of May 21, Phillips Elementary students stood, sat, and crouched in various positions, in various costumes, in front of various displays detailing important, historical individuals. The students were each pretending to be a statue of a historical figure of their choice, for the 11th annual Phillips Wax Museum in the elementary gymnasium.
The event, which has been the capstone project for fifth graders for over a decade, represents over two months worth of research in reading and language arts classes.
Julie Zumach and Rod Dymesich are fifth grade teachers that lead the event. The teachers said the wax museum is not only a highly-engaging project, but the student work done in preparation for the project also fulfills common core standards for research. According to Zumach, the students decide on their historical figure in late March and start researching their chosen individual for the next several weeks. After that, the parents are allowed to get involved, and the kids work alongside them, teaching their parents about their person from history so that a display - and a costume - can be put together.
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