Cedar Hill students assume Revolutionary characters and ‘wax’ of their achievements

Kelcy Dolan
Posted 5/7/15

Last Wednesday, Cedar Hill Elementary traveled over 200 years into the past as Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and other founding fathers of the nation reunited for the school’s annual Colonial and …

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Cedar Hill students assume Revolutionary characters and ‘wax’ of their achievements

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Last Wednesday, Cedar Hill Elementary traveled over 200 years into the past as Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and other founding fathers of the nation reunited for the school’s annual Colonial and Revolutionary Character Wax Museum.

The students from Jennifer Zarrella, Nobina Foley, Jessica Kenney and Debra Lapointe’s 5th grade classes participated, dressing up as historical figures from the early eras of America’s past.

The wax museum is the culmination of the 5th grade social studies curriculum.

All of the 5th graders read “My Brother Sam is Dead” by James Lincoln and Christopher Collier.

The young adult book tells the story of a young boy growing up during the revolutionary war with family members on either side of the fighting.

Halfway through the curriculum students pick their wax museum character out of a hat.

All of the 5th graders had a few weeks to research their individual, working with both books and the Internet. Their final products were biographies drafted on their Google drives, a poster board and a costume.

Kenney said students got really creative in making their costume. Some made an old fashioned looking powdered wig by gluing cotton balls on baseball caps and wearing them backwards. She said because many of the figures are male, the young girls worry about playing a male but they always have a lot of fun with it.

Although students were given time to change before the event, Kenney said some students were so excited and proud of their costumes that they came to school wearing them.

For the event, students had to stand completely still and silent until someone came up to press their “buttons,” an orange sticker on their hand.

Students had to memorize 20 facts about their character reciting one every time their button was pushed.

The students were phenomenal at staying in character as family and friends walked through the auditorium chatting and taking photos. They never spoke out of turn.

Loxi Ellingwood, a grandmother of one of the performers, said she had been at last year’s wax museum for another grandchild.

“I love this,” she said. “They always know their facts, it’s impressive, but I only push their hands once or twice. They are nervous, you know? They work really hard and want a good grade and I want to help them.”

Because the wax museum is an annual event for Cedar Hill, students look forward to it even before entering 5th grade, seeing other students and often times siblings performing.

5th grade is the first time the students really delve into research, according to Kenney.

“It’s intense, it’s the biggest project they will do this year. They really have to develop their ideas and understanding of these famous characters. They really went above and beyond,” she said.

Kenney said that students love to learn about the Revolution because we live in the area it all happened; children can make “strong connections” to the people and places because the history is all around us.

She said, after starting this project a lot of students went to some of the more famous battlegrounds and the Freedom Trail.

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