CMS students get creative while studying American patriots

Known themselves as the CMS Patriots, eighth-graders at Colonial Middle School have gained a new appreciation of what it means to be one, thanks to a creative research project they completed in Carolann Crum and Colleen Hackendahl’s history classes.

Students were tasked with choosing an American patriot to research and wrote an essay about the person’s life before, during, and after the American Revolution. In addition to the essay, the students could choose a creative project to also illustrate what they learned. 

This led to some very unique projects that were shared recently in class. Noah Levin created a rather elaborate cardboard “village” about his patriot, Samuel Kirkland. The centerpiece of the village was a Costco store, with a roof that could be lifted up to see inside where Noah had created walls containing information about Kirkland (which is also a brand that Costco sells).

“At first I knew I wanted to do something immersive,” he said. 

His idea got so elaborate that he also decided to add other pieces, which included replicas of George Washington crossing the Delaware River and the Boston Tea Party.

Annabelle Antonelli was inspired by her patriot, James Lafayette, to create a board game. She chose him because he was a fighter who made a great impact. She said she enjoyed the creativity involved with the project, and even shared the experience with her family as she built the board game.

Hannah Dolan, who wrote a children’s book about patriot spy Lydia Darragh, also liked being able to learn about her historical figure in a unique way.

“I think it’s important to spread a message of the impact of the person through art and creativity,” she said.

Mia Mascaro also wrote a children’s book about Molly Pitcher (nickname of Molly Ludwig Hayes). She selected that option after remembering studying American history in fifth grade, and felt it might be a way for her to share what she learned with younger students. 

“I thought it was really cool - her bravery,” she said, adding that Molly was known for taking up the fight after her husband was killed in battle. 

Cian Yakeley selected Phillis Wheatley, author and poet, to study since he wanted to select someone lesser known. He created a poster about her life that included a timeline.

“I think the main takeaway from this is we get to learn about who founded our country, because we wouldn’t be here without all these figures,” he said.