Wax Museum makes learning come to life for Westwood Intermediate 5th graders

Benedict Arnold, Benjamin Franklin, Betsy Ross, Abraham Lincoln, Amelia Earhart, Ann Frank , Friedrich Wilhelm von Steuben…

 On May 29, the Westwood cafeteria was transformed into a wax museum and about 75 Westwood Intermediate School students of Matt Gamage, Tiffany Powers, and Amanda West demonstrated their learning in front of hundreds of classmates and family members.

“The Wax Museum Project was a wonderful learning opportunity in which students were able to engage in non-fiction reading and research, with a twist,” said Gamage “They began by reading about and researching a significant figures from history, demonstrate their learning by creating a display related to their research, and then bring the person to life.”

Annie Oakley, Buzz Aldrin, Thomas Paine, Earvin “Magic” Johnson, Helen Keller, Isadora Duncan, Leonardo da Vinci…

 Students transformed themselves using costumes and props to create a living wax museum. On May 29, visitors were treated to 75 silent figures who remained silent and still until a visitor signaled an interest in learning more by pushing a button or interacting with a prop. This acted as the "on switch" for the wax museum figure and suddenly they came to life, sharing memorized speeches that summarized the life and significance of their characters.

Michael Jordan, Nathan Hale, Neil Armstrong, Stephen Hawking, Wayne Gretzkyk, Wilmak Rudolph, Paul Revere…

 The teachers were proud of the students’ hard work resulting in wonderful costumes and dynamic, historical speeches. Gamage said “We couldn't have been prouder of our students. It was a powerful reminder that educators need to keep students engaged in their learning in a variety of ways. We all learn differently and unique opportunities like this provide students with a different way to shine and prove themselves to be competent and mature learners.”