Recently, presidents, famous athletes, and adventurers were seen walking the halls of Perryville Elementary School, where Denita Shilli and the fifth-grade students have been hard at work on a project that transformed the classroom into a wax museum — one where the students serve as the exhibit.
“Each of the students chose a famous person from the past or present and read that person’s biography,” Mrs. Shilli said. “They did additional research to create a presentation about their person, told from that person’s point of view. They actually ‘became’ the person by rehearsing their presentation, and many students chose to dress as their person. When someone visited their exhibit, the student then told the story of their historic figure.
“Our wax museum came alive with people who changed the world and made it a better place,” Mrs. Schilli said. “Among them were a few Missourians, including George Washington Carver, Mark Twain, and Walt Disney.”
Some of the other people portrayed by the students included Marco Polo, Betsy Ross, Annie Oakley, Anne Frank, Queen Elizabeth II, Princess Dianna, Eleanor Roosevelt, Michelle Obama, Thomas Jefferson, Ronald Reagan, the Wright Brothers, Sally Ride, Marie Curie, Thomas Edison, Dr. Suess, JK Rowling, Rosa Parks, Dolly Parton, Taylor Swift, The Beatles, Caitlin Clark, Kobe Bryant, and Babe Ruth.
Many students said they enjoyed learning about their person’s life.
Aubree Wichern said, “The wax museum was fun to do and interactive.”
Josie Hoeslscher said, “It also showed us the life of our person.”
Amelia Harrison said, “I liked all the things my person Dolly Parton accomplished. I liked Dolly’s quote, ‘If you don’t like the road you are on, start paving another one.’”
Several students, including Hunter Rogers, Aiden Bishop, Aaliyah Gaulding, and Brax Hampson, expressed that they enjoyed dressing up and presenting to the class because it was fun.
Skylynne Schremp said, I liked to perform in front of everyone because all our work paid off!”
Lex French said, “I was kind of nervous at first, but then I thought it was fun and cool to teach others about my person. I liked the wax museum.”
Paul Lohmann said, “Wax Museum was good because of its history, and we learned all people’s back stories.”
This was the 21st year that Mrs. Schilli hosted the Wax Museum.
