June 19, 2019 -- Some interesting characters populated Canterbury School back in May, from a famous football star to politicians and activists to the founder of the Cleveland Clinic. And each one of them had an Ohio connection.

Students in Canterbury’s three 4th grade classes participated in a wax museum featuring famous Ohioans on May 29. The students spent a month researching their chosen person, writing a seven-paragraph report, creating a timeline, crafting a speech, coming up with a costume and then performing at the push of a button for their schoolmates, teachers and parents. 

Teachers Nadine Davis, Judi Khalfoun, Stacy Leiby and intervention specialist Maggie Sohnlein used the project to reinforce social studies content, which in 4th grade focuses on Ohio, and English language arts skills as students used the steps of the writing process to complete their report. Those reports included details on early life, education, family, claim to fame, end of life or current situation, and, the most important section—why this person’s contributions matter. 

Requiring students to choose people with a connection to Ohio forced them to look beyond the typical subjects of elementary reports. The teachers helped students find someone who aligned with their interests, such as suggesting Ohio native Sarah Jessica Parker to the girl interested in fashion design. The baseball lover chose Cy Young, the future architect picked Maya Lin and the aspiring doctor studied George Crile, founder of the Clinic. 

“We all learned a lot!” said Ms. Leiby. “As teachers, we made sure we did the research too.”