Visit our Far Away Lands and Cultures Wax Museum

Dear Parents,

Over the next few weeks, the upper elementary will be researching important

historical periods in time and will create a living wax museum on the Friday before 

Halloween (10-24-14).  Students will have time to work on this project in class, and 

we will research the time period, the lives of the people, and the historical 

significance of a civilization.  Students will need 3-5 scholarly resources, two of 

which must be books.  

We are planning to visit the library in small groups on Monday, 9-22, to 

gather our resources. Students must have a valid Mesa library card in their name 

or their parent’s name in order to participate. Students who do not attend the field 

trip will work with our Outdoor Environment teacher on their online resources and 

will be required to get a minimum of three books for homework.

How you can support your student during each step of this research project:

❖Return the permission slip for the library trip as soon as possible and 

make sure your child has a library card that is free from fines or holds 

(they need their pin too).

❖Have discussions with your child about possible research topics and 

guide them toward narrowing their choice.

❖Have ongoing discussions about your child’s research to help strengthen 

their understanding and help them begin using their own words for what 

they have learned.

❖Help provide support in finding scholarly resources on the internet. 

(They will have lessons and we will provide further guidance in this, but we 

don’t have as many computers as we would like, so it is helpful to give your 

child more time to hunt for appropriate resources at home).   The following 

link has a guide describing what is considered a scholarly source: http://pegasus.cc.ucf.edu/~janzb/courses/scholarly1.htm

❖Help with putting together a costume that matches their historical person 

of interest (for example, they could be a farmer in the middle ages). This 

should be very simple—we do not expect expensive costumes (we will also 

provide some time for this in class).

❖Obtain a trifold project board or similar presentation material.

❖Attend our open house on October 24, from 10am-11:15!

It is imperative that each child do the majority of their work with as little outside

assistance as possible.  Students will be compiling their research in class and 

receiving as much guidance as necessary in order to become competent and 

independent researchers.  Thanks in advance for your support!

Important Dates:

09/22/14	Library trip to gather research materials.
09/26/14	10 Source cards and note cards due.
10/03/14	20 cards completed from a minimum of 3 sources.
10/17/14	Written report completed with bibliography.
10/20/14	Bring presentation board to work on in class.
10/24/14	Wax museum. Join us from 10:00-11:15am.

Sincerely,

Ms. Liza and Mr. Joe