Imagine Harriet Tubman sitting next to Malala Yousofza discussing their

lives and their struggles. Picture Henry Ford having a conversation with Mickey Mantle and JFK, or Steve Irwin getting some swim advice from Missy Franklin.

Welcome to Jessica Herb’s fifth grade classroom. While many students were focused on the upcoming winter break, Herb’s students were transforming into historical figures, ready to teach their fellow students about their history.

Throughout the month of December, each student chose an historical figure to learn about. They would write a biography of the person and on Friday, Dec. 21, they became that person in a living museum, right there in Pine Bush Elementary. They dressed as the figure and even decorated their surrounding area to be part of the museum.

Sapphire Lopez was drawn to Wilma Rudolph because, as she explained, “Wilma Rudolph was the first African-American woman to run track at the Olympics. She won three gold medals and a bronze medal.”

Maya Martinez didn’t reach too far back into history with her choice, Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani young woman who is an activist for education for females. At just 15 years of age, Malala and two other girls were shot by the Taliban in retribution for their activism. Two years later, she became the youngest Nobel Prize laureate in history.

Students from PBE came through the museum, stopping at each station to learn about that person. There was quite a selection including sports stars LeBron James, Sammy Sosa, Michael Jordan, Alex Morgan, Missy Franklin and Wilma Rudolph.

Our presidents were represented by Abraham Lincoln, John F. Kennedy and

Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr. were represented, as were pioneers Alexander Graham Bell and Henry Ford. Marie Antoinette, Edgar Allan Poe and W.E.B. DuBois also attended.

This is the third year Herb has been putting this project together. And not only do the fifth- grade students learn from it and enjoy doing it, the entire school benefits as classes take their turn coming through, learning all about these historical figures. Parents, too, come to see their children in action.

“This is a wonderful way for the students to learn about people who have made an impact on our country and our world,” said Superintendent Tim Mains who took the tour of the living museum. “It’s a great way to learn.”