3rd place winners (L-R) MacKenzie Holbert, Alicia
Mills, Morgan Moneypenny, Roby Farmer, and John Watkins
By Dan Cosgrove
History Coach
Two teams of Calhoun Middle School students competed at the National History Day Competition, Friday, April 26.
Five Middle School students performed a skit called "The Crash," which depicted the events surrounding The Great Depression.
Seventh (7th) grade students Roby Farmer, Mackenzie Holbert, Morgan Moneypenny, and John Watkins teamed up with 6th grader Alicia Mills to research and perform at the Charleston Civic Center.
The group's efforts earned them a 3rd place win.
Research began in January as they started to learn about The Great Depression and Franklin Delano Roosevelt's recovery plans under the New Deal. Students quickly learned there was a lot more involved than the actual "crash," and to fully understand what happened, they had to go further back. They traveled through the "Roaring 20s" to World War I, and back to the Industrial Revolution.
After months of research, students began to work on their script. They decided to have 3 scenes, starting with WW I on the battlefields and trenches in France, and returning home and investing in something called the Stock Market, to the good times of the Roaring Twenties, and finally to the crash itself. In addition to performing, students were required to write a process paper for the judges, detailing their project. They were also required to obtain or make all props and costumes.
The National History Day Team includes (Front L-R)
John Watkins, Roby Farmer, Mackenzie Holbert; (Back L-R)
Kaleb Nicholas, Kaylee Jarvis, Ben Frederick, Aleah Dye,
Alicia Mills, Morgan Moneypenny, and Dan Cosgrove
Each student played multiple roles
Roby Farmer - WW I Soldier and husband, stock market investor who lost his life savings at the crash, and ended up selling apples. He also danced "The Charleston" with his "wife."
Mackenzie Holbert - Wife of a soldier, unsure about her "husband's" investments, and ends up selling apples with her husband. She also danced during the 20s.
Morgan Moneypenny - Team captain, battlefield nurse during WW I, "Flapper" during the roaring 20s, and street urchin after the crash.
John Watkins - Narrator, WWI injured soldier, and newspaper boy for all the events.
Alicia Mills - Battlefield nurse during WW I, "Flapper" during the roaring 20s, and street urchin after the crash.
A second team of middle school students, performed a skit called, "The Manhattan Project- the Secret Revealed!" This was the story of the making of the first Atomic Bomb.
The three students included Ben Frederick as General Groves, Kaleb Nicholas as Dr. Oppenheimer, and Kaylee Jarvis, team captain, as Dr. Maria Mayer.
These students were part of the original team who competed last year, making history as the first students from Calhoun County to compete in National History Day.
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