About the Project: At Milton Gottesman Jewish Day School of the Nation’s Capital, formerly JPDS-NC, we believe that children should have a voice in the public sphere. We also believe that the work the children do is meaningful, should serve an au- thentic purpose, and be shared with a relevant audience. This Children’s Guide was written by the third graders of Milton as a gift for the Capitol Building to use with young visitors - written by children for children. This project stemmed from the third grade curriculum at Milton. The students learn about the Fifty States: each stu- dent participates in a year-long research project in which he or she is assigned a state and creates a showcase of the unique characteristics of that state. Additionally, students delve deep into the study of biographies as a genre. This project allowed us to merge these two aspects of our curriculum to create a product in which all students are repre- sented. In order for children to be confident that their voices are heard and are inspiring others, they need to make sure that what they are saying is well-researched and clearly expressed. For that purpose, each student selected one statue to research and met with experts to deepen his or her understanding of the statue. The children learned how to create a museum guide by reviewing other published museum guides and reflected on how to best reach their audience in a meaningful and professional way. Throughout this project, students developed their research, questioning, critical thinking, analysis, and written com- munication skills, and they learned the importance of learning from experts. What you are about to read is a prod- uct created by the students; we are proud of what they produced and what they learned in the process, and we hope that they inspire you and enhance your visit to the Statuary Hall Collection. One of our goals at Milton is to prepare our students to be informed, empowered, and engaged citizens. As a Jew- ish community day school in the nation’s capital, we feel a strong obligation to learn from our leaders and from our children. We are inspired by the curiosity, awareness, and insights of the students, and by the dedication of the many community members who volunteered on this project. This project could not have been completed without experts in our community helping us. Martin Shore, architect, and Jennifer Blancato, and Vicky Vilano, from the Curator’s Office, spent time with us at the Capitol showing us the statues, sharing information about the statues and artists, and teaching us information about the special care and maintenance that these statues receive. Miriam Szubin, a museum educator at the National Portrait Gallery, came to speak to the students about how to ask engaging questions so that visitors can interact with the artwork. Milton Art Specialist, Jill Stepak helped students design the cover. Finally, Janet Collier, the General Studies 2-5 Instruction- al Leader, supported the efforts of the teachers to complete this project and interviewed students to help them re- flect on the process. We would love to hear your thoughts about the guide and about our project. Please email us at: [email protected]. - Jessica Friedman Mindy Hirsch Melissa Rickabaugh Dear Visitor, We, the third graders at the Milton Gottesman Jewish Day School of the Nation’s Capital, spent the year learning about the 50 United States and what’s awesome about them and about their features and their history. We each were assigned a state and did a project on it, and to make our project even cooler, we researched the statues from our states in the Capitol Building. We learned about why our states chose the person for their statue and about their history, what they did, and how they were important to their states. The statues were donated by the states, and the states voted on the people. If at any point a state wants to vote the per- son out, they get to vote on it. We learned about these unique and different people and the diverse stories they tell. We also learned about the symbolism used in the statues to represent the people and what materials were used to make them. We want to show kids that each state is unique and each person here had a role to play in their state and the country. Without that person, we wouldn’t be living the same life. Each person has a role, and if someone was never here, it would make it harder for other people to make this world a better place. We hope that you learn at least a few interesting and helpful things about each person and each state and about how each state is important in its own right because that’s what we learned. We hope this makes you want to visit each state. And we hope that you will close the guide asking more questions and wanting more answers. We also hope you have fun. The Third Grade, Class of 2022, the Milton Gottesman Jewish Day School of the Nation’s Capital (formerly the Jewish Primary Day School of the Nation’s Capital) P.S. We are very sorry that we could not include a page about Idaho. It is very sad that we had only 49 students, and we wish we had had 50 so we could introduce you to the statue from the great state of Idaho. We apologize to the people of Idaho. -The Milton Class of 2022 Name: Tal P. Statue Name: Samuel Adams State: Massachusetts Medium: Marble Location: Crypt Artist: Anne Whitney Three Facts: Fun Box: 1. Samuel Adams was born in Bos- Draw what you think a member ton, Massachusetts. of the Secret Caucus Club looks 2. He was in a club called the Se- like? cret Caucus Club. 3. Massachusetts gave his statue to the National Statuary Hall in 1876. Two Questions: 1. When was his statue donated? 2. What do you think Adams liked about living in Boston? Name: Noa M. Statue Name: Ethan Allen State: Vermont Medium: Marble Location: National Statuary Hall Artist: Larkin G. Mead Three Facts: Fun Box: 1. Ethan Allen helped found W G U R N F B R Y Y the state of Vermont. D P R E A A E A J T D D T V Q X H W O A 2. He fought during the Revolu- tionary War. C T Y O P V C T T Z W V K L V W C Y E M 3. He was an explorer and ex- J M O U N B G H X P plored all over Vermont. T R Y T N O M R E V E T X I N N N A A R Two Questions: H J G O N J P O D I 1. Where would you like to ex- N S C N H I M H K B plore? Find the following words: 2. Based on what he is wearing, ETHAN, EXPLORE, WAR, what time period is he from? REVOLUTION, VERMONT Name: Serah J. Statue Name: Charles B. Aycock State: North Carolina Medium: Bronze Location: Crypt Artist: Charles Keck Three Facts: Fun Box: 1. Aycock was born on November 1, 1859 and died April 4, 1912. 2. His father died with he was 15 years old. 3. He was elected Governor of North Carolina in 1900 and his greatest achievement in office was in educa- tion. Two Questions: 1. Why do you think he is pointing to a book? 2. He believed that no lasting social reform was possible without education, what do you think is important for change to hap- pen? Name: Adan M. Statue Name: William Henry Harrison Beadle State: South Dakota Medium: Bronze Location: National Statuary Hall Artist: H. Daniel Webster Three Facts: Fun Box: H R O Z H A T G F W R B Z L S 1. He made school laws in South Dakota. X A A J S E A C D I Q W B O B T H R R X L N V N L Y T U U B 2. He went to the Union Army. T E R R I T O R Y L O T F E K 3. He was President of the W F V H I N O H Y I H O A O S Dakota territory. G R I V S S Z O W A O D H T V A T O K A D O Z A M L M J C B S T A T U E R N W E N C J O S Two Questions: 1. What would you do if you were Find the following words: in the army? BEADLE, DAKOTA, HARRISON, 2. Who was the artist of his statue? HENRY, SCHOOL, SOUTH, STATUE, TERRITORY, WILLIAM Name: Hannah G. Statue Name: Thomas Hart Benton State: Missouri Medium: Marble Location: National Statuary Hall Artist: Alexander Doyle Three Facts: Fun Box: 1. He was born in North Caroli- na. 2. Benton was a senator of Mis- souri for 30 years. 3. He was one of the first two senators of Missouri. Two Questions: Across 2. A previous senator of Missouri 1. How long was Benton a sena- Down tor? 1. What his statue is made out of 3. Years being a senator 2. What would you feel like if you 4. Where he was born were a senator? Name: Leor H.