At Wider Horizons School in Spring Hill, Halloween is used as a learning experience. Each student researches a historical figure and dresses up as that person for the biography fair on Oct. 31. Rather than dressing up as a fictional character, they have an opportunity to learn about a real person from history. The students tell a first-person account of their figure’s life and accomplishments, which helps them remember details about their person and also gets them used to presenting to large groups.
There are presidents, first ladies, astronauts, explorers, inventors, and more. The students present outdoors on the field for parents, grandparents and friends after their parade of history. Students step forward and present their story in character. The students also answer questions about their dignitary.
Before the parade, the students give their speeches in the classrooms in front of judges who are parents of children in other classes or community members. The judges rate the presentations from 1 to 10. Students who give exceptional presentations are invited to other classrooms, where they give their speeches and answer questions about their character.
