Contributed by Janet Johnson
Regular readers may recall a post from Ms. Johnson’s 6th grade class from Pine Street Elementary in Wayland, Michigan, sharing ways to incorporate the Lincoln Bicentennial into classroom lessons. Mrs. Johnson’s 6th graders did not stop there in their quest for Lincoln knowledge, and four of them are finalists in a global Lincoln contest!
Their Story:
In Wayland, Michigan a small school called Pine Street Elementary has some amazing writers. There is a determined teacher named Mrs. Janet Johnson who teaches the 6th grade. On February 12, Pine Street celebrated Lincoln’s 200th Birthday by putting on a skit. “Lincoln” rode to the school in a black carriage, and he recited the Gettysburg Address in front of the entire school.
Finalists (Left to Right): Haley H., Emily A., Shane R., Caroline P.
But, the skit wasn’t enough for Pine Street Elementary. Mrs. Johnson’s classes entered a contest called Looking for Your Lincoln Hero on www.mylincolnhero.com. This contest is worldwide and the grand prize is receiving two tickets to many Lincoln sites in Springfield, Illinois. In the semifinals 25 people were chosen out of 600 worldwide entries. Seven of those people are from Mrs. Johnson’s classes! When the 25 were cut down to eight, four of those students were from Mrs. Johnson’s homeroom class. The gratification of using numerous writing skills to achieve an almost perfect writing assignment was greatly appreciated by all students and teachers. The small town of Wayland was extremely overjoyed.
Read the Finalists’ Essays on the “My Hero” Website
Lincoln Bicentennial Hero: Mrs. Janet Johnson, by Haley H.
Lincoln Bicentennial Hero: Mrs. Janet Johnson, by Emily A.
Lincoln Bicentennial Hero: Jon Couchenour, by Shane R.
Lincoln Bicentennial Hero: My Dad, by Caroline P.
Special thanks to Ms. Johnson and her 2008/2009 6th grade class for updating us on their latest Lincoln activities.
Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this post and associated materials do not necessarily represent those of President Lincoln’s Cottage. Have you created lesson plans and materials for teaching Lincoln that you want to share? Email [email protected]. Please be sure to include your name, grade, school, city, and state.
Ms. Johnson is a 6th Grade Teacher at Pine Street Elementary in Wayland, Michigan.
Categories:Archive, Education
Tags:Abraham Lincoln, Janet Johnson, Lincoln Bicentennial, Michigan, Student Groups, Wayland
