R-U fourth graders go back in time to the Middle Ages

R-U art instructor, Steven George, shows fourth grader, Dakotah Owens, how to score the tower she will use as part of the castle design she has created. The fourth grade TAG students are making castles as part of their Middle Ages studies. [Click to enlarge]

Sometimes to understand why we do the things we do today, we have to learn about the past.

That's exactly what the fourth grade Talented and Gifted (TAG) students at Remsen-Union Community School have been doing.

TAG instructor Vickie Hemmingson feels it is important to immerse students in a subject as much as possible in hands-on activities.

That's why the R-U fourth grade TAG students have been busy building castles, learning the origins of their family names to create a coat of arms and trying their hands at calligraphy -- the ancient art of beautiful writing.

And soon they will be stepping back into the time of the Renaissance to learn about the daily lives of people living in that period.

Characters from Sioux City's Renaissance festival, "Kingdom of Riverssance," will be coming to R-U twice.

R-U's Family Connections provided the class with the money to bring several of the Riverssance crew to their school for a workshop next Thursday.

A larger group of characters will come March 25 to perform and teach more about life in the Middle Ages at an assembly for the fourth, fifth and sixth grade classes.

The fourth grade TAG students have selected different characters they have researched and learned about in classes with Hemmingson and will learn to get into character for a banquet in May.

R-U student Jenna Gengler will portray a monk, Matt Langel will be a peasant, Jack Loutsch chose to be a serf, Cameron Miller has chosen to research two characters and will be a knight and the king, Dakotah Owens will be the queen, Mattie Tucker will portray a lady-in-waiting, Megan Loutsch will be a merchant and Melissa Mikkelson will be a jovial jester.

To help them prepare for their roles, students watched videos about the people from the Middle Ages they will be portraying.

They learned how things have changed since then in a wide variety of areas, including books and school; homes, light and heat; fun and entertainment; shopping and clothing; food; travel and ways of getting the news.

The Middle Ages, also known as the medieval period, is the time that spanned roughly from the fifth to the 15th century.

The term "Renaissance" was coined to describe the period beginning at the tail end of the Middle Ages and bridging to the Modern era.

As part of their studies, students are designing and making castles out of clay with the help of Steven George, R-U art instructor.

Upon completion, the castles will be fired in a kiln, painted and later put on display at the May banquet.

Students are also being taught the art of calligraphy by Joan Kroepel of Le Mars.

During a recent class where the students were practicing the art form, which involves a 24-letter Greek alphabet, they were asked if they thought it was difficult to master the style of writing.

They agreed that it was hard, but felt if they were being taught in the Middle Ages that it would be similar to learning penmanship today.

They are learning to write their last names in calligraphy which will later be used as part of a coat of arms they will design representing their last names.

The fourth grade TAG class began its immersion into the Middle Ages when some of the students were greeters at conferences last October.

The students handed out Halloween treat bags that talked about how the different treats included were in some way connected to the Middle Ages and also contained information about R-U's TAG program and the students in general.

The program has continued throughout the school year and students will present their findings, display their art and host the May banquet, which they will invite their parents to.