Young 'colonists' bring history alive

The Colonial era and Revolutionary War came to life Friday at both Geneva public middle schools.

The seventh-grade students were participating in the annual Patriots' Day, an exercise that featured food, games, music, acting and more. It showed what they have learned so far about the founding of the United States.

Dressed in costume, students set up the Geneva Green marketplace in a gymnasium at Geneva Middle School North, selling snacks, weapons, jewelry, candles, pens and more. It made them use lessons they learned in math (to add and subtract shillings and crowns) and economics, about trading and how the value of items can change due to supply and demand.

Dan Acton was part of a crew that chose to sell periwigs made of cotton balls as well as rock candy and cheese. Why those disparate items? "Because we had the materials to make them," the thrifty entrepreneur said.

"You have to watch for the quality of the goods" as a shopper, he said. "From what I've read and seen, (the marketplace) is pretty accurate. Trading and selling and you make the goods yourselves."

The students also watched contests in another gym, including a cannon-shooting competition. (They used a softball for ammunition.)

"For the first time in my life, I'm not going to finish second!" exclaimed a jubilant David Bieszke, after he an partner Mike Bianchina let loose a shot that hit the opposite wall of the gym, drawing the cheers of his 7-White classmates. No other team came close.

There were needle-threading competitions, music from fife and drum players and speeches about liberty. (And to entertain the crowd during a lull, a non-Colonial favorite: tumblers.)

The students are in the midst of studying the politics of the Revolutionary War era. The day ended with upset colonialists threatening to tar and feather the tax collectors of King George III.