Michigan History Day (National History Day in Michigan) offers a fascinating opportunity to move social science beyond routine learning.

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STATE HISTORY WINNERS: Local Students Score in Five Categories

April 28, 2013
By: Dave Rogers

Five local students, or groups of students were among more than 120 Michigan elementary, middle, and high school students receiving top honors at the Michigan History Day State Finals on Saturday, April 27 at Saginaw Valley State University.

Finalists in the junior and senior divisions now move on to the national contest, called National History Day, this June in College Park, Maryland.

"We were very impressed with this year's projects," said Tamara Barnes, MHD state coordinator. "The students applied this year's theme "Turning Points in History: People, Ideas, Events" to everything from the Soo Locks' impact on the Upper Peninsula to Disney's Snow White. We're excited to see what the Michigan delegation will accomplish at the national contest."

Michigan History Day (National History Day in Michigan) offers a fascinating opportunity to move social science beyond routine learning. Students perform research on an individually chosen topic. They then present their work through the disciplines of writing, art, literature, music, drama, and/or visual communications.

"Michigan History Day offers a fascinating opportunity to learn through hands-on study," said Larry Wagenaar, executive director of the Historical Society of Michigan.

Students perform self-directed research on an individually chosen topic. Entries are presented through the allied disciplines of art, literature, music, drama, and visual communications, in addition to writing. The projects grow?participants are encouraged to expand and improve their work between each level of the competition.

Entries may be in any one of seven categories. They include: Research Papers (individuals only); Individual or Group Exhibits; Individual or Group Performances; Individual or Group Documentaries; Websites.

Groups may include two to five students. Students compete in one of three age divisions: Youth (grades 4-5), Junior (grades 6-8), and Senior (grades 9-12). Junior and Senior entrants are eligible to proceed to the national finals at National History Day in Maryland in June. Each category in a division is judged separately.

Winners at the state finals included students from Ada, Ann Arbor, Bangor, Bay City, Brimley, Coleman, Covert, Dafter, Galesburg, Gobles, Grand Rapids, Hastings, Holland, Holly, Kalamazoo, Lake Linden, Lansing, Midland, Muskegon, Muskegon, Portage, Richland, Sault Ste. Marie, South Haven, Troy, Twin Lake, West Bloomfield, Whitehall, Williamsburg, and Ypsilanti. A full list of winners is on the Historical Society of Michigan's website, hsmichigan.org .

Michigan History Day is an educational program of the Historical Society of Michigan, the state's oldest cultural organization. Lead sponsors of History Day include the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Meijer, the Richard and Helen DeVos Foundation, Amway, Holland Area Historical Society, and Saginaw Valley State University.

GROUP DOCUMENTARIES: ALTERNATE: Spies of the Civil War, Parker Haller, Grant Layle, T.L. Handy Middle School, Bay City;

GROUP EXHIBITS: ALTERNATE: The Battle of Stalingrad, Mason Nelson, Cole Pero, Jerome Gifford; Bay City Central High School;

INDIVIDUAL EXHIBITS: ALTERNATE: Pearl Harbor-America's Choice is Made Brandon Ouderkirk Hometown: Midland School: Calvary Baptist Academy;

PAPERS: ALTERNATE: Women Strike for Peace: The Mothers of the Peace Movement, Blair Donahue, Midland, Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy;

INDIVIDUAL EXHIBITS: ALTERNATE: From Tragedy to Progress, Ally Court, Coleman, Calvary Baptist Academy;

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