Bringing History to Life: Inside SAA’s Third Grade Wax Museum Project

Ask a historian how students actually hold onto the past, and the answer isn’t “from a textbook chapter” — it’s from stepping into someone else’s shoes. Researchers who study historical empathy, the practice of understanding events through the eyes of the people who lived them, have found that role-play and perspective-taking lead to deeper processing of historical material and more lasting engagement than reading alone. At Sacramento Adventist Academy, third graders get a hands-on version of that idea every year: no journal article required. It’s called the Wax Museum Project, and it’s the biggest undertaking of their elementary school year.

Key Takeaways

Here’s what families in Carmichael and the greater Sacramento area should know about SAA’s Wax Museum Project before their child’s third grade year arrives.

• One rule, wide-open choice: Students may research almost any historical figure they want, with a single requirement — the person has to have already died.
• Research becomes biography: Each student turns their research into a short, spoken biography told from that figure’s point of view.
• Costume and character: Students dress as their historical figure and stay in character while presenting.
• Public speaking, practiced: The class rehearses speeches together for weeks before the big day.
• A real audience: Parents, grandparents, and classmates walk through the “museum” to hear each student present.
• Built on real research: The format mirrors historical empathy — a documented teaching strategy linked to deeper engagement with history content.
• A memory that sticks: Teachers say it’s often the one project students still bring up years later.
• Part of a bigger picture: Project-based learning like this ties directly into two of SAA’s seven Schoolwide Learner Outcomes: Pursue Achievement and Growth, and Demonstrate Grit and Effort.

How the Wax Museum Project Works

At Sacramento Adventist Academy, the Wax Museum Project is the third grade class’s signature assignment within SAA’s elementary program: the one project built around all year. Students pick their historical figure, dig into research, write a short biography, and prepare to deliver it in costume and in character.

The approach lines up with what researchers in historical empathy have found: when students take on a historical figure’s perspective instead of just reading about them, they process the material more deeply and remember it longer. It’s the difference between memorizing a fact and living inside it, even for a ten-minute speech.

“It’s just a really good, positive time for the kids to learn more about somebody in history,” said Jayme Denis, third grade teacher at Sacramento Adventist Academy. “As a teacher, I hope that’s the one thing that sticks out from the school year — that they really remember it and that they really enjoy it.”

What Students Actually Learn

The Wax Museum Project asks a lot of eight- and nine-year-olds: independent research, writing, memorization, and public speaking in front of an audience of adults. That combination is exactly the point. Students aren’t just learning about one historical figure; they’re practicing the skills that make any subject easier to tackle later — reading for information, organizing what they find, and speaking with confidence.

Mrs. Denis has watched certain figures stay with students long after the unit ends. One year, a student chose Princess Diana — and years later, that’s still the figure Mrs. Denis associates with that class. It’s a small detail, but it says something bigger: the project doesn’t just teach facts about a person. It builds a memory the student carries forward.

That kind of ownership is why the class spends real time on it. Students help choose their own figure, which means they’re invested before the research even starts — and that investment shows up in how confidently they deliver their speech on presentation day.

It’s also the kind of persistence we’ve written about before: how elementary grit affects long-term academic performance. A student who sticks with a research project for weeks, revises a speech until it’s ready, and then stands in front of a room of adults to deliver it is practicing the exact habit that shows up years later in harder coursework.

Why Families Choose Sacramento Adventist Academy for Hands-On Learning

Parents evaluating private versus public school options in the Sacramento area are often looking for the same thing: proof that a school does more than cover material — that it builds skills and character kids carry with them. Project-based work like the Wax Museum is one visible answer to that question, and it’s a big part of why families choose SAA in the first place.

At SAA, studying a real historical figure’s choices, mistakes, and character naturally opens the door to conversations about courage, resilience, and integrity — the kind of conversations that fit within a Christian school day without ever needing to be forced into the lesson plan. Learning about a real person who actually lived tends to raise real questions about how that person lived well, or didn’t, and those questions connect directly to SAA’s mission of helping students grow in character alongside academics.

For families comparing options, it’s a useful test case: ask any school what its biggest all-grade project looks like, and how much ownership students take in it. At SAA, the answer for third grade is the Wax Museum.

What Parents Can Do at Home

Support at home makes a visible difference in how students show up on presentation day. Running through the speech out loud — even just once at the dinner table — helps students settle their nerves before they have to do it in front of a room full of adults.

Helping with the costume is its own kind of engagement. When a parent helps track down a prop or a costume piece for their child’s historical figure, it signals that the project matters outside the classroom too, not just inside it.

Asking real questions about the research — not just “who did you pick,” but “what surprised you about them” — pushes students to think past the basic facts they memorized and toward what the project is actually designed to build: understanding of another person’s life and choices.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Wax Museum Project?

It’s Sacramento Adventist Academy’s third grade capstone project. Students research a historical figure who has died, write a short first-person biography, dress in costume, and present their speech in character to an audience of parents, grandparents, and classmates.

How do students choose their historical figure?

Students choose their own figure, with one requirement: the person has to have already died. Beyond that, the choice is wide open, which is part of why students take real ownership of their research.

How long do students prepare for it?

Preparation runs across weeks, not days. Students research and write their biography first, then the class rehearses speeches together repeatedly in the lead-up to presentation day.

Do parents actually attend?

Yes. Parents and grandparents are a core part of the event — they walk through the “museum,” stopping at each student to hear their speech in character.

Is this kind of hands-on project only offered at private or Christian schools?

No — project-based history assignments exist in many public schools too. What families evaluating SAA specifically notice is how the project connects to the school’s broader focus on character and faith formation alongside the academic skill-building.

What can parents do at home to help their child prepare?

Practice the speech out loud together, help with costume pieces, and ask questions that go beyond basic facts — what surprised your child about the person they researched, or what they’d want to ask that person if they could.

What grade does the Wax Museum Project happen in at SAA?

Third grade. It’s considered the biggest project of the elementary school year at Sacramento Adventist Academy.

Plan a Visit

Projects like the Wax Museum are part of what makes a school year at Sacramento Adventist Academy memorable for students and families alike. If you’d like to see SAA’s classrooms and programs in person, schedule a visit or reach out at (916) 481-2300.

Sacramento Adventist Academy is a preschool through 12th grade school in Carmichael, California, guided by seven schoolwide learner outcomes: Embracing Positive Citizenship, Knowing and Following Jesus, Living Healthy and Balanced Lives, Thinking Critically and With Curiosity, Demonstrating Grit and Effort, Nurturing Lifelong Relationships, and Pursuing Achievement and Growth. Learn more about enrollment at SAA and our mission and values.