Saint Animatronic

This is what Lily looked like getting ready to meet the bus one school day recently. 

(except for Harry the parakeet, who sadly had to stay home)

Our girl was dressed as St. Francis de Assisi for a very cool + fun school project. 

(Karl thought that even though she was dressed as a saint, she still might run into trouble and wisely drove her to school so that she didn't have to endure school bus martyrdom)

The school project was called a Living Wax Museum, with fifth graders dressed up as people remembered for their acts of courage. 

Lily was pretty good at striking a saintly pose, and then when you would "press her button" she would come to life and deliver a one minute speech about St. Francis and his good and brave life. 

(please note that St. Fran's habit was pulled together quickly with a bed sheet and a stapler... I'm the kind of seamstress who works in staples.)

The Dalai Llama was also depicted in the 5th grade wax museum.
I think that any 11 year old boy who shaves his head to play a courageous spiritual leader deserves and "A" for authenticity and bravery himself.

 

 Some of the kids were famous musicians...my favorite part about this young Woody Guthrie, was her very convincing accent. I didn't know that the Dust Bowl Troubadour was such a loyal pal to migrant workers... I learned a lot during my visit to the 5th grade!

I also appreciated that some of the kids dressed up as literary characters. Here is the very brave young mouse from the wonderful book, The Tale of Despereaux.

The project was a huge success for everyone... the animatronic 5th graders had fun and learned a lot about bravery. I also noticed that when some of the younger students "toured the museum" they got a huge kick out of pushing the 5th graders buttons to make them speak... the thrill of powering up a big kid can be pretty exhilarating when you are 7 years old.