Archival footage of Apollo 11 and a documentary on the court case that legalized interracial marriage are just two of dozens of student history projects judges will weigh at Montana’s National History Day competition. It’s a statewide program that encourages students to research events and people that changed history.
Young historians from around the Treasure State will descend on Bozeman this weekend in hopes of impressing judges with their research skills.
Both films were made by students at Lolo Middle School. Seventh-grader Harlow Baker focused on the Supreme Court decision in Loving v. Virginia.
The topic is a personal one for Baker — her mom is Mexican-American. Baker says the choice to tell the story of Richard and Mildred Loving was an easy one.
“And so being able to think about how they were able to take their own personal experience and make it a whole new law across the entire United States is really inspirational,” Baker says.
That kind of inspiration is exactly what Lolo social studies teacher Scout Sutton loves to see. Sutton says the projects start as an assignment, but they can move on to area competitions if they so choose.
“Our students want to go on and they want to see that success and they want to continue their revisions,” Sutton says. “It’s kind of hard to get middle schoolers to do extra work, but these kids have jumped right in.”
Organizers of this year’s state event in Bozeman expect nearly 200 students to compete. They’ll present their projects to judges for a chance to advance to the national competition in June.
The public can view them starting at 12:30 on Saturday in Montana State University’s Romney Hall. Teachers interested in the National History Day program can email nationalhistorydaymt@gmail.com.
