Franklin-Simpson Middle School students host 12th annual Colonial Fair

FRANKLIN, Ky. – Franklin-Simpson Middle School students took a step back in time during their annual Colonial Fair.

Roughly 60 eighth-grade students transformed the school’s athletic facility into colonial America: creating more than 25 interactive booths that showcase colonial trades, daily life and historical topics.

“They get the opportunity to learn, to dig in, to research, but their learning becomes authentic,” said eighth-grade social studies teacher Justin Mitchell.

Nearly 1,000 students and community members walked through the fair, learning firsthand about blacksmithing, printing, merchant trades and other parts of colonial life.

Teachers say the event gave students a hands-on way to learn history while also teaching communication, research and presentation skills.

“They have an opportunity to demonstrate their learning to their peers,” Mitchell said. “So not only are they getting information and learning it themselves, but then they’re sharing that information with their peers and other members of our community.”

The project comes after students in advanced social studies traveled to Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia to research and experience life in the 1700s, then brought that knowledge back to share with the community.

“I learned about a lot about the trade that you wouldn’t have learned in books,” said eighth grader Brexden Wood. “There are personal experiences that they shared with us that books wouldn’t have had.”

Franklin-Simpson hopes to host another colonial fair in the fall to celebrate America’s 250th year.