Irle Teacher Winchester Honored

The VFW Teacher of the Year award contest was established to recognize teachers who have committed to teaching their students Americanism and patriotism. According to the VFW's website, "Without our nation's veterans, America wouldn't be the great nation it is today. Our youth deserve to learn about our rich history, traditions and the role of our veterans in creating and shaping America."

This year's nominee from VFW Post 3107 is Ms. Denise Winchester, a second-grade teacher at Irle Elementary School in Glasgow. A nomination letter from VFW Post 3107 Commander Art Widhalm explained, "She believes that to be able to look to the future one must learn about the past. She brings this to her students in a very innovative fashion. Her 'The Living History Museum' program gets her students involved by having them portray historical people from our past."

The letter concluded, "Getting the future leaders of our country involved in our history can only better prepare them for their place in our society, therefore, I am honored to nominate Ms. Denise Winchester for K-5 Teacher of the Year."

Winchester is a Nashua native and graduate who grew up north of the town on a cattle ranch and wheat farm, established by her grandparents, immigrants from the Basque country in Spain. "I value the sacrifices Americans have made to keep our freedoms," she said about her nomination. "I learned this value early from my grandparents telling me how happy they were when they stepped off the ship on Ellis Island and landed in America. They became American citizens and always reminded people what a beautiful country we live in."

She holds a BA in Elementary Education with a minor in French from the University of Mary in Bismarck, N.D. Her career has spanned 25 years and three states, Montana, North Dakota and Florida.

Teaching fourth grade at Florida High Developmental Lab School in Tallahassee sparked her interest in the Living History Museum. Seeing how successful it was, she set about to adapt it to a second grade classroom at Irle. The project starts with a note to parents at the beginning of January about the project and to begin planning a costume. Each student choose five famous Americans who have made a positive impact on the country before selecting their favorite. After their favorite is selected, Winchester starts the process of getting the project in motion.

"Next, I printed the bios of their famous Americans for each student. They choose facts to tell about the lives of these important people," explained Winchester. "I reminded them to write their facts using 'first person' to make their story come to life." After practicing and memorizing their biographies, students create a button for their museum guests to press to learn about the exhibit. Invites are sent to parents, grandparents, school board members, and media. Over 400 fellow students also visit the Living History Museum. As Widhalm explained in his nomination letter, "Students from other classes also get involved as they can learn from these students by asking questions during lunch or recess."

The Living History Museum has been a feature of Ms. Winchester's class at Irle for 10 years. She shared a highlight from a previous year's museum, saying, "Two former second grade students portrayed their great-grandfathers who served in World War II. While they spoke, they displayed their great-grandfather's medals and helmet which made it even more meaningful."

Ms. Winchester's respect for America and historical figures extends far beyond the Living History Museum project as she incorporates patriotism into her classroom daily, passing on her grandparents' lesson. "Each morning, we say the Pledge of Allegiance because we value our freedom and the sacrifices it took for our freedom," she told the Courier. "We also write poems honoring our veterans on Veterans Day. They have allowed us the freedom to go to school and live our lives."