Bigelow Scholars Share Their Stories With Family and Friends at the Winter Term Showcase

The Bigelow Scholars are an exceptional group of students who maintain rigorous academic schedules while fully engaging in electives, related arts, athletics, and extracurriculars. This year's Winter Showcase challenged scholars to be creative, innovative, and brave as they crafted stories to share with the community at the end of the term in the Hettinger Library.
What is the Bigelow Scholars Program?

To be considered for the Bigelow Scholars program, students must be in the top quartile of their class in grades 8 and 9. Students in the program will drop their study hall and add a seventh class to their responsibilities.  The program is a two-year, rotating curriculum that explores the human origin story, drawing heavily from the AP Human Geography curriculum. "Each term is a special opportunity to explore three different perspectives of storytelling," says Mrs. Hart, Director of Academics. "Through art, technology, and humanities." Next year, the program will shift focus to Business & Entrepreneurship.

Alan Y. ‘27 and Logan H. ‘26 explored Greek mythology and the story Zues and the Titans. Anna P. ‘26 and Adeline P. ‘26 started their story with the Sun Mother, a figure from the Australian Aboriginals. Ellen H. ‘27 and Ethan S. ‘26 told the story of the Myans, featuring the four wives and fathers of humanity. Kailey L. ‘27 and Nayeli J. ‘26 discovered and told the story of the Aztecs, about creator gods, Citlatonac and Citlalicue, responsible for the creation of Earth and the creation of humanity to worship the gods. 

Through the Eyes of the Creative: Art

What are the oldest stories that make sense of the world around us? To help tell these stories, Mrs. Oakes and her Bigelow Scholars used creativity and imagination to craft shadow puppets and perform plays of myths and legends from some of the world's oldest civilizations, seeking to explain how life came to be.

Alan Y. '27 and Logan H. '26 explored Greek mythology and the epic battle between Zeus and the Titans. Anna P. '26 and Adeline P. '26 began their story with the Sun Mother, a figure from Australian Aboriginal mythology. Ellen H. '27 and Ethan S. '26 told the story of the Mayans, featuring the four wives and fathers of humanity. Kailey L. '27 and Nayeli J. '26 discovered and shared the Aztec story of creator gods Citlaltonac and Citlalicue, responsible for the creation of Earth and humanity to worship the gods.

The shadow puppet shows included scripts narrated by the students as well as handcrafted paper puppets. These delicate paper characters use unique techniques to display color and animate with hand-operated sticks. “Last term the result was incredible,” said Mrs. Oakes, “However, this term the students knew what to anticipate, and the professional puppeteer that visited earlier in the fall, Jim Napolitano, really unlocked the creativity and possibilities of the group. The storytelling was magical.”

From the Classroom - Humanities

From a more traditional approach using the AP Human Geography curriculum, Mrs. Rodman’s class looked at the tools Human Geographers use to tell the stories of history and build their public speaking skills to share their own unique stories. Beginning with their own hometown, students researched the stories and unique ways their city came to be known. Then they broadened their search to regions until they finally could understand and orally express, “The Story of You.” 

Mrs. Rodman shared, “They say the more you practice, the less anxious you get, although I think [this term] they learned that the more you practice, the more your coping skills come into play to help you present to people.” There are no speaker notes. No script. No teleprompter and no way to tell the same story twice. Using a specific memory or time in their life, each student relies on their memory and public speaking skills to tell a story. They have to captivate an audience for five minutes, talking about themselves, learning how hand gestures, tone, pace, intonation, and inflection can help them share it in an engaging and authentic way. 

The students' bravery and confidence were impressive - some stories, like John’s, reminded us about our wonder and imagination. When he was 8, his “Secret Place,” a carefully crafted dog-house-like structure made out of cardboard, was only big enough to fit him, and he learned the importance of friends in his journey, quoting Helen Keller, “Walking in the dark with a friend is better than walking in the light alone.”

Norah’s story starts with her playing two roles: her younger self pleading with her mother to bring her to her first debate class. The harsh reality of debate crashed on her, it’s complexity and difficulty led to anxiety and depression, bringing her to the lowest of lows. At this point, the only option was up, and her resilience had led to a determination that now defines her as a strong debater. Just last month, she won an online debate through Harvard and, a week later, was a double finalist in another competition. Her emotions and elation in these wins are her proudest moments. 

These are just a few of the many stories that Mrs. Rodman’s class shared with family and friends during the showcase. “I am so proud of my class this term,” She said, “They were open to feedback, demonstrated vulnerability, and, ultimately, their dedication to constant practice paid off. Seeing how much a student can grow when they put their mind to it never gets old.”

In The Hands of the Innovative - Technology    

Mr. Finnegan’s class starts by shuffling through the archives. Blueprints, pictures, and some of the oldest artifacts help students design and recreate the facilities of the campus. “These are spaces we see and use every day,” Said Mr. Finnegan, “But to use original architectural drawings and materials to build a detailed scale model gives students a totally new perspective.” 
Laura O. ‘27, George X. ‘27, and Ryan H. ‘27 were given an even more difficult task because there were no drawings for them to reference. George talked about the complexity of the land, and as one of the oldest, most iconic dorms on campus, they had to get it right. “We went down to DGB during class and physically measured and mapped it out ourselves.” Said George. Miley L. ‘26, Harvey W. ‘26, and Kai F. ‘26 may have had the most difficult building to recreate–the Collins Art Barn. This building is as much art as it is functional, with many angles, heights, and complex foyers that reflect and bend light throughout the space. Sharlatte Z. ‘26, Estella Q. ‘26, and Thomas M. ‘27 rebuilt the most used space on campus, the George Groom Dining Hall. 

In addition to their 3D recreations, the students also recorded their voices retelling the history and unique aspects of the building on an interactive switchboard. To see some of the impressive work and hear its history for yourself, parents can view recordings and images from the event in the Wolf Den. Within Blackbaud, find ‘news’ at the top of the navigation, and ‘featured content’. Congratulations to the students and faculty who worked for the entire semester, collaborating, problem-solving, and innovating stories that help us remember the past and inspire our future.