ARIS Students Get Into Character to Complete Study

The last ride of Gen. George Armstrong Custer wasn't on the high Montana plains in 1876 after all: he walked again Wednesday, at Auten Road Intermediate School.

Or at least Custer, as portrayed by fifth-grade student Christian Matthews, was.

Christian and his classmates were completing the school's annual Living Museum project, with students choosing a historical figure to study and portray at the museum.

From ancient figures to modern innovators, the projects enable the students to apply skills from several classes.

"The students jumped feet first into this project,” teachers Mary La Placa and Nicole Brameyer said during the presentation in 2012. “The students found the variety of biographic characters interesting and were excited to be performing in an interactive exhibit for their family and friends.”