Tiny Lincolns Get International Press Coverage

 

February 12, 2009 -- Tim Jensen’s 4th Grade class became the image of choice for media outlets marking the 200th Anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln’s birthday on February 12.

Associated Press photographer David Goldman followed the class on a procession through the subway to a recital of the Gettysburg address for a senior citizens’ luncheon at Plymouth Church in Brooklyn Heights. The group then sat in the same pew where then-presidential-candidate Lincoln sat when he visited the church in February of 1860. By Friday afternoon, the AP photographs had been picked up and distributed in the Metro morning subway paper, the Boston Globe, USA Today, and the BBC.

The Plymouth performance was the last in a two-day whirlwind tour for the costumed 4th Graders. They began on Wednesday morning, lining the stage of Packer’s Chapel. Each one having memorized a phrase in turn, the 20 children recited the Gettysburg Address to thunderous applause from the assembled Middle School. For the rest of the day, in pairs, they visited classes in every grade along with every administrative office in the school, answering questions about Lincoln in the first person.

On Thursday, they were invited across the street to Borough Hall for a tour with Borough President Marty Markowitz. After the tour, Mr. Markowitz donned a stovepipe hat of his owned and joined the group for a photo on the Borough Hall staircase.

Some of the children wrote about their reactions to all the notoriety:

• “On the subway, everyone else on the subway looked confused, but then they were reminded that it was Lincoln’s birthday, and a small smile came across their face.”
• “When we took the walk around the school, it was awesome to see that even the smaller children knew who we were.”
• “After this whole day as a Little Lincoln, I felt like I did a really good job, and now I feel like I still have the beard on my face.  Strange, isn’t it?”
• “I had so much fun telling everyone about Lincoln, and I am proud of our class that we memorized the Gettysburg Address!  I wish we could do it again!”

Mr. Jensen, their teacher, was proud to join in the 200th anniversary celebration by taking the Tiny Lincolns out in public to entertain and educate a variety of people. This is the 12th year he and his 4th Graders have been enjoying the Tiny Lincolns project.

Originally, Mr. Jensen says the project evolved from a biography unit where students would dress as the historical figure of their choice. “One year, I had a student do Abe Lincoln, and another teacher asked if that student could appear in her class in costume as Lincoln on Lincoln's birthday. That got me thinking,” he said, “why not many Lincolns in many classrooms on Lincoln's birthday?”

Mr. Jensen says he has always admired Lincoln’s intelligence, sense of humor, and perseverance amid tragedy. “He is also the only historical figure who is immediately recognizable to people all over the world,” he said. “Give a kid an oak tag top hat and a beard, and everyone knows who he or she is supposed to be.”