Fourth graders in David Billeaud's class created an elaborate medieval village which they named Auvelle. The project, the culmination of their two months of hard work, began with a question: Why don't we construct a scale model of a medieval village? They studied the maps of Pompeii and Manhattan, and sketched a village, then "practiced" by building a mini village in Discovery Park. In line with the central idea of their unit of inquiry, "human beings share their culture, values and beliefs through the arts." Building this village gave the students the opportunity to work on numerous skills and subject areas: geometry (working with shapes, tools like a compass, rulers, and protractors); science (using simple machines like pulleys and gears, with help from science teacher Molly Hamill); geography (making maps); language (studying the vernacular of medieval roles or jobs); writing (making up a story about the history of their city, and thinking of historic events, like the crowning of a king and a plague); research skills (working with our own librarian Elizabeth Serreau and resources from the National Library of France); art (choosing designs of houses and churches, using color); history (an accurate depiction of the kingdom of France during the Middle Ages). "The project would not have taken place without the help of Tony Pain-Cook, the father of Elisa, one of students in the class," says David. "Tony put everything together—the photos, the legends, the maps and all of the element—into a beautiful book that will be auctioned at the Gala on April 9."