Reenactor, history teacher honored

Reenactor and middle school history teacher Kyle von Kamp was honored Tuesday by the Ohio Board of Education as the District 2 Teacher of the Year.

He received his award during a ceremony in Columbus, Ohio, largely for his hands-on method of teaching eight-graders about the American Revolution. Instead of solely teaching dates and history from a textbook, von Kamp brings history to life at the Willard Revolutionary War Encampment and Reenactment.

In mid-May each year, his students don period clothing and they learn about history by living it.

Next spring's dates are May 15-16. The weekend includes a student day on Friday when students from other classes visit the event, followed by a Friday night ball and awards ceremony.

Students reenact events and battle scenes such as Lexington and Concord, Monmouth, Valley Forge, and Yorktown. Wearing period clothing, they learn about crafts and activities such as tin punching, paper making, land surveying, military drilling, hearth kettle cooking, food preservation, knitting, pottery and others.

Students research and create a first-person character sketch on a Revolutionary War soldier who moved to the Firelands of Ohio, and some students will earn the opportunity to attend a military ball with live music and spend the night in the encampment. On Saturday, students portray camp life for the community.

The event is open to visitors 8 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday and 8 a.m.-3 p.m. Saturday.

This year, teachers from other schools are invited to attend "Revolutionary Education: A cross-curricular workshop for educators" so they can see how the program works and how they can incorporate lessons into their history classes.

Von Kamp said he first got the idea of hands-on history 20 years ago, and he did his best to find clothing for 180 eighth-graders.

"This is going to be our 21st year, but we had a several-year hiatus in between because of a new building being built and some other things," he said.

Since 2015, the program "has become better, and honestly, more historically accurate." The average number of students has dropped to about 100, so it's a bit easier to clothe them.

Von Kamp started to meet more reenactors, and they have become volunteers.

"I had the book knowledge and had gone to some conferences, but nothing as immersive as what we do on a weekend," he said.

In 2018, "reenactor and friend" Julie Rossington talked him into attending some other events as a fellow reenactor. And now he leads groups of students at other events as well. The students attended Pioneer Days at Historic Lyme Village, Bellevue, Ohio, in September and other reenactments. In late November, the group is taking part in the local Christmas parade.

"Each year we focus on improving the kids' outfits," he said. "We're constantly learning."

Von Kamp said he enjoys knowing the students see him continuing to learn, which teaches them that learning doesn't end when they graduate from high school.

When former students visit or volunteer at the weekend event, they definitely notice the positive changes, he said. They appreciate the experience they had, but some of them wish they would be learning what the kids are learning now.

"For every event they go to with me, they earn a service bar," he said. At the year-end awards, students received their bars instead a paper certificate. And

"We have an Outstanding Student of American History every year," he said. "I buy them a gorget and they get a sash. We try to make is something special."

In his acceptance speech Tuesday, von Kamp said he remembered something his mother told him when he was young. “Take advantage of every opportunity.”

"Over time I’ve learned that we are, in many ways, the sum of our experiences. Every chance we take, every challenge, every new path, every uncomfortable moment, shapes who we become.

"I try to live by that lesson. I take every opportunity to learn because I know each one carries the potential to change me for the better.

"This connection between experience and growth is captured perfectly by Benjamin Franklin, who once said, 'Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.' And that is exactly what I ask my students to do, to step into moments that may feel unfamiliar, to try something they’ve never done, and to discover something new about themselves in the process.

"So today, I stand here grateful and inspired because I get to work with young people who remind me every day why I became an educator and that opportunity is powerful."