Before second grader Saige Raymer took part in a special program with her classmates, the most she knew about Australia is that kangaroos can hop backwards.

Now, her and her friends are experts on all things Australia: The typography (the Great Barrier Reef is the largest in the world and the size of Japan), language (Jumbuck is Australian slang for "sheep") and interesting facts about native animals (Clownfish can lay up to 1,000 eggs).

Their new expertise is the result of an original musical Messmore teachers wrote as an innovative way to reinforce a unit on the Outback.

“Our goal was to immerse the students in learning the endemic features of Australia in an engaging way, and the musical was a culminating activity that not only helped review our study but also informed our audience what was learned along the way,” said Messmore teacher Charlene Sonnenberg.

The musical, which consisted of 4 songs - Marsupial Sue, I Come From the Land Down Under, Kookaburra, The Great Barrier Reef - and narrative facts about the Asian continent, was written by the Messmore second grade team: Amy O'Brien, Christina Witek, Charlene Sonnenberg, Pamela Grady. Student Teachers: Tina Owensby, Alaina Carroll, and Hayley England.

The students had worked on the musical for several weeks before they premiered it in front of the student body and their parents in early December.

“The students loved working on this project.  The musical provided an inclusive experience that supported children with diverse learning styles, which offered a valuable opportunity for all to engage and learn in ways that best suited them.  

Students Maya Alamat and Gabriel Casianov shared that they enjoyed performing the musical to show their schoolmates and family what they learned. 

“I loved learning about animals and learning about words I never knew,” said Alamat.  “The more we practiced, the more we were able to learn.”