Sixth and seventh grade students at James L. Collins Catholic School in Corsicana toured the Sixth Floor Museum Nov. 12.
By Seth Gonzales
The Texas Catholic
On Nov. 13, history came alive for the sixth and seventh grade students of James L. Collins Catholic School, as they walked through Dealey Plaza and toured the Sixth Floor Museum in downtown Dallas.
“It was very interesting to go through the place where the shooting really happened, instead of just studying it,” sixth-grader Anthony Saucedo said. “The whole visit was amazing.”
The long trip from Corsicana to Dallas was organized by James L. Collins history teacher Vicky Morrison.
Like her students, Morrison’s visit to the Sixth Floor Museum was her first. Slowly, the memories came back.
“I was in the seventh grade, the same age as these kids, when President Kennedy was assassinated,” Morrison said. “I was in gym class in my junior high school. It was very shocking and also emotional for being 12 years old and sitting at home and watching it all on TV. Coming to the museum and putting it all together definitely takes it to another level.”
Sixth-grader Luke Keathley said he and others were fascinated by President Kennedy’s time in office, as well as the complexity and number of conspiracy theories swirling about his death.
“It was neat to see all the research they put into showing how JFK spent his life as president before he went to Dallas,” Keathley said. “I thought it was also pretty cool to see the area where Oswald shot him and to see the same landscape and views that Oswald did.”
Morrison said she hopes her students gained a better sense of history while walking through the museum and Dealey Plaza.
“I think it’s important for my kids to come here because it puts the pieces together for them,” Morrison said. “We’ve studied it in class; we’ve gone over the conspiracy theories and we also went back into President Kennedy’s past and looked at his family life, his siblings, his mother and his father. Being here really brings it all together for them.”
