CHARLESTON, W.Va. — From the pharaohs to the presidents, students studied up on their subject of choice and created one-of-a-kind projects to wow the judges. More than 500 students from across the state presented their projects Friday at the West Virginia Social Studies Fair.
Joey Wiseman, social studies coordinator with the West Virginia Department of Education, said the students in grades 3-12 come up with great ideas. And the ones who make it to the state fair have already won their school, county and RESA Social Studies Fairs. 
“These are the first-place projects in every category from each of the state’s RESAs in West Virginia. So these are the best of the best. They are already all winners in our eyes,” Wiseman said.
The Great Hall at the Charleston Civic Center was packed with projects by 10am Friday. Students were nervously awaiting their chance to make their presentation to the judges.
Wiseman said a lot of work goes into creating the displays and each student has to use all their skills to create a winning project.
“It addresses our literacy standards, reading, writing, collaboration in many cases because they can do group projects,” he said. “So there are lots of things that go into this.”
Some students are better with their oral presentations to the judges, others excel in the displays and the written requirements. Wiseman says the fair really brings out the best in all students.
“We all know that if students have an interest in something, they’re going to work a lot harder at it,” he said.. “So this is really hands-on learning at its best.”
This year the fair partnered with National History Day and ten history projects involving music, dance and crafts were up for judging. Wiseman said they hope to expand that part of the fair to allow students to focus more on historical events, using their creativity to make presentations.