[KHTS] – Rancho Camulos, a piece of California history in Ventura County, will host Santa Clarita Valley International Charter School’s second annual Civil War Living History event on Thursday, May 22, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The 8th graders have prepared a number of exhibits and activities to demonstrate what life was like during the Civil War, including traditional dances at the cotillion, a sutlery shop with souvenirs made by SCVi learners, the trial and execution of a soldier for desertion, telegraph and hot air balloon demonstrations and a reenactment of the Gettysburg Address.

The goal of the event is to get the community involved and teach learners about the Civil War through hands-on activities and group projects, instead of typical tests and papers.

Two learners, Masey and Gabby, and two 8th grade facilitators, Dustin Lengning and Keith Faulkner, from SCVi sat down with Alex Urbina, during his “Life Leadership” show on Monday.

They talked about researching the characters they would play during the reenactment, such as soldiers, southern belles, abolitionists and others, and expressed facts about the Civil War that they never knew before undertaking this project.

“I didn’t even know there was a sutlery or a cotillion,” Gabby said, “I just kind of assumed they killed each other for freedom.”

Masey said that the project has helped him learn to work with others.

“You need to learn to just open up and be able to work with anyone that you’re assigned to,” she said. “In real life, in a real job, you might not necessarily like your coworkers, but that doesn’t mean you should necessarily quit and find another job.”

The Living History event is open to the public and Rancho Camulos suggests a $5 donation to enter.

Click here to learn more about Rancho Camulos.