It is enrollment time again, and students at De Soto High School are flipping through page after page of the DHS Course Guide, most not even stopping to consider taking a look under the “social studies” section. What they don’t realize, however, is that they are overlooking an experience only offered in one place across the country.

Keil Hileman, a teacher at Monticello Trails Middle School, has created a one of a kind museum inside the classroom. The museum consists of an estimated 20,000 artifacts ranging anywhere from stamps and coins, to a 1930’s Texaco Fire Chief Gas Pump, to student-made projects and more.

“You would see a collage of artifacts on bookshelves all the way around the room with pieces of history and magnificent student projects,” Hileman said.

Some might be surprised that what is now 20,000 artifacts started out as two dented Civil War bullets ordered in an attempt to portray the reality of the Civil War to students.

Hileman found that using things such as dented bullets and movies allowed students to be more engaged and gave them a better understanding of historical events.

“These artifacts and the stories that were created around them ended up teaching my students more about the Civil War than my lesson plan, textbook and entire curriculum combined,” Hileman said.

Former archaeology student senior Lexi Pasquale agreed, “It’s cool to be able to just pull one [an artifact] off the shelf and just tie it to whatever we are talking about.”

However, those two bullets and one social studies class grew a little too big and a little too popular. Other students knew what they were missing.

“My students were doing all of these exciting things like archaeology and working on the museum, whereas kids in other social studies classes weren’t getting those opportunities,” Hileman said.

The popularity and demand of the museum led to the creation of the Museum Connections elective for middle school students. However, with a growing district, it still wasn’t enough. Hileman created Honors Archaeology and Artifacts for juniors and seniors of the two district high schools, DHS and Mill Valley High School.

The archaeology program brings students of the two high schools together to learn in a new way, while being in the museum.

“It’s a cool experience to not be trapped with De Soto kids,” said DHS graduate Emily Hess. “It’s nice to know other kids outside the school.”

Hileman’s classroom museum isn’t the only unique thing about him either. He has survived two shattered legs and a brain tumor only to be told he would never walk again or have children. Today he is walking with three daughters by his side.

Hileman was not only the innovator of the classroom museum, but he even designed the archaeological dig tables that double as the student’s desks. The tables allow students to perform simulated digs, yet another one of Hileman’s unique teaching components.

Hileman believes that all children have the ability and desire to learn and be creative.

“I will do anything, try anything and create anything that will help my students learn and grow,” Hileman said.

This attitude has awarded Hileman with the 2004 Kansas Teacher of the Year award, in addition to being one of four finalists for the 2004 National Teacher of the Year. He has been given many more awards and honors throughout his teaching career.

Hileman’s classroom museum was viewed by 52 million people as a feature live teaching session on NBC’s 2011 Education National Summit.

“Our nation has traveled through the agricultural age, to the industrial age and we are now in the information age. We are just on the cusp of the age of creativity,” Hileman said.

This age of creativity is what’s allowed Hileman to create the museum, and is what allows students to learn in a whole new way; a way that actually works.

“My students touch history, see history, feel history and are inspired to build history,” Hileman said.

Maybe this year students won’t skim through their course guides and miss out on a teacher, a classroom, and a learning style not offered anywhere else in the country.