Kaelyn Hamilton remembers visiting Virginia Beach several years ago.

“I’ve been to the boardwalk,” she said. “It was lit up with lots of colors. I went on the Ferris wheel.”

She recreated that memory recently, building a Ferris wheel out of popsicle sticks, aluminum foil and Lego mini-figures, as the centerpiece of her entry for Krieger Elementary School’s annual State Float and Brochure Museum.

Each fifth grade student for the program, now in its sixth year, researches a state, designs a shoebox diorama in the style of a parade float and creates a brochure containing key facts. They then present their states to their classmates before a culminating event in which the school’s fourth graders and the students’ parents can walk around looking at each presentation.

The event on Friday included around 75 projects covering each of the 50 states, with some students presenting variations on the same state.

“In fifth grade we’re supposed to learn about all the states of the union. That’s virtually impossible to teach all the states of the union,” said fifth grade teacher Andrea Boccio, who leads the project each year. “This way, they each become an expert in their state and then they share out in their classrooms.”

The fourth graders, she said, get a taste for the project they will need to tackle the following year.

Each project needs to include the state’s flag, seal, a notable attraction or attractions, and a postage stamp including the state bird, flower and another element.

Boccio said the idea was to make elements from common items.

“It’s a ‘makers’ project, turning junk into treasure,” she said. “They’re not supposed to print stuff off the internet. You can turn salt into sand. You can turn aluminum foil into cups. You can turn any ordinary thing into what you need it to be.”

Several of the floats this year included motion elements, like a Texas oil drill moving up and down. Some students went above and beyond by creating sprawling displays larger than a single shoebox. While their efforts were acknowledged, Boccio said, the students were also reminded they didn’t follow the rules.

Each brochure needed to include summaries of a state’s history; their flag, flower, bird and other designations; five places to visit; the major contributions that came from the state; and a summary of how the student made the diorama.

“We have the written aspect as well as the aesthetic project,” Boccio said, noting different types of learners may excel at one more than the other. “They also learn how to make something out of nothing.”

On Friday, the students entered Krieger’s packed cafeteria holding their state flags before spreading out around the perimeter and singing “Fifty Nifty United States.” Teacher Kelly Rooney welcomed parents to the event, extending special thanks to art teacher Cynthia O’Herron, librarian Dorothy Luongo and custodian Kris Bottoms for helping the students with their projects and the song, and preparing the room. The students then sat down behind their displays and answered questions as the fourth graders, teachers and parents circled the room observing.

While many of the floats focused on tourist spots like amusement park rides or famous buildings, some students created representations of their state’s natural beauty. Alfred Murshed created Utah’s red, yellow and brown rock formations, such as those found at Arches National Park, using rocks, popsicle sticks and paint.

He said “a good amount” of research was needed for the project, as he only knew the state was “mostly desert” when he started.

“I learned that the state bird is the California Seagull, the state flower is the sego lily, their state motto is ‘Industry,’” Alfred said. “And I learned a bit more, yeah.”