Students slowly trickled in and sat at their assigned seats inside one of the many Placerita Junior High School classrooms on Tuesday evening.   Ready to put their knowledge to the ultimate test, they waited to hear a series of history-focused questions.   But instead of answering on a pie ce of paper like a traditional test, they were met with a red buzzer.   As they strived to answer each question correctly, family and friends watched their students from the back of the classroom waiting to see if their responses were correct. Cheers soon followed when a student gave the correct answer and scored a point.   A total of 24 Placerita Junior High School students participated in the regional Great History Challenge, a schoolwide academic competition designed to make history exciting, according to the competition’s official website.   Placerita history teacher Judie Blevins came across The Great History Challenge and wanted to give students a chance to shine through an academic competition focused on the subject of history, something that isn’t usually given that chance, she said.    Placerita’s first time participating in the academic competition was last year, and due to high interest from the school’s students, administration and staff chose to host this year’s regional competition for all participating Los Angeles County schools, added Blevins.    Placerita Junior High School Teacher Judie Blevins (center) oversees one classroom during The Great History Challenge competition on March 11, 2025 in Newhall, Calif. Katherine Quezada/The Signal According to the competition’s website, the event is structured into three stages: a schoolwide online competition, a regional competition for the highest-scoring students from each school, and a national championship where regional winners compete against the best in the country. This year, regional winners will be competing in Orlando, Florida, on Memorial Day weekend, according to Blevins.   “It’s just kind of a fun thing because there’s so many activities and events [for other subjects] but for history there’s not that many, so this was kind of a fun way to get the kids involved and they were really proud of themselves to make the regionals,” Blevins said. “The questions [range] from ancient civilizations, world history, to U.S. history and some modern history,” she added.   The questions are based off grade-level curriculum standards every year they’re supposed to master, according to school officials, and students get a chance to see the knowledge they’ve retained throughout the years.    History teachers on campus promoted the competition to encourage student participation, resulting in 90 students signing up, according to Blevins.  Eighth grader Gordon Nelson returned for a second year for the academic competition and was feeling great for earning himself a “max out” during one of the rounds, he said. A “max out” means he “got the maximum amount of points” in the round and was taken out of the competition “so that other people have a chance to answer,” he said.   “I didn’t really study,” he said. “You just really have to pay attention in class and if you do it right in class, you don’t need anything extra to prepare.”   When asked what interested him to return for the competition, he replied, “It was super fun to be in a competitive environment, I like history and it’s fun to be able to do something with that skill,” and it’s important to provide spaces for students who enjoy the subject of history because “it gives everyone a chance to do something with the skill. There are math competitions and speech writing competitions, but this is the only competition I’ve heard as of yet that’s history, so it’s a great opportunity.”   The ambitious student enjoys the history of ancient Japan because of samurais and ninjas, “which probably didn’t really exist,” he said, but it’s enough to make him learn more about the subject. Last year, he made it to the national championship in Chicago, but he didn’t go due to the travel expense, he said.   Placerita Junior High School students listen to a History focused question during The Great History Challenge competition on March 11, 2025 in Newhall, Calif. Katherine Quezada/The Signal Nelson was one out of 11 students that qualified for the national championship on Tuesday, which was celebrated at the conclusion of the competition with an awards ceremony on the school’s campus with all participants and families present.   Although Nelson is unsure if he’ll go to Orlando for this year’s championship, he was just happy to challenge himself and “get to know the contestants around me and nice to see a friend succeed,” he said referring to a fellow classmate who also “maxed out” during one of the rounds.   First-time competitor and seventh grader Elias De Paula also qualified for the nationals and found the competition interesting, which is why he chose to participate. “I just figured, ‘Hey, let’s do it,’” he said, and never expected to make it to regionals.   “I knew I had the ability, but I didn’t know it was on this caliber,” De Paula said, adding that some of the questions were about material he hadn’t learned yet, but still made it a fun challenge.   Eighth grader John Alexander made it to the nationals last year and placed 150th out of 300 competitors, he said.   “It’s cool to have a chance to do it again. I feel a little more prepared,” this time, he said. Alexander also qualified for the national competition this year.   In their own words, the three students encouraged their classmates to take the initiative and participate in the competition in the future because it’s a good challenge and experience.   “It’s just very exciting to see kids who are so excited about history having an opportunity to be able to compete in something that they really love,” said Placerita Junior High School Principal John Turner in a followup phone call on Thursday. “It’s always exciting to see us step out and try new things and do something that we haven’t ever done before. And then for our students to be really successful, that just makes us realize the importance of giving students as many opportunities as possible.”   The 11 Placerita Junior High School students who qualified for this year’s nationals are:   Jack Alexander.  Elias De Paula.  Grayson Donkin.  Noah Dronen.  Mallory Ganshirt.  Alex Gutierrez.  Javier Jimenez.  Miles Junas.  Alessandra Mendoza.   Gordon Nelson.  Sam Prante.  Additionally, De Paula, Jimenez, Junas, Mendoza and Nelson were named grade-level regional champions. The post Placerita students shine in Great History Challenge, 11 qualify for Nationals  appeared first on Santa Clarita Valley Signal. ...read more read less