While the pilgrims who visited the district aren't historians (their background is in acting) they are veritable encyclopedias of facts about Plymouth's first settlement. Weber said he and his colleagues "learned" their characters, as well as the period accent in which they speak, from primary documents such as period letters and journals.

The 10- and 11-year-olds at Foothill Elementary were rapt as Weber vividly described the 66-day voyage across the Atlantic in the belly of Mayflower, which was built for transporting cargo, not people.

"It was a most unpleasant journey," he said, holding his belly as if remembering the nausea.

When the pilgrims first reached land, he said, the Wampanoag Indians greeted them with bows and arrows because they thought the Englishmen had come to take them away as slaves.

"All of a sudden, out of the woods came 30 Indian men," he said, his voice quiet and grave. "I took aim at one Indian man and I gave fire, and children, I thank God to this very day that I did not hit that man. I did not come here to fight Indian men. I came here to be a farmer."

Every face in the classroom was riveted on Weber; sitting perked up in their seats waiting for more.

"Before he (Weber) came, I thought the pilgrims were just people who came to America on a ship and had a big feast with the Indians," said Julia Livingston, 10. "And that's all, I guess. But they had lives and families just like we do."

That is exactly the impression Debbie Draper, a fifth grade teacher at Orem's Westmore Elementary, where the Wampanoag Indian actor visited, hopes to instill in her students using the living history tactics she learned last week.

"I've decided history is more than just dates and memorizing facts — it's the people," she said. "I want to make history real for my students."

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E-mail: estuart@desnews.com