Kids transported to the Middle Ages in Peabody

PEABODY – Bryan Uribe is a South Memorial School fifth-grader, but in his imagination, the Peabody resident is an ancient Greek blacksmith who time-traveled to the Middle Ages Thursday to craft a war shield.Under Medieval scholar Dana Perkins? direction, Uribe and a dozen other students spent their morning in the Peabody Institute Library learning about life in Europe 1,000 years ago. Perkins delighted Uribe and fourth-grader Ryan McFadden by bringing two swords to his presentation and launching into a lecture about heraldry before helping the teenagers design and decorate cardboard shields.?I really liked it,” McFadden said. “I read a lot of fantasy.”The Peabody Institute Library and its West Peabody and South Peabody branches host so many summer events for adults and children that the library – for the first time this summer – published a 20-page guidebook describing the activities.Teen Librarian Cate Merlin said many local teens and younger children are years away from working summer jobs and they need fun activities to fill their days when the school year ends.The library?s 1,500-square-foot Creativity Lab features woodworking, sewing, introduction to 3-D printers as well as activities that extend year-round, including supervised access to sound recording equipment.Maura Shinnick, 7, likes visiting the library?s Bookworm Cafe, where she can eat muffins and cookies steps away from books and projects she enjoys. With a little guidance from Perkins, she decorated her shield with a smiling apple wearing a purple tiara.?At home I made a boxcar, and I think I might attach it to it,” she said.Shinnick and her two brothers live in Rowley, and her mother, Michelene, worked in Peabody Institute for four years.?The staff is amazing. They offer a great amount of programming, and they have a strong community tie,” Michelene Shinnick said.She said Peabody Institute sponsors book clubs for readers of every interest and brings in outside presenters like Perkins to supplement local programs. Perkins works in the town of Framingham?s library, but takes his love of Medieval history on the road to share it with library patrons across the state.He said the bygone world of knights, castles, peasants and chivalry underpins popular literature from “Harry Potter” to “Game of Thrones.”?The romantic aspect of Medieval history appeals to people, but I make sure to differentiate between the fantasy and the harsh reality of life during that time,” he said.Perkins said Medieval history and his companion presentation focused on comic book heroes dovetails with the theme public libraries have adopted nationally this summer: “every hero has a story.”Perkins said he is “happily surprised” to discover his young audience has a grasp of history and daily life hundreds, even thousands, of years ago. Uribe said he has read enough about ancient Greece to appreciate the physical work even a boy would have to shoulder in an age without machines.?I would have to concentrate more on things,” he said.