They Might Be Giants

By Naperville Magazine
October 2024 View more Community

By Paige Nussbaumer

A lesson for local students is more than symbolic

State bird? Cardinal. State tree? White oak. State mushroom? Hmmm …

Thanks to the civics work of some DuPage elementary students, Illinois has a state mushroom to call its own. It all began during a class discussion about state symbols last year. Charlotte (then a fifth grader), pondered if Illinois had an official state mushroom. Nope. But her question sparked an enthusiastic response from her classmates at the Prairie School of DuPage, launching a journey that combined science, data, civics, and teamwork and ending with a unanimously passed bill that made Illinois one of only six states to have a state mushroom.

“The students experiencing a bill becoming a law was really an educator’s dream,” says teacher Erin Hemmer. “My hope was they would feel a sense of empowerment through the whole process.”

First, the students had to put together a list of contenders, collecting data from more than 100 stakeholders—including mycologists (mushroom scientists), university researchers, educators, museum experts, and the Illinois State Mycology Association—to help determine which mushroom species would be good fits. That information, combined with specific criteria determined by the students—that the choice be nontoxic, native, and common—narrowed it down to two candidates: the giant puffball (Calvatia gigantea) and the indigo milky (Lactarius indigo). “I felt it was my job to facilitate the steps by providing access to information, and allowing them to navigate through it,” Hemmer says. “My intention was for them to truly be researchers at a scholarly level. All along the way I was impressed with their desire to dig deeper and how they learned to acknowledge each other’s strengths and rely on each other cooperatively.”

A schoolwide election was held to crown a winner. Posters were made, speeches were written, and the candidates were presented to children from kindergarten to eighth grade in a way that each level could understand and thus make an educated vote. In the end, the giant puffball prevailed.

Next, students and teachers reviewed other states’ mushroom bills to put together their own championing the giant puffball. They then contacted their appropriate state senators and representatives, looking for a lawmaker to sponsor their bill. Seth Lewis (R–24th District) was up to the task. The senator helped usher the bill through committee readings. “Not only did the students collect qualitative and quantitative data and survey large groups of people as they researched mushrooms native to Illinois, they also received a solid lesson in civic engagement and learned that even at a young age people can be change-makers.” Lewis says. “They were involved at every stage of the legislative process and received hands-on experience in how Illinois’ legislative process works.”

Before the bill was voted on in the Senate, Hemming and Charlotte had to go to Springfield to testify in support of the giant puffball, citing the data compiled by the students. They won the committee’s unanimous support. As Charlotte put it, “Everyone agreed that the puffball was good.” The bill was on a roll. It passed the Senate unanimously. Then, with the bill picked up by Represetative Michelle Mussman (D–56th District), the House also unanimously voted on May 23 in favor of the giant puffball. The students watched the proceedings on television and cheered.

As for the students’ favorite parts of the process? Quinlan pointed out the unanimous votes in the committees, the Senate, and the House, while Riley enjoyed seeing the voting room with the voting machines lined up symmetrically. Sadie liked how everyone was involved in the school election. Another Charlotte likes the puffball because it doesn’t have a stem, and she and her classmates made a video of it “puffing” its spores. Matei, who likes to cook mushrooms, likes that the puffball is edible. Finn also likes that the puffball is edible, and that if you kick it like a soccer ball, it will spread its spores.

“For me, this has been the most impactful project that I have experienced in my 23 years of being an educator—I am not ashamed to admit that I have gotten teary-eyed along [the] way with the amount of pride that I have felt for these students as they pursued an idea and saw it through,” says teacher Laura McCoy. “From the idea’s inception, the students have been able to engage in an area of the project that was of the most interest to each as an individual. It was exciting to see how each student personalized this project and made connections from both the civics and science side.”

The bill was signed into law by Governor J.B. Pritzker on August 12, officially naming the giant puffball the Illinois state mushroom. “It is clear that these students are change-makers—they have made history,” McCoy says. “I hope this project will remind them of how capable they are all the way through adulthood.”

That’s a Massive Mushroom

The giant puffball gets its name from how large it can grow—bigger than a soccer ball. It can also produce several trillion spores, though fewer than 1 percent will result in new mushrooms.

The Calvatia gigantea is also edible. If it’s white and firm inside, the giant puffball is ready to be sliced, sautéed, and enjoyed. But leave it up to the experts to choose the right species of puffball to eat—there are some poisonous look-alikes to avoid.

Stately Symbols

How many of these official Illinois state symbols can you name?

• State animal
• State slogan
• State nickname
• State flower
• State insect
• State amphibian
• State reptile
• State fish
• State microbe (yes, we have an official microbe!)
• State rock
• State dance
• State snack food
• State pie
• State fruit
• State vegetable

For the answers, click here.

For more even more, check out the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, dnr.illinois.gov/education/ilstatesymbols.html.

Photos: Ashley Clark; iStock