Sixth-grader's summer project reigns supreme in detailed miniature

As an incoming sixth-grader at the Dallas Environmental Science Academy, Fernando Flores was assigned a summer project. His monthlong effort resulted in a castle fit for a king – at least a small king.

He constructed a castle and its contents patterned after the one in the book, The Castle in the Attic by Elizabeth Winthrop. The details are fantastic, from handmade furniture and accessories to the individual pebbles hot-glued to the exterior. A working pump stirs the water in the moat, and a drawbridge operates off to the side. There is also a small, battery-powered string of lights along the top.

The castle was delivered to Dallas ISD’s Administration Building on Thursday, Aug. 25, so that trustees could take a look at Fernando’s hard work. For his part, Fernando credited his family for helping and contributing some of the pieces. For example, the sides are borrowed from his sister’s dollhouse; the drawbridge operates thanks to a chain necklace that is his mom’s and the pebbles formerly lined the bottom of an aquarium for turtles.