On Thursday, Feb. 28, the students in Kathy Harunk's and Kerry Snider's first-grade classes at Minot Forest Elementary arrived to school as, well, everyday first-graders.

But as Harunk explained simply to a large crowd of students and parents who gathered in the school's cafeteria that afternoon: "They're not anymore!"

The students had transformed into one of the 44 U.S. presidents. Donning beards, mustaches, hats, and fancy clothing, one thing was clear: It was an assignment the students did not take lightly.

The presidents arrived at a microphone decorated in red, white, and blue ribbon, stated their names, which state they were born in, and an interesting fact about themselves.

Some notable facts:

"I was on the $5,000 bill!" announced James Madison, who arrived at school as Ava O'Driscoll.

"I like to go fishing to relax," Franklyn Pierce, more commonly known as Jackson Veugen, told the audience.

"I was the first president to have a telephone in the White House," said Samantha Girard… or Rutherford B. Hayes.

"I can read 2,000 words a minute," exclaimed James Earl Carter, Jr., or Matthew Paquin.

Check out the presidents in the video slideshow below!