At the moment of his death in the hit musical “Hamilton,” Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton reflects on the nation he helped to found: “America, you great unfinished symphony, you sent for me,” he says. “A place where even orphan immigrants can make a difference and rise up.”

At the show’s matinee performance on May 11, those words resonated even more than usual with the audience, composed of 1,300 high school students from Title I schools across New York City. Among them were 45 students from the Fordham HS for the Arts, many of whom were seeing a Broadway show for the first time.

“All of my students identify as people of color,” said Emily McLane, a U.S. history teacher at Fordham. “Their families weren’t here during the American Revolution. But now they’re able to make a connection to that part of history.”

The matinee was part of a program financed by the Rockefeller Foundation and the producers to bring 20,000 New York City 11th-graders from low-income families to see the play between now and 2017. Thanks to a partnership between the Rockefeller Foundation and the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, students prepared for the performance using a study guide that encouraged them to replicate the same process that the show’s creator, Lin-Manuel Miranda, followed while developing the musical.

“One of the themes of ‘Hamilton’ is that the person telling the story shapes the story,” Miranda writes in the guide. “So read every history book with that knowledge in mind.”

In the weeks leading up to the performance, students studied a timeline of the era and analyzed primary sources in the context of the musical’s lyrics.

“We looked at two specific primary sources representing the same event in the musical, one from the perspective of a British loyalist and one from Hamilton,” said McLane. “We did a close reading of the text to find key words and then summarized it using the author’s words and our own.”

Then students listened to the corresponding “Hamilton” song (“Farmer Refuted”), connecting the lyrics with the documents.

“When I take practice Regents exams now, I have the lyrics from the show in my head,” said student Elizabeth Baez. In fact, McLane said she has seen a 20 percent increase in students’ scores on practice Regents since studying “Hamilton” because of things they learned and things that piqued their interest.

Finally, students created their own artistic performances based on key people, events and documents from the Founding Era.

“Doing the project helped me make sense of the history in my own way,” said student Algenis Doleo.

“Being at a desk, talking to a blackboard and memorizing facts isn’t the best way to learn,” agreed student Janeyerri Mendez. “Now if only Lin-Manuel Miranda did a show for math, I would easily pass math.”

At the matinee, students from each school had the opportunity to perform for the audience and for the show’s cast. Like Miranda, they drew on a diverse set of musical styles and historical figures, with performances representing the point of view of everyone from the slave Phyllis Wheatley to the Patriot spy Hercules Mulligan.

Fordham student Melissa Aguilar performed her monologue from the perspective of Angelica Schuyler, the sister of Hamilton’s wife, Eliza.

“I worked on telling Alexander’s story to create a legacy filled with glory. But what will be my legacy?” Melissa asked in her monologue.

Fordham students and teachers agreed that the musical sparked their interest in early American history.

“Students struggle to connect with the Founding Fathers,” said June Afshar, a U.S. history teacher at the school. “But ‘Hamilton’ brings history to life in a way that’s really accessible for them.”

In fact, the music of “Hamilton” was revelatory for the students. Shortly after seeing the show, McLane’s history class erupted into a singalong of one of the show’s catchiest numbers. The lyrics — “I’m just like my country, I’m young, scrappy and hungry, and I’m not throwing away my shot” — seemed prescient.

“Now I have a better appreciation for what our country has gone through,” said student Celeste Holder. “It’s so amazing how we’ve grown as a nation.”

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Miller Photography

But the value of seeing “Hamilton” on Broadway went far beyond academics. Miranda’s decision to cast actors of color in the leading roles was also revolutionary for the students, who said it was a thrilling experience to see themselves reflected in the faces of the Founding Fathers.

“It was my first time seeing diversity on Broadway,” said student Madison Rodgers. “Watching the show, I was speechless. It blew me off my seat.”

Echoing throughout “Hamilton” is the refrain, “Who lives, who dies, who tells your story.” After seeing the performance, students said they felt keenly aware of the implications.

“‘Hamilton’ showed us that history is not all about when someone was born and when they died,” said student Kerryann Moreno. “There’s always a story behind it.”