Our own county museum

Who knew?  If you have not been to our own little museum in the original fire hall/police station here in town, you are missing an amazing treasure!  What a gem of a place and the volunteers who spoke with our students and shared information about life long ago were so knowledgeable.

The building isn't big but it houses so many different little vignettes into life within the county over the last one hundred years or so.  There is a little 'barn' and a 'blacksmith shop',

full of sharp tools and dangerous looking items.  We didn't touch a thing!

A variety of rooms focus on life long ago so the students got to peep into a formal parlour and spent some time in the kitchen learning about a coal stove, an ice box and a flour bin.

Their hands never were down....they had question after question.

Given the educational focus that is being played on life before Europeans came to this land, the students had an opportunity to hear more about the life of those who traveled these lands.

After our stories about the girl, Kaya, the students wanted to share their knowledge as much as they wanted to hear new facts.

This gentlemen keep the students entertained as they visited the little schoolhouse.  He shared his own early school experiences, when there were only 7 students in his school, he traveled in a cart pulled by a horse and he was one of two children in Grade One, but there were no students in Grade Two.

The students loved these little desks!

There was a church room, a beauty shop, and this store.

The students played a searching game.  Any of you remember using Rogers' syrup on your pancakes?

They learned about the coffee grinder.

I feel lucky that I never had to darn socks using this wooden tool.

The artifacts are donated and are so well cared for.  I loved this stained glass window.

I didn't read Dick and Jane.  I read about Tom and Betty and Susan.  These were large teaching pages that would have been displayed in the classroom  and the children would have read all together, as the teacher pointed to the words.  Children today learn to read much longer words earlier in their practising.

Judging by this smile, I would say this museum visit was a hit!