On Thursday, March 26, 2009, Kristi spent much of the day on a field trip with her fourth grade classmates. They loaded the bus just after 9 o'clock in the morning and headed to St. George. To pass the time on the bus ride, she read in her Nancy Drew novel.
Her bus driver was named "Max," which happens to be the name of one of our dogs (the one in desperate need of his summer haircut - soon to come)!
The first stop took them to the St. George Art Museum and Opera House. At the museum, the kids saw many mediums of art depicting scenes from Zions National Park. Kristi learned that even if someone makes fun of your artwork, keep making it in your own way, and let them do theirs the way they want to. Everyone has a style of their own!
Something interesting:
Why the lights were low in our art exibit
"Light is energy; it hastens the deterioration of objects - Objects made of perishable organic materials (textiles, leather, baskets, furniture, paper, etc) are especially sensitive to light. Some pigments and dyes are also sensitive to light. Keeping visible light levels low and eliminating ultra violet light will slow down light damage, which cannot be undone."
After touring the art museum, they went next door to the Opera House. There, they met three visitors from out of the past. Jacob Hamblin shared some of his real life experiences settling in the area and his encounter with Indians. He encouraged the children to have integrity in all that they do.
Then, into the courthouse, the Honorable John Menzies Macfarlane entered. All arose and court was in session. He talked about the early days and how people used irrigation to water their fields and lawns. He explained that a complaint had been made against one of the students, stating they had stolen some of their neighbor's water. The student was called up and sat in the defendant's chair while others were chosen to be jurors. After a "guilty" verdict, Judge Macfarlane explained what he would do with the guilty culprits of his day. He encouraged the children to always do good and to use their talents. He loved music and wrote the Christmas hymn, "Far, Far Away on Judea's Plains."
Orson Pratt met everyone in the social hall, which was once the town's theater. He talked about traveling pioneers and how they measured the distance they traveled in their wagons. A red piece of cloth would be tied around one of the big back wagon wheels. Someone would have the job of counting each time the cloth reached the ground. Each rotation was about 13 feet in distance. Orson eventually invented a counter to measure the amount of distance they traveled. He was very smart and good at math. He stressed the importance of getting a good education and told a story about the old theater. Once, an intoxicated traveler came to the theater. He became so involved in the play, that when the villain entered the stage, he drew his gun and shot a bullet into the ceiling. All could still see where the bullet had hit on that day so long ago.
After loading into the bus, everyone went to V. L. Worthen Park to eat lunch. Kristi sat with her good friends, Rachel Morgan and Kiarra Hawkins. Then it was on to the next stop.
At the St. George Dinosaur Discovery Site at Johnson Farm, the children went on a tour led by Les Townsend. He showed them dinosaur tracks that have been found on the site (beginning in the year 2000). He told all about their discovery and the work that continues today.
There were fossils and mud casts to see, including actual dinosaur egg fossils.
Nancy, a paleontologist, was cleaning off a dinosaur bone right before everyone's eyes. The temperature was kept at 72 degrees to help preserve the specimen. It was interesting to learn about the many findings that are found and housed in this museum. Three short films were shown: one about the site we were on; one on fossil life assemblages; another about "Baby Louie," a dionsaur chick. Kristi liked being able to touch a dinosaur bone (cast) under a legend stating that, if you touch a dinosaur bone, you will never be eaten by one!
