A Sea of 4-year olds

Last Thursday, Lindisfarne Kindergarten (Invercargill) visited the museum. It was part of a big day out in Otautau in which they also visited Allan Stearne's magical train collection and the guns at the War Memorial.

At first they were split into two groups and accompanied by parents. One group was looking at the trains while the other group learned about Ngai Tahu at the museum. Then they switched. As we squeezed perhaps 14 to 15 students into our little display rooms, it seemed like I was looking at a sea of 4-year olds - the youngest group we've ever had and certainly the most challenging for me to try to explain things in a way they would understand.

One very inquisitive boy latched onto a photograph of a man holding a big tuna (eel) in our mahika kai display. He had 101 questions about that tuna which we tried to answer. After it seemed his questions knew no end, we decided we should keep moving with the talk. But it was really neat to see such inquisitive minds engaging with our display.

We really enjoyed their visit, and it was heartening to see teachers and parents so committed to the early education of these youngsters. We hope to visit them at their place soon and learn about their world.

We're open Wednesdays and Sundays, 2pm-4pm, and by request. Your comments are always welcome!

Students Visit

Today, twenty-three students from Isla Bank School made a special visit to the museum to view the Isla Bank display. They came in three groups of 7 or 8 accompanied by "Mrs T".

Peter Campbell, our display manager, welcomed them to the museum and gave an introduction to what they were about to see. There are four different display rooms in the courthouse, covering the Church, Anzac Memorial and the Cemetery; the School; Contractors and Farmers; and People in the News.

Working in pairs, they hunted for answers to questions about the display. Different sets of questions were geared toward different age groups. These were created by the Isla Bank principal, Clare Robinson.

I think the students were surprised to hear that the Isla Bank School started long before the Otautau School and that there was even a world's record made at Isla Bank.

For those who finished early, I talked a little about the courthouse, how old it is, where the judge would sit, and what the witness stand was for. They seemed to soak it up, enacting their own little dramas and sending each other to jail. It made me think the courtroom is a prime venue to hold a children's courtroom play.

We really enjoyed having the Isla Bank students and hope that they will visit again soon.

We're open Wednesdays and Sundays, 2pm-4pm, and by request. Your comments are always welcome!