First graders had a wonderful time visiting the Springfield History Museum on the Square today! To begin our trip, we listened to a presentation about the Native American tribes that used to be living on the land where we live now! First graders were excited to share some facts that they had learned about different tribes during their research this trimester and to see real artifacts similar to the ones they will be making for our own museum that we will share during our trimester celebration on Wednesday. We learned from Ms. Whitney all about what they ate, the tools they used, and all the ways they used the parts of a buffalo. We even got to see and touch many artifacts including animal hides, bones, tools, dolls, arrowheads and more! Did you know that the most prominent tribe in our area was called the Osage? Many other tribes also moved through this area as they traveled from east to west on the Trail of Tears.

After the presentation, first graders got to visit the Native American history portion of the museum. We checked out different types of animal tracks, saw some neat art and clothing and then got to play inside a teepee made of real buffalo hide! Thank you so much to our friends at the Springfield History Museum on the Square for letting us visit and helping us learn so many neat things about Native Americans.