My son came home from the Science Museum last weekend and I was expecting a graphic review of the Body Worlds exhibit he’d just toured. Instead, he thrust a membership card at me: “I opened a Collectors’ Corner account!” he announced, then prattled on about the collecting and trading of natural objects at the Museum. And showed off the polished agate he’d picked out in his first transaction.
When I went online to learn more about the program, I discovered that two satellite Neighborhood Trading Places have opened to serve those with less access to the Science Museum. Better yet, one of the locations – Rice Street Library in St. Paul – is merely a mile away from my kids’ elementary school.
It works like this: the kids bring a natural object they’ve found (a rock, shell, insect, bone and so forth) to the Trading Place. They are encouraged to fill out a worksheet on their object, detailing where they found it, the purpose it serves in nature, and any further information known about it. Points are awarded for both the specimen and the effort put into describing it. Andy, for example, brought in a crinoid fossil he’d found in the Lilydale Brickyards and wrote about how that area was once underwater. He net sufficient points to have his pick of a rainbow of polished rocks and other lovely collectables. It’s a great way to get kids tuning into the natural world and thinking about science. More details about the program can be found here.
For the Files: Neighborhood Trading Places can be found at the following locations:
Rice Street Library (Wed. 4 – 7 p.m. & Sat. 11:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.)
1011 Rice Street (map it)
St Paul, MN 55117
R.H. Stafford Branch Library (Tues. 4 – 7 p.m. & Sat. 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.)
8595 Central Park Place (map it)
Woodbury, MN 55125
About the Author: Anne Kingston is the Owner and Founder of Tourmoms.com.