Local students are able to travel back in time thanks to fourth grade rendezvous

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) - Tautphaus Park was filled with fourth graders from all over Idaho Falls School District 91 Tuesday. Students in attendance had a chance to participate in activities that taught the students just what life was like during the wild west era in Idaho.

"All of our rotations, have to do something with moving west. So gold panning and we have our TV set up to include the Native Americans. We have candle dipping that the pioneers would do square dancing pioneer games as well as making some leather bracelets.  And we included the Star Lab this year Lewis and Clark and the Native Americans use the stars to help find their way," Tyana Hulett, a fourth-grade teacher at Longfellow Elementary, said.

She said the goal of the day is to make sure that they are learning in a unique fun way. Hulett said the event couldn't be as fun as it is were it not for nearly 16 different volunteers.

"Without them, we wouldn't be able to do this. So I just check in and make sure the volunteers have everything that they need in order to make it successful for the kids."

She says square dancing tends to be a favorite activity among the teachers.

"I'm always partial to square dancing. That's funny. We are the same song over and over again every year. And then for a week, we're singing the songs. For a week at least."

Buck Leonard, one of the volunteers helping the kids pan for "gold," said it been a favorite among the students.

"The kids are finding lots of gold and staying pretty clean, considering mud and fourth graders. I think it's going really well," Leonard said.

He said he helps out a lot with his daughter's class and loved the opportunity to help at the rendezvous. With a background in geology, Buck says the "gold" panning activity was a natural fit.

"I like rocks and that kind of thing."

He said since they couldn't pan for real gold they had to get creative.

"We're actually panning for little copper boobies in the place of gold, and they're trading them in for candy at the end."

Many of the students we talked to say they had a favorite activity.

"Gold panning...because you trade your gold in for taffy," Jack Barnes said.

Barnes said the idea of square dancing was a little scary for him Tuesday.

"Cause I'm not good at it."

He says the star lab was another activity that he went to where he learned a lot. He says he had a lot of fun at the rendevous.

Lua Birdwell said her favorite activity was the Star Lab, due to what she was learning.

"We're inside a dome,  and it's, like. Inflated, and it has, like, a projection of stars.  And  the teacher talks about how Native American adults have different constellations than us," Birdwell said.

She said they learned about one story behind one of the constellations. "

So they noticed one winter that the corn was gone. So then one time, so two Native Americans went out of their teepees and hid behind it and they saw a constellation dog come and eat the corn. But as he was taking his first bite, they had a bunch of like miracles and things that they and they started yelling really loudly. And then the dog left a trail of corn when he was running away."

She said they also made leather bracelets that shared a story on them.

Rory Briggs said his favorite activity had something to do with crafts.

"The candle making... Because it, took a lot of time. And I like to do stuff that takes long,  and  I just like crafts," Briggs said.

He said his candle was predominantly one color though he did have to switch it up in the end.

"Mostly green. But then I switched to yellow because it was the sickest color."

He said he also liked the historical elements of the gold panning activity.

"I'm pretty sure everybody got at least three pieces of taffy," he said.

The rendezvous continues until Thursday afternoon.