Finding keys to the city, Fourth-graders learn about
local government through treasure hunt.
By Claudette Riley, Springfield News-Leader
Springfield fourth-graders and their parents hunted city
offices Monday in search of treasures and facts about local
government. "Treasures of the City," a partnership
between the city and Springfield schools, uses clues to
send students to different city departments. At each stop,
students meet city officials, get a treasure -- such as
a colored pencil or button -- and a new clue. All students
end up in City Council Chambers, where Mayor Lee Gannaway
gave out city maps and commemorative cups. "It's a
trinket at each stop that represents the department. Little
things that are indicative of what they do," said Kristin
Kubitschek, the city's special project coordinator. "It's
grown every year."
In its 11th year, the treasure hunt is tied with social
studies curriculum taught to the city's fourth-graders.
Bob Bender, a fourth-grade teacher at Westport Elementary,
spent weeks preparing his students for the visit. "They
get an understanding about how our government works,"
he said. "They see that they have a voice in local
government."
City Manager Tom Finnie handed out pencils and clues to
the throngs of students who came through his office.
"They'll come through and they will have questions,"
he said. "These fourth-graders don't get here without
someone bringing them, so you get the kids and the parents."
Finnie said he enjoys the annual event Ñ now in its 11th
year --and hopes it gives students a good first impression.
"Most cities, they never go to City Hall unless they
have a problem," he said. "They did it for fun.
They know where City Hall is, and they know what we have."
About 50 city employees volunteered at the event. Last
year, about 650 fourth-graders attended the event with parents,
Kubitschek said.
Samantha Banker, 9, a Westport student, collected treasures
with her mother.
"It's been a load of fun," said Janice Banker.
Latasha Baderdeen, 9, a fourth-grader at Truman Elementary,
toured city offices with her mother, a classmate and a sibling.
"It's really neat," she said, holding a bag of
treasures. She said she studied "who is the governor,
the president, and how government works."
