Museums are Boring... Or are They?

On Thursday, September 27, 2018, at 7:50 am, students at the Gothenburg Campus found themselves piling into three different vehicles with a mission. This mission was to survive the 2 hr. long trip to Hastings, Nebraska where the trials, tribulations, and achievements of Nebraska awaited them. This was all to be found in the Hastings Museum (better known as the Kool-Aid Museum among the students).

Once there, everyone swarmed the gift shop and finally the students were given glasses and quickly ushered into a dim lit room. After sitting down, everyone of course, had to take a couple (or more) selfies. A few minutes later, the lights went out and a screen ahead of them flashed. "The Flight of the Butterflies" appeared right in front of everyone, and the story of the Monarch Butterflies' migration was unveiled. This, however, was not done without more than one student trying to catch the butterflies coming straight for them.

After the student's brains were filled with butterflies, it was time to fill their stomachs. Everyone clambered outside hurrying to grab their lunch boxes and get the best seat on the picnic bench. Lunch consisted of not only eating delicious sandwiches, but savoring Scotcheroos brought in by one of the drivers and seeing a couple of fire hydrants flood the streets.

An hour later, it was time to go back inside. Once again, the students, teachers and parents donned their 3D glasses and headed for the dark room. This time to learn about Tornado Alley! For an hour, the listeners chased tornados, went inside a handmade tank built to withstand 200 miles per hour winds, and were sucked up into a tornado. Then, with minds whirling, students were allowed to go and tour the rest of the museum.

The rest of the Museum contained three levels full of things that made Nebraska what it is today. There was a couple of rooms filled with how Kool-Aid started, some filled with wildlife in Nebraska, the upstairs was filled with stories of people who lived on the Great Plains and there were lots of other exhibits overflowing with interesting things!

Finally, it was time to head home. Everyone scrambled into the cars and headed West to Gothenburg. Though, there was a quick pit-stop at an apple orchard to get some delicious shiny red apples! All in all, it was a very fun day that was enjoyed by students and teachers alike.