Today the kids and I headed just a bit south of Bloomington to our last field trip of the school year: the Funk Prairie Home and Gem and Mineral Museum. Micah had been here several years before on another school field trip, and we'd heard great things about it again through a friend.
Our tour guide emerged from the barn, where he invited us to join him as he finished feeding the animals. Then we went on to the house, where we had a tour combined with a fascinating history lesson. My children really appreciated the hard work, determination, and character presented as we learned about the Funk family. The things this modest family was able to accomplish for the time period in which they lived boggled our minds. Electricity, running water, inventions were far ahead of their time.
We felt like we barely scratched the surface at the Gem and Mineral Museum, but Micah was in his element as he learned about the evidence for rapid fossilization pointing to a catastrophic world-wide flood. We held fossils collected by a Funk family member that cannot be seen anywhere else in the world! It was past lunch and my kids, though fascinated, were growing beyond hungry so I had to ask if we could come back for more another time. After a quick tour of the mineral collection, we headed home.
Tours are by appointment only. We'd highly recommend it! The house tour might be a bit much for small children (Josiah did very well* although it was a stretch because we heard so much history), but the gems and minerals would be fascinating for all ages from early elementary on up.
*There are several things in the home that they ask kids not to touch. We heard this often, but the guide was also very patient in working with Josiah and explaining things to him.
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