By John Huxman
Freelance Reporter
Special to the Tribune

There is a new attraction at the Pratt Education Center and Museum, the free museum run by the Kansas Department of Wildlife and Parks located a few miles east of Pratt. The new attraction is called Nature’s Treasure Chest. It works like free little library where a person can take a book but is expected to leave another one in its place. Nature’s Treasure Chest is the same concept, but rather than books, it is a collection of objects from nature. Young visitors can trade in natural objects that they have collected and take an existing object from the collection. In fact, PECM Director Mackenzie Reh said she got the idea to do the treasure chest from the little free libraries around town. She had considered having the collection in an outdoor container like the free libraries, but the difficulty in weatherproofing it prompted her to start it on a small bookshelf inside of the museum.

“The Nature’s Treasure Chest is meant to challenge children to look closer at their environment and work on that observational skill. It’s also really good at creating stewards for the environment because the more closely you observe your environment—the more in tune you become with it—the more you notice the changes that are happening around you. So it also helps build good stewardship with children,” Reh said.

Nature’s Treasure Chest was put up on November 7 at the Pratt Education Center and it is new enough that no children have yet brought in any finds to trade with the items on display. All of the items currently in it were selected by Reh.

“I filled it up so kids could get an idea of a what they could bring in and what the shouldn’t bring in. Live animals are off the table,” she said.

The starting collection includes several cattle vertebrae, some pieces of turtle shells, several rocks, leaves, nuts, clam shells, mussel shells, a crayfish claw, and a piece of an antler shed.

“It’s really for whatever the child finds cool or interesting in nature,” Reh said.

She also said that it usually takes a couple of months for new displays to start gaining traction, especially during the school months, which are generally a slower season for the museum. With Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays just around the corner, she said she hopes the display will take off and items on the shelves will begin rotating and children and families participate.

Nature’s Treasure Chest has gotten some interaction on the Pratt Education Center’s Facebook page but Reh encourages everyone to visit the museum in person to investigate the new exhibit.

Also beginning soon is PECM’s 12 Days of Christmas, with new activities, crafts, and challenges. Reh has 12 days packed with fun and learning, all FREE activities for the public, no registration required.

“Please note that these events do not run on consecutive business days, so refer to our Facebook posts for dates, times, and activity topics,” Reh said. “I can’t wait to experience the thrills of winter together.”