Kid Reviewer: Isaac Roldán, age 7
Editor’s note: The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum’s Chuck Wagon Festival will be held this year on Memorial Day Weekend, May 25 and 26, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is free for kids 12 and under.
What made the experience stand out?
I loved visiting all the cowboy activity areas! We got to make rope, eat cornbread, try sarsparilla in the ghost town saloon and try archery. I thought we would be there for like an hour but we stayed all day long.
What was the best part?
It was an amazing festival. The best part was meeting the author of “Hank the Cowdog,” John Erickson. He signed my book! My Mom read those books when she was a little
girl and we got to hear him talk about how he came up with the idea for the books and he sang songs and told us all about Hank. We read the first two books last summer and
I just got the third book. Also, archery was another best part because I had never gotten to try it before.
What was the worst part?
The day was hot! I was tired in the sun but I wanted to keep going to see everything outside. There were so many things to do, it was difficult to choose which ones we should
see next.
Will other kids like visiting the festival?
Yes, kids will remember it all year long. I want to go every year.
Would this experience be enjoyed by your siblings? Why or why not?
Yes, my brothers went with me and none of us felt bored. My younger brother was 3 then and he cried at the end because he wanted to stay.
If you could do this again, knowing what you know now, what would you do differently?
I would come earlier to eat more of the chuck wagon food! That’s what I’ll do this year. Also, I would wear more comfortable shoes and go try out the archery part immediately.
Does anything you learned match up with what you’re doing in school or have done before?
Yes, I’ve been to some festivals before but I like that this one has something to go see next all the time. It’s all so different.
What do you think you’ll remember most about visiting?
I’ll remember the ghost town the most. It’s a place I visit in my mind when I think about the old west in books, like a good place to imagine. What I remember most about last
year is how everyone talked to me and let me try things. I just heard the phrase “learn by doing” and it’s like that but everyone’s learning so you don’t feel like you’re the only person who doesn’t know how to do something. I want to learn everything about cowboys, especially where Hank the Cowdog lives.
[Editor’s Note: Read all our Kid Reviews at www.metrofamilymagazine.com/Kid-Reviews/]
