Detroit Students Expand Horizons at Cranbrook

It looked like a leather knapsack that could've contained anything from poison darts to food rations on a long journey. It wasn't until Samantha Smith stuck her cloth-gloved hand into the Native American artifact and felt the soft, almost silky animal hide that she felt a true appreciation for what slid between her fingers.

"This is years and years old and I'm holding it like somebody used to," the 11th grader at Osborn MST High School in Detroit said Thursday in the collections room of the  in Bloomfield Hills. "Most people in high school won't have opportunity to experience this, and now I can pass some of it on to them and my younger brother."

Smith and about a dozen other top-achieving students at Osborn, Cody and Henry Ford high schools in Detroit spent the afternoon getting acquainted with the vast array of historic artifacts, preserved animals and other visual splendors tucked behind the walls of the main exhibits on display to the public.

The students are part of a team that will plan, research and build an exhibit using the materials available in the collections, which number in the hundreds of thousands, institute officials said. It's the latest component of the , announced in January.

Thousands of DPS students from the fourth grade and up have already visited the institute on field trips and have had access to Cranbrook's experts who are also schooling their teachers on science instruction across multiple platforms.

Getting a Feel

Thursday was the initial step for students to get familiar with the collections and scout out themes for a possible exhibit, said Institute Director Michael Stafford, who spearheaded the program. The students will return in two weeks with their project selected and completed research, and will begin building their exhibit with Cranbrook staff.

The exhibit will eventually be displayed at the institute and then later at a public facility in Detroit by the fall, Stafford said. The only requirements are imagination and a focus on world history and geography.

"This is more than just giving a report on the history of an object, they'll be challenged to look at how people used these instruments and how it can still relate to them today," Stafford said. "They'll tell us what's the story behind it and show how to get others excited to learn about it too."

Dellmaroe Adams, also a junior at Osborn MST, said he was fascinated by the arrows, spears and swords within the collection. "It's an honor just to hold on these," he said smiling. "They came from all over the world and took a long time to get here. They've been through a lot."

Brandon Rice, a junior at Henry Ford, said he was partial to the taxidermy animals. "This is awesome," he said after seeing a full-grown tiger's head with fangs exposed. "I like animals, and I'm a Leo, so I think I'll try and use that some way."

'Learning Like Scientists'

While the students excitedly combed through the drawers and cabinets narrowly stacked in the collections room, K. Naeem sat back and smiled. He admitted thinking how wonderful it was to see his students connecting with history in a way they never had before, and that he didn't have to do anything.

"This is a form of realization for them, and it's great for me to see them explore and want to learn about the history and culture here before them on their own," Naeem explained. "I can teach them things, but now they have a three-dimensional reference and they're getting the bigger concepts here. They're learning like scientists."

Roughly 600 Detroit Public School students that couldn't be at Cranbrook on  Thursday also learned like scientists because of the new collaboration, but out on the Detroit riverfront. As part of their continued education on the environment, sixth-grade students from several schools learned about water quality at the Detroit River Water Festival at William G. Milliken State Park.

Presentations included hands-on activities about water resource-related topics including ecosystems, social studies, the geosphere and the hydrologic cycle. Students also learned the central role water and the Detroit River play in the region’s quality of life and the role they can play to protect it, district spokeswoman Kaniqua Daniel said.

DPS Family Fun Day

The institute will be closed to the public June 9 to accommodate DPS Family Fun Day, which will offer admission and free transportation to Detroit families. For more information, visit the institute Website.