Nowadays, you do not see many fourth-graders jumping in to help Dad build a split rail fence around the homestead, mold adobe bricks or lift heavy logs into place to construct the family home. Those were tasks left to the early pioneers who settled in Kern County, but on Oct. 16 a new generation of fourth-graders was learning how it was done during the third annual California History Day at the Kern County Museum. More than 600 students, parents and faculty from schools all over the county dug theirs hands into the mud, lifted rails into place, even sampled sauerkraut getting a feel of what life must have been like for those early residents of Kern. "We discovered how expensive it was for local schools to make field trips to California’s missions to experience the state’s early history," said Jackie Brouillette, the museum’s education manager. "We knew the museum had the resources, so we thought why not have more affordable California History Days right here in Kern County to let even more local students experience what those pioneer days must have been like." While not intended to provide a complete history, California History Day does support the state history curriculum standards and provides concrete learning experiences students will remember for years to come. More