Mrs. Rogers' Neighborhood

Hello, Mrs. Rogers' students --

Valerie Biebuyck here. I hope you enjoyed your field trip to Shelburne Museum and that Electra to the Rescue helped you understand that special place. I was so excited to learn that you have been reading my book!

Mrs. Rogers told me that you are talking about your collections in class. Electra would have been thrilled to know that you are interested in her collections, and that some of you collect or may start collecting.

I'm sure Electra would have wanted to know all about your collections and your thoughts about them. Here are some questions I think she would have liked to ask you:

• What do you collect?
  
• Why do you collect that?


• How do you organize your collection?


• Do you display it? How? (Electra always was very interested in how best to display her collections so that everyone could enjoy looking at them.) Do you keep your collection tucked away in a safe place? Or do you display it sometimes and keep it tucked away sometimes?


• What's the most unusual thing that you have collected?


• If you want to start a collection, what would you collect?

When I was about eight years old, I used to collect sand from beaches my family visited. I would put it in pretty, colored bottles. Well, a couple of weeks ago, I was giving a presentation about Electra to the Rescue in Charlotte, Vermont. A woman came up to me afterwards and said, "Please sign this book for my friend. You would not believe what she collects. She collects sand!"

Collectors are everywhere! And if you think no one else could possibly collect what you do, think again!

Electra would have been very happy to learn of your interest in collecting. Collecting tells us something about ourselves and the world in which we live. That's part of the reason why Electra started Shelburne Museum.

Keep it up! Who knows what you might do with your collections someday!

Happy collecting,

Valerie Biebuyck