By Becca Martin Brown Special to Official Kids Mag

Just imagine !

Imagine the pounding of the drums and the pounding of her heart as a young Indigenous girl learns the dances of her people .

Imagine peeking out from the mouth of a cave to see a 13,000 pound woolly mammoth grazing in the sun .

Imagine using rocks to grind corn into flour to become bread for dinner .

Imagine running with the beautiful shining dogs of Colima , Mexico .

Or playing with handmade dolls on the American prairie .

Or reading Lone Dog ’ s diary of life among the Yanktonais Nakota starting in 1800 and continued for 71 years !

Then , 24,000 years later , imagine letting all those stories become part of your reality as you go outdoors to the tipi to hunt for arrowheads .

This is spring break at the Museum of Native American History in Bentonville — and imagination is the key that makes the experience magical .

A tipi marks the entrance to MONAH .

“ Kids are full of imagination ,” says the museum ’ s director , Jazlyn Sanderson . “ And in our galleries , imagination lets you travel through time ! So when you are looking at 150-year-old dolls behind glass , you can imagine them in their prime with all their original vibrant colors , beadwork — and sometimes their now missing hair ! But you can also step through time to see the original peoples , clothing , and livestyles through objects like the dolls . Very exciting at any age !” The museum , located at 202 S . W . “ O ” St . in Bentonville , was born in the imagination of founder David Bogle . Growing up in Benton County , he got interested in arrowheads when he was a Boy Scout , and as an adult he began to expand on his Cherokee heritage . Now in his 70s , he ’ s still actively leading the ongoing

20 • APRIL 2025 • www . OfficialKidsMag . com