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A Town Called Lafayette ... A Child's Historical Study

By Sandy Mouat
CORRESPONDENT

When Emily Haas and Mary McCosker began teaching A Child's Historical Study of Lafayette, as docents for the Lafayette Arts & Science Foundation, they used many resources to create a program that would bring local history to life for their students. They combined artifacts, maps, slides, and a walking tour of Lafayette's historical sites to present the unit designed to coincide with the California state third grade curricular requirement of local history.
        Haas and McCosker realized that the local history textbooks provided were historically inaccurate and outdated. They decided that in order to have a textbook that would combine accuracy with their own appreciation and love of the town's rich history, they would have to write it themselves.
        With much helpful feedback from the local third grade teachers, and essential contributions of accurate data and photographs from the Lafayette Historical Society, Haas and McCosker have created a history textbook that is a pleasure to read, as well as to browse through for fascinating photos of the town in its early days.
        Beginning with the settlement of the area by the Saclan Indians and their gentle way of life, "A Town Called Lafayette...A Child's Historical Study" weaves a factual tale of the changes brought on by the Spanish explorers and the Mexican government. The well-detailed account brings to life the story of the wagon train that carried one of the area's first settlers, Elam Brown, who became the first citizen and the first business owner of Lafayette.
        The growth of the town follows, from the first schoolhouse, to the establishment of a Pony Express stop and railroad service, to the building of the original Caldecott Tunnel, all with vocabulary words and definitions highlighted.
        "Working on this manuscript was a labor of love. Foremost in our minds were the 9 and 10 year olds who would be reading this book in their 3rd grade classes. We wanted to make this an enjoyable and readable book with plenty of visual for them to expand their imaginations," commented Haas.
        The project was eagerly embraced by the LASF, and a classroom set for every third grade in the district will be published through an LASF grant as part of the ongoing effort to keep its humanities program a vital component of the Foundation's contribution to the community.
        Haas continued, "We tried to tell a story that was as historically accurate as possible. It was a challenge at times because many 'stories' that have been passed down through generations have been contradicted at times. Researching the written and oral histories left by our pioneers was similar to playing the childhood game telephone; at the end of the line you're not sure exactly what the accurate beginning of the story was."
        Said McCosker, "The creation of this book has been a team effort. We had the expertise and enthusiasm of teachers, the Lafayette Historical Society, and other, older written information. It was fun working with Emily as everything we do is really a team effort. Her enthusiasm is contagious and makes all that we do fun! We both really love doing all of this. In writing this book, we hope to provide another way for students to learn more about the origins and development of Lafayette as a community."
        Leslie deBoer, the copy editor and graphic designer of the book, agreed, "Having grown up in Lafayette, I was particularly interested in what the book had to say... there was much I had not known and I was pleased to be involved in a project that recorded Lafayette's history for our present and future kids to study. It's always nice to have something like this book to hold on to as time goes by... And Emily and Mary do such a great job with the tour (I accompanied my son's third-grade class last year), that this was a natural extension of their outstanding efforts."

6/00 Reprinted with permission. Visit the Contra Costa Times on the web at www.contracostatimes.com.

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