Interspersed with pirate ships and treasure are exhibits teaching kids how to tie rope knots , a mine displaying poppy jasper and its origins , and a 450-year-old living history tree of Morgan Hill , where each ring of the tree highlights an event that happened in Morgan Hill that year . Also included are videos about the Amah Mutsun Tribe , Native Americans who lived in Morgan Hill before the first setters came . “ It ’ s not just fun stuff like when you go to Disneyland . We ’ re actually embedding historical information that ’ s as accurate as possible by going to different sources and confirming the information that we have ,” Garcia said . One such source is Kathy Chavez Napoli , a Gavilan Community College trustee who does research out of Berkeley and teaches about Native American history .
While these exhibits aim to address the visual , auditory , and kinesthetic learning modalities , Firato and his team also want to nurture curiosity and how to effectively apply it . “ The school system we have was established in the 1800s and hasn ’ t really changed . It ’ s memorization and regurgitation . So we want to teach them a little bit about critical thinking without them knowing that ’ s what ’ s going on . They can compare what they ’ re learning at Morgan ’ s Cove with what they ’ re learning in their textbooks at school and start raising questions in their own minds and really learning on their own ,” Garcia explained .
So far , the results have been promising . At school , children tend to forget what they ’ ve learned the moment they close their books . When parents and grandparents ask them what they ’ ve learned that day , they usually give listless replies like , “ nothing ” or , “ I don ’ t know .” When Firato asks the students what they ’ ve learned at the end of the tour , they eagerly raise their hands to tell him . “ All the kids come up with seven different things they ’ ve learned and it ’ s fascinating to watch them talk about it ,” Firato said .
One child announced that he wanted to go to Florida after a hurricane to search for treasure with his dad . Another expressed amazement that the spot featured in a video of Morgan Hill 300 years ago was where she lived and wondered if that meant poppy jasper was underneath her house . After one tour , a parent stopped Firato ’ s friend at Costco because he was wearing a Morgan ’ s Cove sweatshirt and asked him if he worked there . When he asked why , she told him that her son couldn ’ t stop talking about the rope knots he ’ d learned to tie at Morgan ’ s Cove and she just wanted to express her gratitude .
The kids aren ’ t the only ones with a newfound thirst for knowledge . Researching history for the curriculum has ignited Firato ’ s own passion for learning so much that Locicero jokes they ’ re sending him back to high school . He has also found joy in watching the kids enthusiastically discover and learn . “ I tell them , ‘ Don ’ t wait . Learn now .’ So maybe I have a gift to get their curiosity going . I ’ m just thankful I get the opportunity to teach and give back something I created out of passion ,” Firato said .
It ' s clear that Firato , Garcia , and Locicero have found the treasure map to children ’ s excitement for learning , and they plan to use it to add more attractions that have functional educational value . They ’ re confident that school districts in Gilroy all the way to Palo Alto will want to participate in this program once they see how successful it ’ s been . Morgan ’ s Cove seems to be on its way to becoming the historical landmark of Firato ’ s dreams .
Learn more about Morgan ' s Cove at : morganscove . com info @ morganscove . com / rich @ firato . com / 408-316-2403 Facebook @ morganscoveCA Instagram @ morganscove
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