On Thursday, May 8th, second grade students at St. John Bosco Catholic School in Sturgeon Bay got the opportunity to learn about the legal system by touring the Door County Justice Center. During their tour, led by the Clerk of Circuit Court, Connie DeFere, the students got a first-hand look at the courtroom and other areas of the center.
Second Grade teacher Michelle Fernandez said the tour comes as part of their class social studies unit. The unit focuses on the importance of having laws and order within society and how they help to keep everyone, including children, safe.
“We talk about how if we didn’t have rules that we would have chaos or things would not run as smoothly as they do with them,” said Fernandez.
During the tour, the students got to explore the courtroom and hands immediately popped up with pressing questions. DeFere talked with students about court reporters and their need for fast typing skills as well as the process that occurs during a court hearing. Students picked up on key terms including juries as well as the gallery, which is the area where public spectators sit during court.
Second grader Liam Rankin said his visit to the center was different than he expected and that it was interesting to see inside the center.
“I saw the courtroom and a lot of chairs,” he Rankin, “I also got to learn where the jury goes and where the lawyers sit.”
Fellow classmate Sophia Schaden said she was surprised to learn that evidence is sent to the court from different places but that her favorite part of the field trip was seeing the dispatch area.
“We saw the place where people answer your 911 calls,” Schaden said, “it was really fun.”
Door County Clerk of Circuit Courts Connie DeFere says the tours are valuable to students and that they are often surprised by what they learn.
“We go into the courtrooms and they get to see all of the important facets of court, where the judge is, what the court reporter does, what the deputy clerk does,” DeFere said, “I feel like at this age, students are just most surprised about what happens in this building and in courtrooms.”
Following their visit to the Justice Center, the second graders ate lunch before heading over to Nicolet Bank to learn about banking. They also got to play a Bingo game to find different things around the bank. Both field trips together provided an excellent opportunity for students to learn about two important business entities in their community.
