This Tuesday, the Otters boarded a school bus with only their lunch and an itinerary pamphlet and traveled back in time. They explored Federal Hall, Stone Street, and Fraunces Tavern, all of which were historically significant during the time of the Revolutionary War and formation of the Constitution. They started at Federal Hall, where the tour guide shared artifacts and images of the building in its various roles as the country's first capitol building, custom's house, and treasury. One interesting artifact she showed them was the Bible that George Washington was sworn in on when he was inaugurated in New York. The students were very pleased to leave Federal Hall with 2 Junior Park Ranger Badges each and an activity booklet on Historic Preservation. Next, they took a quick lunch break hosted by Mary's husband at Deutsche Bank's cafeteria. Then, they were off to find Stone Street, one of the oldest streets in New York and the first street paved with cobblestone in the city. At the end of Stone Street stood Fraunces Tavern, another historical landmark known for being General Washington's headquarters during the Revolutionary War and the place where he bid farewell to his officers after the British left New York City. The Otters were fascinated to see the famous Long Room, which has been preserved in its original condition. Throughout the trip, the Otters observed many primary sources (a word that they are learning in social studies) and thought about their significance. Teachers were impressed by how well the students connected what they have learned about New York history and government to the documents, artifacts, buildings, and information they encountered on the trip. It was a lot of fun and they look forward to having more field trip opportunities in the future. *Author's note: Words in BOLD have pictures relating to them below. The Otters had their first Art Farm visit of the year at the end of September. The topic was mammals and Gabby, the Art Farm instructor, had a lot to share. She introduced the students to a rabbit, a guinea pig, and a hamster! All the students had an opportunity to pet the animals and share any previous knowledge or experiences they had with those kinds of animals. The students were excited to discuss similarities and differences between the animals Gabby brought and other rabbits, guinea pigs, and hamsters they had seen. After interacting with with the live animals, the students used a Venn Diagram to further explore the similarities and differences between the animals and find out what all three had in common. They learned that all mammals have hair or fur, feed their babies with milk, are warm-blooded and are vertebrates. They ended the time by writing in their science journals. It was a fun and exciting science lesson and the class looks forward to our next visit on October 26th. |