Experiential Field Study

August 1-7, 2010


Year one: Colonial America and the Founding of the Republic

ITINERARY
* This itinerary is tentative and subject to change.

Sunday, August 1
Day 1: Arrive in Washington, D.C., transfer to Charlottesville

7:30 a.m. Depart: Houston Intercontinental Airport
11:36 p.m. Arrive: Washington Reagan National Airport

Upon arrival in D.C. we will head north to Charlottesville, Virginia. (Boxed lunches will be provided en route.) Upon arrival in Charlottesville, we will visit Ash Lawn-Highland, home of President James Monroe. Ash Lawn-Highland is a historic house museum, 535-acre working farm and performing arts site in Albemarle County, Virginia. Ash Lawn-Highland was opened for public visitation in 1931 by philanthropist Jay Winston and Helen Lambert Johns. Upon his death in late 1974, Johns bequeathed Ash Lawn-Highland to the College of William and Mary, alma mater of James Monroe. Accepting the Johns bequest “to operate this property as a historic shrine for the education of the general public,” the College initiated new programs in restoration and interpretation at Ash Lawn-Highland.

Dinner, 1 night Charlottesville

Monday, August 2
Day 2: Charlottesville & Williamsburg

This morning we visit Monticello, home of Thomas Jefferson. Monticello, located near Charlottesville, Virginia, was the estate of Thomas Jefferson, the principal author of the United States Declaration of Independence, the third President of the United States and founder of the University of Virginia. The house is of Jefferson's own design and is situated on the summit of an 850-foot (260 m)-high peak in the Southwest Mountains south of the Rivanna Gap.

Following our visit to Monticello, we’ll enjoy lunch at the historic Michie Tavern (Ca. 1784).

We arrive in Williamsburg in late afternoon and prepare for a full visit to the Colonial Williamsburg site. Dinner and an evening orientation walk with Colonial Williamsburg staff will follow.

Accommodations at the Woodlands Williamsburg.

Tuesday, August 3
Day 3: Jamestown – Hosted by Colonial Williamsburg Education Staff

As a result of attending the Colonial Williamsburg Teacher Institute, teachers will be able to:

  • Identify significant 17th and 18th century events that continue to shape and define our nation.
  • Understand how people of various cultural backgrounds interacted with one another during the 17th and 18th centuries.
  • Engage students in exploration of their Native American, European, and African economic, cultural and political heritage.
  • Learn and review techniques that develop students' abilities to use higher-level critical thinking skills by using primary source documents and artifacts.
  • Create a network in which they and Colonial Williamsburg staff can acquire and exchange information about 17th and 18th century history.


By visiting the Powhatan Indian Village at Jamestown Settlement, teachers will be able to:

  • Describe ways Powhatan Indians obtained food.
  • Explain male/female roles in Powhatan society.
  • Compare influences of Powhatan culture on our society today.

By visiting the English Fort and Ships at Jamestown Settlement, teachers will be able to:

  • Identify reasons the English wanted to establish a colony in the New World.
  • Describe problems Jamestown settlers faced.
  • Explain the importance of tobacco to Virginia's economy.
  • Compare life at Jamestown with life today, emphasizing male/female roles and technology.
  • Discuss indentured servants.

By visiting the Riverfront at Jamestown Settlement, teachers will be able to:

  • Explore the economic system of trade between the colonists and the Indians.

By visiting Historic Jamestown, teachers will be able to:

  • Evaluate the role of European exploration in the settlement of the Western Hemisphere by focusing on the site of the first permanent settlement of Europeans and Africans in British North America.\
  • Examine how archaeology provides clues that enable the reconstruction of historical sites.
  • Identify inhabitants of the Peninsula in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Wednesday, August 4
Day 4: Colonial Williamsburg – Hosted by Colonial Williamsburg Education Staff
Williamsburg is the largest living history museum in the country and one of America's most popular attractions. Stroll streets dating back to the 1700s. Teacher historians will converse with residents playing the roles of their ancestors as they go about their daily activities exactly as they did more than 200 years ago. It's an exciting glimpse into the early days of our nation.

Day 4 Objective: Government Influences

By visiting the Capitol, teachers will be able to:

  • Compare Great Britain's and Virginia's 18th century systems of bicameral government.
  • Compare colonial Virginia's system of government with our modern United States government.
  • Describe the function of Virginia's 18th century judicial system.
  • List the steps in the evolution of self-government in colonial Virginia.
  • Describe the evolution of the system of slavery within the colony of Virginia through the enactment of laws.

By visiting the Public Goal, teachers will be able to:

  • Discuss the role of the Public Goal in Virginia's judicial system.
  • Describe various types of prisoners detained in the Public Goal in the 18th century.
  • Investigate attitudes about incarceration in the 18th century.
  • Contrast differences in the 18th century and modern penal systems in the United States.
  • Investigate the role of the goaler's family.

By participating in the Election Activity and Court Trial, teachers will be able to:

  • Reconstruct procedures for electing Burgesses to sit in the Lower House of the legislative assembly by using primary source materials and role-play techniques.
  • Identify county court procedures in 18th century Virginia.
  • Participate in an 18th century court trial reenactment.
  • Relate knowledge learned about 18th century county courts to modern county government.

Thursday, August 5
Day 5: Colonial Williamsburg and Mount Vernon
We spend the morning with the Colonial Williamsburg staff discussing economic influences in colonial America.

Day 5 Objective: Economic Influences

By participating in the economics sessions, teachers will be able to:

  • Identify the different economic opportunities available for families in urban and rural Virginia.
  • Compare job opportunities available in 18th century Williamsburg and throughout Virginia.
  • Evaluate primary sources to identify the factors that led to successful businesses in the 18th century.
  • Identify currency used in 18th century Virginia.
  • Defend economic choices made by families of all social levels in purchasing necessities and luxuries.

At noon, we depart Williamsburg with boxed lunches and head to Mount Vernon.

This afternoon we visit Mount Vernon, home of George and Martha Washington. As our nation’s first president, George Washington is a timeless and inspirational hero to people all around the world. At Mount Vernon, we will be welcomed and given special opportunities to experience Washington’s home in depth.

The farm where Washington and his family lived was called the “Mansion House Farm.” As nearly as possible, Mount Vernon was a self-contained community. Nothing was purchased that could be produced on site. Yet the Mansion House Farm was so well designed that the service lanes did not intrude upon the area reserved for the enjoyment of Washington, his family and their many guests. From the Potomac River on the east to the estate's west gate entrance ran the pleasure grounds and wide vistas; along the north-south line were the outbuildings, or dependencies, where much of the work was done.

The group will visit Washington’s home and tomb, see the innovative Pioneer Farmer site with its 16-sided barn, the inspirational Slave Memorial, important outbuildings, lush gardens, museums with exhibitions on Washington and Mount Vernon archaeology, and explore the Ford Orientation Center and the Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center, which includes 25 galleries and theaters.

We return to D.C. for our remaining two nights.
Accommodations at the Holiday Inn Capitol.

Tonight we’ll enjoy an evening illumination tour, “Monuments at Night” to view the Jefferson, Lincoln, Kennedy, Korean, Vietnam and the FDR Memorials.

Friday, August 6
Day 6: Washington, DC

Breakfast at Holiday Inn- All American Breakfast Buffet at leisure

The morning is free for participants to explore sites of their choice.  See below for suggestions. 

Optional Walking Tour – 8:30-10:00 am
Our guide will be available for a walking tour for those who wish to join him.

Lunch on your own

Driving Tour Departure – 1:00 pm
Afternoon driving tour of Government buildings

2:30 pm Capitol Tour
As a group, we will visit the Capitol.

Dinner - Buca de Peppo – 5:45 pm
1825 Connecticut Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 (202) 232-8466

Saturday, August 7
Day 7: Morning free, afternoon return to Houston

Breakfast at Holiday Inn- All American Breakfast Buffet at leisure

The morning is free for participants to explore a museum or other activity of their choice.  See suggestions below. 

11:30 am              The group will board the bus at the Holiday Inn and transfer to Reagan National for return flight to Houston

Lunch on your own at the airport

2:00 pm                Depart Washington Reagan
4:16 pm                Arrive Houston IAH

MAY WE SUGGEST:

  • The Supreme Court
    http://www.supremecourtus.gov/visiting/visiting.html
    The building is open from 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday only.  The Supreme Court offers a variety of educational programs. Exhibits, which are changed periodically, and a theater, where a film on the Supreme Court is shown, are located on the ground floor. Courtroom lectures are held every hour on the half-hour, on days that the Court is not sitting, beginning at 9:30 a.m. and concluding at 3:30 p.m.

  • The National Archives
    http://www.archives.gov/nae/visit/reserved-visits.html
    The National Archives Experience is open every day (10 am – 7 pm). Reservations are not required for individuals or groups wishing to enter the National Archives Experience through the general public entrance. The general public entrance is located at the corner of Constitution Avenue and 9th Street.

  • The National Museum of American History
    The Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History dedicates its collections and scholarship to inspiring a broader understanding of our nation and its many peoples. The Museum collects and preserves more than 3 million artifacts - from the original Star-Spangled Banner and Abraham Lincoln’s top hat to Dizzy Gillespie’s trumpet – the collections form a fascinating mosaic of American life and comprise the greatest single collection of American history.  Exhibitions explore major themes in American history and culture, from the War of Independence to the present day.

  • The Library of Congress
    http://www.loc.gov/visit/tours/
    The nation's oldest federal cultural institution serves as the research arm of Congress. It is also the largest library in the world, with millions of books, recordings, photographs, maps and manuscripts in its collections.  The Library of Congress offers hour-long, fully accessible docent-led tours of the historic Thomas Jefferson Building. During your tour you will learn about the Building’s symbolic art and architecture and view the grandeur of the Main Reading Room. Professionally trained docents tell the story of the Library—America’s oldest cultural institution—by talking about its history, its collections (including the Gutenberg Bible), and the services provided to Congress and the nation.  Public Tours for individuals and families:  Monday – Saturday, 10:30am, 11:30am, 1:30pm, 2:30pm, 3:30pm* 
    *no 3:30pm tour on Saturdays and first tour is at 9:30am on Federal Holidays
    No reservations or tickets required

  • Smithsonian Museums
    http://www.si.edu/visit/
    Admission is free for all Smithsonian museums and the zoo in Washington, D.C
    Most museums are open daily, 10am-5:30pm, except December 25.


Museums include:

            African Art Air and Space
            American Art
           American History
           American Indian
           Freer and Sackler Galleries (Asian art)
           Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden (modern and contemporary art)
           National Zoo
           Natural History Museum
           Portrait Gallery
           Postal Museum
           Renwick Gallery (American crafts)

  • Holocaust Museum
    http://www.ushmm.org/visit/
    Open 10 am – 5:20 pm, daily
    A living memorial to the Holocaust, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum inspires citizens and leaders worldwide to confront hatred, promote human dignity, and prevent genocide. A public-private partnership, federal support guarantees the Museum’s permanence, and its far-reaching educational programs and global impact are made possible by donors nationwide.

  • Capitol Building Visitor’s Center
    http://www.visitthecapitol.gov/Visit/
    Open Monday – Saturday, 8:30 – 4:00.      Admission to the Capitol Visitor Center is free and does not require a ticket. However, tickets are required for tours of the historic Capitol and may be needed for other special events.  A limited number of same-day passes are available at the tour kiosks on the East and West Fronts of the Capitol or at the Information Desks on the lower level of the Capitol Visitor Center.

  • Arlington National Cemetery
    http://www.arlingtoncemetery.org/visitor_information/index.htm
    Arlington National Cemetery is open to the public at 8 a.m. 365 days a year. From April 1 to Sept. 30 the cemetery closes at 7 p.m.; the other six months it closes at 5 p.m.

  • National Gallery of Art
    http://www.nga.gov/ginfo/index.shtm
    The National Gallery of Art, located on the National Mall between 3rd and 7th Streets at Constitution Avenue NW, is open Monday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday from 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

  • Eastern Market
    http://www.easternmarketdc.com/
    On weekends the Eastern Market farmer's line has recently harvested produce fresh from the fields of Delaware, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia brought directly to market to serve the Capitol Hill community. Each weekend, with over 175 exhibitors, you will also discover a wide selection of handmade pottery, jewelry, ceramics, crafts, furniture and Flea Market finds every Saturday and Sunday.  Eastern Market is located at 225 7th Street, SE. 1 1/2 Blocks North of Eastern Market Metro on 7th Street.  Saturday 9-6.

  • U.S. Botanic Gardens
    http://www.usbg.gov/
    Hours: open 10 AM - 5 PM daily.
    The Conservatory's main entrance is located at 100 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20001 (use this address for Internet mapping searches). The National Garden is adjacent to the Conservatory, with entrances from Independence Avenue, from Maryland Avenue (at 3rd Street), and from the Conservatory Terrace. Bartholdi Park is located across Independence Avenue from the Conservatory, with access from any of the three bordering streets - Independence Avenue, Washington Avenue, or First Street.