Boston - Museum of Science and Faneuil Hall

The third grade social studies curriculum in Massachusetts is mostly focused around the history of our state.  Collin enjoyed this study last year, and one thing he wanted to do was head to Boston to walk the Freedom Trail.  We planned this for yesterday, and left the house with every intention of doing the Freedom Trail.  Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate.  While the Weather Channel app showed clear skies for the morning, the actual weather was quite different!  On the way there, we encountered heavy rains and thunder.  So, Tom came up with Plan B, and we all (Grandpa Jim and Grandma Susan, Collin, Reagan, Katelyn, Tom, and I) went to the Museum of Science.

We purchased tickets for the Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit and the Exploring the Universe Planetarium show.  Grandpa, Tom, Collin, and Reagan also went on the space exploration motion simulator.

My only complaint about the Museum of Science is that additional tickets (at an additional price) are required for everything!

After some time there, we went to Faneuil Hall.  We walked around a bit trying to decide where to eat, and then we spotted Dick's Last Resort.  When we told the kids that it is a restaurant known for rude wait staff that makes fun of the customers, Collin and Reagan knew they wanted to eat there!

Reagan loved it, and wanted to participate in the worst way.  It's a good thing she got a hat, or she would have been devastated!

 Collin's hat said, "Ask me about my EPIC Barbie collection".

Reagan's hat said, "I kick puppies".
I can't say the food was good, but the experience was definitely memorable!!!

We walked around a little after lunch.

Collin posed in front of the Samuel Adams statue.

Reagan was hoping to visit the One Direction store, but it appears to have been a temporary shop, so we got ice cream instead (not that we wouldn't have got ice cream if we found the shop)!

It has been about four years since we last visited Faneuil Hall, and yet we saw one of the same street performance acts that we saw last time - The Red Trouser Show.

They perform a few acrobatic stunts during their show; it's fun for the kids to watch!  The last time we were there (May of 2009 - you can click here to read about that day), Reagan was a little over a year older than Kate is now, and Tom and I remember her rolling around on the ground while we watched the performance.  It was like deja vu with Kate yesterday as she rolled around on the ground!  After the show, we all headed home.

Even though we changed our plans, and didn't get to walk the Freedom Trail this time, it was a great day for all of us, and we were happy that Grandma and Grandpa shared the experience with us.  I am sure that we will find another day to walk the Freedom Trail.

Plymouth - Plimoth Plantation

Collin, Reagan, Katelyn, and I went to Plymouth yesterday.  The weather was absolutely perfect, and we all enjoyed the day.

We started at Plimoth Plantation.  I chaperoned Collin's third grade field trip to Plimoth Plantation last November, and it felt so rushed that I promised we would visit on our own.  It was very nice taking our time walking through the villages and speaking with the natives and Pilgrims.  Note:  "Plimoth" is spelled this way (different from the spelling of the town name) because that is the original English spelling.

Our first stop was the Wampanoag village.

 Notice that Kate's shirt is already dirty.  The first thing she did when we got there was sit down in the dirt to play!  You should have seen the back of her shorts.

 Kate would not sit on the benches.  She didn't like the animal furs AT ALL!  She seemed to be frightened by them at first.

I didn't even get a picture of the funniest part of our time in the Wampanoag village.  There was a man walking around in a loin cloth, and Reagan was incredibly embarrassed.  Her face was so funny; she just didn't know what to make of him and his attire.

We moved on to the English village.

 This is the inside of the meeting house.

 This woman was preparing a supper of lobster with fried bread and onions.  She mentioned that eating lobster is such a bore because they eat so much of it.

Reagan asked one of these women where they "go to the bathroom".  The woman replied that she didn't understand the question.  A man in the house with us said, "I think she wants to know where your privy is".  The woman then pointed out the chamber pot under the bed, and mentioned that they also go out in the garden.  Reagan thought this sounded terrible and said that she would never go!

 Collin asked these men about their work; they were working on the fence.

 This boy is eleven.  He made Reagan laugh because when asked if he had any encounters with Indians, he said that they are quite frightening because they are half naked, have tattoos, and carry arrows.  Of course Reagan thought it was funny that he mentioned the part about being half naked.

And there is Kate playing in the dirt again.  She insisted on carrying rocks too.

Once we had visited each home, we went to the discovery room so the kids could reenact a bit of what they experienced.

 There was an area of games and toys that I thought was neat.  Collin and I thought this game sounded fun.

 We ate lunch right after we left this area, and the kids chose to be Pilgrims and not use forks.

Reagan wanted to buy Pilgrim clothes in the gift shop after this, but the outfit was $60 and I couldn't justify that expense!

We did buy:

This is the game we saw in the discovery room.  Hopefully we can play it this weekend.

Plimoth Plantation was great.  We spent about three hours exploring.  I was surprised to see that there weren't many people there, but it was nice because we had a lot of interaction with the Pilgrims and Indians.  Reagan has so many questions about Pilgrim life now; I think I have to write them down for our next visit!

Collin's Third Grade Parent Performance - "All Hail to Massachusetts"

This morning Collin performed with his classmates in the parent program with a theme of "All Hail to Massachusetts".  Before the performance, I dragged him outside and made him pose for a few pictures.

Last night he told me that he had to either dress as Paul Revere or wear red, white, and blue.  We went with red, white and blue seeing as though it was the last minute!

The third graders sang a few songs about Massachusetts and also told us a lot of facts about our state.

After the singing and fact sharing, we went to Collin's class to see all of the projects completed by the students.  Each third grader learned about a famous Massachusetts person and put together a biography, poster, timeline, biopoem, and some extra items.

Collin chose Paul Revere for his project.

Kate found that bumpy circle in the reading area of the classroom and she loved it.  

Tom had a trial this morning, but he was able to make it into the classroom after we left to see Collin's work.  I wasn't there to take his picture though.

Collin with his teacher, Mrs. Ashton.

Here are a few of Collin's friends with their projects:

The performances and projects were all great.  It was nice to spend the morning celebrating the third graders.  Nice work, Collin; thank you for sharing all that you have learned with us today.  We love you!