A Week of History Field Trips

Flagler College, St. Augustine, Florida

History Buff
I am a history nut. I love history and always have. In elementary school, when our class would make the weekly trip to the school library, I loaded myself up with biographies: Dolly Madison, Florence Nightingale, Patrick Henry. Historical non-fiction was always my choice. My favorite course was 10th grade ancient history class.. The teacher didn't follow a text or spit out facts. She took us back to Egypt and Rome; helped us learn about the people and what life would have been like in that time period. She gave us all the nitty-gritty details of daily life such as the fact that they had public latrines (wooden boxes indoors) and they considered daily baths so important that even the poor could afford them. Perhaps she is one reason I love the Charlotte Mason method. Stories sweeping me back in time where I get to know the life, the people and the events intimately. What could be better?


St. Augustine, Florida
My favorite place to visit locally? St. Augustine, Florida. If you've been reading my blog a while, I'm sure you've noticed we go there at least once and sometimes twice each year, usually in the Spring and Fall. We didn't make the trip at all in 2011. How sad! But we're headed there tomorrow. I always feel like I've stepped back in time when I'm there; and I'm always sad when it ends. I hope to leave very early in the morning so that we can spend an entire day traveling through this beautiful town and its history. We plan to stay overnight and return the following day. We have appointments and such to keep, otherwise we would visit longer. Perhaps next month we can stay for a few days.

DeBary Hall
Last month we attended a local history tour at DeBary Hall. We learned that the mansion served as a resort for millionaires in the 19th century (the Vanderbilts and Rockefellers to name a few). This week, we are returning. The lesson description reads:

"Students will observe architecture features at DeBary Hall during the late 19th century and modern adaptations. Students will analyze the function of these features and hypothesize how they would look in other parts of the country or used in other functions. Students will design a floor plan using their observations, evaluations and analysis of the lesson they learned."

Eco-History Tour
Also this week, we will be taking an eco-history tour on a boat at De Leon Springs.

"A Florida State Park volunteer narrates the tour and takes you back thousands of years. Birds, flowers, trees, plants, alligators and Native American history abound. We will learn how 20 million gallons of water a day comes up from the Springs" 

So that's my week in a nutshell. I should collapse by the weekend. Who says homeschoolers are ever at "home"?!!

What are your plans for the week?

Happy Homeschooling!