As promised...

Before

After

The HMS Middle School trip to Washington D.C. was an absolute success! We learned a lot about our nation and its history, each other, and ourselves. Watching the students experience D.C. and Gettysburg was a thoroughly enjoyable opportunity for me as a teacher. Below are a few of my favorite moments of the trip. Be sure to stop and talk to the middle school students about their favorite memories next time you see them in Building B! 

• Walking Pickett's Charge in complete silence at Gettysburg. 
• Watching the students eat - they can really put it away!
• Feeling deeply connected as a group as we toured the Holocaust Museum. 
• Observing the students bond during their free time in the evenings. 
• Being in awe for the entirety of our three hour tour of the Capitol Building. 
• The "bird incident" in the van as we drove back to D.C. from Gettysburg. 
• Watching the students figure out the little things in life, such as learning that if you want to take the elevator, you actually have to push the button - it won't magically appear when you're ready for it. :) 

To the middle school parents - thank you for sharing your children with me; it was an amazing experience that I will never forget! 

Unit next time, 

Ms. B. 

One last post from D.C.!!!

Light art in the walkaway between the east and west National Gallery of Art buildings. 

Andy Warhol
Green Marilyn, 1962

Chuck Close
Fanny/Finger painting, 1985
This painting was done with ONLY Close's fingerprints. 

Vincent Van Gogh
Roulin's Baby, 1888

Representative Kilmer's office in the Longworth Building. 

The Capitol Rotunda
Painting at the top of the dome is titled Apotheosis of Washington
which depicts 13 maidens representative of the 13 original colonies. 

Hello everyone! Last day in D.C.!

Today we met Senator Patty Murray in the Senate Russell Building. We were able to get a group picture with her. After the half hour meet and greet, we ran into Senator John McCain - we said hello and good morning to him as we passed him in the hallways. 

Then we had a tour at the National Gallery of Art. They had many interesting pieces of art including one made of finger prints that looked very realistic. The tour showed us how modern artists are breaking the rules in art versus basing their artwork on absolute realism. Some pieces had odd colors like Van Gogh's green baby oil painting. 

After lunch, we were able to take a Capitol tour thanks to another HMS parent who put us in touch with Rep. Derek Kilmer - thank you VERY much; the Capitol tour was easily one of the top highlights of our trip! Representative Kilmer had two of his staff members take us on an extensive, three hour Capitol tour, but we were not able to see Rep. Kilmer much due to his busy schedule. The tour was awesome. There were many statues and paintings and every room was beautiful. The design of everything was great; it was symmetrical and full of detail. They even had a room dedicated to statues! Congress had recently put a statue of Rosa Parks in the statue room. We got to see the old senate house.

Today was an extremely busy day. Below are some more highlights / fun facts of our last full day in D.C.:

• We sat in the House of Representatives gallery and watched representatives debate the "Working Families Flexibility Act." We were lucky enough to hear Sen. Nancy Pelosi speak against the bill. 
• We saw the original Supreme Court chambers where the decision of the Dred Scott case was handed down. 
• D.C. was designed in a diamond shape - the center of D.C. exists in the Capitol and is referred to as the 'structural center of D.C.' - it is considered good luck to stand on this point and we all did. 
• Every state in our country has two statues that represent each state in the Capitol. Washington's statues are of Chief Joseph and Marcus Whitman. 
• One of the most controversial state statues is Mississippi's statue of Jefferson Davis - the President of the Confederate States of America. 

There were many things that we did, but my favorite was the art tour. That's pretty much all. Tomorrow we will be getting up at 4:00 am EST (1:00 am PST) to get ready before our shuttle picks us up at 5:00 am. We will be back in sunny Seattle at 10:30 am! Bye!

See you tomorrow, 

"Hewie" & "Bambi"

Rain, rain, and more rain!

D.C. Metro

Hirshhorn Art Museum 

Hirshhorn Art Museum

Teen Art Lab - Hirshhorn Art Museum

Last night the boys went to bed on time while the girls stayed up later. Then we all got up early to go to the Holocaust Museum. We had to stand in line in the rain while we waited for the tickets to be distributed. The guards did not trust our water and made us drink it. After security, we finally got into the museum. 

It was a somber experience that showed the history of Nazi Germany and the Holocaust. The fourth floor was about the rise of Nazi Germany and the anti-semitism instilled in ordinary citizens. The third floor was about the concentration camps and the transition to the "final solution." The second floor was about Auschwitz and other death camps. On the first floor there was a memorial to the people who died during the Holocaust. One of the most emotional parts of the museum was the room of shoes. It was a room filled with shoes that had once belonged to Jews who had been killed in concentration camps - the shoes still smelled of leather. 

Due to the extremely soggy and blustery weather, we were not able to make it to the zoo. Instead, we explored the Hirshhorn Art Museum. After touring the art museum, we went to a digital art studio for teens. "Mr. Wolf" had fun making a digital model of an alien. Everyone else just played "Idea Ages" on their very awesome Macs. We also got to play "Rock Band."

We then went to The Cheesecake Factory. In order to get there, we had to navigate the D.C. Metro line. We had dinner and then on the way home "Mr. Wolf" left his cheesecake on the train. Otherwise it was a good day. 

Until tomorrow, 

"Mr. Wolf" & "Soggy Bagel"

Memorials & Museums

WWII Memorial

WWII Memorial dedication to women. 

Vietnam Memorial

Korean War Memorial

The White House

Smithsonian Air & Space Museum

The time difference has finally hit us. We started off by waking up 40 minutes late. We then had to hurry a little to get out the door. We walked first to the WWII Memorial where "Stinkmaximus" gave his presentation. We then went to to the Vietnam Memorial where "Chimichanga" gave his presentation and shared about his grandfather who fought in Vietnam. Lastly, we went to the Korean War Memorial where "Hewie" gave his presentation.

Then we walked to the White House where "Miss Miaow" gave her presentation. There was a button on the outer fence of the White House grounds that said "Push this button," but nothing happened when we pushed it. Then "Chimichanga" guided us to the Air & Space Museum where we spent two hours exploring. We ended our time at the museum by watching an IMAX 3D movie about the Hubble telescope. Below are some fun facts we discovered while at the museum:

• Russia detonated its first nuclear bomb in 1919.
• The first US satellite was dubbed the 'Flopnik' because it exploded before leaving the ground. 
• The Mitsubishi A6M5 was the most commonly used Japanese naval fighter in WWII. 
• The space race became a symbol of the broad ideological and political contest. 
• The wingspan of the first plane was 12.3 meters. 
• The Browning machine gun fires 700 - 850 bullets per minute. 

While you were enjoying weather in the low 80s, we were walking in light rain and chilly temperatures in the mid 50s as we ventured out to Union Station for dinner. After dinner we walked back to the hotel and went swimming again.

Until tomorrow,
"Miss Dubs" & "Chimichanga"

Gettysburg

View of Big Round Top to the left and Little Round Top to the right of BRT.
Taken from Culp's Hill Observation Tower. 

Virginia Memorial - Confederate commander Gen. Robert E. Lee 

Farm in the Peach Orchard with the original hole from a Confederate cannon ball. 

Abraham Lincoln statue in the center of historical Gettysburg.
 Lincoln is pointing to the Wills House where he finished writing the Gettysburg Address. 

One bird. One windshield. One car full of much laughter!!

This post is dedicated to a very special middle school grandmother who bestowed her extensive knowledge about Gettysburg to our class - your time and help was greatly appreciated and ended up serving us better than we could have ever imagined! Thank you!!! 

We woke up early in the morning today, got ready, and made lunch for ourselves. We got on the road after piling into the big white van. We passed through Virginia, Maryland, and into Pennsylvania. We drove to the northern part of Gettysburg and hiked up an observation tower where "Mr. Wolf" gave his Gettysburg presentation. 

The group continued our tour and took in the sights while stopping frequently to explore the statues and monuments. We ended up having lunch at Little Big Top where we had an indescribable view of the "Valley of Death" which included the Devil's Den. We then got to climb all over the rocks in the area. 

Afterwards, we stopped at the Peach Orchard and then continued on to Pickett's Charge. This is where the Confederate troops attempted to overrun the Union while under heavy artillery fire, but ultimately failed, resulting in the Union victory. We walked where the soldiers walked and climbed over the Bloody Angle to the Copse of Trees where Lee directed his soldiers to march. 

Later we had dinner at the Cracker Barrel and stuffed ourselves. On the way back to the hotel, a bird decided to take a large bowel movement on our front windshield causing much laughter and wonder! When we get back to the hotel, we plan to swim for the first time on our trip. 

Until tomorrow, 

"Stinkmaximus" & "Hamster"

Day 1: "My feet STILL hurt!"

The U.S. Capitol

The rotunda at the National Museum of Natural History

The entrance to the National Museum of Natural History

The Lincoln Memorial 

Good evening HMS community! Before I turn the blogging over to the students, please note that they are blogging under pen names...very creative pen names. :)

Ms. B.
_________________

Hi everyone!

Today the class went shopping. It wasn't pleasure shopping either. We had to follow a grocery list and a budget. It was kind of hard to find things in Safeway because it was a different store. The aisles seemed very small. We were split into two groups of five students and one adult. One group was assigned to shop for lunches for the week and the other for breakfasts. After we ate breakfast, we brought the groceries back to the hotel and made our lunches.

Then we walked to the National Museum of Natural History. By the time we got there, everyone's feet were hurting. We had lunch on the lawn and got a chance to rest. Each student came up with ten facts that they learned at the museum. Here are a few of them:

• Graphite is a diamond. 
• Apollo 13 did not land on the moon. 
• Soft-shell turtles have long necks. 
• Zebras are brown and white, not black and white. 
• A meteorite is a meteoroid that lands on Earth intact. 
• Gig Harbor is on the North American tectonic plate. 
• The continents are very slowly wrapping around the world. 
• Every time a person breathes in, they consume dead skin. 
• The Hope Diamond is 45.52 carats. 
• Lucy was the first upright walking human. 

Next, we dragged our aching feet across the National Mall  to the Lincoln Memorial. When we got there "Miss Dubs" presented her brochure on the memorial. Then we looked around inside the building and trekked back to the hotel. We had a lot of fun, but were VERY glad to finally sit down at the hotel.

Until tomorrow, 

"Violet" & "Miss Miaow" 

 

We have arrived!

Hello from Washington D.C.!!!

We officially made it to the east coast. Our plane ride was quite enjoyable even with the little bit of turbulence we experienced. The students travelled wonderfully and were very respectful of the people around them. We were very lucky to fly almost directly over the National Mall as we came in for our landing; the Capitol and Lincoln Memorial were beautifully lit up against the dark D.C. sky.

Upon arrival, we managed to cram two adults, ten adolescents, and multiple suitcases and backpacks into our very stylish 12 passenger van. It felt a bit like Tetris getting everything - and everyone - into the van, but we were successful.

The hotel is ideally located just a few blocks behind the Capitol Building. We have two sets of connecting rooms which is wonderful and extremely convenient for everyone. Additionally, we will have microwaves and refrigerators in each room allowing the students to prepare their own breakfasts and lunches daily throughout the trip - hooray for practical life skills!

Starting tomorrow evening the students will take over the blogging responsibilities, but until then, I have included a few pictures of today's travels - please note the "before" hotel room picture...the "after" picture will be sure to follow. ;)

It is now 12:37 am EST and the girls are all tucked in and quietly talking as they are struggling with the time difference. I should get myself to bed as I have to wake up these teenagers at 8:00 am sharp. :)

Until tomorrow,
Ms. B.

The trip of a lifetime...

Who can believe that the HMS middle school class will be on a plane heading to our nation's capital in less than six hours??

This year has truly flown by and the annual middle school trip is upon us. Today we will leave Washington State and arrive in Washington D.C. ready to explore, discover, and become awash in our country's history.

We plan on touring the major landmarks such as the Lincoln, WWII, Korean, and Vietnam Memorials, the White House, the Library of Congress, the U.S. Capitol, Gettysburg, the National Museum of Natural History, the Air & Space Museum, and the National Gallery of Art.

In true Montessori fashion, students will be putting their practical life skills to work by keeping a personal budget, helping to decide our itinerary, learning how to pay a restaurant bill, navigating public transit, and keeping themselves organized and prepared for our daily adventures.

Additionally, (and this is the really fun part!), students will be blogging about these new experiences every evening right here. That means parents who are pining for those in-depth details will actually be receiving them! No more simple sentence responses of "today was fine." :)

Furthermore, students will be uploading pictures of the historical sights we will be visiting, but will not be posting any pictures of our students themselves for privacy reasons. Those pictures will be shared with family and friends once we return from our trip.

Please feel free to comment on our blog (all comments will be approved by me first before being published); we'd love to hear from you!

We look forward to keeping the HMS community informed about this spectacular trip over the next week!

Here we go... !!!
Ms. B & the Middle School Class