Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Today the middle school students woke up bright and early to arrive at the Boston Harbor at 8:00. From there, we all got accustomed to our new shipmates and boarded the ship. Then we met our crew on the ship and got settled in. Just like always, we went over how to be safe on the ship and discussed the rules. After that, we helped the crew members get ready to set sail. After a few hours of sailing we got out of the Boston Harbor and ate lunch. From there we talked about watches which were 4 hour intervals that went through the night. We participated in many activities such as knot tying, coiling, navigation classes, climbing the rope that went out to the jib, and lots more. After a long, hard day we ate dinner and got ready either for bed or the night watch. There were 3 groups that would watch from either 8-midnight, 12-4 AM, and 4-8 AM. The watch consisted of being on watch, steering the ship, doing boat checks, or just helping wherever you were needed. Being on watch was a large responsibility on the ship because we sailed throughout the night. After a hard and tiring night we woke up to a nice breakfast and a beautiful day. From there, one ship got to climb the ropes and the other went whale watching for a couple hours . After a long day of more tasks on the ship, we finally arrived in the harbor about an hour and a half late. From there we got on the bus and went home. We had a great trip, and we will remember it for the rest of our lives. We learned how we need to care for others and sometimes we need to use grit to accomplish a task. We will miss you 8th graders and wish you lots of luck to come. By Bella and Grace C
Friday, May 25, 2012
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Salem and the Freedom Trail
Today was our last full day on dry land. We took a wonderful journey to Salem. First we took a nice stroll to the pier where we took a lot of pictures of the ocean in Salem. Next we went to the Salem Witch Museum where we learned about what happened to people accused of witchcraft in the 1600's. The museum was amazing and we all learned so much. We walked a short distance to the House of Seven Gables where we took a guided took. We learned about the history of the house and we learned a lot of interesting facts. Then we ate out yummy lunch outside. We took a 1 hour drive to downtown Boston where we met with our colonial freedom trail tour guide. He was amazing and the was the funniest person ever. We had a lot of fun learning about history and sharing our knowledge with the tour guide (sometimes, we knew more than him). Our last stop of the day was Quincy Market. We had a lot of time to browse independently and we had a great time. We were all given money for dinner and we all got to make our own choices. We came back to the hotel, packed our stuff for the boat tomorrow and played a great game of cards in the lobby. We are now all heading to bed and we look forward to seeing out family on Saturday.
Submitted Grace and Chris
Submitted Grace and Chris
Boston Day Two!!
Yesterday we went to the JFK library and Plimoth Plantaion. We left in the morning to go to the JFK library and when we arrived we watched a very interesting video about JFK's life through to his presidency. Then we toured the library, visiting rooms and learning about what they were about. Some of the topics we learned about were the Civil Rights Movement, gifts to and from other countries, the Peace Corps, and, of course, the president himself and what he did in office.
After lunch (sandwiches and apples) we went to Plimoth Plantation which we all enjoyed. We first went to a Wampanoag village and spoke to the native's who were dressed up, but still helped us to compare their life with our modern life. We enjoyed playing a game (which was kind of like world cup and football) and asked many questions about their garden, long houses, canoes, and cooking.
Next we we walked to a 17th century English settlement where the 'settlers' were completely in character. We told them we were from Fort Orange. We also asks questions here about their gardens, houses and lifestyles. We walked around separately and then went to the meeting house where they had cannons on a top floor and a meeting room on the first. They also had chickens just running around freely!
After the settlement, we drove to the Mayflower II. There we got to go aboard and practice our boat knowledge for tomorrow and Saturday. We toured around and met some pilgrims and the captain. The Mayflower II is bigger than the Half Moon on the Hudson. We enjoyed the boat too and asked some questions about the boat and it's history/'future'.
When our tour of the Mayflower II was over, we got back on the bus to drive to Plymouth Rock. We looked at the rock and then went to a beach.
At Plymouth Beach we all had so much fun, cartwheeling in the sand, splashing (with our pants rolled up) in the waves. We had so much fun and the eighth graders took a picture that was blogged earlier.
For dinner we went to The Summer Shack and had seafood and shared appetizers. The food was good and then we walked to a frozen yogurt place called PinkBerry and all had frozen yogurt. That was really good too. We got back to the hotel late and went right to bed because we were all so tired from the exciting day.
Submitted by Beckey and Jaxon
After lunch (sandwiches and apples) we went to Plimoth Plantation which we all enjoyed. We first went to a Wampanoag village and spoke to the native's who were dressed up, but still helped us to compare their life with our modern life. We enjoyed playing a game (which was kind of like world cup and football) and asked many questions about their garden, long houses, canoes, and cooking.
Next we we walked to a 17th century English settlement where the 'settlers' were completely in character. We told them we were from Fort Orange. We also asks questions here about their gardens, houses and lifestyles. We walked around separately and then went to the meeting house where they had cannons on a top floor and a meeting room on the first. They also had chickens just running around freely!
After the settlement, we drove to the Mayflower II. There we got to go aboard and practice our boat knowledge for tomorrow and Saturday. We toured around and met some pilgrims and the captain. The Mayflower II is bigger than the Half Moon on the Hudson. We enjoyed the boat too and asked some questions about the boat and it's history/'future'.
When our tour of the Mayflower II was over, we got back on the bus to drive to Plymouth Rock. We looked at the rock and then went to a beach.
At Plymouth Beach we all had so much fun, cartwheeling in the sand, splashing (with our pants rolled up) in the waves. We had so much fun and the eighth graders took a picture that was blogged earlier.
For dinner we went to The Summer Shack and had seafood and shared appetizers. The food was good and then we walked to a frozen yogurt place called PinkBerry and all had frozen yogurt. That was really good too. We got back to the hotel late and went right to bed because we were all so tired from the exciting day.
Submitted by Beckey and Jaxon
Wednesday, May 23, 2012
Day One: Lexington, Concord, and Walden Pond
Yesterday, we visited the Lexington and Concord battle field and Walden pond.
At the Concord visitor's center we gained more background knowledge about the battles of Lexington and Concord through an entertaining presentation.
At the battlefield, we participated in the educational program "Who Shot First?". First we read primary sources from the soldiers who were at the battle that day. Then we visited the monuments and watch the park ranger shoot a musket. Using evidence we decided that the British soldiers shot first.
We then visited Walden Pond, the site of Henry David Thoreau's small cabin home (10x15). We looked inside the replica house before heading to the site of the original cabin. After looking at the site, we took a silent hike around the pond. After the hike, we made sketches of the pond in our journals.
For dinner we ate pizza at Polcari's pizzeria, a branch of Regina's pizza. We ate salad, don't worry :)
We had a great day! Submitted by Tori and Chloe.
At the Concord visitor's center we gained more background knowledge about the battles of Lexington and Concord through an entertaining presentation.
At the battlefield, we participated in the educational program "Who Shot First?". First we read primary sources from the soldiers who were at the battle that day. Then we visited the monuments and watch the park ranger shoot a musket. Using evidence we decided that the British soldiers shot first.
We then visited Walden Pond, the site of Henry David Thoreau's small cabin home (10x15). We looked inside the replica house before heading to the site of the original cabin. After looking at the site, we took a silent hike around the pond. After the hike, we made sketches of the pond in our journals.
For dinner we ate pizza at Polcari's pizzeria, a branch of Regina's pizza. We ate salad, don't worry :)
We had a great day! Submitted by Tori and Chloe.
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
Monday, May 21, 2012
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