My sweet boy "allowed" me to chaperon his class trip to St. Augustine back in December. It was a lot of fun. Even if I was so tired I slept on the bus on the way home. This working night-shift is really rough!!
Fortunately, the school rented a fancy-schmancy bus with comfortable seats and it seems like nearly every child had some sort of electronic device to play games on...except mine. We just aren't quite there yet, but I can see how that time is getting close!
Anyway, what a great day it was. Spending the day after my mother's birthday up at the town she loved.
Joshua and Owen fresh off the bus, ready for a busy day.
We were welcomed by a horse-drawn carriage, but just to look, not to actually ride.
The bulk of our day was to be spent enjoying the fort.
But first, a stop at the cemetery and a really interesting discussion on the causes of death many years ago.
I avoided going into the Drug Store with my group of kiddos, in haste to make it over the the fort to explore before the rain came.
We did take a peek at the Oldest School House.
The fort is always so beautiful. It was really cold and windy up on the top deck, but the view was worth it.
The kids learned about the moat. The moat was never intended to hold water, it held the animals outside of the fort walls to keep the inside of the fort more sanitary. However, when Hollywood started making movies, the people of St. Augustine figured the moat should be filled with water to look like a real moat. Unfortunately, the water started to disintegrate the foundation of the fort and the people of St. Augustine figured they should listen to the actual historians and not Hollywood, so alas, the moat is dry again, just as it should be.
The walls are made of crushed shell, and the kids were given strict orders to not touch or sit on the walls.
Crossing the bridge to go into the fort. I can only imagine how people felt when the alarm would sound the the people would have to run into the fort when the town was under attack.
Learning the meaning of the phrase "hitting the hay" while sitting on some very uncomfortable hay mattresses.
Up on the top of the fort checking out the cannons.
The whole class! Such a fun group of great kids!
We framed this one and gave it to Joshua's teacher for Christmas. This group of extra-smart kids is very spirited!!
It got really cold and started to rain. I kept my sweatshirt, but gave my raincoat to the little girl in my group. I had Joshua keep his sweatshirt and hand off his rain jacket to his friend Owen.
Sweet Hannah in my jacket.
Owen, at the head of the line heading into the Pirate Museum. Unfortunately, there are no pictures allowed in the museum. It really was pretty cool, although there were some dark/scary/loud parts.
Making an engraved penny.
Our "Doctor" telling us how to perform surgery for bullet wounds. We also learned about the powers of herbs for healing ointments, and that some food colorings come from bug shells. Ewww....
We wrapped up our day looking at the "love tree" which is a palm tree growing out of another tree.
Then it was a bus ride home with some sleepy kids. We arrived back at the school around 5pm and were home in time for dinner. Next year, I'll probably do the same field trip with Megan's class. Fun!!
1 comment:
Fun!
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