Lessons Learned From A Washington DC Trip

This week has been an absolute whirlwind. Our SNCAE group at Gardner-Webb University loaded up and took off for Washington, D.C. I had never been before, but the goal of the trip for many of us was to gain insight that will help us a future teachers. I have to say, I have learned a lot about ways I can enrich my teaching on politics, history, and culture. I have also learned so much in regards to field trips in general. But overall, I just learned a lot this week.

We peeled out early, early Monday morning. I can't say that Dr. Parker was doing anything near the speed limit, but hey, we got there with plenty of time to spare. We took that whole day of Monday activities to explore and pay tribute to Arlington Cemetery. There is rich history behind the property and it's relevance to prominent figures such as Ulysses S. Grant and Robert E. Lee; I did not previously know this. If you have not been before, I really think it is important for all Americans to go and experience. The property was absolutely beautiful, and we actually go to witness a changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. For me, it put into perspective just how many lives have been laid down in honor of the United States. It was overwhelming, really, but I am so glad we went.

After visiting Arlington, we took a short Metro ride to kind of get the lay of the land of the National Mall. We did a lot of walking around and observing for the coming days, where we would do much more walking. At this point, we decided to take the Metro down to a restaurant favorite called Tortilla Coast. However, Dr. Parker succumbed to some sort of illness/disease and had to leave his favorite restaurant. We enjoyed the food for him, though, so that's what really matters.

Day two consisted primarily of Capitol touring and Smithsonian shenanigans. We rose early in the morning so we could make it for a staff led tour of the Capitol, including entrance into the House Chamber. It was pretty cool to see where all of the legislature either gets enacted or shot down, Lunch at the Capitol was a lot better than I expected, but here is one piece of advice I can offer anyone wanting to travel to DC. Food is anywhere from double to triple what you might pay anywhere else!

I have to say, I was really surprised with everything that they had put into the Smithsonian museums. To be free and open to the public, everything was really up to date and captivating. My favorite museum has to be American History, even though we didn't end up going through the whole thing. After touring all of those, we made our way to Union Station for supper.

Wednesday was a day full of walking and adventure. We set out early to make the trek to the World War II memorial, as well as several others, before making the long haul to the White House. Long story short, we got a lovely shot with the backside of the White House, but I'm not complaining. When we leave, we get into quite a bit of shenanigans trying to make our way back to the Mall for our Library of Congress tour. Let's just say we finally saw all of DC. The Library of Congress was interesting, and I never knew it was that simple to get a card and use the resources there.

After that we ventured back to Union Station for some lunch, as well as a Metro mishap. For future reference, never use a Metro day pass for the Metro bus. Doesn't work. After lunch we were fortunate enough to get tickets into the Holocaust Museum, which was absolutely humbling. I am so glad we got the opportunity to see unbiased evidence of such an intense historical event. After that, we did some more memorial touring, including Lincoln, Jefferson, Vietnam, and Korean memorials.

Our final day/hours in Washington were spent recapping history we missed and, of course, buying mass quantities of cupcakes from the world-famous Georgetown Cupcake. Expensive, but worth it.

All in all, I was so glad we were able to make this trip work this year, and I am very grateful for everyone who went along for the ride. This whole week has been a learning and research experience for me that I will be forever grateful for. All of this wraps into:

• NCTCS Standard 3d: Teachers make instruction relevant to students.
• NCTCS Standard 4c: Teachers use a variety of instructional methods.