3rd Grade GATE Field Trip

The students showed their creativity by making various gifts and projects at Kaleidoscope. I saw fun hair accessories, puzzles, cards, etc. Then they played in the outdoor play area by the Crown Center tree. The students wrote about their creations and experiences in their journals when we got back to school.

2nd Grade Kaleidoscope Trip

We started in the free train exhibit at Union Station.  The students were excited to see Thomas and the Polar Express. Then we took a quick walk through the Hallmark Visitors Center. We saw many ornaments and toys from Hallmark’s history. We also saw a video by a Hallmark artist about creativity. He equated creativity to bravery, so we briefly talked about what that meant and how we expected them to be creative in Kaleidoscope. Finally, we enjoyed over 75 minutes of creative free play in Kaleidoscope.  The students made many creations! We then ate lunch in Crown Center.

5th Grade Trip to the Money Museum/WWI Museum

We traveled to the Money Museum and had a presentation about the 4 qualifications for currency (divisible, portable, acceptable, and durable) and how the United States works to fight counterfeiting. Then we had a guided tour of the money processing area and saw the three robots that move the money into the vault.  

The 40 million dollar wall.

A gold bar that weighs about 27 pounds and is worth over $459,000.

At the World War I Museum, we had an excellent guide who shared many interesting aspects of the war. We learned about why/how the war started and what trench warfare was like. We also learned about tanks, airplanes, submarines, and all the technology used in WWI. It was very interesting. The students were a great audience and very engaged. They asked excellent questions. We also learned about propaganda posters and how the United States entered the war.

4th Grade Trip to the Pony Express Museum

We started in the Pony School which is a one room schoolhouse. We had a schoolmarm who taught the class as if it was 1860.  We learned that there were some similarities between schools now and schools in 1860, but there were many differences. Boys and girls sat in different sections and walked in different lines. Students raised their hands to speak, but also had to stand up when they spoke. It was fun to step back in time!  Then we had a guided tour of the Pony Express Museum.  We learned about why the Pony Express was started and all of the challenges they faced to set it up. The riders faced many challenges but worked hard to deliver the mail. They have a special Buffalo Bill collection at the museum so we also learned about him and his Wild West Show.