We're going to Williamsburg and Washington D.C. during our school's fall break at the end of October. We'll be staying for a few days at Wyndham Kingsgate and then we visit my brother in Maryland. We plan to go to Busch Gardens during its closing weekend, but it would seem like a waste to miss the historic sites--although my kids haven't shown much interest for that sort of thing in the past. I'm thinking that we'll skip the Williamsburg tour tickets, but I would like to see Jamestown and Yorktown and possibly Virginia Beach.
Any ideas about how to get teenagers interested in history?
I was thinking of doing a bicycle tour of Williamsburg or Washington, D.C. We've had success with that sort of thing in the past. (We did a bicycle tour of Angel Island in the San Francisco Bay, which they enjoyed.) It makes them feel like we're doing more than just wandering around reading placards, and they know that the stops won't be for very long. Any ideas about where to go?
How about battlefields? Is there one that has an exceptional visitor's center or that still has war evidence--mining, bunkers, etc? (Something besides just grassy parks and memorials. :zzz: ) If you were going to do just one battlefield, which would it be? I already checked and I don't think there will be any re-enactments during our visit.
I'm planning on dragging the family to Monticello--just because I've always wanted to see it. When we get to D.C., I'm not as worried--my kids will be happy as long as they are hanging out with their cousins. We'll probably let the older kids wander the Mall while the rest of us do our own thing.
BTW, I have four kids ages 9-17. I feel no obligation to try to see everything during our vacation. I just want to expose the kids to a little of what the area has to offer. My wife and I will return someday without kids, when we will do the site seeing our way.
Any ideas about how to get teenagers interested in history?
I was thinking of doing a bicycle tour of Williamsburg or Washington, D.C. We've had success with that sort of thing in the past. (We did a bicycle tour of Angel Island in the San Francisco Bay, which they enjoyed.) It makes them feel like we're doing more than just wandering around reading placards, and they know that the stops won't be for very long. Any ideas about where to go?
How about battlefields? Is there one that has an exceptional visitor's center or that still has war evidence--mining, bunkers, etc? (Something besides just grassy parks and memorials. :zzz: ) If you were going to do just one battlefield, which would it be? I already checked and I don't think there will be any re-enactments during our visit.
I'm planning on dragging the family to Monticello--just because I've always wanted to see it. When we get to D.C., I'm not as worried--my kids will be happy as long as they are hanging out with their cousins. We'll probably let the older kids wander the Mall while the rest of us do our own thing.
BTW, I have four kids ages 9-17. I feel no obligation to try to see everything during our vacation. I just want to expose the kids to a little of what the area has to offer. My wife and I will return someday without kids, when we will do the site seeing our way.