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Taking Kids to Washington, DC

November 5, 2015

We just returned home from a whirlwind trip to Washington, D.C.

Ideally I would have loved more time to plan every detail of the trip, but since this was a quick trip (dad was working in Bethesda for a couple weeks) we kind of flew by the seat of our pants.

And guess what?

That was ok! We had a great time, and I feel like we packed a lot in and got a great taste of our nation's capital.

We did prepare by reading This is Washington, D.C. and skimming Frommer's Easy Guide to Washington, D.C. . You can also order free maps and a visitor's guide online.

So, if you're wondering how to approach D.C. in 2 (well really 2.5) days, this post is for you!

Day 1: Traveling and Taking it All In

We left Atlanta Friday morning and arrived in D.C. mid afternoon.

The ride from Reagan Airport to Bethesda took us down George Washington Parkway, which is a lovely ride. We had the treat of seeing the Washington Monument and Georgetown University on the drive.

The Marriott headquarters (where my husband was working) is in Bethesda, so we dropped our bags at the hotel and immediately caught the METRO for downtown D.C.

Using the METRO was safe and easy. I HIGHLY recommend using it if you visit D.C.

We ate an early dinner at Old Ebbitt Grill, which is just around the corner from the White House. (This is a GREAT restaurant with a lot of local flair. It's also the oldest restaurant in D.C. and the food is AWESOME! BUT, if you go -- make a reservation!)

It was such fun to watch everyone walking along the street in their Halloween costumes. It was the evening of trick or treating at the White House, and children who had won the military lottery were able to trick or treat and meet the President.

We couldn't see the front of the White House because the streets were blocked, but we did see the back of the White House at night, which was beautiful. We walked around the city a bit, got the lay of the land, and then headed back to the METRO.

Day 2: Arlington National Cemetery, Monuments, and The National Archives

Arlington National Cemetery was the number one thing all of us wanted to see in D.C. We arrived early in the morning and purchased bus tour tickets.

*If you go to Arlington, GET THE BUS TICKETS. The tour guides are very well versed, and there is no way you could see the pertinent things in the cemetery in one day on foot.

The leaves were turning brilliant shades of orange, yellow, and red. Those colors stood in such sharp contrast to the white gravestones. It was extremely moving. Several times we just stopped and SAT on a bench and admired the beauty.

We sat for 45 minutes at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and watched the Changing of the Guard. A group of veterans were there for an Honor Flight, which was especially moving.

We also spent a lot of time at JFK's tomb, and took in the view of D.C. from his tomb, and could easily understand why this was the spot chosen for his burial.

(I love this documentary about Arlington National Cemetery. We are watching it again this week.)

From Arlington we headed to see the monuments. It was about a 1.5 mile walk to the Lincoln Memorial, so we called an UBER car and made our way there.

*UBER was a lifesaver in DC. Our ride from Arlington to the monument was just $5!

The Lincoln Memorial was so much larger than I had imagined. Grant was super excited here because he had just finished the LEGO Architecture Lincoln Memorial before we left home!

From the Lincoln Memorial we walked to the WWII Memorial, where another Honor Flight group was there. As you can see from the picture, the veterans were there in their wheelchairs, with giant posters of themselves as young soldiers. It was extremely moving to witness this.

The Washington Monument is just after the WWII memorial, so we headed there next.

We hadn't reserved tickets to go to the top and didn't think it would be possible to go to the top (555 feet). As we were standing and looking at the monument, I asked one of the volunteers if there were any tickets left for the day. She said no, but that it did look kind of slow in the line and she would see what she could do about getting us to the top.

Ten minutes later we were at the top of the monument! The views were spectacular. We spent quite a long time just taking pictures and admiring the city because it was a perfectly clear day.

After the monuments we hit the National Archives. This was HIGH on our list because in Challenge I Anna is memorizing and annotating American documents.

No photos are allowed in the archives. We saw the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution - VERY cool! We also loved some of the interactive exhibits they had exploring issues like the death penalty, women's rights, and other debate topics Anna has explored this and last year in Challenge.

I was in homeschool mom heaven, know what I mean??

By the end of the day we were all exhausted and hungry, so we grabbed a FABULOUS dinner at Plan B Burger and hopped on the METRO. It was about 7 p.m. when we arrived back to our hotel, and thankfully we gained an hour for Daylight Saving's Time!

Day 3: Holocaust Museum, Space & Aviation Museum & The National Gallery of Art

We knew Sunday was going to be a more somber day. We carefully researched the recommended age requirements for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum and decided Grant could handle the visit. (He is soon to be 11 years old and we have studied the Holocaust in history. Anyone with younger and/or sensitive children might want to skip this museum.)

There just aren't words to describe our morning. We spent three hours in the museum and I felt that was even moving quickly.

“First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Socialist.
Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Trade Unionist.
Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out—
Because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for me—and there was no one left to speak for me.”

After lunch (hot dogs and pretzels from a food truck!) we made our way to the Museum of American History (hello LEGO Flag!) and also to the Air & Space Museum.

We saw the Wright Brothers' airplane and the Apollo Lunar Module.

We also watched a fabulous iMax movie: D Day: Normandy 1944, which seemed like the perfect follow up to the Holocaust Museum.

All of these museums were free and beautiful. I love that you can do nearly everything in D.C. (with the exception of lodging and eating) for free or low cost!

One of the things on MY DC bucket list was visiting the National Gallery of Art.

To be perfectly honest, I'm not sure the kids were as excited, but we plied them with hot chocolate and we took about 30 minutes to people watch and refuel.

I also downloaded the free app from the National Gallery - YOUR ART, which was INVALUABLE to us as we toured the museum. The app is also just good to have because it guides you through art appreciation with your children!

We saw works by Rembrandt, Leonardo daVinci, Mary Cassat, and so many more! As we found pieces we enjoyed, everyone would sit on a couch and study the art for a bit, then I would look it up on the app and read about it.

(This was very exciting to me, because we've been focusing more on Art Appreciation in our homeschool this year.)

As we were strolling through one gallery there was also a free classical concert happening in the adjoining gallery. I could have stayed for several hours!

We left the museum around dinner time, grabbed some pizza, and hopped on the METRO for Bethesda.

Our trip went by in the blink of an eye.

I'm so happy we've had the chance to visit our nation's capital and that we saw the highlights. I would love to return and see MORE!

Not only did we learn more about our nation's history, but we also experienced another city's public transit, met several interesting UBER drivers, and just learned how to be better travelers.

Have you been to D.C. What was the best part of your trip?

Collage Friday

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10 Reasons We Homeschool With Classical Conversations

October 22, 2015

As a Classical homeschooling family, being a part of a Classical Conversations community has been an answer to prayer. We chose Classical Conversations three years ago, and I couldn't be more thankful.

I KNEW what a Classical education should look like, but the thought of accomplishing that (through high school!) was quite daunting. After reading The Core, I was convinced this was the path for our family.

Being in a CC Community has allowed me to reclaim my OWN education - which in turn allows me to transmit knowledge and guide my children through their education, as well.

Today's Collage Friday post is dedicated to our involvement in Classical Conversations - and 10 reasons why we have chosen CC for our family.

{*I am not speaking officially for Classical Conversations in this post. All opinions and ideas are my own. Visit the Classical Conversations website to learn more. I also have a collection of posts about Classical Conversations here on the blog.}

10 Reasons we homeschool with Classical Conversations

1. Less Time Planning

I homeschooled for many years doing our own thing.

I researched all of the pieces of the curriculum, all of the lessons, etc...

In short: I grew weary. Homeschooling is a lot of work, and I just needed some of the deep thought to be done for me.

Enter Classical Conversations. The Foundations Memory Work is superbly thought out, and the Essentials writing and grammar is exceptional.

There is very little for me to plan, and I love that.

Foundation and Essentials (Classical Conversations Homeschool Program)

2. Room for Creativity

Even though we follow the Foundations Memory Work (three cycles) there is still plenty of room for us to be creative.

For example: this week we are learning about different types of seed plants - monocots, dicots, and conifers. My son and I went on a nature walk earlier in the week and identified seed plants in our own yard. We came across some Magnolia flowers, which we discovered were Broadleafs and NOT Conifers (as we had thought).

We took this simple piece of science memory work and explored a bit with it. We don't use a formal science "curriculum" - and that's OK. Learning all of the science facts (76 in all three cycles combined) is ENOUGH.

My son has enjoyed notebooking for years, and he continues to notebook his way through the Foundations memory work. He also loves to use LEGOS to recreate history sentences.

There is so much room for creativity in CC!

3. Community

It is such a comfort to be in a community with other like-minded families.

We all believe in CC's motto -- "To Know God and Make Him Known" -- and try to live it to the fullest.

As we dissected owl pellets in Foundations last week, the tutor stopped to point out to the boys (yes, Grant's class is ALL BOYS!) that GOD was the designer of everything - and HOW AMAZING something like an owl pellet really is.

We strive to KNOW God and to see HIM in everything we do. We strive, through an emphasis on writing and public speaking, to make HIM known.

My kids are also connected to a wonderful group of FRIENDS --- which has led to friendships for our family, as well.

4. Accountability

Whether it is having a well done presentation prepared for community day, or turning in our IEW paper to Mr. Jason (our Essentials tutor) - accountability is a GOOD thing.

The temptation before was always to put things off or be more forgiving about missing work, because no one was technically "checking".

My daughter, who is in Challenge I (9th grade equivalent) this year, craves that accountability piece. Her tutor and classmates expect her work to be done. I have seen her personal sense of accountability grow exponentially in the past year.

(Want to know more? Take a closer look at the Challenge program to see what I mean!)

5. Continuity & Consistency

So often I hear traditional school parents complain about education -- specifically MATH.

It seems that every few years public schools adopt "new math". Most recently it has been Common Core Math.

I wish that every child had the chance to experience continuity and consistency, and I'm just going to continue using math as an example.

Classical Conversations emphasizes the rigorous memorization of math FACTS from the earliest age. Our children drill their math facts until they are in the 6th grade. They learn math laws and properties. CC recommends placing your children in Saxon Math, which provides very consistent math education.

Math with CC just makes SENSE! As I watch my Challenge I daughter encounter the distributive property in Algebra I, I know that the distributive property has been memorized in the younger years and now it is being applied. This is just ONE example. I could go ON and ON!

Learning all of the geography memory work in the Foundation years is then applied in Challenge A when the children learn to draw the world freehand from memory.

The Latin memory work (declensions, etc...) comes in VERY handy as Challenge students embark upon Latin studies in Henle Latin.

I am AMAZED daily by the connections between Foundations & Challenge!

Classical Conversations Challenge Program

6. Struggle

A key element of the Challenge years is STRUGGLE.

Challenge students struggle with their ideas - not only forming their ideas, but also how to articulate their ideas.

I love that Challenge isn't EASY. It is VERY, VERY difficult.

And that's ok. We struggle together and often, and grow in our faith and maturity as a result!

Anna has the sweetest group of kids in her Challenge I class. They are free to disagree with each other, challenge each other, and encourage each other. You really cannot understand the dynamic until you sit in class with them.

It is a BEAUTIFUL thing.

7. Equipping

Classical Conversations does a wonderful job of EQUIPPING homeschool families.

There are webinars about many topics - in particular I appreciate the webinars for the Challenge families that deal with transcripts, graduation, and college admissions.

The CC Writer's Circle is a place where parents can read articles on a variety of topics.

Through CC Connected parents can share files and ideas.

There should never be a reason to struggle ALONE when you are part of Classical Conversations. CC has made the commitment to support families in this journey, and I am so thankful!

8. Fine Arts

I ADORE the fine arts component of Classical Conversations.

The last thing I want to do is stuff my kids full of facts and rigorous academics and neglect their artistic sides.

In Foundations the children are exposed to the essentials of drawing and art appreciation and learning to play the tin whistle and appreciation of great music. The fine arts component is simple and effective.

As kids grow into the Challenge years, they are exposed to drama, music theory, art history, and music history.

(Have you seen the scope and sequence of the Challenge years? Scroll to the bottom of the page to see - It's impressive. )

9. Control

In our neck of the woods, homeschool hybrid schools are quite popular.

Children can attend a school for one day a week, and receive all of their instruction. In many of these schools, however, the parent loses academic control.

To my knowledge, the Classical Conversations Challenge program is one of the only programs out there that provides instruction and guidance, but does NOT issue grades or usurp the parents' authority.

10. Peace of Mind

I can't tell you that I am a homeschool renegade.

I DO care about college admission requirements. I DO care about meeting some of the standards the "world" sets forth for education.

What I DO care about is giving my children a SOLID, CLASSICAL EDUCATION.

Classical Conversations gives me great peace of mind. I know the curriculum is tested, well-researched, and full of TRUTH, BEAUTY, and GOODNESS.

Are you a member of a CC Community? What is your top reason for homeschooling with CC?

Or, what homeschool method do you use and WHY?