It is a fourth grade tradition in many schools to take a trip to the state capital. It really is the perfect way to end a year of studying Texas History. Almost every corner of the building pays tribute to a special event or person from our past. If you are close enough to make the trip, this post if for you. If you are not, stay tuned! I have done a virtual trip that was equally as fun and educational. I will give you the details in my next post.
Book Your Trip
This is the time to book your trip for the year. I guarantee many spots are already taken. The longer you wait to book it, the earlier in the year your trip will be.
We go see the Visitors Center, tour the Texas Capitol and Extension, and see The Star of Destiny at the Bullock. We don’t have time to actually tour the museum. The Star of Destiny is the highlight of the trip. If you have to knock something off your trip, don’t let it be that.
The Capitol Tour Guide Office is really great about helping you plan the times for your trip. When you call them, just let them know the time you will arrive and the time you need to leave the grounds. They will help you coordinate times with the Visitors Center if you are also touring there. For us, we need to leave by 12:30 to get to the Bullock for the show. They will help you work out a schedule from there.
In order to book a showtime at the Bullock, you must fill out an online form. Someone will get back to you that day with reservation information. If you are only seeing a show, make sure you note that in the comments.
Planning
We are located almost two hours away from Austin, so the trip takes a lot of planning on our part. Although no amount of planning can prepare for all issues, I think it can head off a lot. How do I know that?? The hard way.
Make sure parents know as many details about the trip as possible. I once had a parent yell at me because she wore heels. My information packet now includes a line about how far we walk.
Also, remember that many parents won’t actually read your note. I think of my note as my insurance policy. It has all the fine print. Parents may not read it all, but I have done my part by disclosing the details.
The people you really want to drill on the details of the trip are the students. I assure you they will pester their parents with all the information they need. One thing that I really make sure the students know is they may NOT leave our group at any time without telling a teacher. We role-play how to speak to their parents when this happens….because it will. I teach the students to say, “Mom/Dad, I am so excited to go do…..with you, but my teacher is a safety-nut. She will literally call the police if I’m not in her line. Can you tell her we are walking away a minute?” We also practice what to do if the parent still won’t listen (yell my name loudly). Would I actually call the police?? You know it!!
I talk to the parents in my group and ask at least a few of them to walk at the end of the line, making sure none of the students leave or lag behind. I tend to walk in the middle as I count my students four million times during the tour.
Below are my notes that I send home to parents. If you want a copy to edit, just use the contact button. You can also save the PDF to your Google Drive and open as a Google Doc.
Copy of permission forms for austin.doc
Special Situations
There will be times when you have a student with special considerations that will need some alternate plans. Be sure to mention these needs to the Bullock and Capitol beforehand. They already have plans in place when you get there IF they know in advance. I have also often had to ask admin to take a special school vehicle to accommodate students. This helps with students who get car sick, have special bathroom needs, or need special transportation to the Bullock museum. Most of the time we walk from the Capitol grounds, but that isn’t possible for everyone. Having an extra ride can also come in handy of an accident occurs while on the trip. It isn’t a must, but if your district will allow it, it will give you some peace of mind.
Review
We spend some time reviewing what we have learned during the year before we go. We have a good time doing this using the artwork located on the grounds and inside the buildings. I use some matching cards, Quizlet, and Quizziz to review. By the time we actually go on the trip, my students are basically tour guides for their parents.
Here are my review materials:
I let the kids study these on their own in centers during the weeks before we go. During the days immediately before we go, we play the live games for prizes. They go bananas.
Austin Capitol Monuments Playlist on Youtube I load these in Edpuzzle, so I can shorten some of the longer videos. Edpuzzle is also unblocked at my school. Youtube is not.
Austin Capitol Monuments on Quizziz You need a free Quizziz account to view this.
State Symbols on Quizlet The Visitors Center has a symbols center, so I try to make sure my kids know some of these.
Revolutionary Heroes on Quizlet
The kids also love this card game, so we play this some too.
I also show them a video of the Govenor’s mansion, a video about the Goddess of Liberty, a video about the grounds, and I spend a lot of time here showing students the important places and artwork they will see. You could choose to let them be surprised by the artwork, but I have found that the anticipation of seeing something they already know about IN PERSON is way more exciting to them.
Enjoy
The first time you go on this trip, it is more than a little stressful getting ready. Sometimes it can feel very stressful on the actual trip due to the crowds and time constraints. However, don’t let fear keep you from doing this. I promise their little, excited faces will make all of it worth it.
Teaching Without Twitching 