First Hand Look into History

By:  Walker Cook ('17)

Last week, the eighth grade class took a trip to our nation's capital to accompany the eighth grade year's theme in humanities - US history. While in D.C., the students took the time to visit several different museums including the Air and Space Museum, the Natural History Museum, and the American History Museum, the three most famous museums in the Smithsonian Institute. Students also visited the Native American History Museum where they learned about the culture of different native tribes all throughout America, and their suffering during the Indian War. Next, the group visited the Holocaust Museum to see the propaganda that started the Holocaust, and the stories of children who documented their lives during the Holocaust. Finally, students visited the Newseum, an interactive museum dedicated to the history of the media. Here, students enjoyed a 4-D film introducing the Newseum and telling the stories of Edward Murrow and Nellie Bly. Next they went on to learn about JFK and his family, the media around the world, and to see segments of the Berlin Wall.

Along with museums, students visited the most iconic monuments of our country. Though it may have been covered in scaffolding, the grade was given plenty of opportunity to photograph the Washington Monument, which stands in the middle of all the sights. Behind that, students visited the Lincoln Memorial to see first-hand the craftsmanship that went in to carving a 19-foot high Lincoln that overlooks the land. Also carved in stone and more newly dedicated was the MLK Memorial which bears more than a dozen quotes from the heroic Dr. King and also has a perfect view across the water of the Jefferson Memorial. Iwo Jima, one of the most famous photos ever taken, is also a tall, bronze statue which students visited after touring Arlington Cemetery. While at Arlington, the group watched the changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and honored the Challenger memorial.

Just outside D.C. in Virginia, Mount Vernon resides on the hilltops, the home of George Washington. Though there is now a visitor center on this massive plot of land, right in the center at the back is where the original house still stands with its perfect view of the river. Here, students took a walking tour of the main house, the kitchen, and the small building that eventually turned into a hospital for Washington's property keepers. Students got to see the bed that Washington died in. The group also walked through the graveyard where Washington and his family are buried. Another location where a president died was Ford's Theatre, in which the grade saw a presentation about the night of Lincoln's assassination. Next, they went to the house across the street to view the bed that Lincoln died in and to walk through the small museum next door.

For food, the group stopped by many famous places to eat, such as the Reagan Building, where the food court offered many cuisines for students to choose from. Another place the grade ate was the food court at  Pentagon City mall. The most exciting place overall where the group ate was on the dinner cruise. Students enjoyed a buffet-style feast before dancing the night away, and for the chaperones, there was a dance contest against the other school onboard, which CDS won for the fourth year in a row.

You can't go to Washington without visiting the Capitol, and that's just what the students did. After taking a group photo out front, the grade walked to the newly-built visitor center where they saw a film about the history of the Capitol and the symbolism it's had ever since. Next, they took a walking tour through the most beautiful parts of the building including the old house chamber and the rotunda. Finally, students stopped by the back of the White House for a photo-op of the residence that houses our nation's leader. The park across the way was also strewn with pink petals from the cherry blossoms that rained down from the trees the day before.

Overall, the students enjoyed their trip, and look forward to finishing their scrapbooks. The favorite event among the group was agreeably the dinner cruise, though a few had their own favorite moments when the Capitol's rotunda blew their breath away, or when they saw the original copy of the Constitution. New additions to this beautiful city are always being built, so the next group of eighth graders to visit are guaranteed to enjoy it even more!