2019 Junior High Spring Academic Field Study / Trip
Each spring, the Junior High embarks on a trip that is completely student-planned. This year the students planned a trip to Philadelphia and New York City. Read below for the trip journal submitted by the students.
Click here for Spring Trip Photos
Monday, April 29, 2019
A Message from Jonathan Z. (hi mom/dad)
Today, we got on the bus. We rode on the bus for around five hours before arriving at the Carnegie Science Center. When we arrived, we split up into different groups. My group went to the ropes course first, but the line was too long, so we didn’t get to do it. After that we went to a submarine that was in the water (not under the water, sadly). That submarine had been used by the army until it fell out of use, I guess. I don’t really know how the museum acquired it, but I do know that they had it, and we went in it, and it was pretty cool. After that we went to go see some things about the water cycle and saw some aquatic animals. They had a lot of frogs. When we finished with that, we went to go see the robot exhibit. There was a robot there that you could instruct to move its head around and say different things. Me and a few people made its head shake around and say random gibberish (y’know, like kids do).
After that, it was time to go see the DaVinci exhibit. It showcased the various inventions that he sketched out over the years. It was interesting to see all the different kinds of flying machines he tried to make. It also had a section where you could draw your own Mona Lisa (mine was a complete masterpiece, Mary told me she couldn’t even tellthe difference from the original). But I’m getting off track. After that we got back to the bus and drove to Fort Pitt. Fort Pitt was pretty cool (they had cannons) and shot off a rifle for us (with blanks, don’t worry). It was funny when Keith said “It should be about even if we have all the girls in a group and anyone named Evan or John.” Keith counted me as a John :( I forget what the building was called, but we went in it. It was the only surviving part of Fort Pitt and the oldest building in Pittsburg. They had different stickers on the walls for how high the flood levels got (it was next to a river). One of the floods got to the roof! After that, we ate dinner (I went to Chipotle, and Mom, it cost me around 9 dollars. See, I’m not wasting my money). Now we are on the bus driving to our hotel. I am told the drive is going to take three hours.
I really said “after that” a lot, didn’t I? Oh well, I’ve been in a bus for more than half of my day.
With after that sprit,
Jonathan Z.
Tuesday, April 30, 2019
Dear Junior High Parents,
Our second day of the class trip was very fun and successful. We began our day at 8:30, traveling to Independence National Historical Park. We learned about early Pennsylvania and Philadelphia. We toured Philadelphia’s incredible City Hall, and were able to learn about the architecture of the building. Each of us had the chance to go to the very top (22nd floor) of City Hall, and see the beautiful city of Philly from an aerial view. We also toured the Wells Fargo Center, which is where Philadelphia’s basketball and ice hockey teams play home games. We were even able to catch a glimpse inside the locker rooms and see the stadium. We ate lunch and dinner at Reading Market, which is very similar to Findlay Market in Cincinnati, but a little bit crazier! A tour of Independence Hall followed lunch. We were able to see the room in which the Declaration of Independence was signed!!
We returned to Reading Market for dinner, and then boarded the bus to head to our hotel for the night. However, on our way back, we had two surprise stops that the teachers had planned for us. The first being the Rocky movie steps leading up to the Philadelphia Art Museum. We all raced off the bus to see who could get to the top of the stairs first. We all got back on the bus, ready for the second surprise stop. When the bus pulled into Dairy Queen, everybody got excited. All 43 kids lined up by the counter, hungry for ice cream. After everybody had eaten DQ, all 43 kids piled back on the bus, this time on a sugar high, as we laughed and talked and giggled and screamed our way to the hotel. Today was a great day!
Adios la familia!
Ava Jane M.
Wednesday, May 1
Hello Parents,
It was a fun packed, very full day and we are all safe and checked in to our hotel. Sorry for the late email, but we just got here 45 minutes ago.
We started our day with a ferry ride to the Statue of Liberty. We were able to go up to the observation deck to see the view of the city from up high and visualize how 12 million immigrants came to our country in the late 1800s and early 1900s. We then took a ferry ride to Ellis Island where we experienced their dormitory, registration room, mental tests taken, and the library and research center where you can look up family members that came to our country. The kids were interested in their own history. For example, Paulie's grandmother was Luisa Starace... she came from Italy in October 1935. How amazing to be in the very place she was many years ago!
Next we took the ferry to Battery Park and walked to the 9-11 Memorial. The students were very respectful and quiet. The signs invited them to touch the names of those lost in the fall of the twin towers. Many did just that.
We then headed to Times Square, Planet Hollywood for dinner, and ended our night with the play To Kill A Mockingbird at the Shubert Theatre. It was incredible. I heard the kids talking on the bus afterwards about the differences from the book and the parts that they enjoyed. The play is nominated for 9 Tony Awards for 2019 with a nomination for best lead actor by Jeff Daniels. Worth every nomination. Amazing. Please ask your children about it when they get home.
Tomorrow is our last day in NYC. We will see you Friday around 8:30pm. I will send a parent alert through Renweb on Friday evening to let you know the exact time that we will arrive. Please park in the upper parking lot, we will need the main driveway for the bus. You could walk down to the main driveway to greet your child. Just be sure to stand in the grass or on the sidewalk.
Last but not least, your children are wonderful. They listened to our directions of respect, pickpocket warnings, and general safety and complied with every one. We are very proud of them and have high hopes for much of the same to finish the week.
Thank you for trusting us with your children. More tomorrow...
Thursday, May 2nd
Hello,
Today we did a lot of fun things around New York. We woke up early and got to visit one of the tallest building in New York, the Empire State Building! After an exciting view of New York, we all went to Think Coffee shop and ate lunch. After having delicious food, we all went on a street art tour around New York organized by Max Fink, Thank You BTW. After the tour we went over to the Natural History Museum which I think we all really enjoyed. Even though half the building was booked for a party we still got to see some pretty neat things, including lions and bears. Without a doubt my favorite part of the day was when we got to visit Central Park. We got to choose where to get dinner at different food trucks which we enjoyed. After dinner we played football in Central Park for a bit before heading back to our hotel for the night.
Ollie L. and Colsten S.