Here is a video of San Francisco, one of the cities we visited on our California trip!

CITY HALL!!!

Today we visited City Hall. We learned about civics and government and what the "important people" in Sacramento, CA do!! We took a guided tour and learned about all the different departments. The students got to experience first hand in groups what the government here in Sacramento does. I think they got a good taste of everyday life there and seemed to be pretty impressed at what all they are responsible and do. Today was pretty exhausting so I'm sure they are very tired after learning about civics and government!!

Sutter's Fort Historic Park

Hello again! Well, we're on our last leg of our California journey, but that doesn't mean we're slowing down! Today we came to the capital of California, Sacramento. For our first lesson of the day, we visited the state park of Sutter's Fort. Sutter's Fort was important to Sacramento and California state history. The lesson at the park taught your children about the history of the fort. The students then related that history to the history of the United States, which they were able to do very well! We started the day with a tour around the park, guided by a park ranger. Your children took notes and many pictures to remember the day by. They even got to see what it would have been like to live at Sutter's Fort during the 1800's. Many people were dressed in time period clothing and going about daily activities as any pioneer would. Later, we discussed the tour as a group and your kids put together their own timelines of the park. The students seemed very interested in the history of the park. They were able to learn more about the California Gold Rush, a lesson not heavily touched upon in our own Pennsylvania history. Today's lesson really gave your children a perspective from a very different place than home.

After the tour and our group activities, we enjoyed a nice lunch outside in the beautiful weather. We then moved on to our next lesson in a more modern day Sacramento.

THE WEATHER: Lake Tahoe

In addition to learning about the geography in Lake Tahoe, we learned about the weather in Lake Tahoe as well. At Lake Tahoe, 250 to 300 days a year are sunny with the percentage rising to 93% in summer, and humidity is very low, again especially in summer, when the temperatures are warm or even hot, averaging in the 70s for the four midsummer months, and with occasional highs in the 90s. Because of the high elevation and the purity of the air, ultraviolet levels are high so care must be taken to prevent sunburn, particularly on the ski slopes in winter when reflections from the snow can double the intensity. Lake Tahoe has never reached the magic 100°F mark, its record high being 99°F set on July 22nd, 1988!

We learned so much today at Lake Tahoe the students were so tired. We had a blast and most of them said they wanted to move here and learn to ski!!!

Lake Tahoe

Today we continued our California adventure in Lake Tahoe! The students had some great geography lessons involving the lake and the surrounding area. The students took a tour of the lake and were able to observe all the topographical features found there, including the beautiful mountains and pristine lake. They took lots of notes about the tour and afterwards were able to describe all the features found around Lake Tahoe. They also used their photography skills to take pictures for water cycle charts that described the process in detail. Your kids also studied samples of soil from around the lake. They used these samples to make predictions about erosion and the effects this process has on the environment around the lake. Your kids all loved the tour of lake and had a great day outdoors in the beautiful weather and even more beautiful surroundings!

Today we visited the site of the California Gold Rush!!! The students took a tour of the site from a very knowledgeable tour guide. He taught us all about the history of the California Gold Rush. We learned about how so many people were first attracted to California because of this great discovery. People all over the United States and the world traveled to California because of "Gold Fever!!" Many of these people ended up starting businesses, trading posts, importing goods to sell to miners, farming and ranching. The California Gold Rush was one of the most significant events in California history and is responsible for what California has become today!

Trip to SFSU!!!

Hello parents!! So today our goal was to become more familiar with higher education opportunities so we visited San Francisco State University!! We took a tour of the gorgeous campus and learned a lot about college. Everyone was really excited. Some of the students at SFSU helped give us a tour and show us all around campus. We enjoyed lunch in their cafeteria where the food was great! After lunch our students split up and got to choose what academic buildings they wanted to see according to a major they might be interested in. They learned all about that major and the types of career opportunities each particular degree offers. The kids had a lot of fun and constantly talking about what kind of jobs they want and what they might want to major in when they go to college!

Hello parents! Well, we just got back from our first full day in California! The weather was beautiful as we headed out into San Francisco Bay to Alcatraz Island. No, none of your kids are in that much trouble! We took a great tour of the island and the prison and were able to have a diverse lesson on both history and ecology of the island.

Our history lesson, led by Miss Ryan, centered mostly on the prison. A prison guard lead our group around the prison and gave a very interesting lecture about the history of the prison, from its military days to its years as a federal prison and included plenty of stories about the famous inmates that that passed through the prison. The kids really enjoyed hearing about Al Capone, who we learned about in our history class this past year! After the tour, the students were able to have a question and answer session with the guard. For homework, they got to pretend to be a prison guard or a prisoner and write about their experiences at Alcatraz. Overall, all the students seemed to enjoy learning about the fascinating history behind this famous prison.

After our history lesson, we jumped on over to a lesson on ecology, led by Miss Strohman. While the island may be most famous for its prison history, few people realize the amazing ecosystem found on the island. The students were able to explore the island like few other people are able to do. They collected samples of plant and animal life on the island. They found that Alcatraz is inhabited by a large number of seabird, who have been here since before any humans even stepped foot on the Rock. The students were able to chart how the changing conditions of the seasons would affect the ecosystems and they held another question and answer session about all the organisms they had found. This lesson really helped the students understand how diverse ecosystems can be and how surprising they can be, such as find a bustling and lively ecosystem on Alcatraz Island.

This very full day was a great introduction to San Francisco and to California. The students are all very excited about all of the upcoming lessons and are already doing a great job and actively learning in a new place! We hope to hear from you all soon through comments on the blog! All of your kids say hello! We'll be talking to you soon about our next lesson!

To learn more about what your kids experienced today, click on this link to explore the Alcatraz Island website! Enjoy!

Hi parents! This blog is here to keep you updated about what your kids are seeing, learning and experiencing. We will be posting our lessons so that you can see where your kids are going everyday. We will also be posting if anything fun or exciting happens...which we are sure it will! We know your kids are excited to get on that plane and fly across the country. This educational trip will certainly add to their school experience and help them apply even more real life material to everything they have learned at school this year. As you know from the itinerary, we will be departing soon from Philadelphia International Airport and landing at San Francisco International Airport. We'll be posting again soon about our first day in California!