Stars and Suns in Our Nation’s Capital

Our 8^th grade Stars and Suns experienced an amazing whirlwind tour of Washington, D.C. April 24-26. This trip is an extension of our SAA-SDS curriculum and is a special culminating experience for our students as they end their time in our lower school.

Working with licensed Grand Classroom tour guides, the trip is designed to actively engage students as they visit the city’s most famous sites. Their three-day packed itinerary included a visit to Arlington National Cemetery where they viewed a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, a trip to Mt. Vernon, visits to the Vietnam War, Korean War and WWII Memorials, and a private tour of the Capitol Building.

The students were readily able to make connections between their classroom study and this real-world experience. SAA student Amara Touch said, “We knew a lot about the history of places we visited from class. It helped us to answer questions that were posed by the tour guide. I was really proud! We also learned a lot of new things from our tour guide-more than we could have learned on our own.”

SDS student Hank Thompson felt that getting to see our nation’s capital was very important saying, “It’s such an historic city-and the only city specifically designed to be a capital.” He enjoyed the Mt. Vernon visit the most, and shared, “It was such a beautiful property and was really cool how they kept everything as it would have been when it was George Washington’s home.”

Amara, said her favorite part of the trip was the Vietnam War Memorial. She explained, “There were veterans of the war there, talking to everyone. They have been through so much but said they would do it all again. They had a beautiful message about their hopes and dreams for our country. We were all crying at the end.”

In addition to the sites already mentioned, the 8^th graders visited many other memorials, monuments, and museums, and enjoyed a nighttime walking history tour. On the last day they toured the amazing Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, the largest Roman Catholic church in North America and one of the ten largest churches in the world. They also visited the Saint Pope John Paul II National Shrine.

While the trip reinforced both the American History and Civics/Government courses that the 8th graders completed this year, it also provided the SAA and SDS students one last Brotherhood and Sisterhood event before making the leap to high school. Our Stars and Suns have made connections and memories that will last a lifetime.

It is a bittersweet time for our Stars and Suns! Hank reflected, “Coming to the end of 8^th grade is just a roller coaster of emotions-we’re all excited, but we’re also sad. We’re excited for high school, but sad to leave this great place. Amara said, “I learned so much about my classmates on this trip. This experience is going to stick with me forever.”