Eighth Grade Explores Historic Philadelphia

There, they saw the production "Freedom Rising" at the National Constitution Center; explored the center's Constitution exhibit; took a 75-minute walking tour around historic Philadelphia; and toured Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence and Constitution were created, debated and signed in 1776 and 1787, respectively. 

The group’s lunch break at The Bourse even included a bit of history: The modern food hall is located in a century-old building that used to house a stock exchange, maritime exchange and grain-trading exchange simultaneously. Eighth grade humanities teacher Stephen Hildreth, who oversaw and chaperoned the daylong field trip with fellow humanities teacher Tim Campbell, said that although the weather was misty and damp, the students had a great time: "Spirits were buzzing and upbeat."

In addition to taking in the city’s history, middle school art teacher Bruce Robbins tasked the students with capturing images of historical sites that have thoughtful content and composition. Robbins shared that, once back in the classroom, the students created 30-second video presentations of their photos with accompanying music and wrote artist statements to explain how their work relates to the grade’s yearlong theme of American identity.