Washington D.C. 2024
– Mr. Brannan & the 8th Grade Chaperones
DAY TWO
Picture this—because it’s what your kids saw this morning—Mr. Rothbart dancing down the hallway with a Bluetooth speaker borrowed from Jordan S. blasting “Thriller” by Michael Jackson and Chappell Roan’s “Hot to Go” as he went door to door, knocking and telling the kids to wake up.
When asked about their wake up call, Eda referred to it as “epic.”
Dani said, “Thrilling, yet productive.”
John and Jordan S., who bonded about how they started their day watching Paw Patrol, called the wake up call “epic.”
Yesterday, we watched the sunset over the nation’s capital at dinner. Today, we watched it rise over breakfast. The 14th floor from the Monument Room is truly excellent and provided a nice view of the Jefferson Memorial where we’d be later in the morning.
This made it all the more baffling when a group of WNS students posed for a photo not overlooking DC but instead of the side of the building. Some light heckling by Mr. Brannan and Mr. Shipley couldn’t change their mind about the appropriate background for their photo.
After breakfast, we headed to the FDR Memorial, which covers a big outdoor space near the Tidal Basin, split into four areas that show different parts of FDR’s time as president. You can see statues of FDR, his wife Eleanor, their Scottish Terrier Fala, and everyday people from that time.
One of the more popular statues to take photos with at this memorial is of men waiting in a bread line. Most tourists join or insert themselves into the line. So did your kids, though it was a bit unclear if they wanted a photo or thought it was the line to enter the gift shop based on how many of them had been asking us about shopportunities already that morning.
There are also lots of waterfalls and pools, and walls with FDR’s famous quotes carved into them. The memorial tells the story of important events like the Great Depression and World War II. It’s designed so everyone, including people with disabilities, can easily visit and learn about FDR’s life and how he led the country during tough times.
While students walked through this memorial, they were given some WNS-provided cameras on which to capture photos of interesting design elements, like the cast iron braille and impressions of faces for blind patrons to be able to interact with the exhibit, so they could use it as part of their English/Social Studies Monument Project later in the year. While the students took the assignment seriously and appeared to snap some great photos, they also mixed in several selfies with silly faces. What a joy it will be for Mr. Brannan to download and sort through those photos later! At least this will provide him an opportunity to drop one of the more embarrassing selfie photos into the project explanation slides when the time comes.
After FDR, we walked over to the MLK Jr. Memorial. At the center of the memorial is a huge stone statue of Dr. King carved out of a big piece of white stone called the “Stone of Hope,” the name of which comes from one of his famous quotes: “Out of a mountain of despair, a stone of hope.” Behind Dr. King’s statue are two other big stones that look like they’ve been split apart. These represent the “mountain of despair.” Dr. King’s statue looks like it’s been pushed forward out of these stones, showing how he emerged from tough times to bring forth a message of hope. Around the memorial, you can read many of Dr. King’s inspiring quotes about equality, justice, and peace. The whole design is meant to remind of Dr. King’s dream for a better world and encourages us to keep working toward it by advocating for justice through speech and action. Like at FDR, students took photos of interesting design elements and elements of symbolism incorporated in the design.
Leaving the MLK Jr. Memorial, students spotted an ice cream truck open for business nearby and quickly formed a long line at it. While many students had transitioned from “I have a dream” to “Gimme ice cream,” we pulled them out of line to the dismay of the ice cream truck owner to debrief with their groups before heading to the Jefferson Memorial.
The white marble rotunda sitting on the edge of the Tidal Basin is one of the most picturesque memorials in the United States. Jefferson’s statue sits at its center, staring skeptically at the White House to symbolize his skepticism of the potential overreach of executive authority like, say, purchasing the Louisiana Territory without Congressional approval. Of course, we all know that wasn’t Jefferson’s biggest personal contradiction, nor his biggest sin. Still, the lofty words that came from the tip of his pen, inscribed on the marble walls of his memorial stand for something more than any man and certainly offer an ideal any nation should strive to achieve.
The steps of the Jefferson Memorial offered the students their first view of the White House. Many of them excitedly took pictures here with it off in the distance. (We’ll get a better view of it later this week from Lafayette Park!) Many of them also dipped into the gift shop in order to escape the wind whipping across the water. Or was it because they had money burning a hole in their pocket? Hard to know.
At the Reagan building students were given vouchers to get what their hearts desired for lunch. They also had a gift shop where your students loaded up on snacks and sweet treats that will possibly all be consumed behind closed doors tonight.
After lunch we made our way to the National African American Museum of History and Culture, a museum that takes visitors on a powerful, emotional journey through the African American experience. The museum’s design is intentional, with its lower levels delving into the dark, painful history of slavery and segregation. These dimly lit galleries confront visitors with the harsh realities of the past, through powerful displays and interactive exhibits.
As you ascend through the museum, the narrative shifts. The middle levels explore the long, arduous struggle for civil rights, filled with both heartbreak and courage. Finally, the upper floors burst with vibrant celebration of African American contributions to culture, arts, and society in fields like music, sports, and politics. The NMAAHC doesn’t shy away from difficult truths, but ultimately leaves visitors with a profound sense of resilience, and hope.
Our students, like the vast majority of visitors, fell silent when they hit the bottom floor, as they were confronted with the horrors of the beginnings of the international African slave trade. Many students stopped to ponder both alone and in groups the thought-provoking exhibits, videos, and interactive displays.
Unfortunately, one of the museum’s curators who was supposed to meet us to walk us through some upper floor exhibits got delayed on their train ride into the city and wasn’t able to meet us on time. Still, the kids got to explore the upper rooms on their own, marveling at some of the sports and music memorabilia. Noa and Haley celebrated freedom for all by dancing the Cha Cha Slide in the lobby.
After a long day of memorials and museum visits, we figured it was time for the kids to let loose. So we headed out to the National Mall for some impromptu PE time. Kids voluntarily ran wind sprints for a bit before Mr. Shipley organized a game of football. Another group of students practiced their volleyball skills for a bit before transitioning to kickball. They really needed to let some energy out (after walking only about 15K steps earlier in the day)! Luckily we’ll be doing the same thing tomorrow.
We then made our way to the National Portrait Gallery where students got to view the Presidential Portraits throughout the years before we ate dinner in Chinatown.
Our last outing, now the night had fallen, was to visit the Korean War, Vietnam Veterans, and Lincoln Memorials. They were wonderfully lit up at night, and with the sun gone and the wind picking up, we wondered how our 8th graders would do. But the cold couldn’t stop us, and the students were full of energy and made the trek with great enthusiasm. Our LA kids did not like the weather, but they quickly figured out huddling together was the best way to fight it, and it wasn’t long before our groups resembled the penguins in Antarctica waddling arm in arm with each other. After a few ran up the stairs of the Lincoln Memorial, the rest followed, and our group spread out admiring Lincoln’s massive statue with a few students commenting on his “judgey” disposition. Mr. Shipley and Mr. Brannan had a pretty good laugh convincing Jack, Blakeley, and Karlo that if you looked closely enough, Lincoln’s eyes would follow you, and they spent about 30 seconds walking around it trying to figure out if this was true.
As we headed back to the hotel, students complained of being exhausted, desiring their hotel room, and that’s when we knew if we kept this up, maybe they would sleep. But alas, once they got to their rooms, they seemed to get another jolt of energy. We’ll see how they’re doing tomorrow morning.
Tomorrow, we have another busy day planned. We’re off to the US Air Force Memorial after breakfast before heading to Arlington National Cemetery where we’ll get to watch Stella C., Alec, Peyton, and Tyler lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Afterward, we’ll head to lunch at a DC institution, Ben’s Chili Bowl. Then, we’ll visit Ford’s Theater before heading back to the National Mall where students will pick a Smithsonian museum to explore. After all that, we just have dinner (where we’ll celebrate Mr. Rothbart’s birthday) before arriving at the Kennedy Center to watch Shear Madness.
Till tomorrow,
The WNS DC Chaperones
