Travel Back in Time to Jamestown

During our "vacation" last week, we had the pleasure of bringing history to life with a visit to Jamestown Settlement. The timing was perfect as we have been studying Jamestown for the past couple of weeks.



There was so much hands-on fun for the boys and we all had a blast. They even got to learn how to hoist the sails, which was a really cool experience since we have been reading so much about ships.

One of the books I have been reading aloud to the boys is Carry On, Mr. Bowditch by Jean Lee Latham. In the story, the main character Nat discusses taking lunars to find the ship's location. At the gallery in Jamestown Settlement, the boys were able to try their hand at it (in a much simpler way).

The main book we've been using in our studies is Surviving Jamestown: The Adventures of Young Sam Collier. There are also graphic novels out there that tell the story of Jamestown. Graphic novels are very popular with children because they make the story fun and easy to read.

The Jamestown Settlement website has lots of wonderful, free resources for homeschoolers including lesson plans. National Geographic Kids has a great interactive adventure about John Smith and Jamestown. My five-year-old had fun with it and it made him even more interested when we visited. Another fun activity when studying this time period would be to make hardtack.

Traveling back in time through the study of history can be fun for the entire family. Find a historical site or museum near you and learn all you can before you go.


Now it's your turn! If you have a post about travel tips, a great way to teach geography, beautiful photos from a recent trip, ways to travel on a budget, or anything else that has to do with introducing our children to the world around them, then please link up. It doesn't have to be a recent post - just as long as it pertains to travel or geography. All I ask is that you link back to my site in your post.