Knowledge diffusion is hard when, over 60% of my students qualify for free and reduced lunch and extra money is hard to come by for many families whose children I teach. My students are polite, curious, and hard working. Many of them long to know what lies beyond our local area, but their parents do not have the funds to provide such an experience.
I want my students to experience the world outside our small town.Our school does everything in its power to provide for our students' personal and educational needs;we provide names for Thanksgiving and Christmas meals, participate in a backpack program that supplies food for the week-end, bring traveling plays to school for the students to enjoy, and apply for educational grants to better our technology.
But even with all this, I want to do more. I want them to see the roots of their country in person, to see the social studies classroom in action, and I can think of no better way to do that than to take my students to Washington DC.
My Project
August 13th, 1786, Thomas Jefferson said to George Wythe, "I think by far the most important bill in our whole code is that for the diffusion of knowledge among the people. No other sure foundation can be devised for the preservation of freedom, and happiness." Isn't this a goal of schools today?
I get chills envisioning my students stepping off the bus at Arlington National Cemetery and walking the same halls and gardens as George Washington.
I can only imagine what they will say, as they stand literally at the feet of Lincoln and Jefferson at their own memorials. But that, in my opinion, is the "diffusion of knowledge among the people" of which Jefferson spoke. Making history come alive will help to solidify a firm educational foundation of our country's beginnings and how far we have advanced since 1776.
My students will see first hand the importance of those who have fought to create and protect the freedoms they enjoy. Students will visit memorials to our Founding Fathers including the Jefferson and Washington Monuments, along with Veteran's Memorials including the World War II, Vietnam, and Korean Memorials, the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington, and the National Marine Corps Museum. Government in action will also be witnessed as they visit the Capitol Building and White House. Students will learn the importance of speaking out against those who are wrong at the Holocaust Museum and see the plane that brought WWII to an end, the Enola Gay, at the Udvar Hazy Museum. Adding to the fun, will be an evening at Capital One Arena watching the Washington Wizards.
The "diffusion of knowledge" is not confined to the walls of a classroom. The real power of education is creating experiences for children that remain with them long after they leave.
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