Programs by Theme-Transportation and Industry

National Capital Region Parks - Transportation/Industry title graphic

Catoctin Mountain Park, 6602 Foxville Road, Thurmont, MD 21788. Call (301) 663-9388 or visit our website at: www.nps.gov/cato.

Written requests for reservations are required for visits by school groups. Call (301) 663-9388 for information or visit Catoctin's web page for more information on education programs.

Close Encounters of the Catoctin Kind (Traveling Trunk) (5TH Grade, Ages 9-11) Theme: Cultural Heritage Units: Native American Indians, African Americans, Charcoal/Iron Industry, Sawmill and Whiskey Still Industries. An educational traveling trunk filled with treasures, pieces of our past, linking the local school curriculum with our park's heritage. Five discovery units, objects, artifacts, teacher background information, and suggested student activities included. Teachers are responsible for trunk pick up and return to Park. No cost.

The Blacksmith in Society (Grades 4th - 8th, Ages 1-14) Themes: African American History, Environmental Awareness, Economics, Geography. The blacksmith played an integral role in our developing nation. Their services were essential to individuals and industry. Townspeople gathered at the blacksmith shop to exchange ideas, gossip, and argue politics. The blacksmith is the central figure in the package consisting of an informational site bulletin and 5 lesson plans addressing Maryland learning outcomes for social studies grades 4-8.

Lesson Plan #1 Economic Incentives for Industrial Development

Lesson Plan #3 The Cost of Wages

Chesapeake & Ohio Canal National Historical Park, 1850 Dual Highway, Suite 100, Hagerstown, MD 21742. Call (301) 739-4200 or visit our website at www.nps.gov/choh

A modern day canaller and his mules in Georgetown

A Canaller and his Mules in Georgetown

Georgetown Visitor Center, 1057 Thomas Jefferson Street, NW, Washington, DC 20007. (202) 653-5190

Mule-Drawn Canal Boat Rides Enjoy a 1 hour mule-drawn ride on a reproduction 19th century canal boat. Experience locking through a historic lift lock while rangers in period clothing describe the history and the lives of the families that worked on the canal during the 1870's. Reservations and fee information (202) 653-5190.

Port of Georgetown Middle & High School, 1 hour, 20 students or less. Students join a park ranger for a walk and talk on the history of Georgetown's once hustling, bustling port. Students will explore how the neighborhood's waterfront has changed through the years. The program emphasizes early transportation history and industry along the Potomac River.

Potomac River: Past & Present High School, 1 hour, 20 students or less. Students join a park ranger for a talk about the Potomac River. Students will explore how successive local peoples have viewed and used the "Nation's River" from Neolithic times to the present. The program emphasizes geography's effect on the history, transportation, and settlement of the region.

Great Falls Tavern Visitor Center, 11710 MacArthur Blvd, Potomac, MD 20854. (301) 767-3714.

Please Note: The mule drawn canal boat rides at Great Falls, Maryland will not be available in 2003. For more information please visit http://www.nps.gov/choh/nr042803.htm.

Cumberland Visitor Center, Western Maryland Station, 13 Canal Street, Cumberland, MD 21502. (301) 722-8226

Canal Boat Tour/Boat Turnaround Demonstration 3rd gradem 1 hour, Canal Boat, 40 students or less. Students will tour the canal boat and use a rope to represent a boat turning in the basis as a whole group activity. At the end of the activity the students will be aware of the difference in cargo size between types of transportation and how cargo size increases with modernization of transportation.

Cumberland Visitor Center/Transportation Walk 3rd grade, 1 hour, Cumberland Visitor Center/Canal Place, 40-60 students. Students will learn about the canal and canal life through hands-on activities in the visitor centr and a guided transportation walk. At the end of the activity, students will realize the importance of the coal industry to Allegany County and the canal operation.

Locking Through 4th grade, 1 hour, Canal Boat at Canal Place and Lock House 75, Adaptable. Students will form cooperative groups and accurately measure the dimensions of a canal boat and lift lock. At the end of the activity, students will then demonstrate their understanding of the locking-through process by role-playing the action of a canal boat entering and exiting a lock.

Paw Paw Tunnel 4th grade, 2 hours, Paw Paw Tunnel, 40 students. Students will observe a topographic map and analyze the difference in elevation while walking along the towpath. Then, working in cooperative groups, the students will use this information to construct a three dimensional model out of clay.

Tunneling Through Time 5th grade, 1 1/2-2 hours, Paw Paw Tunnel, 15-60 students. Students will work in groups to compare the hardships endured with that of the Paw Paw Tunnel, understand the benefits of the tunnel, and appreciate the amount of effort that it took to complete the tunnel.

Canal Place 5th grade, 3-5 days, Classroom and Canal Terminus at Western Maryland Station Site. 30-60 students. The students will divide into three groups. One group will tour the museum and the canal boat. The second group will measure a section of the canal basin and discuss its use, history, and the number of boats it served. The third group will become "history detectives" and try to determine where original canal sites were located by comparing landmarks still in existence today with what they see on historical photographs.

Claude Moore Colonial Farm, 6310 Georgetown Pike, McLean, VA 22101. Call (703) 442-7557 or visit our website at www.nps.gov/clma

Staff and volunteers dressed in reproduction period clothes, work the farm, and answer your questions about the farm, livestock, and family, as if you were actually an 18th century visitor. The Farm is managed and operated by the Friends of Claude Moore Colonial Farm, at Turkey Run, Inc. through a cooperative agreement with the National Park Service, George Washington Memorial Parkway.

Colonial Experience: (Farm-Site visit and Activity)

Farm-Site: (Visit only)

Please note these are fee programs. For in-depth infomation please visit http://www.1771.org/pages/group_visit.shtml

Great Falls Park, 9200 Old Dominion Drive, McLean, VA 22102. Call (703) 285-2965 or visit our website at www.nps.gov/gwmp/grfa

To schedule a program, call the park and be prepared to provide information regarding, your choice of dates (please try to give us three dates that you would be interested in having the programs conducted). We will request information about the type of program/subject you are interested in, the number of students, age-range of students, the number of adults, and any special needs or instructions. Please also provide us with your telephone number(s) and the best time to reach you. If you have a fax number and Email address, that will also assist us in contacting you.

Educational programs are generally limited to 25 students per park ranger. Programs for very young children require adult supervision from your organization (generally one adult per ten children). Programs will start and end at the agreed upon time. Programs are free, but groups should schedule with us as far in advance as possible since dates fill quickly, especially in the early fall and late spring.

The Patowmack Canal: Learn about George Washington's canal that he hoped would bind the country together and dramatically improve commerce on the Potomac River. Students visit remains of this engineering feat. The program is suitable for grades 4 and up. Allow at least one hour for the program.

Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, P.O. Box 65, Harpers Ferry, WV 25425. Call (304) 535-6283 or visit our website at www.nps.gov/hafe

All reservations must be made a minimum of 3 weeks prior to your visit. Openings are filled very quickly, so make your reservations early. Visit the Harpers Ferry Online Educator's Guide at www.nps.gov/hafe/edu-guide.htm

Harpers Ferry: A Place in History 3rd -12th grade. 60 minutes. This program provides an overview of the history of Harpers Ferry. Topics covered are: Native American use of the area; Robert Harper; building of the U.S. Armory and Arsenal; Transportation; John Brown's Raid; the Civil War and its impact on the community; African American history, including the founding of Storer College and the Niagara Movement; and the preservation of this site as a part of the National Park System.

Virginius Island 5th-12th grade. 90 minutes. This walking tour (3/4 mile) introduces students to Virginius Island, an industrial community of the 19th-century. Students will learn about the importance of water power to these 19th-century industries and also dangers of the river when nature becomes uncontrollable. Students will look for remnants of the past on an island that has been reclaimed by nature.

Oxon Cove Park & Oxon Hill Farm, National Capital Parks-East, 6411 Oxon Hill Road, Oxon Hill, MD 20745. Call (301) 839-1176 or visit our website at www.nps.gov/oxhi

Oxon Hill Cove

Exploring the Past - Grades K - 6

Sheep Sheering - Grades K - 6

Science and Ag, Hand in Hand - Grades K - 6

The Story of Grain - Grades K - 12

Apple Cider Days - Grades K - 12

Old Fashioned Corn Harvest - Grades K - 12

Historical Farm Equipment - Grades K - 12

Prince William Forest Park, 18100 Park Headquarters, Triangle, VA 22172. Call (703) 221-7181 or visit our website at www.nps.gov/prwi

Legacy of the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps)

Go Back and Mine (6-8 grade)

To schedule a program, call the Prince William Forest Park visitor center, (703) 221-7181, any day between 8:30 am and 4:30 pm. Please note that the offerings listed on our expanded webpage www.npg.gov/prwi/ee_home.htm are modules that would compose components of a more complete program. It is a pick-list of potential programs that either you or a park ranger could present to your students. To find out more, call the Interpretation and Visitor Services team at the park at the number and during the times listed above.