D.C. Trip Brings Excitement

8th graders are starting to get excited about the Washington D.C. Trip, which will happen after Spring Break. The trip will start on May 7th and end on May 11th, adding up to five days. During the trip, students will visit many museums and monuments that they have been learning about during the school year.

Ms. Raina Green, an 8th grade Social Studies teacher, says, “This program allows students to truly immerse themselves in the things we are learning about in class, from politics & current events, to our most important leaders in U.S. history, to the markers like WWII & the Civil Rights movement that shape our memory & values today. It's also a lot of fun!”

Students will do many things on the trip. They will visit many museums, such as the Smithsonian Institution and the Holocaust Memorial Museum. Students will spend time outside, too. During the trip, they will go walk around the Arlington National Cemetery, the National Mall, LaFayette Park (which is in front of the White House), and the Black Lives Matter Plaza. The group will also explore Georgetown and many other historical neighborhoods.

One of the most distinct things the 8th grade will do during the trip is to go to Capitol Hill and meet various senators and representatives. They will see many people, including Majority Whip Tom Emmer, who was scheduled to meet the 8th grade last year but couldn’t come.

“It’s kind of a new experience [because] … my brother didn’t do this trip so I’m excited to experience it myself… Usually, the school doesn’t do these big trips,” said Noah Zacks, a current 8th grader.

The D. C. trip used to be optional. 7th graders could choose to take the trip, which happened over spring break. “I felt like the trip was a better match for 8th graders based on our curriculum and it was such a valuable experience, I wanted EVERYONE to get to go, not just the kids whose families could afford a spring break trip for them,” says Green, who took over the trip after her colleague retired. After that, Green worked with Blake’s leadership team to make the trip a required 8th-grade event.

Currently, many 8th graders are excited about the trip. “I think it will be good to see all of the different historical monuments that are there and talk to politicians and see how they think of the political landscape,” says an 8th grader.