When we venture out on field trips, our kids get first hand experiences that a book can never mimic. At the same time, homeschool field trips can be stressful, time consuming, and sometimes expensive. Weather is an added factor to consider with outdoor events such as a Civil War re-enactment.
One alternative to packing snacks, loading the van, and buying tickets is the virtual field trip. These online explorations can awaken your child’s love of American history. Besides supplementing your American history curriculum, virtual field trips also provide a way for your child to explore places that may be inaccessible.
If you want to spice up your study of American history, look at these 32 virtual trips and a list of easy ways to enhance them.
Life in Early America and Cowboys
- Plimoth Plantation Virtual Field Trips
- Explore an 1860’s farm
- National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum
- George Washington’s Mount Vernon
- Hudson River Museum
- Louisa May Alcott’s Orchard House
- Tour the house of Betsy Ross
- Historic Philadelphia Virtual Tour
- Monticello – Home of Thomas Jefferson
- Virtual Jamestown
Native Americans
- Castle Rock – pueblos of Colorado
- Oglala Lakota Nation Pow Wow
- Virtual trip to Georgia Indian Mounds
American Revolutionary War
Lewis and Clark & the Oregon Trail
- Lewis and Clark journey (Google Earth)
- Oregon Trail
Immigration, World War II, & Modern American History
American Transportation
American Civil War
- Ford’s Theatre the place of Lincoln’s assassination
- Virtual Gettysburg
- Andersonville Prison also known as Sumter Prison, a large Confederate prison
Ways to Enhance a Virtual Field Trip
Virtual field trips can be just as enriching and interactive as a physical one as long as you plan ahead. For example, print out a notebooking page or prepare a scavenger hunt for kids to fill out. Many websites provide these kinds of helps in the educational resources section of the domain. Do a little hunting prior to your virtual visit to make the most of any freebies the site offers. Some children may like to work as they explore while others will want to totally immerse themselves in the experience and make notes only after the field trip is over.
To make sure your virtual field trip doesn’t become a passive affair, incorporate a hands-on activity before or after. BookShark has Lap Book Kits for both American History Year 1 and Year 2 that could work as field trip follow up in many cases!
About the Author
Tina Robertson celebrated the graduation of Mr. Senior in 2013 and Mr. Awesome in 2015. Because of her love for new homeschoolers, she mentors moms through her unique program called New Bee Homeschoolers. She loves all homeschoolers, though, as she shares her free 7 Step Curriculum Planner, unit studies, lap books and homeschooling how tos. She can’t sing, dance, or craft, but she counts organizing as a hobby. She is still in the homeschool trenches blogging at Tina’s Dynamic Homeschool Plus.