Safety Patrol Washington D.C. Trip Every year, Clifton's 5th grade safety patrol take an exciting three day trip to Washington D.C. They get to see important places and monuments, visit museums, and even stay in a hotel overnight. They spend three fun-filled, exhausting days walking around Washington D.C. and sightseeing. This photo album will show you some of the sights they get to see and learn about. |
Arlington Cemetery It is the first stop on the trip. Here 5th graders get to see the John F. Kennedy Eternal Flame and memorial. They also get to see the changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. |
Mt. Vernon The 5th graders get to visit Mt. Vernon, George Washington's home and burial site. Here students get to walk through Washington's house and see the way he lived long ago. They also view his burial grounds, tour a museum all about George Washington, and look out over the Potomac River. |
The Capitol Students get to journey on inside the Capitol Building and learn about our country's government. We take a tour which leads us to see National Statuary Hall which consists of 100 statues given by the US's 50 states, 2 statues each. We also head into the Capitol Rotunda. There is a lot of art and architecture to look at in this room. Each piece represents a certain part of history. |
Library of Congress A short walk through underground tunnels and we have made it to the Library of Congress. It is the largest library in the United States. Anyone 16 years and older may use the collections in this library for research. However, no one is allowed to borrow and take home any of these library books. Safety patrols get to look down onto the nation's biggest library. |
The White House Saftey patrolers are most excited when we visit the White House. It is home to our current president. We are not allowed to go inside and visit. However, we do enjoy standing out front and taking our pictures of this histroic house. |
Washington Monument During our trip, we get to see the Washington Monumnet from all over D.C. Thats because it is 555 feet tall. We like to take pictures of this monument, which honors George Washington. Sometimes if we are lucky, we get tickets to climb up to the top. . |
U.S. Bureau of Printing and Engraving This is definitely a cool place to visit when we are in Washington D.C. Here we get to see how money is made. We start out with a quick video about the process in which they make money. Then we even get to see them print, dye, and make millions of dollars, right below our feet. |
National Archives Another favorite among the 5th graders is the National Archives. Here is where we get to see the original Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, and Bill of Rights. Many safety patrolers like to look for John Hancock's name on the Declaration of Independence, among many others. |
The Petersen House Along with Ford's Theater, safety patrols get to visit the home where Lincoln died. They have preserved the room and bed. There is also a museum about Lincoln's life. We learned some of the most important qualities of being a good leader here. |
Memorials A big part of our trip is going and visiting different memorials. Many of the 5th graders have learned about the important people that these memorials honor. Some memorials and museums we visit that are not included in this album are: National Law Enforcement Officers Memeorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memeorial, United States Holocaust Memorial Museum (Daniel's Story), the Smithsonian, and the National Air and Space Museum. |
Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Martin Luther King Jr. is carved into the Stone of Hope. Here 5th graders can read Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous "I Have a Dream" speech, which is also cut into the stone. |
Jefferson Memorial Here, Thomas Jefferson is honored. His statue in the middle stands 19 feet tall. 5th graders love to climb up the steps to see him in the middle. Across the way, you can see the MLK and Lincoln Memorial. |
Marine Corps War Memorial This memorial honors U.S. Marine Corps soldiers who have died defending the United States of America. It is also called the Iwo Jima Memorial because it is based on a famous photograph taken in Iwo Jima. |
The Korean War Veterans Memorial This memorial honors those who served in the U.S. armed forces during the Korean War. There are 19 statues respresented all ehtnicities. Sometimes when we walk by at night, it looks like the statues' eyes are following us. |
Lincoln Memorial We like to visit the Lincoln Memorial at night. We climb 87 steps to get to Lincoln's statue inside. His statue is 19 feet tall. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech was made on the steps of the Lincoln Memroial. You can look out over the Reflecting Pool and see the Washington Monument and the National World War II Memorial. |
National World War II Memorial This memorial honors the 16 million members who served in the armed forces for the United States of America, the 400,000 + who died while serving, and those who supported the war effort from home. Students like to look at the Freedom Wall. There are 4,048 stars on the Freddom wall. Each star represents 100 Americans who lost their lives in WWII. |
Chaperones Chaperones are the most important part of the Washington D.C. trip. They volunteer their time to look after and guide the students around Washington D.C. for 3 days. Among those that volunteer are police officers, fire fighters, and EMTs. |
Washington D.C. Trip The Washington D.C. trip is a great opportunity for many 5th grade saftey patrols in Clifton, NJ. This is the trip that many of them may not be able to go on in the future. Here they make many memories and learn a lot about our nation's capital. |