WayBack: U.S. History for Kids is produced by American Experience, television's longest-running, most-watched history series. American Experience airs Monday nights on PBS. Web site Broadcast Schedule
	Be sure to check out the other WayBack Teachers & Parents areas. It's Not Fair! Presidents: The Secret History The Future Family Ties Flight Summer Vacation Stand Up For Your Rights Gold Rush! Technology 1900

Summer Vacation for Teachers and Parents

Now here's a topic kids can get behind! This site includes features on the history of summer camp and also the role of the automobile in changing summer vacation plans.

Was car camping developed as an elaborate promotional stunt by Henry Ford to help create a market for the new automobiles? The development of Miami Beach was also tied to the automobile and the building of paved roads (not to mention some stunning promotional schemes). Tim Hollis, an expert in old-time Southern tourist attractions, talks about his favorite tourist destinations in the days before Six Flags and Disney. And to get even more ideas for fun places to visit, kids can take a virtual road trip across the country and choose their next destination.

For Teachers:

1. When your students are getting restless as the year winds down, grab their attention with a summer vacation theme and maybe they'll even learn something. Many of your students will be taking road trips this summer so why not pick that as your focus. You can use the two feature articles here on Miami Beach and car camping, along with the Built for Speed article in the Technology 1900 issue of WayBack, to investigate the automobile and its impact on the American landscape. Break students into groups to research different aspects of the automobile, including Henry Ford and his manufacturing innovations, the development of roads in the early 20th century (and the highway system under Eisenhower), the realities and challenges of relying on horses pre-automobile, the use of promotional stunts to encourage the public to embrace the automobile (e.g., Carl Fisher and the Indianapolis 500), how people vacationed before automobiles, etc. Students can share their findings with the class through multimedia presentations or share them with the school through bulletin board displays.
   
2. Heading off summer slide is always a challenge. Here's a strategy to keep your students writing while they play. If you send out class lists and a welcome pack during the summer, ask your new students to send postcards to the class from wherever they go over the summer -- even if it's the next town over. Give them some ideas of things to write about (e.g., a significant historical fact that ties into your social studies curriculum or something that's related to your geography objectives). At the beginning of the year, use the postcards to plot your students' travels on a map and jumpstart your geography studies. Or use the various locations to create a map activity like the Road Trip feature, using rhymes, distance, and directions to plot a course on a map.
   

For Parents:

1. Your summer vacation can help get your kids excited about history -- and make your trips more fun too. Before you go somewhere, ask your librarian about historical fiction or nonfiction books related to the place you're visiting. For example, if you're going to central Massachusetts on your way to the Berkshires, read Someday by Jackie French Koller, which tells the story of the towns that were displaced to make way for the Quabbin Reservoir. If you're visiting northern California, check out the issue of WayBack on the Gold Rush and read The Ballad of Lucy Whipple by Karen Cushman or one of the many other books about the Gold Rush. If Upstate New York is your destination, The Sherwood Ring by Elizabeth Marie Pope offers an interesting perspective on how the British fought the American Revolution. Reading stories about a place they plan to visit helps kids develop a sense of familiarity with your destination and gives them a context for exploring. And if they enjoy nonfiction books, they may be more interested in helping to plan your trip so they can check out the things they've been learning about. Always give them the chance to take the lead.
   
2. This site has some fascinating information about what vacations used to be like. Sharing your own stories of camp and vacations is a wonderful way to share your childhood experiences and stories of your extended family. These kinds of conversations help your children get a sense of where they fit in the history of their family, and ultimately the history of this country. Especially for children, often the easiest way to develop an understanding of history is through personal connections to it, so don't forget to add any larger context that makes sense, like events that happened where you were visiting.
   
3. Being on vacation doesn't mean your kids have to forget all their skills. Encourage them to write letters to people at home (you could also send e-postcards from this Web site to the people you met on vacation when you get home). Keep a journal together as you go -- maybe you write on one page and your child writes on the other and you can see what each of you thought was the most interesting or enjoyable thing that happened that day. When you come home, write an illustrated record of your trip together so you'll always remember it. You can also teach your kids about map reading and geography. Take turns being the navigator (except when you're driving!).