Field Trip: Fort Raleigh and Lost Colony

Last Friday, we went to Fort Raleigh in Manteo, NC. We watched a film on the Lost Colony and toured the old Earthen Fort. The kids took a class on Native American markings and got to design their own markings for themselves.

We toured the backstage area of the Lost Colony. We got to see the stage, costume area, etc. We even got to watch them making scenery for an upcoming production of Oklahoma!

We went to see a production of the Lost Colony that evening. We went a bit early and met some of the actors and interacted with them. My husband even juggled with one of the entertainers. My 8 year old son was positive that he was going to hate this show and really resisted going. However, in the end he really enjoyed himself and was probably the one who enjoyed it the most. We got seats on the last row of the producers circles which ended up being a great spot. Soldiers marched past us several times and when the Native Americans were hiding in preparation of attack, they hid right behind us!!! It made things a bit more exciting to say the least.

Field Trip: Roanoke Festival Park

On Friday, we went to Roanoke Festival Park. It was a great field trip to go along with our history studies. We had a lot of fun and learned quite a bit also. Roanoke Festival Park is very hands on. It has an indoor museum, an outdoor settlement sight and a representation of the ship, Elizabeth II.



The indoor museum has a lot of things for kids to do. They can dress up as explorers, pirates, early colonists, turn of the century beach goers, and farmers. They can learn to use an astrolabe, pretend to be in the civil war, scrub their laundry, and climb all over a variety of boats.

Aboard Elizabeth II, they can see how a real ship looks and interact with live docents. My kids loved turning the capstan and we played a game of Nine Men's Morris while on board.

At the settlement site, the kids tried on armor and saw what it was like to live in army tents. They did a pole arms class too. However, I think their favorite thing was playing skittles, an early form of bowling.

The park is adding more exhibits to include more Native American culture. We can't wait to make another trip to see it. Meanwhile, we satisfied ourselves with playing with hoops.