For Windham Junior High students, studying the War of 1812 has taken them beyond the classroom. A group of students were selected by history teacher Stephanie Parish-Smith to go on a one-day field trip to Put-in-Bay which was funded through a grant from the American Battlefield’s History Field Trip Program Trust on May 9.
Parish-Smith assembled a group of seventh and eighth graders to take a field trip to Lake Erie and visit some of the sites across the lake where several historical events took place to help stabilize the country after the American Revolution. According to Parish-Smith, the day included visitin the Marblehead Lighthouse, Perry’s Monument and Perry’s Cave, all historical sites of the War of 1812.
“It was a great experience for our kids to get to see Lake Erie and get to see all of the local history in their backyard,” Parish-Smith told The Weekly Villager. “Besides all of the educational opportunities, it was just great to explore and get to see the different sites from going into caves and riding the boats to collecting beach glass and just little things like that.”
The trip was paid for by the American Battlefield Trust, a charitable organization whose primary objective is to preserve battlefields of the American Revolution, War of 1812 and the American Civil War. It marked the second consecutive year that Parish -Smith’s students were awarded a field trip grant to enjoy a day of interactive learning.
Parish-Smith said that last year only eighth grade students were allowed to go on the field trip but this year, Windham Junior High received a larger grant which enabled seventh grade students to also be eligible to participate in the field trip. The primary requirement for any student that was interested in joining the field trip was to have a C average or better.
Parish-Smith noted that the enthusiasm for learning demonstrated by Windham students played a role in the American Battlefield Trust once again making a grant to the school.
“It was right by us so the trustees were excited to help these kids see all of that their local history has to offer so I think that they were just excited for another way to continue to teach historical education to young kids,” she said.
On the field trip, Parish-Smith said that the students toured the Marblehead Lighthouse then took a bus to Port Clinton where they then boarded a boat that took them to Put-in-Bay.
“After we got off of the boat, we toured all of the different monuments We did not go into Perry’s Monument, but we went and saw that, we saw the different structures that were memorializing the soldier’s efforts from the War of 1812 all the way to World War I,” she added.
Parish Smith said that the day not only served as educational experience for the Windham students but also an opportunity for them to step outside of the classroom and experience a different type of learning.
“We don’t have a museum in this town, but they got to visit a museum. We don’t live on the water and don’t have lighthouses, but they got to see things that they don’t see every day in an area that is not next to a lake, does not have caves and limestone and different things,” she said. “Just seeing other things is the experience and opens our eyes to opportunities and more knowledge about things.”
Parish -Smith noted that as much as the students enjoyed stepping out of their comfort zone, she was also impressed by how well they represented Windham on the trip.
“The Marblehead Historical Society could not stop praising how well-behaved and how professional and respectful our students were,” she noted. “That just adds to the excitement that makes me want to take them places.”
After two years of securing a field trip grants, Parish-Smith acknowledged that she plans to make the field trip an annual occurrence for Windham as the subject matter has resonated with the students and they have responded well by demonstrating the best qualities of Windham on each field trip they have taken.
“I think that they have something to offer –from their work ethic to their desire to learn more and their kindness to other students. The way that they accept each other and work together is inspiring and actually hopeful,” Parish -Smith said.
