History Comes Alive
Students Take a Field Trip to Plimoth Plantation
Field trip to Plymouth
December 16, 2017
On Tuesday, November 21, about a dozen English Language Learners (ELLs) and their language buddies from Abington High School went on a field trip to Plimoth Plantation. The trip was led by their ELL teachers Ms. Elizabeth Despres and Ms. Viviane Scofano.
National Honor Society member Lisa Pinto ‘18 became a language buddy this year because she thought it would be “a great opportunity to meet new friends, do fun things, and learn about different cultures.”
The group took a trip to Plymouth which was “designed to teach them more about the origins of Thanksgiving, right before the holiday” according to Ms. Despres. On this trip, the students visited a Wampanoag reservation, an English village, the Craft Center, and the Plimoth Grist Mill.
We learned a lot about how our ancestors laid down the building blocks of who we are today.
— Luciano DaSilva
Ms. Despres stated that “the idea for this field trip was to have the students learn about the Wampanoags and the Puritans by being immersed in their environments and engaging with the Native Americans and the 17th century role players.”
For many of the members of the ELL group, this was the first time they had been celebrating Thanksgiving, so Ms. Despres said “there was a lot to learn.”
Luciano Dasilva ‘21 who went on the trip said, “We were there for the whole day and it was a lot of fun. The weather was nice, and we learned a lot about how our ancestors laid down the building blocks of who we are today.”
Also embarking on this trip was Sthefany De Paula ‘21, who, said “It was so much fun! My favorite part of the trip was the bus ride home. Everyone was telling each other stories about what they saw.”
When Pinto was asked what she enjoyed about the field trip, she said, “I hadn’t been to Plimoth Plantation since about 3rd grade. It was fascinating hearing the stories from the Pilgrim role players about the struggles in those times.” She added that “the interactive learning was great.”
Overall, many of the participants said the field trip taught them about the early settlers and the lives they used to live.
