Vincennes State Historic Sites Tour
Grades K – 12
Fee: $1.50 per student
Historical characters will guide you through the buildings and sites. Students will discover the early years of Vincennes and Indiana by learning about early education at the Jefferson Academy, beginnings of Indiana law at the Territory Capital Building, and experience the art of printing at the Elihu Stout Print Shop.

Feb. 12, 2013
Grades K – 12
Fee: $25 per class
In 1820, a young African-American woman named Polly Strong sued her master to gain her freedom. This interactive program will guide students through her trial and the precedent that it set in terms of slavery in Indiana.
 

Petite Fête
April 19, 2013
Grades 9 – 12 (French Language classes)
Fee: $10 per student
Students will experience the early French culture and language of Vincennes. Language lessons, history presentations and a French lunch are highlights.

A Day in a Life at Fort Knox II
Sept. 20, 2013
Grade 8 – 12
Fee: $5 per student
Discover the day-to-day life of the men and women at Fort Knox II Military Encampment, ca. 1812 in Vincennes. Students learn about military life, women’s roles, foods, flora and fauna and early surveying. This program covers language arts, history, science and math.

EDUCATIONAL WORKSHOPS — On-site and Outreach*
Historical characters can be requested for outreach programs. Meet historical characters, like Lydia Bacon, an officer’s wife posted at Fort Knox II who kept a detailed journal of her travels from Boston. Or a soldier or militiaman from 1812 telling the stories of daily life of individuals posted at Fort Knox II. Or meet Benjamin Franklin, George Washington and Thomas Jefferson, great men who helped to bring science to the American frontier.
 

Use Your Voice: The Election Process in America
Grades 6 – 12
$3.50 per student
Participating in elections is a basic right of all Americans. Students will learn of the election process through American history. Your class will learn about extraordinary elections in American history, such as the elections of 1800, 1840, 1860 and 2000. Students will participate in a mock election and gain an understanding of the election process and the Electoral College.

Sparks and Shocks on the Indiana Frontier
Grades 4 – 5
$3.50 per student
Get your class all charged up about electricity! In 1800, “electrostatic generators” were used in Vincennes for experiments and parlor amusements. Your science class will learn the hair-raising facts about a force they take for granted everyday! They’ll be shocked to learn how electricity works! An interpreter in period clothing can vary this presentation for different grade levels and for the amount of class time available.

Who’s Land is This?
Grades 4 – 8
$3.50 per student
It was all about land in 1800. To own land was a major reason settlers came to Indiana, and the only way to know how much you owned and where it was, was to survey it. The basis of surveying is math, especially the measurement of triangles, and that means geometry. We get out the sticks, “survey” the problem and come up with the answer to what’s yours and what’s mine and where the fence should go! Students can see a practical application of math principles.

Money, Money, Money — Then and Now
Grades 8 – 12
$3.50 per student
Economic principles are same today as they were 200 years ago, but what people do for a living is different! This interactive program teaches basic economic concepts using examples from Indiana’s early history. Making a living was important then and now! This presentation can be varied for time and by grade level.

Polly Strong’s Fight for Freedom
Grades 4 – 12
$3.50 per student
In 1820, a young slave woman named Polly Strong sued her master to gain her freedom. This interactive program guides students through her trial and the precedent that it set in terms of slavery in Indiana. In the 1820s, citizens struggled with slavery; in the 1960s it was "race relations"; and today we address the issues of diversity.

Read All About It! Writing and Printing on the Frontier
Grades 3 – 8
$3.50 per student
This program exposes students to the evolution of communication through America’s history. Students can write with actual quill pens and use a table top printing press at Elihu Stout’s shop which published the first newspaper in Indiana, the Indiana Gazette.

Mind Your Manners!
Grades 8 – 12
$3.50 per student
Students will learn manners and morals of the various people who settled the Indiana Territory from 1790 to 1820. Why are manners as important today as they were 250 years ago?

Work and Play on the Indiana Frontier
Grades 4 – 8
$3.50 per student
This interactive program is an adaptation of the "Day in the Life" event introducing students to everyday life on the frontier through the eyes of a solder, a military wife, a surveyor or a Native American. Students discover the hardships of survival on the Indiana Frontier.
 

For more information on school programs and Indiana Academic Standards met at Vincennes State Historic Sites, contact Angela Lucas at 812.882.7422 or e-mail her at alucas@indianamuseum.org.