Old Sturbridge Village 3D Tour

I've seen several local musuems and historical areas trying to ramp up their virtual resources for families and educators in light of the COVID challenges and thought when time allows I'd try to document some of them.

Old Sturbridge village has been a staple for both school and homeschool field trips for years. They are still open as I write this for their limited fall hours but clearly recognize the challenge that COVID prevents for the travel required to get to the site and the concerns people still have about visiting places.

They've begun a virtual 3D tour program you can find here. As I write this the program is just beginning. The following sites are icldued in the tour as of now:

Asa Knight Store

District School

Pottery Shop and Kiln

Freeman Farm

Sawmill

Printing Office

Fenno House

Sturbridge presents life in the US around 1830 and it having visited there myself many times over the years it provides guests with a chance to see not just read about the time period. For those who can't go due to COVID or distance this is an opportunity to visit viturally which has not been available previously.

The Creation of the U.S. Constitution

If you are looking for a resource that explains in an accurate and age appropriate way the Articles of the Confederation and Shay's Rebellion The Creation of the U.S. Constitution (Graphic History)is a great resource to add to your list.

As I continue to work my way through the graphic history series I was impressed that Michael Burgan started with the Articles of Confederation and spoke about how the weak confederation and Shay's rebellion led the colonists to agree for the need to have a Constitutional Convention. Sadly, too many texts leave students unaware of the existence of the Articles of Confederation or the concerns that led to a very careful balancing and debate of rights that resulted in our Constitution.

Another strong area of this book is how it leads the reader through the discussion of the Virginia Plan and the state by state ratification of the Constitution. This book also provides readers with an understanding of why there was a push for a Bill of Rights to be included and a more limited explanation of how it came to pass as the first amendments to the Constitution.

This is one of the strongest books I have reviewed in the series to date. This is a good supplementary resource for parents or teachers looking for materials for students studying government or the history of the time.