School Programs
At the Center
Change in
the Making
Invention Factories
Yankees and Immigrants
Bale
to Bolt
Workers on the Line
Power
to Production
Riverworks
Industrial Watershed
River
as a Classroom
Self-guided Tours At
Your School
Farm to Factory
Voices of Change
New! River of Death
New! The Underground River
Extras
Lock
and Canal Boat Tour
Hands-On Workshops
For reservations:
Call: 978-970-5000 | |
School Programs
I cannot believe this is a science class. We have not opened one book
or heard a single lecture. Right now, my science teacher is getting drenched with
water [in a water-power experiment] and not getting angry ... If I could do this
in every class, I might actually like school and who knows, get an "A." |
Bring history alive for your students with a visit to the Tsongas
Industrial History Center at Lowell National Historical Park. Students will participate
in hands-on activities and engaging investigations of the Boott Cotton Mills Museum's
restored weave room and such historic sites as the boardinghouse, turbine exhibit
and mill courtyard. Through the Center's school programs, students master the
concepts, remember the history, and get excited about reading, writing, and discussing
the impact of the industrial revolution. Each program is tied to curriculum
standards and developed for students in particular grades. Just click on the links
below to get a fuller description of each program. If you can extend your visit,
you can add an extra hands-on workshop, visits to exhibits, or a boat tour in
season. We will come to your classroom too! Each guided program includes
the following:
• a full day of age-appropriate hands-on activities
and tours
• use of our brown-bag lunchroom facility
• free
historical overview and program-specific
activity guide, with pre-and post-visit activities. Click on the
program title for a full description. Programs may be reserved now
by calling 978-970-5000.
Programs at the Tsongas Center and
Lowell National Historical Park | Target audience |
 | Change
in the Making
Students dress in costumes of young farm and factory
workers, work a cotton gin, visit the weave room and boarding house, and map changes
in land use. | Grades 3 and 4 |  | Yankees
and Immigrants
Students become immigrants, unpack luggage &
tell their stories, investigate daily life, and resolve an issue dividing Lowell's
citizens. | Grades 4-HS |  | Invention
Factories
Students design, build, and patent their own inventions. | Grades
3-HS |  | Bale
to Bolt
Students weave on hand looms, learn the workings of power
looms, discover how inventions affect workers and production, and explore workers
lives. | Grades 4-HS |  | Workers
on the Line
Students work on an assembly line, experience a loss
of control over work through speed ups, react to wage cuts, and decide on a course
of action. | Grades 4-HS |  | Power
to Production
Students test water wheels, build canal systems,
visit the turbine exhibit to see how water powers machines, and see a weave room
in action. | Grades 4-HS |
 | Riverworks
Students discover ways of cleaning polluted water, test the quality of Merrimack
water, and explore how dams affect river plants and animals. | Grades 5-8 |
 | The
Industrial Watershed
Students see how
pollution produced a typhoid epidemic and use simulation tanks and tests to see
how pollution affects surface and ground water. | Grades 6-HS |
| ON THE WATER - BOAT PROGRAMS
- Spring and Fall only | |  | The
River As A Classroom
Students perform water quality tests on the
river, learn how water powered machines, identify pollutants past and present,
and clean up water. | Grades 5-8 |  | Lock
and Canal Boat Tour
Add a 60-minute interpretive boat tour of the
Pawtucket Canal and Francis Gate House to any of the educational programs. | |
We Can Come to Your Classroom!
Tsongas Center staff will visit your classroom and engage the students' hands
and minds as preparation for or follow-up after a visit to Lowell, or as a stand-alone
experience if you can not visit. | Target audience |
 | Farm
to Factory
As students pick, card, spin and weave wool on small
looms, our teacher will tell them about changes experienced by farm girls who
work in the factory.
(90-minute program) | Grades
3 to 5 |  | Voices
of Change
Using artifacts and roles, students will learn about
industrial life and debate whether to sign a petition calling for a work day of
no more than ten hours.
(45-minute program) | Grades
5 to 12 |
| NEW! |
River of Death
Explores the typhoid epidemic of 1890 and shows the science of disease transmission.
(45-minute program) |
Grades 6 to 9 |
| NEW! |
The Underground River
Environmental science demonstration about water resources, and how contaminants can spread easily underground into our water supply.
(45-minute program) |
Grades
5 to 12 |
Programs are for up to 30 students per group (unless otherwise stated)
Required
adult-to-student ratio: 1 adult for every 10 students
No additional charge
for teachers and chaperones
Programs may be reserved as of May 1, 2008 for dates during the 2008-2009 school
year by calling Lowell National Historical Park at 978-970-5000. Please
see our curriculum pages
for information about our curriculum packets with pre- and post-visit activities.
Tsongas Center has been approved for PASS Program funding support. Contact your
local cultural council for information on the PASS program. |
