Fort Ticonderoga’s next Homeschool Day for homeschool students and their parents will be on Friday, September 5, 2014, from 9:30 am-5 pm. Homeschool families will have an opportunity to take part in a series of interactive and immersive experiences while participating in special programs, visiting museum exhibitions, and exploring Fort Ticonderoga’s vast and beautiful landscape including the King’s Garden, Carillon Battlefield Hiking Trail, and Heroic Corn Maze.

During the day students will discover a remarkable story that defined America in the first year of the American Revolution, learning specifically about the Pennsylvania troops at Ticonderoga during the year 1776. Interacting with these American soldiers, students explore what daily life was like for an 18th-century soldier American soldier defending liberty on the northern frontier.

“Throughout the day homeschool families will explore the Fort and museum exhibitions. They can take guided tours, learning about Ticonderoga’s history, and observe musket demonstrations,” said Rich Strum, Director of Education. “Students and families will visit the historic trades shops where shoes and clothing are produced by the Fort Ticonderoga museum staff, and learn about the global economy of the 1700s.”

In addition, special programs for homeschool groups take place in the historic trades shops at 10:30am, 12:30 pm, and 2:30 pm. Programs at 12 pm and 1 pm illustrate the process of feeding the troops and explores soldiers ate in 1776 (including chocolate!) as the mid-day meal is prepared. In addition, a special presentation by Rich Strum, Director of education, at 11:30 am will provide students (grades 6-12) information on how to become part of the highly acclaimed National History Day program.

A visit to the King’s Garden will expand the Homeschool Day experience by delving into additional stories about Ticonderoga’s rich 19th and 20th history and how the story of horticulture at Ticonderoga continues to thrive today! Students will participate in the “Lady Bug Investigators” program exploring the importance of lady bugs as garden ecosystem helpers at 11 am, 1 pm, and 3 pm, and take part in the self-guided activity “Watercolors in the Garden” from 10 am – 4 pm. In addition, Fort Ticonderoga’s Heroic Corn Maze will be open for homeschool families from 12 pm – 4 pm.

“This is the third year that Fort Ticonderoga has offered a special Homeschool Day,” said Beth Hill, President and CEO. “We were very excited to see our reach into this important educational market more than double last year with 300 students and their families attending the special day of programming created just for them. We expect to see continued growth with this program this year attracting homeschool families from across our region as well as from across the United States and Canada.”

To register your homeschool students to participate, please email Nancy LaVallie, Group Tour Coordinator at Fort Ticonderoga at nancy@fort-ticonderoga.org. The cost is $6 per student. One parent per family is admitted free of charge. Additional adults pay the adult group rate of $12.

To learn more about programs for students and teachers at Fort Ticonderoga visit www.fortticonderoga.org and select the “Explore and Learn” tab. Teachers interested in learning more about school programs, including outreach programs, should contact Rich Strum, Director of Education, at rstrum@fort-ticonderoga.org or at 518-585-6370.

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• Chocolate: The Taste of Liberty at Ticonderoga (www.essexonlakechamplain.com)
• Fort Ticonderoga’s Heroic Corn Maze Adventure Opens August 15! (www.essexonlakechamplain.com)
• Fort Ticonderoga 2014 Season Begins May 10 (www.essexonlakechamplain.com)
• Fort Ticonderoga’s Corn Maze shaping up (pressrepublican.com)