Overview Classes at the Old Stone House cost $90. A $50 deposit must be received one week after receiving your contract in order to secure your date. If you prefer to arrange for an OSH educator to come to your classroom, the cost is $130, plus any applicable materials fees. Each class lasts one and a half hours. Pre- and post-class materials are provided for each program. Our education coordinator will contact you prior to your visit in order to review what material has already been covered in your classroom so that we may prepare appropriately. Classes must be reserved in advance. Our schedule fills quickly, particularly in May and June, so please reserve as early as possible. All programs and materials conform to NYC and NYS curriculum standards. OSH thanks City Councilmember Bill DeBlasio, Borough President Marty Markowitz, Senator Velmanette Montgomery, Assemblywoman Joan Millman, the New York City Deparment of Cultural Affairs and Keyspan for their support for our education programs. Dutch Toys and Games: Work and Play - A Child´s Life in Colonial Brooklyn Grades K through 3 A costumed presenter will welcome you and your class to the Old Stone House and explain how the house was built in 1699 by Hendrick Vechte, a Dutch farmer. Experience life on the farm, both work and play. Games were a significant part of a Dutch child´s life, as shown on the Delft tiles surrounding the Old Stone House fireplace. The tiles also depict windmills, symbolizing the work that took place on a Dutch farm. Child´s work included keeping the embers of the fire aglow and small-loom weaving. After the work was done, the children would play games such as checkers, quoits, juggling, tabletop ninepins, jacks, and pick-up sticks. Students will try their hand at all these activities, and share a surprise treat at the end of class. Support for this program was provided by the Park Slope Civic Council. The First Battle for American Freedom: Understanding Brooklyn´s Unique Role in the Revolution through Maps Grades 4 through 12 Using new and old maps, students travel back to August 27, 1776 to America´s first battle as an independent nation with a lesson gauged to the appropriate grade level. Supplemented by our museum exhibit, students learn how Britain brought the world´s largest invasion force to Brooklyn to stamp out rebellion. The houses and streets of contemporary Park Slope are transformed in the student´s imagination to a landscape of farms, salt marshes, beaches, craggy outcrops and woodlands with few roads. Students will personally experience the life of a young patriot soldier through the diary of Joseph Plum Martin, examine the contents of a soldier´s kit bag and learn of the soldier´s life. Students then plot the battle on their own maps. Students in Grades 7-12 may view the film, The Brave Man, which tells the story of William Alexander, Lord Stirling, and the Maryland 400, heroes of the Battle of Brooklyn. A Sense of Place: OSH History through Primary and Secondary Source Documents Grades 5 through 7 When Dutch settlers first came to the place we now call Brooklyn, they encountered many Native American tribes. Those located by the Gowanus farmed large, verdant fields of maize. Here, in that same place, the Old Stone House was built in 1699 by Hendrick Vechte. Students discover the story of the house and the Vechte family who lived on this site for more than a century. After a visit to the OSH museum, students will follow the paper trail of the Old Stone House through the Revolutionary War by reading and deciphering primary and secondary source documents: maps, deeds, wills, political cartoons, newspaper articles, advertisements and the Declaration of Independence – all part of the unique story of the evolution of this site. Searching for Freedom: African Americans in the American Revolutionary War Era Grades 4 through 7 African Americans such as Crispus Attucks, Benjamin Bennaker, Christopher Greene and Phillis Wheatley participated in the Rebellion and Revolution. Both on the battlefield and off, these heroes and heroines distinguished themselves during our nation´&s struggle for freedom. Students will visit the museum to learn about the diverse population that comprised the early days of our country, learn through primary source materials about the contribution that these individuals made, then participate in a journal writing activity that encompasses elements from the lives and work of these exemplary men and women. Support for the development of this program was provided by Senator Velmanette Montgomery and Keyspan. Pinkster: An African American Celebration Grades 4 through 7 African Americans worked the fields, served as soldiers, and fought constantly for political and personal freedom. But, for approximately one week, African Americans experienced "freedom" during "Pinkster," a Dutch African American celebration of culture, food, dance, music and life, observed only in New York State. This class focuses on the musical instruments used during Pinkster that were made from native gourds. Working with visiting artist Cheryl Thomas students will learn the history of these authentic instruments and how they are made. For an additional materials fee of $12 per student, instruments can be made and taken home. From Many One: Colonial and Revolutionary Currency Grades 4 through 7 In the early days of America, trade was largely based on barter between colonists and Native Americans. This system eventually evolved into the issuance of paper bills or "soft" money, sparsely augmented by foreign "hard" money or coins from England and Spain. Students will study replicas of these unusually-sized and decorated bills that were issued in pounds, shillings, pence, dollars and odd denominations of cents that were utilized before coins were minted for change. From Many One: Colonial and Revolutionary Flags Grades 4 through 7 Students will discuss the meaning of the symbols and colors on the amazing array of flags representing individual towns, cities and states, as well as military regiments and divisions. The nation´s new flag with thirteen stripes and thirteen stars had its own unique evolution, eventually superseding these colonial flags. Students will then create their own flags.