I want to start my saying I can’t take credit for this idea. I married the most amazing man in the world. He came up with the great idea. I just have to share it with you because I love it so much.

As you may know I have two children who love to learn hands on. Because of that we do a lot of field trips as part of our homeschool. As a money saver I can’t handle the prices in the gift shops. My husband found a fun alternative that will cost only cents per trip. He put together post card memory books. Now we spend about 35 cents at each place we visit and we have a great keepsake.

How it works
Pick any memory book you want. My kids each picked the designs on theirs. Ours hold 4×6 images but the options are really endless.

The post card can fit vertically. We then add the date of our field trip as well as any friends who joined us.

On the back of your post card write at least one thing you learned at the place you visited. I let R write her own. I know there are spelling/grammar issues. However, she was very proud of this. If you want to proof errors it might help to pre-write before using the post card.

You may also want to make one for younger children. It’s a great place to keepsake some of their funnier quotes.

How do you keep memories from field trips? 

While we were in Georgia we took some time to visit Fort Jackson. This had to be one of the best places we went on our trip!

There was an incredible guide who invested some amazing time teaching everyone the history of the fort. He even managed to stay in character quite well. I thought it would be fun to share ten things you can learn at Fort Jackson.

1) A Proper Military Salute – C had so much fun with this and took it very serious. Who says 4 year olds can’t love history?
2) Left/Right/About Face – That’s right, if you join up with the company you will have to learn how to drill effectively. This includes learning a proper left, right, and about face. This component of the tour made it much more realistic.

3) Weapons and Carrying – The soldier spent  a while showing us the weaponry and everything that was carried by a soldier at this time.
4) Maps – The soldier also spent a bit of time explaining the location of the fort on the map. He explained the strategic side of the location.

5) Flagging – The soldier also discussed the importance of flagging to signal a coming attack. He even has the children flag a message and have us interpret it. (By the way, “The” is not spelled ZYA. Someone should tell the kids.)

6) Life and Lifestyle – You can tour the inside of the living areas and see what the soldiers of the times lived like. You will look at the weapons, jail, and barracks.

7) The tools for firing the canon – There is a long explanation about the different tools for firing the canon. This really stuck with my 4 year old. I asked him, “Why do they need the sponge for the canon?” He answered, “Because you want to get rid of sparks so it doesn’t hurt someone.”

8) How to fire the canon – The soldier actually fires the canon but before he does he will walk you thru everything it takes to fire the canon. When we were there he included the audience in the process.

9) What sand fleas are – If you have never encountered them you will at Fort Jackson. Those Sand Fleas are the devil! Maybe not, but they are everywhere and you will get multiple bites. Make sure to bring an insect repellent. You will thank me for it.

10) How to have fun with history – When I was a kid history bored me. It was a huge list of facts that I wasn’t patient enough to memorize. Taking kids out to Fort Jackson and immersing them in the history makes it fun. It engages their imaginations and brings history to life.

Have you been to Fort Jackson? What did your family learn?