Fourth graders study the state of Tennessee, learning about the geography, history, and government. The unit culminates with a visit to Nashville and the Tennessee Celebration.
Students and teachers visited Nashville. They toured the state capitol and sat in the House chamber, where students debated issues like seatbelts on school buses, year-round school and a four-day school week. This year, they met state Sen. Bo Watson. They also toured the Tennessee State Museum, and students learned about the wars fought in Tennessee, old wagons and cars, and natural history. Did you know an animal like the red panda lived in the area now known as Tennessee about 5 million years ago.
The next day, students wore Tennessee-themed shirts (mostly UT orange) for the Tennessee Celebration. They enjoyed country music and learning about its origins, more study of the state and its government and an art project related to the women's suffrage movement. Tennessee provided the deciding vote that allowed the 19th Amendment to pass, giving women the right to vote. Students painted a Tennessee state flag reimagined with tints, shades and hues of red, white and blue. They finished the day with a fried chicken lunch at the school's log cabin.
