After studying American pioneers, cattle drives, and the Oregon Trail of the 1800s (see Raising Scholars: Establishing Roots), my sons and I took an experiential learning road trip through parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri, and New Mexico.

Book learning came to life as we:

      • followed the cattle-drive Chisolm Trail,
      • meandered through the National Cowboy Museum,
      • stood at the starting line of the Oklahoma Land Run,
      • picnicked in Independence, Missouri where thousands of pioneers began their journey west, 
      • traveled the Oregon and Santa Fe Trail in Kansas, standing in 150-year-old wheel ruts,
      • walked through a recreated 1800s pioneer town,
      • stood in last-remaining Pony Express station,
      • learned about thousands of orphans who were sent west on “orphan trains,”
      • and stood at the very center of the Continental U.S.!

While in Kansas, we also visited sites related to pre-Civil War “Bleeding Kansas,” and the school that sparked the civil rights court case Brown vs. Board of Education.   

Here is our full itinerary for this trip:
Itinerary ~ Midwest-Pioneer Tour

This is just one of many experiential learning trips
we have taken as a family.

Much more information on how we
travel light as a family including packing lists
can be found HERE.