Teacher's Familiarization Tour

Coming to Coastal Virginia Summer 2011

We can customize each familiarization tour (FAM) to the operator's needs. Here are some suggestions for top student activities that a FAM tour can include:

 Newport News:

• Virginia Living Museum - Living exhibits depict Virginia's natural heritage from the mountains to the sea, including a cypress swamp and a mountain cove. Behind-the-scenes tours.
• The Mariners' Museum - A captivating look at centuries of seafaring adventures.
• Lee Hall Mansion - Home was used as a headquarters by Confederate generals Johnston and Magruder during the Civil War.
• Ferguson Center for the Arts - An important cultural beacon in the Commonwealth. Behind-the-scenes tours.
• James A. Fields House - Students get a glimpse into the life of the African-American community in Newport News during the 1900s.
• Peninsula SPCA Exotic Sanctuary & Petting Zoo - Bring the kids and don't forget your camera. Petting Zoo has chickens, goats, deer and even a peacock! What an irresistible opportunity for great pictures.
• Peninsula Fine Arts Center - Artworks and dynamic exhibition sare just part of the fun. Children can create personal masterpieces in the interactive Hands-On for Kids gallery.
• Virginia War Museum - Collections of artifacts, weapons, vehicles, uniforms and posters trace the development of the US military from 1775 to the present.

 Hampton:

• Virginia Air & Space Center - Captures the excitement of exploring space through interactive exhibits that focus on NASA technologies and space science.
• The Riverside IMAX® Theater - Features a schedule of Space and Science Films to compliment student programs from K-12.
• Miss Hampton II Harbor Tour - Well-narrated 3 hour tour includes the Civil War island fortress of Fort Wool and an in-depth review of the mighty warships at the Norfolk Naval Base.
• Teen Party Cruises on the Miss Hampton - Students love this popular, fun-filled two or three-hour evening adventure cruise including Pizza, soda bar and DJ.
• Casemate Museum - Within the walls of this National Historic Landmark, you will see the cell in which Confederate President Jefferson Davis was imprisoned after the Civil War. 
• Hampton University Museum - Collection of more than 9,000 objects and works of art is representative of cultures and nations from around the world.

Norfolk:

• The  Learning Barge - The Learning Barge is a one-of-a-kind solar and wind-powered, floating classroom with a living wetland onboard
• Nauticus and the Battleship Wisconsin - A field trip to Nauticus is a fun and exciting way to help your students learn about the fascinating world of science! Nauticus field trips include all exhibits, a self-guided visit aboard the Battleship Wisconsin and a self-guided tour of the Hampton Roads Naval Museum, optional education programs and optional high-definition large format films.
• American Rover Tall Ship Student Cruise or the Spirit of Norfolk Dinner/ Lunch Dance Cruise - A night of sailing, dancing and eating!
• Norfolk Botanical Garden Kayaking Trip - Students can enjoy over 155 acres of gardens while Kayaking down Lake Whitehurst. 
• Sea Legends Ghost Tour - A great evening event for students!  A 45 minutes walking tour of downtown where students will learn the folklore and history of a port city.  End the tour at a haunted restaurant.
• Virginia Zoo - The Virginia Zoo School Discovery Program delivers informal science education designed to reinforce the Virginia Standards of Learning for students of all ages!
• Chrysler Museum of Art and The Virginia Zoo - Live Animal and Arts - Students explore the theme of animals in the Museum's collection and meet live animals and their trainers from the Virginia Zoo

 Portsmouth:

• Children's Museum of Virginia - The largest children's museum in the State of Virginia. Features student-friendly SOL educational programs, and creative fun and interactive exhibits.Visitors of all ages will find that learning really is child's play!
• Portsmouth Naval Shipyard Museum - features many ship models and artifacts relating to the armed forces of the area as well as exhibits portraying the lifestyle of 18th and 19th century Portsmouth.
• Lightship PORTSMOUTH - Commissioned in 1915, and has been restored to its original condition. Visitors may board the vessel and see how the men of the Lightship Service lived during their many months at sea.
• Courthouse Galleries - offers quality aesthetic, cultural and educational experiences through changing visual art exhibits, lectures, classes and performances.
• Virginia Sports Hall of Fame and Museum - One of only 20 state sports hall of fame in the nation, provides interactive, family-friendly entertainment year-round. Showcases intriguing memorabilia on golf, college sports, media, Olympics, and the Washington Redskins.
• Path of History - A string of historical places in Olde Towne Portsmouth. Public parks serve as bookends that link two of the nation's oldest Navy facilities- the Naval Medical Center and the Naval Shipyard, both in Portsmouth. Features two 75,000-pound propellers from naval supply ships, along with a refurbished sail from a former submarine and Navy guns that were once used on vessels built at the shipyard.

Virginia Beach:

• The Virginia Aquarium- Conservation Quest - This experience will take you behind the scenes of the Bay and Ocean Pavilion and give you access to feeding areas for a closer look at the sea turtles and sharks.
• The Virginia Aquarium- Dolphin Watching. You will venture into the Atlantic with an Museum Educator for an up close look at the life of bottlenose dolphins.
• Backstage Broadway(Behind the Curtin & Behind the Scenes) Sandler Center for the Performing Arts. - Steal the scene is the theme of this theater-focused excursion that combines the natural beauty of the coastline with an amazing hands on visit backstage at a professional production.
• The Sound of Freedom - Tour of the master jet base, Naval Air Station Oceana. See some of the most sophisticated aircraft in the world, and have lunch in the Officer's club , and you will be sure to encounter some real heroes.
• The Surfman Chronicles - Old Coast Guard Station. This Live the Life Adventure tells the tale of shipwrecks and rescues from a time when bravery was a distress signal's only response.
• Eco-Wildlife Safari - Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Travel 5-miles into the scenic wild. Look for signs of wildlife such as bobcat, fox, deer, coyotes and more. History will also unfold as you learn about the shipwrecks of the Atlantic and life as it used to be in early Virginia.
• Behind the scenes tour of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel - One of the Seven Engineering Wonders of the Modern World. This 17.5 mile span of bridges and tunnels connects Virginia Beach to the Eastern Shore of Virginia.
• Beach Combing - Hone your beachcombing skills to find the pearls of nature's landscape and explore the wilds of the Virginia Beach coastline for a truly green-focused view of the coastline.

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