Field Trip Program
Ranger-Led Programs at the Andersonville Prison site
The park offers three ranger-led programs for school groups. Ranger programs are forty-five minutes in length and can accommodate up to 55 students. "Relics of Civilization" is for younger students up to the fifth grade and mixed-grade home-school and distance-learning groups. "Life and Death in a Rebel Prison" is designed for the sixth through twelfth grade. "Witness" is designed for older high school and college-age groups with less than 15 participants. Your grade level and group size will automatically determine which program is presented.
Please read our 2014-2015 Field Trip Planner for more information on planning a field trip to Andersonville. Please note that field trip confirmation may take up to seven days.
|"Relics of Civilization"||"Life and Death in a Rebel Prison"|
Students will examine the experience of Union prisoners of war through the items they brought, made, traded, and stole. From buttons to bread, common items could mean the difference between life and death for these men. Students will study items and discuss how prisoners might adapt these items in unique ways to meet their daily needs. Students will be asked to consider whether they would have made the right trades, saved the best resources or pursued the jobs that would either have saved or shortened their lives as prisoners.
Students will explore the experiences of Union prisoners of war during the Civil War. Students will receive a prisoner profile card with the details of a real Civil War soldier. Throughout the program they will be asked to consider things from the perspective of their historical identity. This outdoor walking tour will address prison life, including harsh conditions and methods of survival. At the end of the program, students will discover what happened to their historical prisoner.
| Program Overview
Students will explore the experience of Andersonville through first-person accounts from civilians, prisoners, and guards. This program utilizes participants to read and discuss eye-witness accounts of the prison while walking the grounds with park staff . This program is well-suited for small groups of older students who already understand foundational events of Civil War.
Each activity is approximately 45 minutes in duration per group of 55 students.
Ranger-led programs are conducted for no more than 110 students per time slot.
- Civil War, Military and Wartime History
- National/State Standards:
- This activity aligns to the common core standards for ELA/social studies.
- Field Trip Program
Available Field Trips