Welcome to the
Fort Tejon Student Living History Program (SLHP)!
The first thing we would like to say is that
it is you, the teachers and parents, who make
the SLHP work. Your enthusiasm, creative interest,
and pre-site planning will fire the students'
interest and give them the unforgettable learning
experience that the Fort Tejon SLHP can provide.
Park staff is here to help you plan for your
on-site program. Planning a big trip like this
may seem a bit daunting, but take heart, read
on and have fun with it all. It will work out
fine!
"Living History Program," as
the name implies, is an actual living,
overnight experience for children that
takes place at any cultural, historic,
prehistoric, or natural site where the
interaction and interdependency of people
and their environment are represented.
It relies heavily on pre-site explorations
and preparations, role-playing, and problem
solving. This program was developed from
the National Park Service's Environmental
Living Program.
During
the SLHP, schoolchildren take on the characters
and activities of the past in order to "live history." By
acting like a character from the past and
doing the things that character would have
done, children become more acutely aware
of the historic environment as well as their
own. School children are introduced to Fort
Tejon as "new recruits" in the
U.S. Army. They will work together as Army
recruits from the mid-nineteenth century.
One lesson that they will learn, is that
they must work together in order to succeed,
just as pioneer peoples did in order to survive.
In both environments, they can and will be
forced to solve many problems. The emphasis
of the program is on self-learning and working
together as a team.
Through this experience, children become
aware of, and curious about, the physical,
natural, and historic aspects of the park
site as well as their relationship to the
site and its history. By role playing and
hands-on historical activities, kids learn
that the characters in history books are
people just like them, and they can gain
a personal relationship to history. The SLHP
is an experience that the kids will remember
throughout their lives.
For more information about the Student Living History Program, including fees and group sizes, please see this
SLHP FLyer From State Parks
Note: Dates are on a first come first serve basis.
If your school has financial need for help with Bus Transporation, you can
apply for a scholarship through the FTHA. Funds are limited and are provided on need and availability
FTHA Bus Scholarship Application Form