Day 3: We the People

During day 3, the family dodged rain showers while hitting some of the remaining must sees for any self-respecting teacher of government and economics.  Neither the U.S. Mint nor the Philadelphia Federal Reserve allow for pictures, so any of you pondering a life of crime will be sorely disappointed by this post. Instead, my children learned that a penny saved is a penny earned by giving a penny away at the tombstone of Benjamin Franklin.

We stopped by Franklin Court, next. Here we saw a working printing press (not to mention his privy).  Franklin apparently had his own publication that required printing.  We learned about the origin of upper and lower case letters, and marveled at the dedication and detail needed to use movable type. I’d tell you a little secret about Franklin, now, but apparently the only way for 3 people to keep a secret is if two of them are dead.

In the afternoon we wondered over to the National Constitution Center where we thought about the meaning of the first 3 words of the preamble of the Constitution: “We the People.”   The kids loved learning about Alexander Hamilton.  His propensity for a strong national government was largely lost on them— but the necessity of turning sideways during a duel really hit home.

The 1904 Float from Franklin Fountain capped a busy day.  Sore feet were the rule, but a float big enough for 4 seemed to turn the frowns upside down.