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Participate in the activities enjoyed by the Alcotts over 150 years ago in one of our many School Group offerings. Examine the Alcotts’ contributions to various 19th Century Reform Movements. Experience a 19th Century School Room. Discover why the Alcotts kept daily journals and begin your own "Journey Through Journals." Especially for Girl Scouts, we offer opportunities approved by the Patriots' Trail Girl Scout Council to earn Try-Its and Badges. Participate in Special Workshops for teachers, which address specific curriculum needs and provide hands-on materials for use in the classroom. We invite you to browse through our offerings:
Reservation InformationNOTE: Please download and review the planning information and map before your visit. For School Group Tours/Programs, Girl Scout Troop Tours/Programs, Vacation Week or Summer Youth Programs/Workshops - Please phone the Education Department at 978.369.4118 x106 or e-mail education@louisamayalcott.org.
Our reservation policy requires a deposit of $40.00 per tour/program which is applied to your total fee and is refundable only if cancellation is received within 48 hours of your reservation. All tours and programs have capacity limits in order to protect our valuable resources and to insure the most beneficial educational experience. All required chaperones must also accompany youths at all times throughout the House. Additional adults are always welcome, but must be charged tour/program fees for admission. Offerings for School GroupsOrchard House, one of the oldest homes in historic Concord, reflects the unique
personalities, involvements, and lifestyle of the Alcotts. A visit to this house provides testimony to the rich legacy
ToursGeneral Tours "Welcome To Our Home" Tours "Families
Then & Now" Tours are
hands-on tours focusing on various aspects of 19th Century life and how
that life differs from our own. Through the exploration of materials in
our hands-on collection which represent work and leisure activities of a
19th Century family like the Alcotts, students will gain a greater sense
of their own links to the past and come away with a stronger feeling of
their personal place in history. Back to School Groups | Back to Offerings In-House Programs"Road To Long Ago" "A Visit With the Alcotts" – A
Living History Program Journey Through Journals: The Alcotts In Their Own
Words: The Alcotts and Thoreau: Landscape
and Literature
OutreachA Visit by Louisa May Alcott Back to School Groups | Back to Offerings Rental Study Kits"Discovering the Alcotts and Little
Women" Back to School Groups | Back to Offerings We will be glad to work with you to discuss and develop programs that meet the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks and any other requirements you may have. |
A variety of programs introduces learners of all ages to the Alcott
family and their world!
Reservations
should be made as far in advance as possible. School groups are encouraged
to make reservations prior to opening hours.
of writings, artwork, and
philosophical commentary they left behind.
Students
"become" 19th Century pupils to experience first-hand a "typical"
classroom --- with rote learning techniques --- and an Alcott-style schoolroom,
where the inquiry-discussion method is employed.
Explore the man-made and natural landscape of 19th Century Concord. This
writing and discussion program focuses on the 19th Century community
of authors, philosophers, and intellectuals (specifically Henry David
Thoreau and the Alcotts) which gathered in Concord. Hear and discuss
how each individual within the Alcott family responded to the changing
world around them, and how this was reflected in lifestyle, philosophy,
art, and literature, and the importance of Transcendentalism. Programs for Girl ScoutsOrchard House, home of author Louisa May Alcott and her family, offers special programs for all levels of Girl Scout Troops! By visiting the House for a special program, girls may complete various requirements for Brownie Try-Its, Junior Badges or Cadette/Senior Interest Patches. Note: There is a minimum requirement of 10 girls or payment for 10 girls per program |
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The Patriots' Trail Girl Scout Council encourages Troops to explore the following programs conducted at Orchard House for completion of Try-it, Badge, & Patch requirements |
Hand-in-Hand at Orchard House This program introduces Daisies to a museum and to the home of the author of Little Women, Louisa May Alcott. Daisies learn about the Alcott family using interactive materials and hands-on activities as they tour Orchard House. Victorian dress-up, felt boards, a story, games and artwork are included in this introductory program.
Back to to Girl Scouts | Back to Offerings
Listening to
the Past
Puppets, Dolls & Plays Did you know that making puppets and dolls is an art that was a very popular pastime in the Victorian age? Learn about the toys and games of Louisa, Anna, Elizabeth, and May and about the dolls they made. Girls will make their own yarn dolls and take them on a tour of Orchard House! They will also make a puppet and use it to dramatize a story from our "Puppet Theatre."
The Alcotts were a very creative family! Girls will have an opportunity to write in the very room where Louisa wrote her most famous book, Little Women, try their hand at a troop “post office,” play rigamarole, and make “castles in the air,” just like the Alcott girls did when they were growing up.
Back to to Girl Scouts | Back to Offerings
My Heritage
Being My Best Louisa May Alcott has been a wonderful role model ever since Little Women first captured the imaginations of people all over the world. She was concerned then — as we are today — with the issue of girls striving to be themselves in an increasingly complicated world. Visit Orchard House and learn how Louisa and her sisters struggled to overcome their difficulties, met challenges, and capitalized on their talents to become strong, independent women. Through role play, journal writing, creating a "brag bag," and other fun activities, explore your own best assets to increase self-esteem and become the best person you can be!
Louisa May Alcott was a great observer of the world, and she learned to use those observations in her writing. Come write in the very room where she penned many of her famous stories, including her most famous book, Little Women. Sharpen your skills by using events in your everyday life for your stories, and learn what goes into making a good writer!
Back to to Girl Scouts | Back to Offerings Theater Did you know that young Louisa and her sisters performed "theatricals" for their friends and neighbors? Tour Orchard House, where the Alcott girls presented original plays in the Dining Room and Parlor, and then bring a script to life on the stage of The School of Philosophy located on the Orchard House grounds using simple props and costumes. Learn how to interpret a character and participate in group acting exercises and improvisations, ending with the performance of scripted scenes from Louisa's writings!
Back to to Girl Scouts | Back to Offerings
Once Upon A Story Explore different writing genres in the home of Louisa May Alcott, one of our foremost American writers. Girls will hear about careers related to writing while trying their hand at poetry, plays, historical fiction, and other forms. They will also learn how Louisa used writing to make the past come alive, and the elements that go into creating a story of their own through writing exercises done in the very same house where Little Women was conceived and written!
The Play’s the Thing! Come to Orchard House, where the Alcott girls transformed their Dining Room and Parlor into a theatre for visiting friends and neighbors. See where they did their lightning-quick costume changes and then help bring a scene from Little Women to life on the stage of The School of Philosophy located on the Orchard House grounds! Girls will also participate in acting exercises and improvisations, and learn some technical aspects of theatre production.
Cadette & Senior Troops: Earn Community
Service Bars and help us! Seeking a new and different way to earn the Community Service Bar? Consider a project at Orchard House, a non-profit organization which depends on volunteer help for many aspects of its operation. We’ll work with you to create a flexible program to best fit both our needs! We can also provide at least four hours of training in exchange for a minimum of twenty-five hours of volunteer service. |
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Meet a member of the Alcott family
(portrayed by trained staff) who will talk about life in the mid-1800s and
Louisa May Alcott’s childhood. Brownies then tour Orchard House, seeing it
as it looked when the Alcotts lived here and hearing how Louisa came up with
ideas for her stories. Girls will also play a game, learn a song, draw a
picture, and act out a passage from one of the family’s favorite stories.
Journey back in time to 1870 and discover the rich heritage of the
Alcotts as you explore your own! A member of the Alcott family (portrayed
by trained staff) will show you through the House, where you will make
your own journals (materials provided) and have an opportunity to
write in them as you hear entries taken from the real journals of the
Alcotts. Listen to favorite family anecdotes, hear about special events of
the times, and learn some family sayings while beginning your own
"wisdom list." You will also play a 19th Century game or sing a
song the Alcotts enjoyed, and see many treasured family heirlooms.
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