This is a more general field trip to a region of the world so it is not country specific but if you are doing a unit on Central or South America you should definitely check out the Organization of American States (OAS) on 17th street NW. The OAS is the oldest transnational organization that aims to support the sovereignty of the 35 member states while promoting peace by creating a forum where nations of this hemisphere can converse about political, judicial and governmental issues. Since this comprises of nations in t
he Americas then this would connect to a Spanish speaking class or a unit about development in the Western Hemisphere.You can call to book a tour of the OAS building which is gorgeous inside. You will see busts of several Central American dignitaries, flags of all the nation states and also a building which highlights the architecture of Spanish influence on Las Americas. There is also an art museum behind the main building. Artists and artistic movements from member nations are highlighted on a rotating basis.
In addition to the main building and art museum you can visit a great statue of Simon Bolivar (considered to be the "George Washington of South America") across the street from the art museum. This would be no more than a photo op but nonetheless something you could incorporate into your visit. Finally you could also play a fun game in the parking lot in front of the main entrance. Each member state has an assigned parking space. So imagine instead of "president" and "vice president" or the more generic "reserved" spray painted in each space you will see "Costa Rica" or "Guatemala" written in their respective spots. This could turn into a great trivia game in which you ask students questions about individual countries and they have to run to the spot to answer the question. One caveat here is that this is a working office building so you will want to keep an eye on parking cars and also take note that there may be filled spaces with diplomatic sedans. Be careful and have fun!
Contact Info:
The Organization of American States
the corner of 17th Street and Constitution Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20006, USA
www.oas.org
The Art Museum of the Americas is located on 201 18th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20006, USA (corner of 18th Street and Constitution Ave.)
Call Aline Hommes for tours
(202) 458-3927
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