Courtesy Photo
Fourth grade students from Southside Elementary School pose in front of the Stare Capitol which they toured April 13 as part of an Education in Action Discover Texas Field Trip.

CEDAR CREEK LAKE–Fourth graders from Mabank ISD’s Southside Elementary traveled to Austin on an Education in Action Discover Texas Field Trip, April 13, to experience what they are learning in Texas History. Students visited the Texas State Capitol and the Bullock Texas State History Museum
The trip was funded through district funds and donations from the Mabank ISD Education foundation and the Kiwanis Club of Cedar Creek Lake. Students visited the Kiwanis club April 26 where they shared lunch and stories with the club.
During the charter bus ride to Austin, students discussed why Texans are so proud of their unique heritage and participated in activities and games in preparation for their visit. In Austin the students visited the Texas State Capitol where their legislators, The Honorable Robert Nichols, State Senator, District 3 and The Honorable Keith Bell, State Representative, District 4, office. 
Students saw first-hand where Texas laws are made as they toured the State Capitol including the Senate and House of Representatives chambers. At the Bullock Texas State History Museum, students traveled back in time through the Texas Revolution and learned about the events that created our Lone Star identity. The students’ visit to the museum concluded at the multi-sensory Texas Spirit Theater with the Star of Destiny where they saw and experienced the history of our great state including a gusher exploding from an East Texas oil derrick and the takeoff of Saturn V as seen from Mission Control at the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston.
‘’Education in Action’s Discover Texas Field Trips are based on the understanding that the most effective way for students to learn is through experience,’’ stated Education in Action’s Executive Director Jennifer Pasteur.’’Student activities during Discover Texas Field Trips reinforce and supplement Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) learning objectives in fun and hands-on ways at significant Texas sites that bring the content to life.’’
Education in Action’s Discover Texas Field Trips make it easy for teachers to take their third, fourth, or fifth grade classrooms on organized, fun, and educational site-based learning experiences. Education in Action handles all details, including round-trip charter bus transportation, meals, and reservations, and provides the TEKS-based program curriculum so participating teachers can focus on their students and making connections between the experience and what students are learning in the classroom.
Discover Texas Field Trips are presented by Education in Action, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to fostering educated and involved young people. In addition to one-day Discover Texas Field Trips to Austin, San Antonio, Waco/Georgetown, Dallas, and Fort Worth, Education in Action also offers summer Lone Star Leadership Academy camps for outstanding fourth through eight grades. During the weeklong, overnight camps, participants experience significant Texas sites in Dallas/Fort Worth, Austin/San Antonio, or Houston/Galveston with Texas educators and a focus on leadership. For more information about Education in Action visit www.educationinaction.org and www.facebook.com/educationinaction.