As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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1. Cultural experiences in each of the countries at World Showcase (list the countries), including fine arts (exhibitions), good/products, architecture and language (all CMs are from the country).
2. Math/Currency - allowing the child to help budget the trip and have their own budget will teach them math.
3. Physics - have them do experiements on roller coasters, comparing and contrasting difference forces of rides with different height requirements.
4. Journal writing - have them write a travel journal, including the trip there and back.
5. Epcot Future World exhibits - The Land, The Seas with Nemo, etc. The land has a ride that shows a hydroponic garden. The Seas has aquariums and talks about conservation.
6. Animal Kingdom - specifically the Conservation Station, talks about our impact on the Earth and what we can do to help. The exposure to animals on an educational level and observation level is really high quality.
I know there are others who will come up with more, but that should get you started....
Please check the newsletter archives or the most recent podcast . . . there was just a very well done series of articles. PassPorter.com Article Collection
Look for Lions Tigers and Learning and Lights Camera Education plus the World is your Classroom!
Put a pedometer on everyone. Use the numbers at the end of the day to work out how many steps each person took, how far they walked in miles (or KM), What is the average per day? What is the average per person per day? What park inspired more walking?
Teach before you go about balanced nutrition, and then have the kids responsible for tracking how well they stick to a balanced diet while at WDW.
Check out Rafiki's planet watch, and see what the kids can learn there.
Do a scavenger hunt - A to Z items, things that squeak, people with purple on, etc.
Give them a certain amount of money for treats and souvenirs, for the week. They have to decide how much to spend each day, or to spend it all at once. A way to do this for us was: we told our kids they had X amount. We gave them a page out of a check register. Then, we paid and they kept track of how much the had left.
You can go to each country around the "world" (EPCOT) and have a cast member write down how to say "Hello, my name is.....", and teach your kids how to say it. (We did find that in the countries using script we're not used to, it helps to write this phonetically).
This is a copy and paste from the "Letter to the Teacher" to excuse children from school so they can go to Disney. It talks all about the things that kids can learn while at the "world".
* Different cultures of the world, including architecture, language, diet, and dress, by visiting the different countries in the Epcot World Showcase (Japan, China, Germany, Mexico, Norway, Canada, France, etc.) Fallon will have the chance to explore the exhibits for each country and speak with natives from each country who work as cast members.
* American history by viewing the Hall of Presidents presentation in the Magic Kingdom and the American Adventure show in Epcot.
* Nature and conservation at Animal Kingdom.
* Science by exploring the Mission:Space ride in Epcot where she will have a chance to see and feel what it would be like to travel by rocket to Mars and by experiencing the Universe of Energy exhibit which teaches about fossil fuels, energy, and conservation.
* Economics by managing his own spending money and making budget decisions on how to spend her money.
Fallon will also be learning about map reading by navigating in and to the different theme parks, as well as the resorts and water parks via the Disney bus system, sociological aspects of crowds including patterns and behavior, physics of the different rides, breakthroughs in technology at the Innovations computer lab in Epcot, art and animation and the history of film, and mathematics.
This isn't so much a suggestion for you, but Lizzie used the photos that we took at the flying fox exhibit on the Maharajah Jungle Trek for a report she did about bats. Part of the text she was including was how bat claws were very much like fingers. And when we looked at our pictures, she had one of the bat skeleton they have on display. And sure enough, you could clearly see the fingers. It was a pretty cool moment. She also used some of the information that was included as part of the themeing about how important bats are to the communities in India.
So if you have some sort of a report coming up, Disney can really BE helpful in getting some information in an interesting way.
Disney World has special days set aside just for homeschooling families. September 8 & 9 2010 and January 24 & 25 2011.
There's a lot that can be done with the animals in AK.
The Lego Store could be very educational.
A session on the Jungle Book could be a good lesson plan.
We liked the Behind The Seeds Tour at Epcot for a good nature lesson.
Using the Hidden Mickey Guide as a learning tool was also a good idea for us. The children had to use their brains to figure out clues.
The maps were also great for teaching map skills and planning activities.
Using a timeline as a lesson plan is a good idea, too. Having them walk through the back of Club Cool and the Character Meet & Greet Spot will help them fill in a timeline of Walt and WDW.
Giving them X amount of money to spend and having them figure out how to spend it without going over is a great math lesson.
Have them keep a journal of each days activities, which helps with writing and comprehension.
Goodness there are so many things! One year my DD's teacher gave her a handout to do. It had questions about different places in Disney. Most were in Epcot. She had to make paper...(future world - I can't remember where though). One was to visit the Hall of Presidents in MK and answer some questions. There were science questions about Ellen's Energy Adventure. If I can remember anything else, I will post! Good luck!
Thank you all so much!!!! I am having to do this because unfortunately when we moved so did DD’s spring break so she will be out of school for a week. The school and the district have been great(use to military brats ) and said all I need to do is write a letter explaining the situation and give the educational aspects of the trip and not to worry.
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Please check the newsletter archives or the most recent podcast . . . there was just a very well done series of articles. PassPorter.com Article Collection
It is an excellent set of articles written by a woman who lives in my town. She is a teacher and very knowledgeable about the subject.
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) and said all I need to do is write a letter explaining the situation and give the educational aspects of the trip and not to worry. 
It is an excellent set of articles written by a woman who lives in my town. She is a teacher and very knowledgeable about the subject.
Dana
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