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Family Travel Forum shows how visits to historic sites, like the Alamo or Colonial Williamsburg, can be fun for all ages.

I listened in awe at the Parents League seminar as a German woman explained her family vacations were always devoted to a Great Moment in History: her kids had gone to Greece to visit the Oracle of Delphi and were off to London to study the Rosetta Stone. "How else will my children understand the History of Mankind?" she wondered aloud.

I vividly remember the moment when I determined that "understanding the history of mankind" should motivate at least some of our family travels.

Then last Thanksgiving, a niece in Trinity College, the school break and San Antonio's annual holiday boat parade coincided to bring four families together for a reunion in Texas.

Of course, grandparents and grandchildren would do some touristy stuff. But San Antonio's most famous attraction, the Alamo, would offer us a 'great moment in history' on which to focus. This experience taught us how important audio-visual aids would be in helping kids understand history.

Going to the Alamo

To most Americans, The Alamo is synonymous with the battle of Misión San Antonio de Valero. This battle site was actually a church built by the Spanish (alamo means cottonwood) in the prosperous settlement of San Antonio, Mexico. In 1836, 188 Texians and Tejano rebels seeking an independent Texas nation occupied the Alamo mission. Hopelessly outnumbered, they withstood the onslaught of Mexican troops for 13 days. Their martyrdom in defense of liberty ("I would give my life for freedom!") fueled the ensuing Texian victories; "Remember the Alamo" became their battle cry.

To prepare the kids for this great moment in America's history we read "The Mystery of the Alamo" in Gertrude Chandler Warner's Boxcar Children series (ages 5-9). In this book, the four Aldens and their grandfather come to San Antonio on a business trip and are asked to be extras in an Alamo documentary. Luckily (as we learned) a driving rain forced us across the street from the real thing and into an IMAX theater to see the docudrama Alamo: The Price of Freedom.

While waiting for the film, we studied the weapons in the Alamo Gift Shop and a detailed scale model of the battle site. Although we could never reconcile the enormity of the 19th-century fort with the present-day historic site, the 45-minute film did a great job recreating the scene. Sets, costumes and a serious cast helped the kids understand the motivations of the heroes: Commander William B. Travis, who had pledged his life to defend liberty; famed hunter and soldier Jim Bowie; frontier Congressman David Crockett in his coonskin cap; and Juan Seguin, who led the Spanish-born Tejanos. After sitting through this bloodless massacre (suitable for ages 4+), we headed across Alamo Plaza again.

On the way, Nana noticed a sign for The Texas Adventure, a commercial venture billed as a multimedia museum.  Having seen how much her grandchildren enjoyed the film, she suggested we try it.

After walking through the skimpy display of Old West props and cowboy tools, a narrator recounted the history of San Antonio from painted murals, which were illuminated at the mention of each incident. The music swelled and lights flashed on and off; grandparents were stunned but for a few minutes the kids were enthralled. Then, both live actors and extremely ethereal -- but captivating -- holograms of Alamo participants read letters and diaries about the 13-day siege. Though the multimedia elements were uneven in quality, the experience successfully conveyed the Alamo's human drama to everyone.