In 2016, Minooka TAP is Headed to Amsterdam, Normandy, and Paris!!!

Yes! After nine years of traveling the globe, TAP finally gets to see this! Do you want to be there with us?

Minooka TAP started way back in 2007 with a group of five teachers, a handful of parents, and twenty-four students traveling to Germany to explore the country and study WWII.  That trip opened so many new doors for the kids and adults involved that we haven’t stopped traveling since.  Each year TAP has taken groups of kids from the area on overseas trips to experience history, literature, music, art, culture, language, and food from far away places.  We’ve been lucky enough to travel to 18 different countries, on three different continents, with over 200 students.  We’ve seen amazing places like Germany, Greece, Turkey, Italy, Ireland, Spain, Portugal, Morocco, Japan, England, Poland, Austria, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic.  In the summer of 2015, TAP will have about 40 people with us on an adventure in South Africa!

Now we’re excited to announce our 2016 trip – Our 10th Anniversary Adventure!!!

What:  Not only do students involved in Minooka TAP get the opportunity to make the entire world their classroom and go on the coolest field trip ever, they get so much more.  TAP students are part of our community – a big family we build to make sure that everyone gets what they want out of their travel experience.  They get to be published authors (how awesome will that look on college applications?) – every year the TAP students research the aspects of the trip that are most interesting to them, then collaborate to write our own guidebook that’s published by Amazon.  (Check them out on Amazon).  And, the kids involved in TAP also get a chance to work towards college credit hours.

The Canals of Amsterdam. This will be one of our first stops in 2016. Are you going to be on the boat with us?

Why: If you’re reading this far, you probably agree that learning history right there in a castle or on a battlefield is better than simply learning inside the school’s four wall, and that learning literature by being where the story took place has advantages over sitting in little plastic desks, and that learning art by standing in front of a masterpiece, language by immersing yourself in it, music by playing it, or science by seeing it in action are all amazing opportunities.

Where and When: In June 2016, we will spend almost two weeks experiencing history, culture, art, architecture, music, literature, and food while traveling around France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands.

Students involved in our program will walk on the D-Day beaches of Normandy, climb the Eiffel Tower, see the masterpieces in the Louvre, look for the hunchback in Notre Dame Cathedral, stand on the site of the Battle of the Bulge, bicycle through the Dutch countryside visiting windmills, take a boat cruise on the canals of Holland, hike Shakespeare’s forest of Arden, explore medieval castles in Luxembourg, and walk through Anne Frank’s hiding place in Amsterdam.

 How: To join TAP and be a part of our French adventure, you need to complete the online application found on our website. Application deadline is November 23^rd, 2014. Our online application can be found on the TAPplication tab at the top of this page.  Space on our trip is limited, so be sure to get your application completed by the deadline. (Once a student’s application is accepted, parents or grandparents may also join the group.)

A castle in Luxembourg. If you want to explore this place, be sure to have your application done by the deadline.

You have just 20 days to complete the application, so get started today.  The first part is a simple set of questions.  The second part involves you asking four adults for letters of recommendation (one from a teacher, one from a family member, one from any adult that isn’t a teacher or family member, and the last one from anyone you choose).  The third part of the application is a few longer questions, including two short essays – take your time and do the best you can on these.

The application deadline is November 23rd.  Late applications will not be accepted.  All parts of the application are submitted online through this website.

Who: Minooka TAP is open to students from all over the Chicagoland area are eligible to apply.  Once a student is accepted into our program, their parents and/or grandparents may also join the group.

For more information about our group, please visit the FAQ, the TAP Teachers, or the TAP Trips sections of this site or find us on   Facebook (Minooka TAP) or YouTube (Minooka TAP).

If you have any further questions, you can contact us at minookatap2@gmail.com.