<p>Sally, my kids loved the trees around the quads at Johns Hopkins. They are the perfect size for climbing, with low hanging but sturdy branches. A swing at Marlboro College caught their attention too- it was a large wooden seat that hung from a very high branch but was wide enough for two kids to share. The MIT museum is also way cool for tweens...</p>
<p>Wellesley has a gigantic hill that is great for sledding or just general rolling down. There's also a trail around Lake Waban that's really pretty and not too long. The Science Center is pretty awesome from the inside. They added the library onto the old building so there's a contrast between really modern architecture and this great old facade. There's also Platfrom 9 3/4 and the balcony from Romeo and Juliet (well, not really, but look around the back of the academic quad). And if all else fails there's a pool table in the campus center.</p>
<p>Ummm..the library, duh? sike</p>
<p>UCF and Rollins in Orlando have some obvious nearby attractions :P</p>
<p>UF should attract any pre-teen Gator faithful since you can just walk in and visit the various stadiums that the different sports teams play at. Similar for other large State U.'s</p>
<p>University of Dayton has Wright Patterson Air Force base nearby with a large museum.</p>
<p>USF, Eckerd, University of Tampa all benefit from Clearwater/St. Pete beaches and Busch Gardens/Adventure Island.</p>
<p>Miami (OH) has some pretty cool stuff too including a skating rink.</p>
<p>University of Virginia
-copy of the Declaration of Independence, as well as other rare pieces by Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, other founding fathers, and notable authors, including Edgar A Poe
-Poe attended UVA as one of the first students, so they have his original room on "The Lawn" set-up and you can look around at inside.
-the historical tours are great, even for kids
-"The Lawn" is great for kids to run around in and run down the Lawn rooms and up the Rotunda's steps. Bring a fribee or ball and just let them run around.
-Inside The Rotunda is a huge museum set-up with facts about UVA/TJ/early America</p>
<p>University of Miami actually had babysitting during orientation at the gym where college age students watched my daughter, then age 7, while we attended campus activities for parents. My daughter loved it so much that she didn't want to leave. She actually learned to jump rope like a pro there.</p>
<p>Aside from that, she loved the Rathskellar, where they have outdoor tables that glide back and forth and a beautiful view of the lake where the fish jump out of the water. Looking for lizards and other wildlife was fun. There is a pool on campus, but we didn't attempt to use it. The bookstore had clothes for kids and lots of UM goodies like stuffed animals, stickers, costume jewelry, etc. that appeal to young ones. </p>
<p>Of course, Miami has many attractions outside the university for antsy kids as well.</p>
<p>I think my daughter was so taken with the whole college experience that she didn't really need too many other distractions!</p>
<p>My son was gleeful when he spotted the "Beware of Gators" sign near that U. of Miami lake (and was disappointed when we didn't see any). Sometimes it can be the little things like that which can make a campus visit memorable for the younger set. When we visit colleges we always try to seek out local details that are peculiar to that part of the country and which we won't find a home (e.g., Spanish moss and live oaks on many southern campuses).</p>
<p>Beanbag chairs at Earlham. My son enjoyed the watching the skateboarders at UNC-W.</p>
<p>Honestly, we bribed our family. We looked at a few colleges and then we go to, as you mentioned "Six Flags" if it was close enough. Since we had annual passes that year anyway, they could experience a different Six Flags. Also, bathing suits for hotel stays were very helpful. It made the experience somewhat of a vacation too.</p>
<p>My younger son did enjoy eating in some of the college dining halls. He particularly enjoyed making his own ice cream creations at the buffet type of dining halls.</p>
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My younger son did enjoy eating in some of the college dining halls.
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<p>Yep ... we are like an army ... traveling on our stomachs, that is. For better or worse, these culinary adventures help my son distinguish among the multiple campuses we see. Given that he's only 11 and the purpose of the trips is for my work and not his future application options, I don't grill him after each junket ("Name three unique things about Eckerd" :) ) </p>
<p>But, still, he likes to keep the various schools straight in his mind, so that he can follow the conversations he overhears in the car. Food is a great way to do this. Elon, for example, will forever be "the French toast college" in our family. Maybe it's not such a bad plan for high school students either. :D</p>
<p>Many tweener boys, including my son, passionately follow college sports. He got very interested at the Belk Arena on Davidson's campus when his older sister visited. Buying college logo sports gear at the campus store was also a hit.</p>
<p>Our twins were 12 when we went on the big college visit road trip with their older sister. We took their bicycles and let them bike around campus. My husband was a good sport and took his bike too, and often they explored the campus while DD and I took the official tour. It made the trip tolerable for all of us.</p>
<p>As for specific campuses, the only attraction I remember them particularly enjoying was the outdoor sculpture garden outside the museum near the Case Western campus.</p>
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But, still, he likes to keep the various schools straight in his mind, so that he can follow the conversations he overhears in the car. Food is a great way to do this. Elon, for example, will forever be "the French toast college" in our family. Maybe it's not such a bad plan for high school students either.
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<p>I was wondering whether I should mention this or not, but now that you're talking about this, I figure I'd talk about it. I went on a LOTTTT of college tours (visited Caltech, Berkeley, UWashington, Dartmouth, Brown, and UCLA), but nothing compares to the freshly-baked cookies at Brandeis after an information session. They were awesome, even on such a hot day. They were delicioussssssss. :P </p>
<p>Yeah, I'm a sucker for cookies, but I bet 10-year-olds really only care about getting sugar into their bodies... well, at least I was at that age.</p>
<p>mother of perl
I think thats an excellent idea if you are doing a car touring trip. The family members on the bikes will get a different perspective on the campus than those on the tour,will probably cover different areas than the tour and can even stop and take pics for you.</p>
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The family members on the bikes will get a different perspective on the campus than those on the tour,will probably cover different areas than the tour and can even stop and take pics for you.
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<p>Along those same lines, the pre-teens on bikes or scooters might also enjoy scouting out (and photographing) those hidden under-belly sights that never make the viewbook (scuzzy bathrooms, towers of discarded pizza boxes behind dorms, beleaguered, cigarette-burned sofas on the lawns of frat houses). My son (future lawyer ... or admissions officer ;)?) seems to hone in on contradictions. At one college, for instance, a bulletin board proclaiming "Upcoming Events" was rife with notices about happenings long past. On another campus, the "You are here" arrow put us in the middle of a football field, even though we were outside the library, nearly a half mile from the stadium. Probably the work of a prankster, but my son zeroed right in on it.</p>
<p>View all of this with a few grains of salt, of course. No campus is universally pristine. But seeking out the "grosser" aspects of a campus can be an entertaining distraction for the younger set.</p>
<p>When we visited Dickinson and Gettysburg, my youngest went off by herself while my college-bound child had her tour and interview and I talked with financial aid. The observations made by the youngest were very interesting. While I wouldn't encourage very young children to wander around alone, I DO think going a bit off the beaten path can be very revealing. The photographing sounds like fun.</p>
<p>On the west coast...if you go to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo you can go to the AG section of the campus and see all the calfs and walk through the hog houses and see the piglets...very cute but incredibly stinky. If you drive into downtown San Luis Obispo there is an alleyway called "Bubblegum Alley" where people have stuck wads of gum for probably over 30 years...it is nasty but the kids are fascinated by it.</p>
<p>My 13 year old daughter spent her time in info sessions cartooning. She would "mock" some of the statements made by adcoms or the ridiculous questions asked by some parents and create wonderful captioned cartoons. Her work would sometimes catch the eye of others sitting close by and we would pass them around. Luckily we were never caught!</p>
<p>Pens and pads given out at info sessions are a good idea, for artists of all ages and talents.</p>
<p>At Cornell, we have a Dairy Bar where you can get our Ice cream, the clocktower which you can climb everyday and get a really, really nice view of Ithaca and the campus. There is a brain exhibit in one of the halls. Can't remember which one. Sorry :( There is also a crypt in Sage Chapel which I've heard is pretty creepy.</p>
<p>This can get pricey, but my 'tween really enjoyed hitting the school bookstore after a tour and picking out a hoodie (she loves wearing hoodies to school, especially ones from different colleges or vacation destinations) or some other souvenir of the school. Snackwise, she liked the cookies at Brandeis' admissions department and the Creamery at Penn State. Considering that she's also into drawing, I really like uskoolfish's cartooning idea.</p>