Tweens in London

Tweens are a special group to consider on a trip because they have a special way of making everyone miserable if they are less than happy. LOL! Keep them engaged so everyone can enjoy the trip because London was made for tweens!

Before you head to London be sure to download my travel guide to London for elementary kids and tweens!

Tweens in London –  Jack the Ripper walk

By day hit the usual sights and by night walk where Jack the Ripper walked. Even the most jaded tween who is most certain that all of your trip will be boring and lame 😉 will be thrilled by this creepy and curious walk. This tour is full of information about the still unsolved mystery of Jack the Ripper. After the tour discuss your own thoughts of Jack the Ripper…who was he???

This walk is simply fantastic! Walk around the area Jack the Ripper tore through (pun intended 😉 while your guide tells the sorrid tale….Tweens will LOVE a creepy evening walk.

If your tween is fascinated by this macabre story, read about it before you go in this cool book for older kids and tweens.

Jack the Ripper: History’s Worst by Michael Burgan A biography written just for the older kid and tween set about one of England’s most notorious unsolved mysteries! Length: 208 pages. Written for grades 3-7. Lexile Level: N/A.

The Mystery Library – Jack the Ripper by Natalie M. Rosinsky  This book is a compilation of theories and ideas regarding the unsolved mystery of Jack the Ripper. This book is for OLDER tweens and teens and includes black and white photographs. Great for reluctant readers. Written for kids aged 12 and up. Length: 112 pages. Lexile Level:

Tweens in London –  Tower of London

This tour provides more creepiness for your tween. I’m not sure why tweens are so fascinated by the creepy – I can’t look but I can’t turn away type stuff, but they are!! The Tower of London has served many purposes over the year including a time it was a prison!

Enjoy the Beefeaters tour and you’ll hear about beheadings…

and heirs to the throne locked in the tower who were never seen again. In the past, being heir to the throne was a risky business.

Is your tween a girl? Enjoy the gasp worthy jewels – more than 23,000 of them! The collection is worth more than 20 billion pounds.

Imagine getting to wear them! But also consider how much they weigh. This crown weighs almost 5 pounds. The Queen has to practice for a while before wearing this crown in public.

See the ravens…

There are 6 ravens at the tower and their wings are clipped so they can not leave. The legend says that when the ravens leave the tower…the crown will fall. So now, the ravens are treated like royalty themselves with special care and special diet treats.

Of course  with all these beheadings it should be no surprise that the tower is haunted! It’s haunted by several ghosts including Catherine, the 5th wife of King Henry VIII.

The Ravenmaster’s Secret: Escape from the Tower of London by Elvira Woodruff Tweens love all things creepy and macabre and this fictional account will have the wheels turning before your trip to the Tower of London. Forrest Harper is stuck inside the Tower tending the ravens with his father and working when he makes a friend who is about to be executed. Written for kids aged 8 – 12 years. Length: 240 pages.

Tweens in London – London Eye

For those who are sticklers for details, the London Eye is not a ferris wheel…it is a instead a cantilevered observation wheel.  But, you probably knew that, didn’t you? I mean, at the grocery store just yesterday you were surely discussing cantilevered observation wheels with your friends….right? 😉

The London Eye receives more visitors every year than the Taj Mahal and the Great Pyramids of Gaza. It is so very tall – 443 feet! Could you ride in this glass box? Your tween will LOVE it!

Enjoy the amazing view!

Tweens in London – Read before you go!

Be sure to read before the trip to get everyone thinking about your destination. Giving the kids (and yourself) a foundation before your trip gives your brain a spot to ‘put’ new information and helps everyone remember even more.

**WARNING**

Do NOT take tweens on trips without preparing them! They’ll act like everything is totally and utterly lame and complain until you just wish you were dead. Be prepared!

A natural beginning to reading about London would be the Harry Potter series! Everyone loves Harry Potter! Read the books and watch the movies. Tune your ear to the British accent.

If you need ideas on books to read about London for the kids and tweens you have come to the right place! I’ve spent hours and hours reading books, reading lists, reading reviews on all the best books about London for kids and I’ve made you a list!

The BEST book to make your adventure in London awesome with kids and tweens is my

 Travel Guide to London for the KIDS