Create Your Own Field Trips

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After learning about national landmarks in school last year, Mister Man started talking about wanting to see Mount Rushmore in person. We obliged with a family RV trip to Mount Rushmore and other sites out west for two weeks, a trip the wee ones still talk about.

They’re currently planning another trip to the Grand Canyon in the summer of 2014 and I love how their learning in the classroom is continuing to generate interest.  So much learning happens outside of the classroom, and I love finding ways to help encourage this.

It isn’t always possible to travel to the ends of the earth, much as I would love to take the wee ones to see the Great Wall or the Blarney Stone or even the Everglades, there are so many ways to create field trips near to home.  In December, we took the wee ones by train into Chicago and wandered around, seeing all sorts of touristy things, but also making sure we included various stops they wanted to make.  They loved it and have asked to do it again.

Perea Blackon is the 2012 District of Columbia State Teacher of the Year and has additional ideas of how to create your own field trips, as she fully endorses continuing learning outside the classroom. She has tips on what parents can teach their children during a field trip, as well as how to ensure that kids get the most out of the field trip and can share their learning with their classmates back home.

Parents aren’t the only ones who can use field trips to enhance learning, however. Ms. Blackmon also shares information about the HHonors Teacher Treks, an award program in which teachers vie for the chance to travel, explore and share culture firsthand. Through an essay submission, teachers discuss cultural destinations they have always wanted to visit and explain how they would share the learnings and experiences from a trip to that destination with their students. program.

Submissions are open through March 15, and beyond the 15 winners, another 30 teachers will be selected for a $2,500 grant to use in their classrooms for cultural experiences.

Whether you are a teacher or know one, this is an opportunity not to be missed.  Can you imagine where you or that awesome teacher you know would go?

In the interest of full disclosure, this was a paid promotional post.  That said, all opinions remain my own.

Written by 5 Minutes for Mom contributor Michelle who has her own wish list of places to go that don’t involve an RV.  See what makes her tick on her blog Honest & Truly! or follow along with her adventures on Twitter where she is also @HonestAndTruly.

Michelle may never stop running around Chicagoland, but she always makes time for the important things in her life – her wee ones, cooking, reading, and spending time with friends – and of course, writing. You can see what she’s up to on her blog Honest & Truly! or on Twitter where she tweets as @HonestAndTruly.