There are many field trips planned during the month of June, a tradition I recall from my past days as a student in elementary school.  These excursions, whether they are as close as a Harold Bishop Park or as far away as Quebec City, have the potential for providing lifelong memories and valuable learning opportunities that can be enriched both at school and at home.

At school, well thought out year-end field trips (or any field trips throughout the year) can provide rich applications to the Ontario curriculum.  They can be opportunities to ignite curiosity, build connections to current learning or reinforce past learning in the classroom.  Beyond the academic component, field trips may also provide a chance for team building and provide a final farewell celebration with a ‘classroom family’ that has emerged over the last 10 months.

At home, field trips present a perfect forum for parental engagement in school life. They provide a wealth of conversational ideas to enhance oral language skills in both listening and speaking.  Conversations that involve making predictions about what the trip will be like, asking questions, recalling the events of the day and making connections between the field trip experiences and other parts of life are exceptional ways to enhance comprehension skills, while deepening the connections between school and home.

This week my youngest son is heading off on an overnight trip.  For the past week we have been planning together, making lists of necessary items, talking about what to expect while he is away; what he is most excited about (kayaking) and least excited about (bugs). When he returns, I am already excited to share in his adventures.  To me there is no doubt that a learning task embedded in a real world application is one of the most engaging learning experiences a student can have! What learning adventures have you and your family had? Would love to hear about them!

If you are looking for some ideas for good family field trips, Attractions Ontario has a very useful Ontario’s Field Trip Planner for Educators 2013/2014 On page 8 of this document you’ll find the Attraction Index where the attractions are all listed with related subject and grade level suggestions!  A very useful and practical guide.