field trip event ideas

25 Fantastic Field Trip Ideas

Fuel Your Imagination and Planning

Nothing captivates students and youth groups more than the thrill of FIELD TRIPS! These special excursions give kids a chance to encounter new experiences, expand their horizons, cultivate fresh interests, and revel in fun with friends. Below, we’re sharing 25 of our favorite field trip ideas to fuel your imagination and planning.

Terrific Tips for Field Trip Planning 

Wherever you decide to venture, remember these tips to ensure a safe and splendid experience for everyone: 

Align field trips with educational objectives or significant milestones in the school year.

Choose age-appropriate venues and activities, and come prepared with a game plan and instructional materials.

Provide enough chaperones to ensure the safety of all students/group members. ( Pro Tip:   Use SignUp to recruit parent volunteers! )

Follow school/group guidelines for arranging transportation, collecting permission slips, organizing buses, carpooling, etc. 

Communicate expectations for bringing or buying snacks, lunch, and beverages.

For elective and costly field trips, provide  fundraising opportunities  to enable more students to participate.

Educate both children and chaperones on safety measures and emergency procedures.

Fantastic Field Trip Ideas 

Art Museum:  Ignite creative expression and cultivate an appreciation for cultures, history, and identity by visiting a local museum. Many offer curriculum tailored to specific age groups, along with knowledgeable guides and engaging activities for your class or group.

Aquarium:  Dive into the world of ocean life and ecosystem conservation by exploring an oceanarium or aquarium.

Bank : Extend financial literacy lessons with a visit to a main bank branch, offering insights into opening savings accounts, understanding money flow, and even a glimpse into the vault.

Bakery or Candy/Ice Cream Factory : Arrange a tour of a local bakery or industrial food production site to discover the intricacies of food production, complete with delicious samples!

Botanical Garden : Embark on a journey through diverse plant species, learn about local ecosystems, and marvel at the beauty and wonders of nature.

Civil Rights Landmarks : Explore historical sites related to civil rights to enhance students' understanding of the enduring struggle for racial and social equality .

College Campus : Introduce students to the college experience, sparking excitement about higher education and future possibilities.

Cultural Neighborhood Tour : Roam through culturally vibrant neighborhoods to gain insight into various traditions, cuisines, and customs.

Environmental Cleanup Expedition:  Participate in a cleanup event at a local park, lake, or trail promoting environmental awareness and community engagement.

Farm or Dairy:  Gain hands-on knowledge of sustainable agriculture, interact with farm animals, and learn about the farm-to-table process.

Government : Foster civic participation with a tour of local, state or national houses of government, complete with an introduction to elected representatives.

Graveyard : Pay a visit to the resting places of local heroes and significant historical figures to pay respects, and to discover their life stories and the influence they've had on your community.

Historical Reenactment:  Immerse in living history at reenactment events while giving students an experiential understanding of the past.

Local Business/Factory : Take a revealing tour of a prominent local business or factory to learn about their products, manufacturing processes, and community impact.

Nature Photography : Organize a nature photography expedition where students can capture the beauty of the outdoors and showcase their creativity.

Performing Arts Showcase : Attend a theater performance, dance show, or concert to foster an appreciation for the performing arts and encourage creative expression.

Preserve or Park : Explore local green spaces to study wildlife, conduct nature walks, and emphasize the importance of nature conservation.

Pumpkin Patch:  Embrace fall with a visit to the nearby pumpkin patch where students can enjoy hay rides, corn mazes, face painting, and the delight of picking their own pumpkins. 

Science or Innovation Center:  Explore a science or technical innovation center where students can participate in interactive exhibits, conduct science experiments, and learn about exciting future technologies.

Skating : Mark a school year milestone with a party at your local (ice or roller) skating rink, complete with beginner lessons, pizza, and treats.

Stadium or Sports Arena:  Visit the home of your local sports team and get a behind-the-scenes tour of the venue, complete with team autographs. 

Theme Park:  Celebrate hard work with a recreational outing to a local amusement park, water park, or other entertainment center. 

Virtual Reality Tours : Transport students to renowned museums and iconic sites around the world through virtual reality, offering a unique way to explore art and history.

Volunteer Experience : Dedicate a day to community service at a local nonprofit, teaching students the importance of supporting their community and offering insight into nonprofit operations.

Wilderness Surviva l: Collaborate with a local guide or company to arrange a wilderness survival camp that teaches students essential skills like shelter construction, fire-making, foraging for food, water purification, and more.

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55 Simple and Memorable Field Trip Ideas

We all know that field trips are fun- we have all been there. But when you are on the side that you have to plan them, it becomes a bit less fun, and a lot more stressful. It does not really need to be, though, because there are so many fun things out there that your middle schoolers will love to do.

In this article, we will give you 29 excellent field trip ideas. And remember, these are just ideas- there are tons more out there! Get creative!

I don’t know what it is about the zoo, but there is just something about the zoo that makes it one of the best places on earth. And this is true for most ages, not just preschoolers. Running around, finding favorite animals, discovering new ones, and learning more about animals that may be endangered is so fun.

Your middle schoolers will think so, too. Many zoos offer free (or at least discounted) admission for field trips, as long as they’re booked in advance. ( Source )

2. Water Park

Visiting a water park is a great way to either say goodbye to warmer weather or to celebrate the return of it. The best thing about many water parks is that they have arcades too, so those who do not like swimming can just try to win the giant plushies and lava lamps that we all envied as children.

3. Art Museum

An art museum is a great way to infuse culture into middle schoolers. Most are old enough to know museum etiquette, and the museum can introduce them to so many different art styles, types of people, and countries. They may come out thinking about art in a completely different way.

4. State and National Parks

If you live by a state or national park, consider yourself incredibly lucky, and then go get in there! This is a great way to expose middle schoolers to nature, and it helps them to love the outdoors if they do not already. State and national parks are beautiful, and they give the perfect opportunity to teach about the importance of taking care of the environment!

5. Movie Theater

You can never go wrong with a movie. All kids like movies. As long as it’s rated G or PG, and you have parental approval, the employees will be ready with popcorn and drinks in excess for your middle schoolers to enjoy.

6. Aquarium

Like the zoo, it is impossible to go wrong with a trip to the aquarium. Many aquariums have rehabilitated animals, which presents a great opportunity to teach about the importance of picking up after ourselves, and not throwing trash in the ocean. It is never too early to help kids become environmentally conscious.

7. Botanical Gardens

Botanical gardens give the wonderful chance to be outside, and it provides a controlled environment to do so. They are beautifully landscaped, and they usually have pretty fountains and waterfalls that provide a really calming atmosphere.

An added bonus: it is easy to reinforce what your middle schoolers have been learning about plants in science classes with what you see!

8. An Actual Theatre

Exposing middle schoolers to the arts should be considered an essential part of their education. And, what’s more, going to plays just makes kids feel mature and important. Maybe it is just because of the way the phrase “going to the theatre” sounds when someone says it with a British accent. If that wasn’t enough, then the fact that education in fine arts is proven to increase students’ self-confidence, self-understanding, communication skills, and cognitive abilities. ( Source )

9. Go on a Hike

This is a good field trip for many reasons. Exercising is an important thing to get in the habit of at a young age, and nature is something that everyone should appreciate. And, as if that was not enough, learning about rocks and rock formations is fascinating, too. This is a great way to combine what you’re teaching in class with what the kids are experiencing in real life.

10. Planetarium

The planetarium is another one of those places that are impossible for someone to not enjoy, even if they are starting to act more and more like a teenager. Besides, middle schoolers will understand the concepts and words used at the planetarium a lot better than elementary schoolers would.

11. Local High School

If there is one thing middle schoolers love, it is that they are going to be in high school soon. Take advantage of that! Take them to high school productions of plays, on tours of the high school they will be going to, and to other high school concerts and athletic events.

12. Local Colleges

While college is still far off for middle schoolers, it’s never too early to give them a good impression of college. Communicate how important a college education can be, and do not forget to mention how fun college life is, either. Get them excited about college before the application process rolls around. The best part about this trip: it’s free!

13. Library

Going to the local library is always a good idea. There is so much to learn (Dewey Decimal System, anybody?), and it is a great way to encourage kids to read. Making this trip coincide with a book report project or readathon might help them to check out books, too!

14. Government Buildings

A government building may be fun to tour. This includes things like the state Capitol building, or maybe even a local government office. There are often tours of the bigger buildings, and these are great opportunities to help students learn more about the government system in our country.

15. Local Festivals

Taking your middle schoolers to local festivals is another great field trip idea. Every town has some sort of interesting festival that they are known for. Take advantage of teaching the kids about the history of their town! Some examples are music festivals, farmers’ markets, local races, and holiday events.

16. Railroad

Local railroads may be hard to come by, but if you are lucky enough to have one in your area, they have tons of history. In addition to this, taking train rides is so much fun. Middle schoolers will love learning about the history of the railroad, taking a ride, and let’s be honest- the concessions on the train will help, too.

17. Local Factories

Going to local factories or businesses is another really great opportunity for middle schoolers. Exposing them to how things work is a great way to help them on the path toward finding out what they want to do in their life. When they see how many types of businesses work, they can better figure out what they like and what they don’t.

18. Amusement Park

Amusement parks are tons of fun. That said, they do require a bit more effort as a field trip. Especially if you are a public school teacher taking 20-30 kids with you, you will need chaperones, permission slips, and plenty of focus, because middle schoolers can wander off.

19. Just a Regular Park

This one is almost effortless, and it is still so much fun. Going to a park, sitting in nature, having a picnic, and then just playing exploring is so good for kids. Getting that time to just relieve stress is key to creating a balanced lifestyle for middle schoolers.

20. Historical Monuments

Historical monuments are there for a reason. They exist to teach us about the people and events that came before us. So why not introduce your middle schoolers to these amazing monuments? They are beautifully built, and being in a historical spot to learn about something that happened before is such a cool experience. What if there is not a monument in your town? There probably is, but if not, a neighboring town will definitely have one.

Caving is such a blast. If you live near a cave, taking middle school students caving would be a fantastic field trip. Before you go, make sure you check the difficulty level of the cave, so that everybody can participate. This is a great way to either introduce or just reinforce what students are learning about rocks, erosion, weathering, and more.

22. Historical Buildings, Homes, or other Sites

This is a great way to learn about specific people that may have had a huge influence on your town, organizations that shaped how your town functioned, or just other historical events that may have caused your town to be built in the first place.

Middle schoolers will love seeing places that appear in books they have read or movies they have seen, and if they are not familiar, they will just enjoy seeing the collection of old things.

23. Local Fire Station

Visiting the local fire station would be a very fun field trip for those who have dreams of being a fireman, but it will also be fun for those who don’t. Kids find it fascinating to learn about the process of it all: seeing the fire station, the fire trucks, and asking the firemen what their typical day looks like is a great way to get them engaged.

24. Local Police Station

It’s the same for the local police station. Not only will kids learn a lot about the government and what police do, but they’ll also learn that they don’t have to be afraid of all police officers. This is a great way to help middle schoolers become more comfortable around police and other emergency personnel. In addition to this, seeing the inside of a police officer’s car is sure to keep middle schoolers occupied: there’s a lot there!

25. Pottery Studio

There are several commercial pottery studios sprinkled around the country that anybody can use. So why not make a field trip out of it? Middle schoolers love working with their hands, and one thing that always makes field trips extra special is a souvenir that they can take home at the end of the day.

26. Fish Hatchery

If you live near a fish hatchery, this would be a really interesting field trip for middle schoolers. It does smell weird, but kids will love seeing the process that they go through in the hatchery. They will get to see a couple of different kinds of fish, and this field trip also gives the added benefit of some outdoor time.

27. Aviation Museum

An aviation museum is another excellent idea for a field trip for middle schoolers. Even if some students are not obsessed with planes and vehicles, the things that one can see at an aviation museum are undeniably fascinating.

Students will get to see several different types of planes, learn about famous pilots and wars, maybe see a rocket, and learn how aviation has changed since it first came into practice.

28. Local Power Plant, Dam, or Locks

This is another information-filled field trip. Though many dams and locks may not have tours, they usually have plenty of signs with blurbs to read that will provide for a lovely, self-guided tour. A lot of power plants will offer tours, though. In these places, middle schoolers will learn so much about modern technology, how things are powered, and more.

29. A Walking Tour of Your Town or City

Obviously, if you live in a big city, this may not be the safest idea, but if you feel you can conduct a safe walking tour of your town or city, do it! Even if they have lived in the town or city for a long time, many middle schoolers may still learn something about the town, and they may find something new to do. Pick a few destinations beforehand so that you can show your students the best-kept secrets of your city.

Remember that these ideas only scratch the surface of possibilities for fun field trips for middle schoolers. Students will appreciate any effort to add variety to their learning, so get creative!

30. Farmers Market

The Farmer’s Market is a great way for students to become involved in the community. Beforehand you can teach them about farming and how important it is to support your local farmers. Then you can take them to the market and let them pick something out or learn about all of the different produce. There are also sometimes animals there that they can pet.

Many communities host Farmer’s markets on Saturdays, so you might need to find out if your local farmer’s market takes place during the week!

31. Animal Shelter

The Animal Shelter is an awesome field trip not only for the kids but for the dogs and cats as well. The animals in animal shelters have often been neglected and abused. All they want is some love, which the kids will gladly give. It may inspire some families to adopt and give the animals a loving home.

32. Recycling Center

Learning about recycling is important. Visiting a Recycling Center might not be the most entertaining for the kids, but they will learn a valuable lesson about the importance of recycling and why we do it. They will also learn how to recycle and what can be reused, from plastic to paper to clothes.

33. A Hospital, Clinic, Dentist’s Office, etc

It is always a great idea to take the children to certain places where they can learn about different professions and what they could be when they grow up. Some kids may be scared of the hospital or doctor, but this way they can learn that doctors and nurses are here to help them.

If you can’t get the hospital to offer a tour, consider a tour of just any local clinic of a medical professional. Perhaps even a parent of a student in the class could offer a tour so that kids can learn about different professions.

Going to the bank may not sound the most fun to elementary school students, but they can learn important information that isn’t being fully taught in schools. Kids can go behind the scenes and possibly get a tour of the vault as well as learn how to write a check and what the purpose of a credit card is.

35. News, TV, or Radio Station

These field trips are fascinating because you can see the behind-the-scenes of the studio that the online viewers or listeners don’t get to see. The children will love to see the cameras and recording equipment, maybe even meet the people that their parents watch on TV every morning. Some kids could decide that this is the career path they want to move towards. The world always needs people to tell stories and report on what’s happening.

36. Local Business

It’s always important to highlight and remember local businesses. Local business owners would love to give back to the community by giving a tour to the students, inspiring them to chase their dreams. You never know which field trip is going to spark interest and help a kid decide what they want to be someday.

37. Restaurant or Bakery

Going to a restaurant or local bakery is something that children will love because they can get a behind-the-scenes tour, as well as some sampling of the food or treats. It will probably end up being one of their favorites since food is involved. Many local businesses will offer tours free of charge. ( Source )

38. Senior Care Facility

Taking the elementary school students to a retirement home is a great opportunity to teach them about the importance of service and learning from their elders. Children can oftentimes be egotistic because their brains aren’t fully developed. Volunteering is a great way to teach them compassion and kindness, and it will make the residents’ day as well.

39. Sporting Game

Sporting games are purely an entertaining field trip, and the students will be very excited. Most areas in the United States have a sports team, but even if you don’t live near a major city, you can find some minor league teams as well. Taking the students to a baseball or soccer game is probably the most common sport for a field trip. ( Source )

40. Theatre

Going to a theatre to see a play is also very exciting and entertaining. Communities almost always have a local theatre putting on a play for all ages to enjoy. You could even take the students to a play at the middle school or high school in the area. Make sure to pick an age-friendly play that they are willing to sit through for a few hours since young kids have a hard time sitting for long periods of time.

Going to the movies is a great indoor winter activity and very exciting for the children. It can get expensive, but there are also oftentimes group rate discounts, especially for schools. Maybe the movie field trip can be at the end of a big test as a reward. Don’t forget to get popcorn!

42. Orchestra

Going to the symphony or orchestra is a very special experience that not every child would normally experience. Classical music is very healthy for the brain. These days, everybody wants to listen to recorded music, but it’s important to instill a love of live music in the newer generations as well.

43. Pumpkin Patch

Fall is always a fun time of the year, and there are so many activities to do! This includes going to the pumpkin patch. Oftentimes, pumpkin patches not only have pumpkins to pick out and carve, but hayrides, mazes, and fun foods to try. My favorite pumpkin patch treats as a kid were apple cider donuts.

Picnics are easy and simple, probably costing zero dollars to the budget. All you have to do is make sure that every student brings a lunch from home and a blanket to sit on. Then all you have to do is take the class outside, set up the blankets, and they can sit with their friends and eat their lunch. Field Trips don’t always have to be big and extravagant.

45. Waterpark

The waterpark could be a great end-of-the-year activity since it needs to be warmer weather to go swimming. This field trip idea would probably need the most organizing, but it will be much worth it when it all comes together and you can celebrate the year together with students, parents, and teachers. This activity is recommended for older elementary school students that know how to swim.

There are endless opportunities for elementary school field trips! These young students are excited and curious about everything. Many of these places are free of charge and are happy to give a tour or experience to the students. Just make sure to plan everything out in advance and find enough chaperones to supervise the kids alongside the teachers. Good Luck! ( Source )

46. Explore a Local Recreation Center

Another great local resource that students can explore is a local recreation center. Finding and understanding available resources in the community is an important skill for kids as they transition to adulthood. A field trip to a recreation center can also emphasize the importance of health and lifelong physical activity to students as they begin to have more control over their lives.

47. Volunteer at a Food Pantry

Field trip education can be about more than just the sciences; giving high school students opportunities to serve in the community can be an important way for young adults to build character.

Many local food pantries would welcome the assistance of a large group of high school students. Taking a field trip day to volunteer at a local food pantry can help students understand more about supply chain management, while simultaneously helping them to build empathy.

48. Visit a Technology Company/Area

Technology is another area experiencing lots of growth. Helping to expose more students to areas like this can help give them direction when they may have none, and can also help fill a societal need.

If possible, arrange for students to take a field trip to a local software company where they can have opportunities to see the background processes of coding, system networks, and other tech phenomena. Showing students something like a server room, or cable management practices could be beneficial as well!

49. Visit the Capitol or Other Government Building

Whether it’s for History class, Political Science, or just to increase students’ social understanding, taking students to visit a capitol building or other government building can be both interesting and thought-provoking. This can be beneficial for all students as citizens, whether they are interested in pursuing education or careers in government or not.

50. Plan a College Visit

With students looking to the future, being able to get them on a university campus can be extremely helpful in guiding them in their decisions. Planning to visit a campus—or multiple campuses—could be a beneficial experience, especially for those on the fence about going.

Many colleges love to welcome high school students for campus visits and tours. Additionally, students may feel more comfortable being able to do a visit with friends and other peers with similar interests. Since Juniors will be thinking about which colleges to apply to, plan these trips preferably during students’ Junior year!

51. Plan a Photography Trip

With the invention of smartphones, and the popularity of Instagram, all students like to be both the photographer and the model. You can provide a field trip for them by taking them somewhere unique to take pictures and teaching them about principles of good photography, like lighting, balance, and the rule of thirds!

Alternatively, you could take them to a studio and allow them to take portraits or shoot other professional pieces, such as jewelry.

52. Plan a Painting Trip

For your more artsy individuals, you could consider planning a day trip to somewhere scenic where they could practice their painting skills. They could practice landscapes, nature scenes, or even portraits in nature.

53. Plan a Geological Trip

Another trip that could be fun is a trip to a location of geological significance. This could be something visual, such as being able to identify different strata on the side of a mountain, or something more tactile, like digging in an area for pieces of archeological or historical significance. It could even be something as simple as comparing rocks and their features depending on the area in which they’re found.

54. Do a Service Project Using Just Serve

We mentioned service in some of the above ideas (food pantry or homeless shelter), but you could also consider planning your own service project! Whether that’s planting trees locally, visiting an old folks’ home to visit with the residents there, or picking up trash.

There’s actually a great free website called Just Serve that allows you to quickly find service project needs for local non-profits. You could probably find something easy.

Allowing students to plan and prepare their own service activity can get them more engaged and help them feel like they can make a difference themselves.

55. Visit an Escape Room — or Any Activity Just for Fun!

Finally, we’d encourage you to be okay with some field trips being just for fun. Let your students go to an escape room, an amusement park, or a pool just for fun. Students need a break sometimes too!

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50 Fun & Educational Field Trip Ideas

• Katie Layne Contributing Writer
• Updated Aug 29, 2023

Homeschool Field Trips

Sometimes our homeschooling needs "something," some spark, something new and different, something that doesn't necessarily involve pencils and paper, something that gets our bodies moving and our spirits refreshed. Sometimes, we need a field trip!

Field trips can be used for wide and varied purposes. Sometimes a field trip is just what is needed to kick off a unit study or to pull everything together at the end of a period of study. Field trips can spark interest in various topics, fields of work, or study, which may lead to our students making a new invention or getting interested in a field that may one day become their life's work.

Get our awesome PDF of the Ultimate Field Trip Bucket List to print out and check off the ones you do!

Have you ever wondered why so many public school classes take field trips in the spring? Could the students and teachers be tired of being cooped up all year in a classroom and just want to get out and about in the fresh air? Oftentimes, the field trips are not even what you could consider "educational," but nonetheless, everyone in the class gets on a school bus, and off they go for the day. Therefore, I believe we can add one more purpose for field trips to our list above--fun! Field trips can be taken just for the fun of it.

If you are going to tour a facility that is not normally open to the public, or anywhere else that you will require a tour guide, be sure to call ahead to set up a time for your tour and find out if they have any special instructions for you.

Here are 50 awesome field trip ideas! 

1. Manufacturing facility . This would include any factory where cars, equipment, tools, toys, packaging or anything else is manufactured. The mechanized equipment and assembly lines are fascinating to watch and it is interesting to learn which raw materials are used and how they are used to make the final product.

2.  Farm. This could be a "specialty" farm that grows some specialty crop, a dairy farm, a farm that grows more ordinary crops such as wheat or corn, maple syrup farm, apple orchard or anyplace where food is grown. Think about the best time of year to visit each type of farm based on what operations may be going on at the time-planting, harvesting, cider making, sap gathering, etc.

3. Fire Department. Learn a bit about fire safety, how firemen fight fires, the gear they wear, and how they live.

4. Daily Newspaper . See the huge rolls of paper used and how the printing process works.

5. Post Office . When we toured our local post office, we were told to bring along postcards addressed to ourselves and were able to watch the postal workers process our own cards, which we then received at home in the mail a day later.

7. Military or National Guard Installation. Learn about what their duties are, what gear they use, what training they receive, and what types of situations they respond to.

8. A State or National Park . Learn about nature, plants and animals of the area. (Note: In these types of parks - as well as in the other science-oriented places listed in this article - the theory of evolution is usually presented as fact. This can provide a good opportunity for your family to study the Biblical account of creation and the scientific basis for the Christian viewpoint.)

9. Museum. There are large, well-known museums, but there are often small, little-known museums around as well that are quite interesting to visit. Check around your area to see what is available. Again, be prepared for evolutionary content. In addition, some museums (particularly art museums) may contain displays that don't fit your family's standards. Use appropriate parental caution when planning a field trip to these types of places.

10. Lock and Dam. Often there is a display area showing the history of the area and displays where you can learn how a lock and dam works. Plan your visit around a time when a ship or ships are due to pass through.

11. Pioneer Day Events. Many places across the country have special festivals or events where the lifestyle of the pioneers is the main focus. Here you can see pioneer craftsmen, equipment, cabins, clothing, animals and "experience" life as it was in our earlier history.

12. Jewelers Shop . Find a jeweler in your area that creates or repairs jewelry and plan a visit to see the tools and skills used.

13. State Capitol . Visit when congress is in session and sit in the visitor's gallery for awhile. Tour the building looking especially for pictures or plaques commemorating our Godly heritage. As you pass through the halls, pray for our leaders!

14. Lumber Mill. See how lumber is milled and hauled.

15. Ceramics Shop . Learn about the craft and how a kiln works.

16. Veterinarian . Learn about the profession and pet care.

17. Library. Learn about the Dewey Decimal System and how to use it. Learn to use the card catalog or computerized cataloging system your library uses.

19. Bank . Visit a local bank or credit union to learn about the different types of accounts and services they offer. This is a great way to follow-up #18 above. If your children don't already have savings accounts, this may be a great time to open one!

20. Recycling Center . Learn about what they recycle, how they do it and what their end products are used for.

21.  4-H Fair. See the different projects 4-H kids are involved in, from crops and animals, to baking, crafts and more.

22. Zoo . I've always enjoyed trips to the zoo! A word of caution, however: You may want to avoid the zoo during the spring season when many animals are "active" in ways you may not want to view as a family.

23. Old Cemetery . Make rubbings of old markers. Find the oldest marker. Look for interesting names and dates.

24. Planetarium . Watch out for evolutionary content here as well.

25. Local TV Station . Plan your trip to coincide with the News program. A trip to the TV Station ties in nicely with a unit study on weather, especially if you can talk with the weatherman and learn more about his job.

26. Dental Lab . See the different tools and methods used to make or fix teeth or dental appliances.

27.  Botanical Garden . This is a great opportunity to see a wide variety of plants.

28. Power Company. Learn about how power is generated and supplied to your area.

29. Wood Worker's Shop . Learn about the different tools and skills involved in making fine furniture or crafts.

30. Eye Doctor. Learn about eye care, diseases/problems, diagnosis equipment and treatment.

31. Print Shop. See the huge printing presses, trimmers and other equipment in operation.

32. Historical Sites . Most areas of the country have a variety of historical sites. Some are well-known (historical buildings, etc.), while others may just be an obscure marker commemorating some event that happened there. To supplement your historical ramblings, visit the local library to see if you can learn more about the people or time period.

33. Wildlife/Nature Preserve . Learn all about plants and animals native to the area.

34. Blacksmith. Sometimes you can actually find a working smithy shop, other times blacksmithing is part of a special pioneer or old-time event (see #11).

35. Local Bakery. This would be an operation on a much smaller scale than a food processing plant discussed earlier in this list, but can also be very interesting.

37. Pet Store. See a wide variety of pets, learn about their habits and care.

38. Symphony Orchestra. See if you can visit during a rehearsal, then go to the actual performance as well.

39. Historical Society. You can often obtain a wealth of information about your area at a local historical society.

40. Paper Mill. Learn about the paper making process from trees to tissue paper.

41. National Weather Service. Learn about how they predict weather and the science behind weather, what equipment is used, and how the public is informed of the upcoming forecast.

42. Basket Maker. Learn all about the various materials and tools used.

43. Fish Hatchery. Learn about different types of fish and how area lakes and ponds are stocked.

44. County Courthouse . Learn about what goes on in a local courthouse, enjoy the oftentimes beautiful architecture and look for pictures or plaques showing our godly heritage.

45. Nursery or Lawn/Garden Shop. Learn about different plants for your area, plant and soil care, insect control and beneficial insects.

46. Police Station . Learn about what policemen do, K-9 units, technology used, etc.

47. Make your own "old-fashioned day." Go out to a pretty park (or even your own backyard), and try to do everything the "old-fashioned" way. Gather wood and cook over fire, do without electricity, read, play string games like cat's cradles, whittle, sing, use your imagination and travel back in time for a day.

48. Water Treatment Plant. Learn about where your water comes from, how many gallons go through the plant, water purification and testing.

49. Exotic Animal Farm. Look around, there may be a farm in your area raising mink, llamas, ostriches, mini-burros, African pygmy hedgehogs, emus, cockatoos, iguanas, rheas or other unusual animals.

50. Caverns.  Learn about the geological history of your area and have fun exploring the caves!

One last note: don't forget the educational value of family vacations! Even if your family can't take a two-week trip across the country, check out opportunities for day trips within a 2-3 hour driving distance of where you live, or in a neighboring state. We took many such trips during years when we couldn't afford a "real" vacation. It provided an opportunity to see some things beyond our immediate area with much less expense.

I hope I've been able to spark your imagination and give you some new ideas that your family will enjoy. Have a fun (and educational!) summer!

------------------------------

This article was originally published in the May/Jun '05 issue of Home School Enrichment Magazine. For more information, visit http://HomeSchoolEnrichment.com . To request a FREE sample copy, visit http://homeschoolenrichment.com/magazine/request-sample-issue.html .

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Awesome Field Trip Ideas for Students of All Ages

There’s no question about it: students love field trips! Field trips are an exciting and unique way to get students out of the classroom and into the “real world” during the school year. Some of your best memories from your own school days might be the awesome field trips you and your classmates took. Are you looking for fun and educational field trip ideas to inspire students of all ages? Maybe you’re stumped on where to take older students or brainstorming homeschool field trips. Whether you’re teaching elementary, middle, or high school students, look no further than these great ideas for field trips!

Visit a Museum

Museums are time-honored field trip destinations for a good reason! They provide entertaining and educational talking points for classes of all ages and are already created to appeal to younger and older students alike. Check out these kinds of museums.

• Art museums
• Science museums (don’t skip the planetarium!)
• Maritime museums
• Archaeology museums
• Historic house/building museums
• Cemetery or gravesite museums
• Technology museums

Enjoy Nature

The natural world is an invaluable learning resource and a source of countless field trip ideas! These nature-based field trip ideas will be sure to keep your students entertained.

National or state parks

Go for a hike or tour the visitor’s center at your local state or national park. Supporting the national parks system helps it stay beautiful for years to come! You can integrate geography, biology, history, geology, and more into your visit.

Botanical gardens

Botanical gardens are beautiful and a great place to talk about science and art. You can even have your students do a photography project!

Sculpture gardens

While sculpture gardens are technically more art than nature, they are another fabulous field trip idea. Some are even interactive or encourage touching the art!

Meet the Animals

Whether you’re wrangling 35 middle school students or you’re a parent teaching homeschooled kids, you’d have a hard time finding a student without a favorite animal, and chances are they’ll see that animal when you visit one of these destinations!

Zoos or conservation centers

The zoo is another field trip idea that has stood the test of time. Many zoos offer group or student discounts and include built-in activities for your visit, such as scavenger hunts or guided tours.

Farms are not only a place to visit animals but also a chance to talk about history, biology, and even economics. Plus, you can never go wrong by supporting your local farmers!

If you asked students their favorite field trip idea on this list, many would vote for a visit to the aquarium! Aquariums engage students of all ages while providing helpful information about the natural world.

Fish hatcheries

A fish hatchery might not be the first location that comes to mind when you think about entertaining your students, but it’s actually a great field trip idea. Fish hatcheries are full of interesting information, often offer tours, and can provide a wealth of knowledge on your local region’s waterways.

Watch a Show

Taking your students to a show serves as a jumping-off point for conversations about literature, art, theater, music, and everything else under the sun. It also makes an ideal rainy-day trip as your students will stay safe and dry. These and more performances make great learning experiences for your students.

• Theater productions
• Acrobatic performances
• Magic shows
• Presentations (think TED Talks!)
• Book talks or poetry readings

Get Patriotic

The United States has many unique characteristics that you can talk about while teaching anything from history to archaeology to government. Visit these uniquely American destinations!

Capital buildings

Whether you visit your state capital or the nation’s capital in Washington, DC, there’s always something to learn about American history when you visit its source!

Historical sites

You don’t have to go to a museum to see historical artifacts and buildings — some of them are in your own backyard! Check out historical sites near you and see if any offer tours.

Post offices

The United States Postal Service is a venerable and uniquely American institution that’s been around for hundreds of years, and your students can learn about anything from history to commerce to government by taking a post office tour! Many post offices will be glad to help you arrange a visit with your students.

Teaching the value of ecological preservation? It’s always a good lesson for students to learn their impact on the world around them. Try these field trip ideas for a greener world:

• A recycling center
• An alternative energy plant
• The local landfill or garbage processing facility
• An ecological cleanup site (can also serve as an opportunity for volunteer work!)

Explore the Working World

It’s never too early to talk to your students about the future, which means career-based field trip ideas are always on the table. Explore the working world when you visit these destinations.

• TV stations
• Manufacturing plants or factories
• Science labs
• Technology companies
• Courthouses
• Healthcare facilities
• Food production facilities
• Colleges or universities

Reward Your Students

While field trips are about having fun as much as they’re about an educational experience, some field trips serve more to reward your students for their hard work at the end of the school year or after a particularly hard quarter or semester. Sometimes you can even sneak in a few physics, math, or English lessons, too! You’re sure to make students happy when you arrive at these destinations.

Bowling alley

Bowling is a great field trip idea for students who just need some time to have fun. You can often rent out a whole bowling alley to accommodate as many students as needed.

Laser tag/arcade

Everyone loves laser tag! Laser tag arenas often include arcades as well for students who don’t want to run around in the dark. There are often group and student discounts for laser tag, although it can be on the pricier side of field trip ideas.

Ice skating

Ice skating is a unique and fun field trip idea that is relatively easy to organize! It’s best suited for older students who view learning to skate as a fun challenge.

Sports game

Do you have a class full of aspiring MLB or NBA players? Trying to get your homeschooled kids interested in sports? Going to a baseball, football, basketball, or soccer game can be a fun class activity. Make sure you can book seats all together so your students can bond and relax watching the game while you keep an eye on the venue.

Amusement park

What list of field trip ideas would be complete without mentioning a visit to an amusement park? Amusement parks are designed to be fun, meaning there’s something every student can enjoy. However, they can be somewhat overwhelming, so be sure to check out these tips for an amusement park trip with kids before you go.

School Bus Rentals For Field Trips

Ready to take your students to a destination they’ll love? YellowBird Bus Company provides school bus rentals for all kinds of field trips, no matter where you’re headed! Contact us today, and we’ll get you and your students rolling!

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Field Trip Ideas for Elementary School Students

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Elementary field trips teach kids about science, business, animals and more. Teach children important fundamentals outside of the classroom while staying safe on your field trip and having fun when you visit one of these locations. Plan your next outing with one of these field trip ideas for elementary school students.

Recycling Center

A guided tour through a recycling center shows kids how recyclable materials are sorted but also teaches them about recycling, reusing and waste reduction. They can take this knowledge with them to build a recycling center at home. Contact the recycling center to set up a group tour in advance.

Planetarium

The planetarium is an excellent way to introduce elementary students to the solar system. Students will love the shows and exhibits that will teach them about space and astronomy. Call the planetarium's admission office to schedule a tour.

You may visit the aquarium all the time. But have you ever been behind the closed doors of the aquarium? Many of the larger aquariums have more aquatic life on the premises than they can possibly display and they would be happy to take the kids on a private tour to show you how the aquarium works. Call the aquarium director's office to set up a tour.

See how candy is made, cars, guitars, soda and more. There are factories all over the country that offer tours. Some are even free. Contact the factory directly to schedule a tour.

Taking a group of kids to see zoo animals is always fun. But you can also schedule a tour to see how the zoo's staff works behind the scenes. Educational docents can give your tour group a one-on-one experience with all sorts of animals. Call the zoo's front office to get more information.

Fire Station

Kids will love touring a working fire station. Firefighters can show students the fire engine, turn on the sirens and educate the children on fire safety to keep your family safe. One of the most valuable lessons kids will learn is how a firefighter will look in full uniform, complete with mask, if he or she ever enter a burning house. Seeing firefighters fully dressed teaches kids that they don't have to be scared. Call any local fire station and ask to speak to the station commander to set up a tour.

Police Station

Tour the police station to learn crime prevention tips, how a police department functions, police equipment that's used and how patrol cars work. Contact the station's crime prevention officer.

A farm is a great idea for a field trip because there are so many types of farms to visit. One week you can visit a dairy farm and visit with cows. The next week you can visit a crop farm to see how cotton, fruits, grains or vegetables are grown. Contact the farmers themselves to ask if your group can come out for a tour or call your state's agricultural department to find out more about the types of farms in your city.

Farmer's Market

After you visit the various types of farms, take the lesson to a farmer's market. Kids can see how fruits and vegetables grow at the farm and then turn around to see how farmers try to sell their crops at the farmer's market. You may even run into some farmers you met on a previous tour. Contact the farmer's market for a guided tour or simply take your group during farmer's market hours to mingle with the customers and farmers.

Any kind of museum presents an opportunity for kids to learn and have fun. Take the kids to art, children's, natural history, technology and science museums, to name a few. The museum director can schedule your group for a behind-the-scenes tour.

Sporting Events

Take the kids out to a ball game for a field trip. Baseball can be a great field trip at the end of the school year to celebrate great academic efforts from the kids. Football is a good first field trip when the kids are getting restless as the school year seems to drag on right before the holiday break.

Veterinary Hospital

Veterinarians are usually happy to show off their hospitals. Kids can see the operating rooms, equipment used, recovering patients and learn all about the field of veterinary medicine. Contact any veterinary hospital to set up a tour.

What goes into producing a newscast? Take the kids to a TV station to find out. Children can get a firsthand look at the sets, meet the TV personalities and see the many types of equipment used to get a newscast on the air. Many stations will even put the kids on the news just for dropping by. Call the program director to set up a tour.

Radio Station

It's easy to think a radio station and TV station would be too similar to tour. But you'll notice a lot of differences when you visit both. You may even get to watch as the radio personalities play music or host a local call-in show. Contact the radio station's program director and tell him you're interested in a tour.

The inner workings of the newspaper industry are something every child should see. Meet the reporters who write the stories, learn about the history of newspapers, see how newspapers are laid out and watch the newspaper roll off the printing presses. Call the city editor to let him know you're interested in a private tour.

Fish Hatchery

Kids can learn all about the life cycle of fish, fish anatomy, water quality and more at a fish hatchery. Most hatcheries require advance reservations because of their popularity with educational tour groups.

Hospital administrators have worked hard to arrange tours that introduce kids to the hospital environment without giving them a scary experience. This helps prepare them for what to expect should they ever need to visit a relative or become a patient themselves.

It's also an educational experience because children can see how the doctors and nurses work together and use high-tech medical equipment to treat their patients. Contact the hospital's main number to request a tour. If your local hospital doesn't allow in-person tours, type "hospital tours for kids" in your favorite search engine to take the children on a virtual field trip from home.

The system that keeps the library up and running is worthy of a field trip visit for kids. Kids not only develop a deeper appreciation for books, but they also get to learn about the catalog system, how a book is entered into the system so it can start getting checked out and how the staff operates the library. Contact the head librarian at your local library branch to schedule a tour.

Pumpkin Patch

Visiting a pumpkin patch is the perfect way to celebrate fall. Most pumpkin patches also have fun activities planned for the kids, including horseback rides, inflatables, corn mazes, hayrides and more. If you would like a private tour or you're taking a large group, contact the pumpkin patch directly. Otherwise, just show up during regular business hours.

Movie Theater

Kids love the movies so take them behind the scenes to see how a movie theater operates. They can visit the projection room, see how the concession stand operates and they may even get to sample a movie and popcorn. Call the movie theater manager to arrange a tour.

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Exciting Field Trip Ideas for High School Students

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Field trips are great opportunities for teachers and students to take a break from their usual routines, open up and enjoy themselves. While enjoyment is the most important factor, field trips should still have some sort of lesson or educational value, especially as students get older. That’s why planning a trip for high school students is more difficult than planning one for grade-schoolers. Still, you have plenty of options if you know where to look. Here are some field trip ideas for high school students that are sure to leave a lasting impression!

History-based attractions are generally the easiest to find compared to other subjects, because history is all around us. Thousands of cities and towns have their claim to fame, and chances are your area has something too. Consider these historical field trip ideas for your high school students!

1. History Museum

A historical museum is the best way to expose students to as much information as possible in one day. Some museums specialize in a specific topic or time period, while others cover the entire human experience, from pre-history to the present day. It also takes the pressure off teachers to organize the entire day’s schedule. A typical museum tour takes several hours to complete, and the exhibits will keep students captivated throughout. 

2. Historical Site

Historical sites might not have the same visual appeal as museums, but walking on the hallowed grounds of a great battle or through the house of a heroic individual makes the experience more immersive. They’re also more widespread and easily found than museums. You might have to travel to the nearest big city for a museum, while an interesting historical site could be right in your local area. The employees at historical sites are unmatched experts on the subject, which makes the tours more informative and allows students to fully appreciate the site’s importance.

3. Reenactment

Most historical sites perform annual or biannual reenactments on the event’s anniversary, which can add another layer of entertainment to your field trip. Such reenactments are known for their accuracy and attention to detail, as enthusiasts from all over the world bring their own gear and artifacts to make the experience as immersive as possible.

4. Renaissance Faire

This field trip might be hard to find compared to other historical attractions, but a renaissance faire drops you into another time period in a way that few other attractions can replicate. The workers are wholly devoted to their characters, the food tastes delicious and the variety of entertainment is unmatched. Jousting, fencing, plays and other activities will keep your students more than busy. Simply interacting with the employees is a treat, and students can bring home all kinds of souvenirs. 

Science attractions are unique because they work just as well on adults as they do on children. In other words, they’re highly entertaining. Who doesn’t love to see animals up close and interact with exhibits? Here are some great science-based field trip ideas for your high school students.

1. Science Museum

Science museums cover a wide range of studies, from geography to chemistry to biology, so each of your students should find something that interests them. Plus, since all science is based on experimentation, these museums tend to have more interactive features to engage visitors of all ages. 

2. Aquarium 

Aquariums are known for their breathtaking marine life exhibits and amazing biodiversity. From seahorses to great white sharks, your students will see everything our oceans have to offer. The animals’ graceful movements and effective lighting make the environment extremely relaxing for visitors. Teachers and students will both thoroughly enjoy a slow stroll through your nearest aquarium.

3. Planetarium

A planetarium is another impressive science attraction that makes for a good field trip. These places are generally less interactive than other science museums, but since they focus on the nature of the universe, the exhibits are naturally more intense. The planets, stars and galaxies on display bring out humanity’s desire to explore, which makes the experience more profound and almost emotional. Oh yeah, and the laser shows are pretty cool too.

4. Outdoor Education

Outdoor education can mean many things: a hike, a trip to the zoo, collecting samples for your science class, or a simple nature walk. Anything that gets students outdoors and interacting with nature makes for an entertaining field trip. However, the best option that combines all those activities is a wildlife park, which has cool geography and lets its animals roam freely around a wide area. These parks also have interactive exhibits like reptile rooms and petting zoos, so there’s something for everyone to enjoy.

As students get older and their curriculum becomes more complex, more educational out-of-school activities present themselves, namely activities revolving around the arts. High schoolers are finally at the age where they can keep up with in-depth stories and musical numbers. Here are some artistic field trip ideas for your high school students!

1. Art Museum

Art museums are pretty straightforward compared to science or history museums, as visitors can walk around at their leisure and admire each exhibit for as long as they want. Oftentimes the exhibits are in chronological order to make the experience feel like a passage through time, and most art museums provide audio tours and descriptions of each display. These places offer high school students a near-perfect balance of education and entertainment.

Plays, musicals and other theatrical acts are great field trip ideas for high schoolers, as the students are mature enough to appreciate the practice and skill that goes into each performance. These attractions can also pair well with the students’ curriculum. For example, if they are reading Shakespeare, see if a local theatre is putting on any Shakespearean plays. Your students will have a much easier time understanding the themes, remembering the story and identifying with the characters.

A musical act is another sophisticated and entertaining attraction that high school students will enjoy. Music also teaches important themes about hard work and following your dreams. It’s important for kids to witness adults working together to complete a difficult task while doing something they love, and few things embody that concept better than a band or an orchestra.

Sometimes, your students just deserve an afternoon of good old-fashioned fun. These recreational activities will keep them entertained and encourage them to test their courage and teamwork skills.

1. Sports Game

A sports game is a popular field trip choice for many reasons: it keeps the kids entertained, has easy access to food, water and utilities, and usually only takes the better part of an afternoon. Like a musical performance, it also teaches students the importance of hard work and playing as a team. Just make sure you check the weather forecast and dress accordingly!

2. Amusement Park

Perhaps the most thrilling field trip idea on this list, amusement parks can make for a fun-filled afternoon at a very affordable price. Some students might not like roller coasters, but these parks have all kinds of different rides and attractions for everyone to enjoy. With so much to do, the only real difficulty is keeping everyone together.

3. Rock Climbing Gyms

Rock climbing gyms are indoor recreational areas with artificial rock walls, ziplines and other features that students can enjoy (under proper supervision, of course). These places also have unique team-building activities that require the participants to communicate in order to succeed, so they are both fun and educational. You can also find similar attractions at some state parks and mountain resorts during the warmer months if you’re looking for something outdoors.

High Schoolers Can Have Fun Too

Field trips don’t happen very often past eighth grade, but high school students love to have fun just as much as kindergarteners do. These field trip ideas will give them a break from their rigorous studies and allow them to cut loose for a day, while still learning valuable life skills and lessons. Give them the trip they deserve and try one of these attractions!

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MASSACHUSETTS Field Trips

To help plan MAY curriculum focused classroom activities, field trips and school assembly programs, these May themed celebrations might be a helpful focus. Monthly : National Inventors Month. May 6-10 : Teacher Appreciation Week. May 3 : World Press Freedom Day. May 5 : Cinco de Mayo. Museum Lover’s Day. National Space Day. May 6 : Herb Day . National Fitness Day . May 8 : World Red Cross Day. May 12 : National Limerick Day. May 13 : International Migratory Bird Day. May 16 : Love a Tree Day. Do Something Good for your Neighborhood. May 17 : National Endangered Species Day. May 18 : International Astronomy Day. May 22 : National Maritime Day. May 28 : Amnesty International Day. May 29 : Learn About Composting Day. May 30 : International Jazz Day. May 31 : National Smile Day. CLICK on the ACTIVITY FILTER below for activity type of field trips to learn about. For those unable to travel to these locations, have the fun come to you. Check out the Outreach Field Trips & School Assembly Programs  section.

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The Alden Digital Planetarium features Digital Light Processing technology from Sky-Skan, using images from NASA and the Hubble Space Telescope to create a three-dimensional solar system projected onto a 40-foot dome.

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Bassett Planetarium

Bassett Planetarium, located in Morgan Hall, has provided programs about the night sky to regional community organizations and school groups. The Planetarium is the perfect place to learn about the heavens.

Berkshire East Zip Line Canopy Tours & Whitewater Rafting

Berkshire East Mountain Resort is home to zip lining, whitewater rafting, Thunder Mountain Bike Park, an Aerial Adventure Park, and the Thunderbolt, North America’s longest mountain coaster.

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Boston Bowl is where Boston comes to bowl! We provide a safe, clean & fun environment for all ages to bowl candlepin & tenpin, play state of the art arcade games & billiards.

Boston Bowl-Hanover

Boston Bowl – Hanover is where the South Shore comes to bowl! We provide a safe, clean & fun environment for all ages to learn candlepin & tenpin bowling & play state of the art arcade games.

Boston City Cruises

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Boston Pizza Tours

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Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum

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From Memorial Day through mid-August, Boston University opens its residence halls, allowing groups to utilize campus facilities for overnight stays, on-campus dining, and a range of educational activities.

Bunker Hill Monument

Popularly known as “The Battle of Bunker Hill,” bloody fighting took place throughout a hilly landscape of fenced pastures that were situated across the Charles River from Boston. The Bunker Hill Monument was a tribute to the memory of the Battle.

Cape Ann Whale Watch

Cape Ann Whale Watch provides guaranteed whale sightings for every whale watching tour out to Stellwagen Bank, a national marine preserve about 12 miles off the coast of Gloucester.

FieldTripdirectory.com offers educational experiences for Massachusetts school groups, scout groups, homeschool groups, camp groups and families at Massachusetts Museums.

Massachusetts museums offer field trips that offer hands-on exhibits, guided tours and guided activities for early childhood through high school grades. Massachusetts has art museums , science museums , history museums , multicultural museums and children’s museums . All museums listing on fieldtripdirectory.com offers programs and tours for youth groups and families. Beside museums, you can search for other learning attractions such as Massachusetts Botanical Gardens, Planetariums, Living History Programs, STEM & STEAM, Planetariums, Farms, Zoos and Aquariums, Theaters and Concerts, Service Learning and more

Can’t go on a field trip to a museum, your students, scouts, and families can still experience these fun enriching experience by scheduling a Museum Virtual Field Trip anywhere and at anytime.

Want the fun to come to you- book a School Assembly Programs, Outreach Field Trips or Residency at your school, homeschool association or scout council. They support and enhance a school’s curriculum, offers opportunities for scout badge achievement and enriches a camp program. There are mobile museum exhibits, traveling planetariums and classroom and grade level workshops and residencies.

To help fund field trips, virtual programs and school assembly programs visit our section on Grants and Fundraising Programs .

FieldTripDirectory.com offers field trip ideas for class trips, scout group trips, camp group field trips, and homeschool group field trips in Massachusetts—for early childhood through college. Search for class trips in Massachusetts by group type, cost, activity/curriculum type, grade level, distance, and venue name or keyword. Day class trips are divided by curriculum and subject area:

• ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Find Massachusetts art museums, theater, dance, and music concert field trips.
• EARLY CHILDHOOD Find class trips to Massachusetts children’s museums, petting zoos, and kids’ shows.
• HISTORY/SOCIAL STUDIES View Massachusetts history museums, government & civics, historic sites, living history museums, and multicultural field trip ideas.
• LIFE SKILLS Find Massachusetts team building field trips, health & safety exhibits, and character education experiences.
• SCIENCE & NATURE Find Massachusetts aquariums, botanical gardens, environmental studies & nature centers, farms & mazes, planetariums, science museums, STEAM & STEM field trips, dinosaur exhibits, and zoos.
• RECREATION Find Massachusetts field trip ideas for adventure parks, ropes courses, ziplines, boat excursions, amusement parks, waterparks, kayaking, rafting, tubing, laser tag paintball, roller skating rinks, ice-skating rinks, mini-golf attractions, indoor amusement & recreation centers, and outdoor amusement & recreation centers.

Overnight field trips & retreats are available for environmental education, team building, and recreation. We created field trip lesson plans to help teachers, scout leaders, camp counselors, and homeschool parents provide an enriching experience for their groups. We know funds for class trips are limited, so we’ve included grants for field trips that cover admission, transportation, and more. It’s important that students and youth explore new environments, learn about other cultures, and develop an understanding of inclusivity as part of the educational process. People learn in different ways—through hearing, seeing, touching, talking, or doing. Class trips can provide a multi-dimensional learning experience. FieldTripDirectory.com can help you find the right trip for your group. A world of experiences is just a click away at FieldTripDirectory.com.

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42 Homeschool Field Trip Ideas + Planning Tips & Printable Log

Are you looking to get out of the field trip rut of zoo and science museum? This article has unique field trip ideas to add zest back into your day trips! 

Not sure how to get started with field trips for preschoolers, how often to take field trips, how to plan them, or where to get a printable homeschool field trip log? This article has you covered! 

Are field trips good for students? 

Field trips are great for students! They are an extension of learning and one of the biggest perks of being a homeschooler. After all, how many field trips can a public school class have each year? Maybe two at best, right? They take an inordinate amount of planning for a school: boxed lunches, buses, permission forms, chaperones, etc. But as a homeschool family , you can pick up and go with much less preparation. In fact, many homeschoolers take a field trip nearly every week! 

What are the benefits of a field trip?

Since you’re reading this article, you probably don’t need convincing, but here are eight concrete advantages that field trips offer your children (and you). Yes, they’re fun, and that’s reason enough! But they offer additional perks, too!

1. Real Life Learning Beyond the Books

Books are great! They are the foundation of the literature-based Sonlight curriculum . But there’s an entire world out there that can be experienced firsthand— beyond the books. While books make far off cultures and distant histories accessible to our children, there are many topics we can see, touch, and hear for ourselves either instead of (or in addition to) a book. 

• So don’t only read about Native Americans. Visit an Indian mound museum and go deeper! Attend a public pow wow to observe and ask questions. 
• Don’t just read about plant root systems. Visit a local nursery or botanical gardens and get pointers from the professional gardeners who serve there.

2. Socialization

One of the best parts of homeschooling is being able to open our front door and use our community as a classroom. So much for the stereotype of unsocialized homeschoolers ! No way! Homeschoolers are out and about in the community, going on field trips, and interacting with all kinds of people . 

3. Motivation

Getting outside the house, exploring new places, and immersing yourself physically in a topic is an ideal way to erase monotony. When you find you’re falling into a boring rut with your homeschool schedule or attitudes are getting prickly, take a field trip! Mix things up! Take an adventure with your kids and experience the wonder of the larger world alongside them. 

Field trips raise spirits, renew zest for learning, and give kids a break from the challenging tasks of pencil-to-paper work.

Field trips can be used as a culminating activity after a unit of study—a reward after a period of challenging academic work .

4. Retention

The more senses that are engaged when learning something, the more likely it is to be retained. Field trips are memorable , so kids tend to retain what they soak up on these outings.

5. Family Bonding

Field trips can smooth over the normal annoyances of homeschool family life. Instead of fussing about folding laundry, leave the chores and go explore the zoo! You’ll laugh at the antics of the animals instead of crying over math. 

You and your children will create lasting memories of shared moments . When they are adults, these field trips (no matter how simple) are the things they will remember and cherish! So make more happy memories by taking more field trips.

6. Exercise

Many field trips involve quite a bit of walking. Some may even include climbing, leaping, and other physical exertion. In our tech-driven world, let’s not forget that we have bodies that need to move for optimum health! Field trips provide an ideal catalyst for meaningful movement . 

Experiencing a sense of awe is a remedy to depression and anxiety. What a gift for our children, and one that we parents need as well! 

God’s creation is amazing! So the potential for awe awaits you at any nature-focused field trip destination. Go! And then look, smell, listen, and feel. Let your senses absorb the wonder of God’s creation. The mindfulness and delight will lift your spirits ! 

8. Small Steps of Career Exploration

In some cases, a field trip gives kids a window into possible career fields. They can get a feel for workplaces and ask questions of the professionals who work there. 

What are the disadvantages of a field trip?

The advantages of field trips practically negate the possible downsides, so don’t let these discourage you! But field trips can be a disruption to your normal routine (a feature , not a bug!). 

There are field trip logistics that can be possibly annoying: driving distance, parking, where to eat a picnic on premises, rough terrain that makes pushing a stroller a challenge, finding diaper changing facilities, etc. Again, pushing to find solutions is worth the benefit your family gets from the outing!

Some field trip destinations can be pricey, but free homeschool field trips exist! Be sure to ask your desired venues about family passes, special discount days, or community events that are free of charge. Alternate free homeschool field trips with paid field trips to keep costs low, and carpool with another homeschool family to save on gas. Skip the gift shop and take a picnic instead of eating at the kiosks. There are ways to make field trips doable even with a tiny budget. 

Bad weather can ruin an outside field trip, but you have the flexibility to move that trip to a prettier day! 

There aren’t really any disadvantages inherent in field trips for homeschoolers. But there are small irritations of life that come along with any kind of day trip. 

What are good field trip ideas?

The sky's the limit, but here are forty-two suggestions to get you started with homeschool field trips for all ages and grades. Start with lower cost local field trips, and then expand out to more distant destinations as your children mature. 

• theater, opera, or ballet performances
• local house of worship, especially of a faith that is not your own (Muslim mosque, Hindu temple, Jewish synagogue, Greek Orthodox church, etc.)
• factories (like a bakery or an automotive factory)
• fish hatchery
• orchard, farm, or farmers market
• local power plant
• bike trails, hiking trails, or river canoeing
• space centers
• water treatment facility
• cemetery tours
• city capitol or state capitol, including the courthouse
• historic landmarks like battlefields or birthplace museums (think famous artists, musicians, athletes, writers, presidents, etc.)
• archaeological dig
• fire station, ambulance, or police station
• the post office
• historic reenactments
• Native American pow wows
• festivals 
• county fairs
• science museums
• college tours
• science lab tours (could be industry or educational)
• planetarium
• observatory
• dams and bridges
• arboretum, botanic gardens, or greenhouse
• aquarium, zoo, or wild animal park
• local or county parks
• state parks and forests
• national parks
• recycling center
• animal shelter or veterinarian’s office
• food bank, homeless shelter, or other charity organization
• semi-professional sporting events
• amusement parks
• military bases
• TV station or radio station
• music recording studios

What are the types of field trips?

The weather will influence your choice between indoor field trips and outdoor field trip s. Your budget impacts your decision between free field trips and trips that cost money. 

And your own preferences for planning will affect whether you go for easy field trips or those that take more advance preparation. For example, venues like zoos, galleries, and museums are already optimized for easy field trips. But there are a myriad of other locales that can make for a great field trip when you connect with someone who can arrange it for you—think local newspaper, the fire station, a historic house of worship, or a local factory. 

There are local field trips and more distant trips . Typically a field trip is a day trip —you return home the same day and sleep in your own bed.

Free Family Travel Guides from Sonlight

But some field trips expand into complete family vacations like these two East Coast destinations for American history buffs. 

A Family Travel Guide to Historic Williamsburg

One ticket. Five parks. Seven days. An unforgettable trip. Virginia is home to some of the greatest historical landmarks of colonial America. The Historic Triangle provides a peek into America's journey from English settlement to the independence of a new nation. When you are ready to visit, make the most of your time with these practical, tried-and-true tips.

Navigating Thomas Jefferson's Monticello

Enjoy a day or a long weekend exploring Monticello and the surrounding area.   Visiting this estate can be a wonderful addition as you study American History. Download this full-color free digital travel guide today to help you navigate Monticello and all the additional historical locations surrounding Monticello.

What are the most popular field trips?

The most popular homeschool field trips are those locations that are already set up for large groups with ample parking, pre-designed tours, clearly defined hours, and even amenities like picnic areas or shuttles/trains. 

These family pleasers have rotating exhibits or frequent workshops/events that deliberately cater to homeschool families. Examples are 

• nature preserves
• botanic gardens
• art galleries
• history museums
• historic sites
• and national or state parks

These locales are typically large and well-established. Visit their websites to see what they offer. Sign up for their email newsletters so you’re always in the know about special events, bargain days, and new exhibits.

Field Trip Planning, Preparation, and Printables

Some field trippers spontaneously jump in the car and head off for an unscripted adventure. But most moms probably prefer to set the stage with some basic groundwork. In fact, field trip planning can be part of your annual curriculum shopping as you lay out a course for your school year.  

Free printable homeschool field trip log

A homeschool field trip log can pull double duty as a place to record your plans beforehand and/or a place to document the trips you took afterwards. If you’re required to keep a homeschool portfolio or verify a certain number of school days, a homeschool field trip log is essential! (Don’t rely on your memory alone. Record those field trips!)

Download a free homeschool field trip form here to use as you work through the seven steps below.

(This free page is taken from the larger Sonlight Planner .) 

PRO TIP : Print multiple copies (or sets)—one for planning and one for recordkeeping. 

How do you plan an educational field trip?

For those of you who like to plan ahead, here are seven steps for making a comprehensive field trip plan for your homeschool.

1. Brainstorm fun homeschool field trip ideas

This is the fun part! Looking at the list of 42 suggestions above, jot down the ones that seem appealing to you and your children. 

Alternatively, consider your curriculum . What are you studying this term or year? What field trips can you plan to go along with the science and history topics you’ll be covering? What Readers and Read-Alouds have field trip tie-ins?

Don’t rule out field trips for teens! Advanced courses mesh well with learning excursions! Here are some examples:

• Biology field trip ideas : a butterfly vivarium, an Audubon Center , a wolf preserve
• Chemistry field trip ideas : a manufacturing laboratory, a college research lab, fire department, wastewater treatment plant

2. Look for specific locations

Head to Google and input your desired type of field trip. For example, when you search TV station tour , your local station will likely pop up with contact information to get started! Or search for planetariums near me . Yelp and Tripadvisor are two great apps for reading user reviews of many field trip destinations. 

3. Outline the logistics

Once you have specific venues in mind, start charting out the details like hours of operation, ticket costs, special tours/exhibits/workshops, etc.

4. Contact the specific venue for insider information

Don’t be nervous to send an email or pick up the phone to inquire about details. Even established venues like museums and zoos may be able to offer you special accommodations or workshops as long as you let them know you’re coming. 

Directly ask for insider tips: “Is there anything else that I should know before we come? Anything that’s not on the website?” 

5. Make a field trip calendar for the year 

Now you have the information you need to start filling out an annual field trip calendar. Pencil in your ideas based on your curriculum , the weather, and other family events. It’s common to have a monthly field trip, but you may want excursions more or less frequently.

6. Consider providing structure to the trip—or not!

There are different approaches to taking a field trip. Some families drop all the academics and simply enjoy the experience, letting the fun unfold naturally. 

Other families read about the place beforehand and assign homeschool field trip activities . These activities provide structure to the trip by giving kids a task to focus their exploration:

• a worksheet to fill out
• a journal for sketching
• a scavenger hunt

If your children tend to race through an exhibit without truly appreciating anything, an on-site assignment can help slow them down and center their attention on key facts. 

Check with the venue ahead of time because many of them already offer these activities either in hardcopy when you enter the destination or in digital format for you to print at home. 

P RO TIP : If you expect your child to do a written activity at the field trip, bring clipboards or bring homeschool field trip journals with a cardboard backing.

There’s no right or wrong here, but realize that you don’t have to add anything school-ish to justify a field trip. It’s enough to simply soak in great works of art or wander around an arboretum. Your kids are learning! 

7. Consider review or documentation—or not!

Once you’re back home, you may want to document the trip or review what you experienced. Again, this step is optional and doesn’t have to be formal or burdensome. 

How to write a homeschool field trip report

For upper elementary ages, middle schoolers, and high schoolers, it’s appropriate to assign a written project. This homeschool field trip report can take the format of a notebooking page, a journal entry, a scrapbook page , or a short composition. 

Here are the basics to include in a field trip report:

• the date of the trip
• the full name and address/location of the destination
• the significance of the location (if historic)
• the primary places/exhibits/topics that were experienced along with a brief description of each
• insights, opinions, and reflections

Add these extras to add to the field trip report to make it more of a homeschool field trip journal:

• diagrams and sketches made at the venue
• photographs or postcards
• actual items from the site (where allowed, of course) such as leaves, moss, feathers, etc.

You could help your kids write a review of the location to post on Google, Yelp, or Tripadvisor. 

Or maybe you simply have a discussion about what you experienced. Here are a few discussion starters:

• What was your favorite part of today? Why?
• What surprised you today?
• If we do that field trip again, what would you like to spend more time doing?
• Tell me 3 facts about [topic, person, place].
• Imagine you have to convince someone to go on a field trip to that place. What would you say to them?
• Quiz me/your sibling by asking me three questions I should have the answer to after our field trip today.

What to carry with you on a field trip?

If you’re not sure what to take along on your field trip, call the venue and ask! Find out what kinds of amenities they offer and what they suggest.

Aside from that, you already know the basics: snacks, wipes, a few adhesive bandages, drinking water, sunscreen, hats, etc. 

Unique field trip ideas

Because field trips have the potential to be so powerful, and because we have such an abundance of resources in our communities, it’s important to think beyond the norm to get our kids—and ourselves—out there, gaining fresh experiences and better understanding. Nearly any place that’s not unsafe for kids has the potential to be a field trip destination.

Any process, any job, any business has fascinating aspects to uncover on a family field trip for homeschool. Simply drive around your community with an open mind. Nearly every business you see is potential fodder for a field trip! 

• That locally owned coffee shop? Yep! 
• The beauty parlor? Why not? 
• The dentist’s office. For sure.
• That manufacturing plant? Probably!

Start with your connections. Ask friends about their place of work, their family businesses, their connections. Having a contact smooths the path to set up a family tour and an unlikely field trip destination. Most folks are thrilled to show off what they do to a handful of kids (and an interested parent). So don’t be afraid to ask! 

Your community is full of experiences, and those experiences can easily be tied to your curriculum. Here are four examples to get you started with fun homeschool field trip ideas:

1. Small Engine Repair Shop Field Trip

Kids (and adults) of all ages will be fascinated to see what goes into maintaining and repairing the many machines we use every day. Lawnmowers, chainsaws, generators, and scooters all fall under the small engine category.

The history of these machines is intriguing, and it’s a great introduction to more complex engines, too! This field trip ties in nicely with any of these books (or programs):

• Richard Scarry’s What Do People Do All Day
• Sonlight’s Science H- Technology
• A History of US
• The Story of Eli Whitney

2. General Aviation Airport Field Trip

Even better than flying on a commercial airliner is the experience of walking and talking with the pilot of a General Aviation (GA) plane. These smaller models operate under the same principles, and are in much wider use than the jumbo jets we board to fly cross country. You may be able to arrange to tour the actual facility or even take a short flight! If you’re reading these books, a field trip to an airport fits well:

• The Wright Brothers
• Around the World in 80 Days
• Catching Their Talk in a Box

3. Ethnic Food Market Field Trip

Pick a country, and find a shop! From the delicacies of Asia to the exotic (to us) foods of the Middle East, chances are excellent that you’ll have a market hidden somewhere in your community that specializes in foods of other lands. While you can order individual items online, nothing beats walking the aisles, smelling the smells, and seeing what’s on offer on the shelves.

There are so many Sonlight books that tie in to this field trip, but I’d be remiss if I didn’t point out that HBL F: Eastern Hemisphere is crying out for a whole year of such outings!

4. Radio Station Field Trip

If you’re reading Catching Their Talk in a Box or Window on the World , or your child is studying physics, definitely make time for a trip to a local radio station . Choosing a smaller, local station to tour means the chance to walk into booths and likely get an up close and personal glance of the inner workings of a broadcast in progress. Missionaries of the past and present have utilized radio as an evangelism tool, and the science behind it is fascinating.

Where to get the best homeschool field trip ideas

Need inspiration for field trip ideas for kids? Marry books and field trips as often as you can to cultivate an adventurous learning environment. Here are examples: 

• Visit an aquarium after Dolphin Adventure .
• Tour an art museum after From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler .
• Trek to a farm after Mountain Born , Thimble Summer , or The Year at Maple Hill Farm .

Getting out and seeing firsthand the elements of a story or work of nonfiction cements it in our understanding. Not only do children hear how the mail system works in Richard Scarry’s What Do People Do All Day , but then they see it in action when they visit the post office. All the senses are engaged!

The details that may have escaped them in the book are suddenly prominent and yes, maybe even a door is opened to a new occupational calling. You just never know!

Suggested Field Trips by Age

The list of 42 ideas above are for all ages, stages, and grades, but admittedly some destinations are more suitable for younger or older students. Here’s how to work out your field trip decisions based on ages or grades.  

Field trips for toddlers & preschoolers

Since toddlers and preschoolers are probably still napping, you want local field trip ideas that won’t require lots of driving. Thanks to the mid-day pause for nap time, you’ll choose trips that can be done in the morning or afternoon but don’t demand a full day.

Avoid stodgy venues where quiet is expected and children can’t touch things. Instead opt for field trips with lots of hands-on, active exploration and frequently changing things to observe. 

Your best bets are anything related to animals:

• animal shelters and preserves
• butterfly gardens

Or any venue that has a nature or science slant:

• children’s museum
• arboretum or botanic gardens
• science museum

Call ahead or scour the website to find programs or exhibits especially designed for very young children to touch and physically experience the content. 

Children at this age are still developing vocabulary, so exposing them to new experiences and talking about what you see is invaluable. 

Outdoor or large open spaces where it’s okay to run are ideal for little kids. And you’ll want to consider field trip spots where strollers can drive easily when little legs finally tire. 

Keep field trips short in duration and leave while everyone is still happy!

Homeschool kindergarten field trip list

Although some parents consider kindergarten their first year of formal schooling , there’s no need to restrict yourself to learning at the kitchen table with books, pencil, and paper. Field trips are rich learning experiences for 5-year-olds since so much of the world is brand new to them! 

During grades K-2, think of field trips as opportunities to expose your child to the larger world and don’t worry about retention or academic tie-ins. Just get out there and immerse yourself in the joy and awe of all the field trip options in your local area. 

Save the elaborate, far-off destinations for later years when your child has more maturity and physical stamina. At the kindergarten through second grade level, you’re still enjoying repeat visits to the places you frequented during the toddler and preschool years: 

Now your visits may last a bit longer (no need for that daily nap!) and may include more actual academic material. For example, you may stand and listen to a zoologist give a short talk or show your child key facts on a display board. 

You’ll want field trips at this stage to still be very tangible. For example, touring a cave where a child can touch the damp stone, smell the wet air, and hear water dripping is more age appropriate than an opera, a tour of a house of worship, visiting the county courthouse, or a science lab excursion where the experience is more abstract or passive.

Opt for trips where you can get your kindergartener involved:

• picking strawberries at a farm
• making gravestone rubbings in a cemetery
• making a sculpture in a special kids room at the art museum 

How often should you do field trips in kindergarten homeschool? As often as you and your kindergartener would like to! Aim for at least monthly at this age, giving yourself a few mulligans to skip a month here or there depending on other family dynamics, health concerns, etc. Your kindergarten field trips could be as often as weekly if your family is up to it! 

Field trip ideas for elementary students

Grades 3-5 are a sweet spot for homeschool field trips! These children have the physical stamina for full day trips and are growing in the mental maturity to appreciate more abstract types of experiences. They generally have the self-control not to touch what shouldn’t be touched. They are curious and can ask great questions of docents and guides. You’ll see children at this stage start to make connections between their book-based lessons and what they experience on field trips. 

So basically, anything from the 42-item list above that interests your elementary students is fair game! Even if some of the content goes over their heads, it’s still exposure to new ideas! If a field trip seems a bit too advanced for your elementary student, just cut it short or inject additional context to make it more understandable for them. 

Virtual field trips for homeschoolers

What can you do instead of field trips? The pandemic has taught us all the value (and yes, limitations ) of virtual experiences as a substitute for in-person events. Sometimes a field trip is simply out of reach. In those situations, turn to virtual field trips to meet the need.

How does a virtual field trip work?

With a virtual field trip, you use the magic of the internet to explore a place you can’t visit in person. You rely on live cams, 360° virtual tours, virtual reality tours, and even live online video conferencing sessions held on-site. 

If these tools are new to you, here are fun homeschool field trip ideas that are totally online:

• Old Faithful Geyser live webcam
• The giraffe cam at the San Diego Zoo
• The Louvre online tour
• National Museum of Natural History virtual tours
• California State Parks Home Learning Programs
• Center for Interactive Learning and Collaboration programs

What are the best virtual field trips for students?

Large and well-known zoos, science museums, art galleries, and history museums make for the best virtual field trips simply because they tend to have top-notch websites with the video tours and live webcams you’ll want to access. State and national park systems are good options as well. Smaller venues, while fascinating in person, often don’t have the digital resources to provide a great virtual field trip experience to online users.

Here’s a list of virtual field trip favorites:

• Virtual Tour of the Great Wall of China
• San Diego Zoo
• Mars (via NASA)
• Monterey Bay Aquarium live cams
• Farm Food 360
• Boston Children’s Museum virtual tour
• Paris Catacombs virtual visit
• The Vatican virtual tour
• Virtual tours: Buckingham Palace
• Anne Frank House
• The White House 360 virtual tour
• Virtual Field Trip to the Butterfly Conservatory
• Metropolitan Museum interactive map

How do I create a virtual field trip for students?

1. Choose a website (or a series of related ones). 

The education departments of zoos, museums, and parks strive to make their facilities accessible to the maximum number of users, so scan their websites first for all the resources they have to offer: curriculum, printables, videos, virtual tours, live web cams, live and recorded workshops, lesson plans, etc. 

2. Set your child loose on the website to freely explore.

You will likely want to be nearby to enjoy the discovery process alongside them.

3. Or give your child an activity to do while exploring.

This step is totally optional. But if you feel the need to document the learning , there are plenty of ways to do it! Provide more structure with printables, worksheets, scavenger hunts, or notebooking pages. 

Choose a curriculum that does the planning for you so you can spend more time on field trips with your kids. 

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48 Best Homeschool Field Trip Ideas (Updated for 2024)

Among the countless benefits of homeschooling is flexible scheduling. This means your family has the freedom to learn whenever and wherever you want. Indeed, as a homeschooling family, the whole world is your classroom! You have the freedom to take memorable field trips during the week so your students can learn from experts, gain hands-on experience, give back to the community, and study firsthand what other students may only read about in books.

Not All Homeschooling Is Schooling at Home: 48 Field Trip Ideas

Whether you’re  preparing for the new year ahead  or just looking for a quick trip to take tomorrow, you’ve come to the right place. Below is a list of favorite homeschool field trip ideas so you can learn with your family outside the home.

Take an Outdoor Adventure

Not too many other families get to take a whole day to explore nature together. Take advantage of this flexibility and get outside with your students! There is so much to learn from God’s vast and beautiful creation.

• Go for a hike at a state or national park
• Explore a local park
• Visit a nearby farm
• Go apple or blueberry picking at an orchard
• Take a car trip on a scenic road (and maybe listen to an audiobook!)
• Get involved in a community garden
• Visit a greenhouse or botanical garden
• In fall or winter, visit a pumpkin patch or a Christmas tree farm
• Visit an observatory or planetarium

Many of these nature field trips are perfect opportunities for your students to bring along their  Nature  Sketch Journals and practice the Five Core Habits of Grammar as they scientifically recording their outdoor findings!

Observe Animals and Wildlife

Whether it’s observing wildlife on a nature hike or animals at a zoo, there are so many wonderful opportunities to observe other creatures with whom we share this planet!

• Visit your local zoo or petting zoo
• Visit an animal farm
• Go to an aquarium
• Visit a bird sanctuary or go bird watching at a park
• Tour a dairy farm
• Ask a veterinarian to give your family a tour of his or her practice

Read: “Challenge A Science Fair: A Parent’s Perspective”

Get Involved in Community Service

Community service offers a unique chance to combine a family field trip and giving back to others in your community.

• Volunteer at a soup kitchen
• Clean up littered trash in your neighborhood or in a park
• Visit members of a nursing home
• Visit a children’s hospital
• Clean up a neighbor’s yard

Fortunately, nonprofit organizations make it easy help others in your community. Whether you serve with a larger organization like  Samaritan’s Purse  or  Habitat for Humanity  or with a local organization near you, field trips like these can be meaningful ways to spend time serving and learning together as a family.

Gain Firsthand Knowledge of Society

Most people at businesses, organizations, and facilities love to show students around what they do for a living. Also, visiting places like the following give students a wonderful firsthand knowledge of the inner workings of society.

• Visit a hospital
• Tour a power plant
• Visit a water treatment facility
• Go to a recycling center
• Visit a factory
• Take a trip to your post office
• Sit in during a case at your local courthouse
• Tour your local library
• Visit your state capitol building
• Tour a fire department (as you can imagine, your littlest learners will love this one!)

Observe a Fine Arts Performance or Display

While there is wonderful art in movies and TV, it’s important to expose students to other arts that make life all the more beautiful.

• Watch a theater performance
• Visit a symphony or orchestra
• Walk through an art gallery
• Visit a local art festival
• Make pottery at a local studio
• Tour a glass blowing studio
• Visit a sculpture garden

Learn Some History

Visiting historical locations or observing historical artifacts in a museum offer tangible ways of learning history that make past people and events even more real in the minds of students.

• Visit your state museum
• Tour an old schoolhouse
• Visit a historical battlefield or reenactment
• Walk through an old cemetery
• Visit an old church building
• Visit a historical location your family has read about in a book

If your family is looking for a larger historical excursion, places like  Colonial Williamsburg  and the  Smithsonian  offer unforgettable field trips your family will reminisce about for years to come.

Have Some Fun

As a homeschooling family, the whole world is your classroom. This means that your family can learn whenever and wherever. In other words, you don’t have to go with the traditional field trip ideas like visiting a museum or touring an aquarium. There’s no reason why your family can’t learn from activities for fun and entertainment!

• Watch a movie at a theater
• Go ice skating or roller blading
• Go swimming in a pool or lake
• Visit an amusement park
• Attend a sports game

Read: “The Joy of the Foundations Program”

Field Trip Ideas with Other Families

Sometimes, it can be daunting to plan a field trip all by yourself. So, get other homeschooling parents from your local community involved as you plan to take some field trips from the ideas above. This will not only make planning much, much easier, it will also allow your family opportunities to build lifelong relationships with other parents and students.

Have fun exploring the world together with your family on some of these field trips!

Not yet a Classical Conversations member and interested in our community-based approach to homeschooling? We’d love to hear from you! To learn more about us, click here .

Written by:

Classical conversations, i want to start homeschooling.

A Classical Conversations team member will contact you shortly to help you learn more about enriching your child’s classical, Christian homeschool education.

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60+ Best Field Day Games and Activities for All Ages and Abilities

Three-legged races are just the beginning.

Field day is a kids’ favorite for the end of the school year! Kids love the chance to run around outside with their friends all day, participating in exciting and challenging events. The best field day games and activities include options for all kinds of students, no matter what their age, interests, or ability. This inclusive roundup can help make your field day a success for everyone involved.

Classic Field Day Games

Fun field day games.

• Relay Race Ideas

Non-Strenuous Field Day Activities

Water games for field day.

Field days have been around a long time, and some activities have become staples. Here are some classic field day games to add to your list of events.

• 100-Yard Dash
• Water Balloon Toss
• Wheelbarrow Race
• Three-Legged Race
• Obstacle Course
• Egg-and-Spoon Race
• Backward Race
• Musical Chairs
• Duck-Duck-Goose
• Capture the Flag
• Tag ( Find fun variations here. )

Want to jazz up your standard list of games a bit? We love these fun and creative games, and your students will too.

Each team joins hands in a circle, then works to keep a balloon in the air without letting go. The team that lasts the longest is the winner.

Learn more: Keep It Up

Elephant March

Kids love Minute To Win It games ( see all our favorites here ), and this one is always a hilarious hit. Shove a ball into the foot of a pantyhose leg, then put the top of the hose over each student’s head. They race along a line of water bottles, trying to swing their “trunk” and knock over each bottle. First to the end wins!

Learn more: Elephant March

Hand and Foot Hopscotch

Trace outlines on the playground or tape papers to the floor representing right and left hands and feet. Mix up the order to make it tricky. Students race along, placing the correct hand or foot on every square in the row to advance.

Pass the Hoop

Kids join hands to form a long line. Then, they must pass a Hula-Hoop along the line without breaking the chain, stepping through it carefully to move it along.

Blanket Pull

Go for a ride with this fun race. Kids pair up to pull each other across the field on a blanket. Even things out by having one kid pull on the way down, and the rider pull on the way back.

Learn more: Blanket Run

Football Toss

This football toss game is surprisingly easy to assemble. You can also just hang Hula-Hoops from a branch or pole—swinging targets make things even more challenging!

Learn more: Football Toss

Human Ring Toss

One team member tosses rings at the other in this life-size ring toss game. The human “target” can move their body but not their feet. (You can use Hula-Hoops, but large inflatable rings make this game a little safer.)

Learn more: Human Ring Toss

Frisbee Golf

Frisbee golf is another one of those field day games that’s very easy to set up with inexpensive supplies. Set round laundry baskets into tomato cages pushed into the ground to arrange your course. Arm kids with Frisbees, and you’re ready to play!

Learn more: Frisbee Golf

Pool Noodle Croquet

Make oversized croquet hoops from pool noodles, and grab some lightweight balls. Kids can hit the balls with more pool noodles, or try to kick them through the hoops as they make their way along the course.

Learn more: Pool Noodle Croquet

Parachute Volleyball

Round up a big beach ball and some small parachutes (beach towels work too!). Teams work in pairs to catch and launch the ball back and forth over the net.

Coconut Bowling

Coconut balls make this bowling game much more challenging—and hilarious! The uneven shape of the fruit means it will roll in ways kids will never expect.

Learn more: Coconut Bowling Game for Kids

Hungry Hungry Hippos

Turn the popular game Hungry Hungry Hippos into life-size mayhem! One student lies on their stomach on a scooter, holding a basket upside down in front of them. The other student grabs their legs and pushes them forward to grab as many pieces as possible. After everyone has had a turn, total up the pieces to find the winner.

Frozen T-Shirt Race

Buy oversized T-shirts, wet them down and fold them, and stick them in the freezer overnight. For the race, each participant works to get their shirt thawed, unfolded, and then put it on first. So funny to watch!

Learn more: Frozen T-Shirt Race

Balloon Stomp

Get ready for some chaos with this one! Tie a balloon to each student’s ankle with a ribbon. Blow the whistle, and let kids loose trying to break each other’s balloons with their feet. Last one standing is the winner. (Make this a team game by issuing balloons of the same color to each teammate.)

Learn more: Balloon Stomp

Chicken Stix

This is just plain silly, but it’s so much fun. Kids use pool noodles to pick up rubber chickens and carry them to the finish line. This one’s easy to turn into a relay race.

Learn more: Chicken Stix

This is really more about having fun than getting competitive, but kids relish the chance to run around flinging colored powder at each other! If you want a more competitive version, try adding colored powder to a traditional game of Capture the Flag.

Learn more: Color War

Relay Race Ideas for Field Day

You can do the classic pass-the-baton relay race, of course. But these field day games put a new spin on the classic relay race and make the whole experience more fun for everyone.

Tic-Tac-Toe Relay

Set up three rows of three Hula-Hoops to be the tic-tac-toe grid. Then, have teams race to try to get three in a row first. They’ll be surprised to learn a little strategy can really improve their chances!

Learn more: Tic-Tac-Toe Relay

Paper Plate Relay

You’ll need an equal amount of people on each team, plus enough paper plates for each person to have one and one extra per team. The only way to move forward is by stepping on a plate, so the person in the front lays down the extra plate and jumps onto it. Everyone else moves up one, and the last person passes the extra plate up the line. Repeat until everyone has crossed the finish line.

Limbo Relay

Throw on some music and grab a long pole, then challenge teams to a limbo relay. Everyone on the team must make it beneath the poles on each round, and the slowest team is eliminated. Lower the poles on each round until only one team can manage it.

Learn more: Limbo Relay

Balloon Pop Relay

This one’s a classic: Each team member is given a balloon. One at a time, they race up to a chair, then sit on their balloon until it pops. Then they race back, tagging in the next team member. Tip: Underinflate the balloons a bit to make it a little more challenging. Or make them water balloons on a hot summer day!

Scooter and Plunger Relay Race

Scooter relay races are fun, but when you add in plungers, they get even better. In this version, kids must hold their feet up and use toilet plungers stuck to the floor to help them propel instead. Tricky, hilarious, and so fun!

Over-Under Relay

Kids stand in a single-file line, about arm’s length apart. Students on each team count off as “ones” or “twos.” The “ones” will pass the balls over their heads, while the “twos” must pass between their legs. Give the first person a ball, then start the passing. After a few seconds, give each team a second ball, and then a few seconds later, a third. Each team must get all of their balls to the end of the line and then back to the beginning. Don’t be surprised when things get a bit nuts!

Here’s a classic relay, and all you need are some baseball bats. One at a time, team members race out onto the field and place their forehead on the end of a bat while the other end rests on the ground. In this position, they spin around five times, then try to make it back to the finish line so the next team member can go.

Learn more: Dizzy Bats

Get-Dressed Relay

You’ll need lots of old clothes for this one: a box each of shirts, pants, and hats, at least, with enough items in each box for every player. (Make it more challenging by adding socks too!) Kids line up in teams. At the signal, the first player runs to each box and puts on one of each item of clothing over their existing clothes. When all items are all the way on, they race back and tag the next runner. The game continues until one team has everyone back at the start and “dressed” in their fun new outfits.

Beach Ball Relay

The task: Partners carry a beach ball to the end of the field and back. The twist: They can’t use their hands! If they drop the ball, they need to pick it back up without using their hands, or go back and start again. Each set of partners passes the ball to the next pair on the team, again without using their hands, until one team wins.

Learn more: Beach Ball Relay

Obstacle Relay

Obstacle races are a field day mainstay, but turning them into a relay makes them even more fun! You can make your course as simple or complicated as you like, so every race is unique.

Not every kid loves running and jumping (and some of them can’t). Make sure field day is fun for everyone by including some of these non-physical activities. They let everyone shine!

Cup-Stacking Race

After a TV show made this game popular, every kid wants to give it a try. And as it turns out, this has become an incredibly popular sport with lots of rules of its own. Learn more about cup-stacking and how to use it for your field day events here.

Cookie Face

This game is pure silliness, and kids are gonna love it! Have them tip their heads back, then place a cookie on their foreheads. When you shout “Go!” they race to move the cookie from their foreheads to their mouths without using their hands.

This game requires a bit of skill, but it’s easy enough for anyone to try. Label cans or other containers with point amounts. Give each student five balls to toss, and total up their points at the end.

Learn more: Ball Toss

Ping-Pong Tic-Tac-Toe

Make a 3 x 3 grid of plastic cups, one for each team. Fill the cups most of the way with water. Then give each team a bowl of Ping-Pong balls, and watch them race to get the balls into the cups until they make three in a row.

Giant Kerplunk

This game is pretty easy to make with tomato cages and bamboo skewers. Each competitor pulls a stick, trying not to be the one who causes the balls to fall!

Learn more: Giant Kerplunk

Flamingo Ring Toss

You could play ordinary ring toss, of course, but how fun is this version? Grab some lawn flamingos (you might even find them at the dollar store) and set them up. Then give each player a set of hoops and let them do their best.

Learn more: Flamingo Ring Toss

Lawn Scrabble

Give your word lovers a chance to show off their skills with an oversized game of Scrabble! Make the tiles from pieces of cardboard or card stock.

Learn more: Lawn Scrabble

Ladder Toss

This clever take on beanbag toss is super-easy to set up. Simply label the rungs of a ladder with various point totals. Then let kids try to land their beanbags on the steps to build up points for their team.

Yard Yahtzee

Buy or make some giant wooden dice, then compete at an outdoor game of Yahtzee. (Don’t tell kids they’re actually practicing their math skills on field day!)

Learn more: Yard Yahtzee

Scavenger Hunt

Complete a scavenger hunt as a team, or make it an individual event. We’ve got tons of terrific scavenger hunt ideas here , including the alphabet hunt. Kids try to be the first to collect an object for every letter of the alphabet.

Learn more: Alphabet Scavenger Hunt

Whack-a-Mole

Kids love this fun game where they get to test their reflexes while whacking at those pesky pop-up moles. You can make your own DIY version, or even rent an official game booth for your field day.

If you’re willing to let kids get a little damp (or, let’s face it, soaking wet), these are the games for you!

Fill the Bucket

Here’s a classic water game that’s easy to set up and always popular. Teams race to see who can fill their bucket first, using only the water they can carry in a sponge.

Learn more: Fill the Bucket Outdoor Water Game

Wacky Waiter

Combine Dizzy Bats (above) with Fill the Bucket! After each player spins around with their forehead on the bat, they must pick up a tray of water glasses and carry it back to the finish line. They use any water that remains to fill up a bucket. Play continues until one team tops their bucket off.

Learn more: Wacky Waiter

Pass the Water

We like this one best as a big-team game. Kids line up, one after the other, each holding a cup. The person in front fills their cup with water, then pours it backward over their head into the next person’s cup. Play continues until the last person, who pours it into a bucket. Repeat as many times as needed to completely fill your bucket.

Learn more: Pass the Water

Wooden Spoon Water Balloon Race

Kids must pick up a water balloon and balance it on a wooden spoon, then race to the finish line. If their balloon falls off and doesn’t pop, they can pick up and keep going. Otherwise, they have to head back to the start for a new one.

Water Cup Race

Hang plastic cups on strings, then use squirt guns to push them along to the finish line. (Don’t want to use water? Have kids blow through straws to propel the cups instead.)

Learn more: Water Cup Race

Give kids the chance to douse their teachers with a DIY dunk tank. Or divide kids into teams, and give each team a chance to soak the other. The team with the most wet players loses!

Learn more: Dunk Tank

Sponge Launch

Have each team design and build a launcher . Then let them fire wet sponges to see which team’s goes the farthest.

Learn more: Sponge Launch

Drop diving rings, marbles, or other small objects in the bottom of a kiddie pool. Kids have one minute to use only their toes to pull out as many objects as they can. The one with the most items at the end wins.

Learn more: Toe Diving

Water Balloon Piñatas

No candy in these piñatas … just water! Hang them high and arm kids with sticks to hit them. The first team or person to break all their balloons wins.

Learn more: Water Balloon Piñatas

Water Hunt and Fight

This water balloon fight variation is perfect for a hot afternoon. Number water balloons and lay them out on a field. Draw a number from the hat, and send kids out to find a balloon with that number. (There will be more kids than balloons, which is part of the fun.) Those that find the right number then get a chance to throw their balloon at any other player. If it hits and breaks, that player is out. If the player can catch it without it breaking, the thrower is out. Continue each round with a new number until there’s just one player left dry.

Learn more: Water Balloon Fight

What are your favorite field day games? Come exchange ideas in the We Are Teachers HELPLINE group on Facebook!

Plus, check out these elementary pe games your students will love ..

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From bubble stations to ring tosses! Continue Reading

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20 Engaging and Educational Field Trip Ideas for Preschoolers

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• Child development

Field trips are momentous times in a preschooler’s life. Preschool field trips allow children to enjoy a change of scenery and spend time outside the classroom doing more hands-on learning.

In addition to the memories children create on field trips, they’re a valuable opportunity for educators to reinforce lessons. With the right planning and preparation, field trips for children can be an engaging, educational day for all involved.

Why are preschool field trips important?

Field trips are more than extra-curricular activities. They can be an integral part of a child’s early education. Preschool field trips afford many substantial benefits for children:

Broadens their education

Children are exposed to only so much in a classroom setting. Field trips allow children to get a richer picture of educational subjects by observing them outside of books, lessons, or videos.

Exposure to real-life experiences

In preschool, children are developing their understanding of life and the world around them. Field trips expose them to everyday life in a setting where their teacher can help them connect what they’re learning to what happens in the real places in their community. Experiential learning (authentic, first-hand, sensory-based learning) through field trips is a way for children to reflect on and apply their new knowledge.

Research shows academic improvement

Studies support the idea that field trips have real effects on a child’s education. Field trips are linked to improvements in academic performance. According to a study on youth educational trips by the Wagner Group and the U.S. Travel Association, adults who took educational trips when they were younger…

• Had better grades (59% of study respondents)
• Graduated from high school at a higher rate (95% of study respondents)
• Reported that educational trips had a positive impact on their education (89% of study respondents)

Expands their world

Field trips allow all children to experience more of the world. Whether they live in a busy city or a rural town, field trips introduce children to experiences and environments they may not have access to otherwise. Preschool teachers have the opportunity to make a child’s world a little larger with each field trip and show them new places, people, and adventures.

How to plan and prepare for preschool field trips

A lot of preparation goes into a successful field trip. For teachers and administrators, there are people, places, and schedules to coordinate weeks or months in advance.

Consider the below areas as you plan your trip:

Teaching moments

Sometimes preschool field trips are planned around a specific topic the class has been covering. Sometimes trips are simply a good learning opportunity that you’ll weave a lesson into. No matter which scenario you’re in as a teacher, it’s helpful to have your notes and activities prepared in advance.

How many adult chaperones will you need for the field trip? When you’re planning field trips for kids, it’s crucial to have a confirmed, appropriate number of chaperones based on the number of children attending. 

You can request family volunteers or set up a rotating schedule so families can plan ahead. Consider offering incentives like free lunches or gift cards and remind them it’s a great opportunity to have a meaningful experience with their child and get to know the other children and families in your program.

Plan to bring extra snacks in case meal times run late. Prepare to answer questions from parents about whether to pack a lunch or work out an eating arrangement at the field trip location. If you'll be serving meals on the field trip, prepare the food before and determine how you will transport it. Consider packing a cooler for any perishable foods that need to be kept cold, and pack plenty of water if there is no water available at your destination.

Transportation

Some preschool policies require that school vehicles are used for field trips. Before the trip, determine transportation needs, such as how many vans or buses will be needed and if parents are permitted to drive.

If there’s a cost associated with the trip, how will you secure funds from the school or handle payments from parents? Use your communication platforms to alert parents of any expenses they’ll need to cover as far in advance as possible.

Sometimes drop-off and pick-up schedules can be impacted by field trips. Create an agenda and itinerary that shows where the class will be and breaks down how long you’ll be at each location. This helps parents plan their day and gives school administration information they would need in an emergency. 

If any children have medication, medical equipment, or anything else that needs to be on hand for them, it needs to be accounted for in field trip planning. Bring any health and safety documents such as an accurate roster to count the children and emergency contact information. Teachers should also pack first aid kits and antibacterial hand wipes if there is no access to clean running water on your trip. 

Families' participation on field trips is a great way to include them in the curriculum and share a day in the life of the class. Check out our calendar template to keep families up-to-date with all major school events and spark new ideas for family engagement year-round. 

Field trip safety tips

Taking young children on a field trip can be an overwhelming experience without the right preparation. Field trips are very exciting, so be aware that the children may have extra energy or be more distracted. To have a fun, safe, and smooth trip, focus on safety measures before and during the excursion.

Before the field trip

• Review the schedule with the children and tell them what to expect 
• Give children safety guidelines and procedures to follow
• Assign pairs or small groups for headcount checks
• Involve children in checking the field trip supply checklist
• Instruct children to wear bright clothes or a certain color to make them easy to spot
• Prepare and bring a first aid kit

  During the field trip

• Do headcount checks frequently and always before leaving or entering any location
• Follow pedestrian rules carefully when walking such as using sidewalks and crosswalks and only crossing the street when traffic signals say it is safe
• For traveling by bus or van, check every seat before exiting
• Ensure children understand and follow the security and safety measures of the field trip location
• Continue practicing basic hygiene, such as washing hands or using hand wipes before eating
• Keep a copy of emergency contact lists with you at all times
• Take bathroom breaks together as a group

Field trip ideas for preschoolers

Choosing where to take the children in your preschool class is one of the most exciting parts of field trip planning. Here are 20 engaging and educational field trip ideas for preschoolers:

Apple orchards and pumpkin patches can show children how these foods are grown and offer a truly hands-on education as they pick their own.

Nature walk

Nature walks are an educational adventure that allow children to discover various plants, leaves, critters, and trees. It’s also great physical activity!

Farmer’s markets

A field trip to the local farmer’s market or grocery store can be an opportunity to teach children lessons about nutrition and where their food comes from.

Many children’s books are full of stories and illustrations of sea creatures, so the aquarium is sure to be a hit with preschoolers. They’ll get a chance to see these creatures up close and learn more about them.

A local bakery is another food-focused field trip that supports a small business and allows children to see how some of their favorite sweet treats are created.

Zoos are a common preschool class favorite! Children can visit and hear facts about a wide variety of animals, including birds, mammals, and reptiles.

Local library

Libraries are often a familiar place for young children, but a preschool field trip to the library gives children a chance to learn details about what a librarian does and the many types of books available to them.

Fire station

Preschoolers tend to love fire trucks. Use a field trip to a fire station to teach them about the work that happens behind the scenes and age-appropriate fire safety tips.

Local events

Sometimes the best educational events don’t need to be booked—they’re already happening in your community! From holiday celebrations and parades to the annual fair, local events can provide children with a wealth of learning opportunities.

Farmers have so much they can teach young children, from lessons about the way food is grown to how the animals are raised.

Children’s museum

Museums that cater specifically to young children are educational and interactive places that are ideal for preschool field trips. They also tend to change exhibits regularly, which means they’re a great choice for multiple trips.

Home improvement store

Show children how chairs, tables, and other items they use on a daily basis are built. Another way to do this is to find a local builder with a small shop who’s willing to give a workshop tour and demonstration.

If you have a child-friendly state park nearby, they make excellent field trip destinations. State parks are a beautiful place to teach about the great outdoors and ways to protect and respect our planet. 

Recycling center

Teach children the importance of recycling and how everyday items like plastic water bottles and aluminum soda cans are recycled. 

Local ponds are perfect for a low-cost, science and nature focused field trip. They’re often home to frogs, ducks, and aquatic plants, making great lesson topics for preschool children.

Around town scavenger hunt

Teach children about where they live with a scavenger hunt in your community. Downtown areas are usually ideal locations for this field trip activity.

Expose children to the performing arts with a preschool field trip to the local theater. This trip can teach them about storytelling on the stage, theater etiquette, and stage acting as a career.

Train station

Learning about different types of transportation expands children’s minds and view of the world. Add in a train ride to make it both engaging and educational!

Botanical garden

Botanical gardens are a stunning environment to teach children about the beauty of nature and various types of plant life.

Historic monuments

A field trip to an age-appropriate historic site can provide early lessons on important historical figures and events.

Post-field trip actions and education

Get the most out of your day away from the classroom by following up with children and their families after your field trip. Parents will appreciate knowing what their children learned and children will get a chance to relive the best moments of their trip.

To update families, consider including a brief summary of your field trip in your preschool newsletter . Ask children to share their favorite parts of the trip and include photos! 

Plan a memorable outing

There are plenty of details to consider and plan when it comes to executing preschool field trips. Taking a trip is a great opportunity for educators to build upon everything their children are learning in the classroom and engage them in hands-on, memorable experiences. 

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Field Trip Ideas

Field trips are something I’m passionate about, and that’s why I’m sharing all of my best field trip ideas today.

When I first began homeschooling 17 years ago, there were fewer resources for homeschoolers, so I just created what I had grown up — school at our kitchen table. But I wanted our homeschool to be better than what I had grown up with, only I couldn’t really define better. I thought and researched, and the only I idea I could come up with for “better” was more rigorous.

So I bought mountains of textbooks and curriculum, overjoyed at the thought that we’d all be speaking Latin and solving multivariable equations by Christmas!

I laugh about it now!

The one thing I did do right that year was join a field-trip group full of more experienced homeschoolers. 17 years ago is a little blurry for me, but I do remember attending their first meeting, where they were organizing field trips for the year, and thinking to myself, “We can’t take off school every Friday!”

I was probably wondering how it would affect our Latin syllabus.

During that first meeting the group leaders assigned out dates for field trips (each mom had to plan and execute two field trips during the year) and I received an assignment. And then I talked with a few other moms about their ideas, which sounded fantastic. How I could not join?  

Why Field Trips Matter to Your Homeschool

That decision ended up drastically influencing my homeschool for the better — and not just because we attended field trips every Friday. That field trip group helped me to see, through experience, that my kids learned more from a fascinating, two-hour, Friday morning tour of a water treatment plant than from an entire Geological study of the water cycle.

It was our first foray into delight directed learning!

Children are born with boundless curiosity. They want to learn about and make sense of the world around them. You can only stop them by, well, forcing them to sit in a desk in a classroom.

When you take a child someplace interesting (I call interesting place question-pullers) you are opening a whole new world of rabbit trails for that child. To you, it might look like your child is hopping back and forth, criss-crossing a landscape in no particular order.

But your child is learning all about everything to do with that new place, digging deeper into the things that particularly interest him, just scratching the surface in others, and just generally creating an immense file in which to organize all of the things he is learning about this wide, wondrous world — all the things that help him to make sense of it.

My kiddos weren’t all that excited about their textbooks, but they would ask five million questions before, during and after each Friday field trip. Those questions always led to voluntary research and learning, followed by more questions, and more research and learning.

We once visited a beaver farm. While visiting, we learned that Beavers particularly enjoy wood from fruit trees. My kiddos wanted to run right home and chop limbs off our fruit trees to bring back for the cute beavers, so we were able to discuss proper pruning techniques and learn about how fruit trees grow and why we prune them, which led to a discussion about blossom pollination and bees and other pollinators.

When we closed the books after school M-Th, they stayed closed until the next lesson. But Friday field trips would lead to continuous, voluntary and joyous, nonstop learning. It was truly the kind of learning that can be described as passionate.

One of the best parts of homeschooling is seeing that “ah-ha moment” when our children truly understand the importance of what we are teaching them. It’s like the circuit is finally connected and the light goes on. That was happening as a result of our field trips, and not as a result of our day-to-day learning.

Luckily, I was able to see the difference in the two types of learning, and make necessary changes to our M-F homeschool. That’s not to say we gave up our Latin. I might still be a little obsessed with Latin declensions.

Nothing will make learning come alive for your kiddos like field trips. It’s one thing to learn about the history of the U.S. by reading about it, it’s another thing entirely to take a US History Road Trip and visit those historical sites in person.

While field trip opportunities will vary from place to place, every family has access to unique field trip opportunities. So use the list below to brainstorm as you are deciding what field trips to add your homeschool schedule.

How do you get started?

First, you need someplace interesting to visit.

25 Field Trip Ideas for Homeschoolers:

Here are some field trip ideas that will help inspire a love of learning in your homeschool.  

1. Visit Historical Sites

As you learn history together, you’ll find historical sites (either local or not) to visit that pertain to the current curriculum you’re studying at home. We’ve visited battlefields and monuments all over the United States, but some of the very most interesting historical sites we’ve visited ( Mesa Verde , Chaco Canyon , Hovenweep and Dun Angus ) are from ancient history rather than modern history — so don’t forget all the historical periods.  

2. Attend A Reenactment

Bring history to life by attending a war reenactment or renaissance fair. My state, Utah, has a Golden Spike (the transcontinental railroad meeting) reenactment, a mountain man rendezvous and so much more. One year, we visited Boston April 19, which is the anniversary of the ‘shot heard round the world’, and watched their incredible Patriot’s Day reenactment . Google the events you are interested in (historical events you’ve studied) coupled with the word reenactment to see if something is available.  

3. Visit a Birthplace or a Cemetery

Visit the birthplace of a famous person from your state. Google settlers, presidents, politicians, military heroes, inventors, artists, musicians or any person who correlated with your own interests.  

4. Tour Your State Capitol

Most State Capitol buildings offer free tours. The public can even observe legislation sessions, if you schedule your field trip accordingly. This is a great opportunity to learn more about how government works and some historical facts about your state.  

5. Take a Civic Field Trip

Tours of your local police or fire department, post office, airport, or campaign headquarters can usually be arranged for groups of a certain size. It’s fun to team up with other local homeschoolers to have access to these tours. We like to bake homemade cookies in advance to thank our civil servants.  

6. Visit a Museum

Science museums are fun because they typically provide so many hands-on exhibits for kids, which will really get your kiddos thinking and asking questions. Natural history museums, art museums, and historical museums all over the place. Our local children’s museum has a reciprocal agreement with other children’s museums, so we can get free admission other places with our annual pass to our own museum. Just Google Museum+your city for a list of all the available museums. I’m always surprised at the number of museums in my are I haven’t even heard of!  

7. Watch a Star Show in a Planetarium

We have a big planetarium with displays and all sorts of star shows (and IMAX shows) but our local university also has a small planetarium with a very nice telescope and star shows. The university planetarium is staffed by enthusiastic astronomy students who want to share everything they have learned and who are willing to spend hours (okay, that’s an exaggeration) helping my kids find things with the telescope.  

8. Explore Your Community

Call around to local restaurants, eye doctors, dentists, and veterinarians and ask if they give tours. Once we took a tour of a local pizza place, and they let each of the kids make and bake a pizza to take home. Be sure to consider unusual community offerings, too, such as mining operations, movie studios, newspapers and such. Many business owners love to talk with children about what they do and your students just might discover a future career.  

9. Visit a Farm

We live on a farm, and my kids have their daily farm chores, so they are not particularly enthralled with farm animals. But before we bought our farm, one of their favorite places to visit was a local farm with a small petting zoo. It’s funny how kids want to milk cows until they have to.  

10. Visit the Zoo or the Aquarium or a Pet Store

Kids and animals just go together, don’t they? Our local zoo has several free days during the winter, and the aquarium has one homeschool day each year when homeschoolers can get in free with an affidavit. If you don’t have a local zoo or aquarium, even the pet store can make a really fun and educational field trip.  

11. Learn About Bees

Speaking of animals, wouldn’t it be interesting to visit a beekeeper and learn all about bees?  

12. Learn About Your City’s Public Works (Water, electricity, sewage…)

I don’t know if all water treatment facilities are as interesting as ours, but we really enjoyed touring our local water reclamation facility. Some more favorites have been touring the hydroelectric dam below Lake Powell and the Bonneville Lock, dam and fish hatchery on the Columbia River near Portland, Oregon.  

13. Factories are Fascinating

Factories will often offer educational tours. We’ve toured several, from Sweet’s candy factory and Don Julio’s tortilla factory (both give out free samples!) to an Intel factory that produces computer chips, to the Waterford Crystal factory in Waterford, Ireland.  

14. Try to Visit All the Parks in Your County

I don’t know about you, but we have some awesome parks nearby. One is a giant reservoir where we can swim, canoe and paddleboard during the summer and ice skate and sled during the winter. A couple of our parks have phenomenal rope climbing equipment. We have skate parks and bike parks, and a few of our parks have amazing splash pads. Parks can be just as interesting during winter as summer.  

15. Hike in a National Park

As a resident of Utah, National Parks are one of our favorite places to learn. It’s amazing how much you can learn from hanging out in a national park!  

16. Tour a Bank

We toured the Federal Reserve in Washington, D.C. once, and watched their process for creating and destroying money. That was interesting. But it could be really interesting to tour a local bank, too. They probably won’t show you their vault or anything that requires security clearance, but they can show you how the tellers work, how the automated tellers work, and talk about the jobs all of the employees do. It would be fun to let your kiddos open a savings account at the same time.  

17. Shop for Groceries

Touring the grocery store is one of our favorite homeschool field trips EVER. They took us back into the bakery to watch their big mixers at work and taste bread samples, then through the refrigerator where the kids learned about produce and picked out an apple, then through the freezers where all the kids got to sample some ice cream. If your kiddos help you menu plan (learn about good nutrition), budget (learn about personal finance), and actually purchase your groceries (they learn about money and arithmetic) this can be an incredibly educational field trip!  

18. Learn How Your Favorite Foods are Made

Speaking of groceries, wouldn’t you like to learn how your favorite foods are made? Is there a creamery near you? How about a bakery? Or maybe you’d like to visit a cheese factory and see how cheese is made. We visited a fascinating maple syrup farm in Vermont a couple of years ago.  

19. Visit a Hospital

This is especially meaningful if you have a friend or loved one in the hospital. But make sure you call ahead and see whether a nurse will have time to show you around. The hospital has really cool machines they can tell you all about!  

20. Base Your Field Trip on Your Children’s Interests

Do you have an animal-lover in your house? Call your local animal shelter for a tour. Do you have a young artist? Visit an art gallery or two. Young thespians will be inspired by the theater and young cowboys by the rodeo. Don’t forget to check sports venues — I know most of the big ones offer paid tours. Or find an active archaeological site and volunteer to help dig! Using your child’s interests to generate field trip ideas guarantees a successful field trip.  

21. Don’t Forget the Library!

After all, isn’t the library a homeschoolers best friend? I’m sure your local librarian would be happy to give your family a tour of the library and show your kiddos how it runs.  

22. Check out Science and STEM festivals

Here in Utah, all of the STEM-related industries get together and put on a STEM fest every October. Each company hosts a booth where they explain and demonstrated something related to their business. There are always hundreds of booths, each with hands-on experiments, demonstrations, cool gadgets and lots and lots of information for your kiddos to wonder about. Both of the major universities in my area also host science weeks. One holds a chemistry week and invites the public to view classes and displays put on by the students, another holds a biology week and even opens the cadaver lab to families who sign up in advance. Google will help you look for things like this in your area.  

23. Look for School Days at Cultural Events

You can often find discounts to the symphony or to see musicals or plays. We’ve been to the symphony for free, and we were also able to go backstage and see several instruments and talk with the musicians. We also had the same experience at the ballet. Just google a local event with school days (e.g. ballet+west+school+days) because most of those events have time set aside for schools. Homeschools are schools and are able to reserve free tickets as as such.  

24. Look for Discounts to Try New Things

If you search Groupon locally, you’ll find all kinds of things you never even knew were things. Maybe not all of them are worth your time, but some of them could make really fun, educational field trips!  

25. Worldschooling Field Trip Ideas

Okay, this field trip idea is not even close to cheap, let alone free. But it will be well worth the investment! Plan a vacation around something your family is studying. After studying Geology and volcanoes, we visited Mount St. Helens, Crater Lake , and bowling ball beach . After studying Marine Biology, we visited various tide pools in California. After studying Chinese history and culture, we visited China . Because these field trips are more costly, you probably can’t take them as frequently, but they sure are fun to intersperse with local, free field trips!

Pin these fun field trip ideas for later!

Please share your field trip ideas in the comments below!

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50 Fun Corporate Team-Building Activities & Outing Ideas Everyone Will Enjoy

Published: November 22, 2023

If you’re noticing some droopy shoulders around the office or in your Zoom meeting, it’s time to plan a team outing. It’s fun and a great way for team members to bond and get to know one another outside of the work desks and joint tasks.

But how do you find ideas for a great team outing? Maybe you start with a Google search for “team outing ideas” and stumble upon an article that suggests “field trips” and “professional development activities.” It sounds like a starting point, but where's the real excitement?

We have something for everyone — from perfect activities for remote teams to large or small in-house groups to events that enhance teamwork and events that all team members can enjoy outdoors.

Table of Contents

Why should you do team-building activities for work?

5 benefits of team building activities.

• How to Plan a Team Building Event

Team Building Activities

Company outing ideas.

Team-building activities and games boost morale, break down barriers, and create a supportive and pleasant environment to work in.

As people with different backgrounds, needs, ambitions, and personalities make up teams, their group performance improves, resulting in smoother operations and enhanced business productivity.

Team-building activities also help to break down silos that may be detrimental to business performance.

Furthermore, they foster diversity and inclusion (D&I) by promoting collaboration, mutual understanding, and appreciation of individual differences. Activities create opportunities for employees from diverse backgrounds to work together, reduce biases, and build a more cohesive team.

50+ Remote Team-Building Ideas

Tips, tricks, and templates to help you master team-building in the age of the remote workforce.

• Boost team morale
• Ice breaker games
• Activity proposal template

You're all set!

Click this link to access this resource at any time.

1. Improved Communication Skills

Engaging in activities encourages employees to open up, leading to an atmosphere of open communication, which improves understanding and collaboration.

2. Enhanced Productivity

Better communication has a domino effect on productivity levels. When your employees work together and communicate, there is less work duplication and less friction between workers.

3. Identification of Strengths and Weaknesses

Managers get to see employees in action. Who performs better under pressure? Who holds everyone together? Who leads the pack? Qualities shine, and new leaders are discovered.

4. Higher Employee Retention

Companies that invest time and money in team-building activities enjoy higher employee satisfaction and team camaraderie, resulting in low turnover rates.

In recent HubSpot research , we discovered that marketing leaders are concerned about quiet quitting and find it unacceptable, even though 57% say it is happening in their organization.

They view it as a sign of poor work ethic, though they also recognize it is their responsibility to prevent and address it by boosting morale, encouraging work-life balance, and supporting workers’ mental health.

5. Enhanced Creativity

Employees get creative. They think outside the box and explore new approaches to problem-solving.

Before planning any team-building activities, it’s important to take specific variables into account for a successful outing.

1. Define your goals.

Determine what you want to achieve during team-building events. Have a clear goal in mind, whether it’s improving communication, fostering collaboration, or enhancing problem-solving skills. Align activities with your desired outcomes.

2. Set a budget.

Set aside a budget and plan activities accordingly. Pick activities that serve the purpose without exceeding financial constraints.

3. Set up a planning and execution team.

Hire professional facilitators who possess the expertise to plan and lead the event effectively. You’ll need moderators who can ensure activities are executed properly and help derive meaningful insights from the experience.

4. Make it inclusive.

Ensure you design inclusive and suitable activities for all employees.

Take into account the cultural backgrounds of diverse employees and the physical restrictions of disabled employees. Select activities and venues accordingly.

For example, choosing a venue that is inaccessible to disabled employees can have a counterproductive effect.

5. Select the right activities.

Consider the interests and preferences of your team members when selecting activities while ensuring they align with your goals. Choose activities that are interactive and build collaboration among employees.

6. Get your timing right.

Pick a time that works for all employees without causing disruptions to business operations. Also, take weather conditions and season into account, especially when planning outdoor activities.

7. Choose a good location.

Select a convenient location and arrange the necessary logistics in advance to ensure a smooth and comfortable experience.

8. Market the event internally.

Marketing the event internally will elevate its significance and help create a memorable experience. Creating and sharing an “Event Day Agenda” that showcases all activities increases anticipation and gets folks excited.

9. Follow up and gather feedback.

Include a follow-up process to evaluate the impact of the activities on team dynamics and productivity. You can then use this feedback to improve future activities.

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200+ Homeschool Field Trip Ideas

One of the joys of homeschool is the ability to do so much experience-based learning. Today I’m sharing 200+ field trip ideas to get your kids out of the house and learning new and exciting things.

Sometimes it can be a little overwhelming to figure out where to start. But, my recommendation is just to start with something your family enjoys.

Next, look at what you are currently studying and see if you can find a field trip off of this list that goes along with what your kids are already learning. 

What is a field trip for education? 

Field trips are simply trips intended for kids to have an experience outside of the normal homeschool or classroom setting. A lot to times, these trips are aligned with unit studies or related to the curriculum. 

Field trips also serve the purpose for fostering of life skills, art appreciation, outdoor education, holiday celebrations, community service, career building, or just plain fun.

What should a student bring to a field trip?

You can make this as simple or as detailed as you prefer. Some ideas for packing for a homeschool field trip might include:

• Notebooks/pencils
• Water bottle
• Walking stick (if applicable)
• Change of clothes
• List of questions
• First aid kit
• Spending money

How should students prepare for a field trip?

To make the most out of your homeschool field trip and work to build a little excitement or anticipation, here are a few suggestions of ways you can prepare. 

• Research the place you are going
• Do additional reading on your location
• Come up with questions you might have
• Discuss the benefits of this field trip
• Pack necessary items
• Come up with a schedule of events
• Make students aware of any goals or expectations

Here is a list of 200+ homeschool field trip ideas! To organize this list, I’ve broken it up into the following categories: outdoor, historical, science, fine arts, community, career, volunteer, preschool, Christmas, and fun. I hope you enjoy!

Outdoor homeschool field trip ideas

Outdoor field trips are perfect for nature study, mental health, family fun, or just getting the kids outside for some exercise and fresh air.

• Beach visit
• River rafting
• Berry picking

• White water rafting
• Organized bike ride
• Botanical gardens
• State Parks
• Local lakes
• Tulip field

• Cherry blossom tour
• Skiing 
• Snowboarding
• Paddle boating
• Hot air balloon
• Farmer’s market
• Canoeing 
• Kite flying
• Horse drawn carriage ride

Historical Homeschool Field Trip Ideas

Field trips for history are a wonderful way to bring the past to life! Try visiting a setting where one of your stories took place or tour a house of a famous historical figure. Let kids experience the way things used to be and they will really begin to develop a new appreciation for history.

•  Historical houses
•  Ancient ruins
• Local cemetery
• Historical forts
• World history museum
• Historical monuments

• Settings from books you’ve read
• Ethnic history museum (on cultures/countries)
• Historical sites
• Ancient art collection museum
• Battlefields
• Historical reenactment
• Old schoolhouse
• Bible history museum
• Bible walk-through
• Archeological site
• Presidential birth places
• Walk a historic trail
• Mansions or castles
• Pioneer days
• Living history sites

Science Homeschool Field Trip Ideas

Kids are naturally intrigued with nature. Animals, plants, stars, energy, water–all these things are exciting for kids to explore. Science discoveries are limitless! Foster your kid’s curiosity in this area, and they will experience the wonder of God’s world their whole lives!

• Bird watching
• Wildlife preserve
• Exotic animal reserve
• Wildlife rehabilitation center
• Community garden
• Planetarium
• Butterfly garden
• Fish hatchery
• Cattle ranch
• Turkey farm

• Tap for maple syrup
• Raptor center 
• Sculpture garden
• Water/energy dam
• Observatory
• Space center
• Whale watching

Fine Arts Homeschool Field Trip Ideas

As a former music teacher, let me encourage you to give your kids experiences in the arts! Not only should your kids be given the opportunity to produce art, but take the time to teach your kids how to appreciate and enjoy the beauty that art, music, and dance can bring to their life.

• College orchestra concert
• Children’s theatre
• High school plays
• Art gallery
• Watch glass blowing 
• Holiday performance
• Music festival

• Paint pottery
• Music store
• Basket weaving class
• Acting workshop 
• Instrument workshop 
• Dance performances
• Street performances

Community Field Trip Ideas

Community field trips are designed to teach kids about community. What it means. What it looks like. And who are the people that make up their community. Let them experience the joy of the elderly, the plight of the homeless, those who serve, those with different ways of living, how our systems function, and even those who need our help.

• Nursing home
• Walk downtown
• Local humane society
• Animal rescue center
• Animal shelter
• Amish communities
• Salvation army
• Observe a trial
• Homeless shelter
• Soup kitchen
• Children’s hospital

Career Homeschool Field Trip ideas

Career homeschool trips are fantastic ways to let kids really see what a particular job entails. It also gives them a better idea of college and career choices down the road. You could go to an establishment OR have someone you know take them around to their job for a day.

• Church tour
• Local bakery
• Train station
• Dog groomer
• Recording studio
• Wood working
• Other food factory
• Lumber mill
• Veterinary office
• Black smith
• Photography studio
• Recycling center
• College campus
• Post office
• Newspaper station
• Radio station
• Water treatment plant

Volunteer Field Trip Ideas

Volunteer field trips are when you go somewhere with a purpose to help or serve others. These are wonderful learning experiences that often foster character traits such as empathy, work ethic, humility, and generosity.

• Pull weeds around a school or business
• Pack and stack boxes for a manufacturing facility
• Local farm clean up
• Roadside clean up
• Read with younger children

• Tutor someone 
• Restoration projects
• Church ministry 
• Sorting for food bank
• Puzzles or crafts with the elderly
• Neighborhood clean up
• Library help
• Donation sorting
• Babysitting
• Watering nursery plants
• Laying mulch
• Delivering meals

Preschool Homeschool Field Trip Ideas

Here are a few preschool homeschool field trip ideas specifically geared toward the younger kids. Keep in mind, this age does well with hand’s on opportunities, and things they can move through fairy quickly.

• Pumpkin patch 
• Petting zoo

• Firestation
• Animal Shelter
• Reading time at the library
• Library tour
• Apple picking
• Discovery museum
• Police station

Christmas Homeschool Field Trip Ideas

Christmas is a great time to plan a few field trips. In fact, you’ll probably find yourself coming back to your favorites every year! These are also wonderful ways of learning about culture, traditions, history, and the nativity.

• Christmas tree farm
• Holiday play performance
• Live nativity
• Christmas light display
• Holiday market
• Choir concert
• Visit Santa
• Candlelight service

Fun Homeschool Field Trip Ideas

Fun homeschool field trips not only build relationships and morale, but you can make them as educational as you want! Go to a colorful candy shop and make it about math, or visit a roller skating rink one afternoon for PE. The opportunities are limitless!

• Put-put golf
• Bumper cars
• Trampoline park
• Movie theatre
• Amusement park
• Bowling alley
• Local ball games
• Ice skating
• Roller skating rink
• Local swimming pool
• Ice cream parlor

• Scavenger hunt
• Pizzaria 
• Escape room
• local festivals
• Have a picnic
• Fondue restaurant
• Attend a community event

Unit and Field Trip Pair Ideas

• Ocean Animals UNIT  (Aquarium or beach)
• Farm Animal UNIT  (Local farm or petting zoo)
• Interesting Insects UNIT  (Apiary or hiking trail)
• Parts of a Rose UNIT  (Rose Garden or Historical House)
• Winter Animals UNIT (Zoo or sledding)

Keep reading about homeschool…

A quick guide to the six homeschool styles.

• 200+ Top Homeschool Quotes
• Ten Books to Get you Started on Nature Study
• 10 Tips for Having a Productive Homeschool Day
• 12 Time Management Hacks for Homeschool Moms

What has been your family’s favorite field trip?

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Fun and Engaging Ways to Raise Money for School Field Trips

1. themed costume day.

2. Carnival or Fun Fair

3. Dance-a-Thon

4. Trivia Night

5. Art Auction

6. Cook-Off Competition

7. School Sleepover

8. Shoe Drive Fundraiser

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Exciting & Engaging Field Trip Ideas for Students with Disabilities

• May 8, 2023
• End of year , Special Educators

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As the end of the school year approaches, it’s fun to find some field trip ideas that work for your students. Many special education teachers are often seeking meaningful ways to celebrate achievements and create memorable experiences. Field trips offer a fantastic opportunity to provide hands-on learning, socialization, and fun for students with disabilities. In this blog post, we will explore exciting ideas for end-of-year activities that include field trips, specifically tailored to engage and inspire students with disabilities.

Visit a Local Farm or Zoo

Engage students with field trip ideas that involve animals.

A trip to a local farm or zoo can be a wonderful sensory experience for students with disabilities. The sights, sounds, and tactile sensations provide valuable opportunities for learning and engagement. Consider contacting the venue in advance to arrange a guided tour, ensuring that the visit is well-structured and accommodating to sensory needs. Encourage students to observe and interact with animals, plants, and nature, fostering curiosity and connection to the environment.

Explore a Science Museum

Additionally, science museums are treasure troves of hands-on activities and interactive exhibits, making them an ideal option for field trip ideas. These museums often offer dedicated sensory-friendly programs or specific autism-friendly days, providing a more inclusive environment for students to explore. Engage students’ scientific curiosity by encouraging them to participate in experiments, engage with exhibits, and discover the wonders of the natural world.

Plan a Nature Walk or Picnic

Connecting with nature can have a calming and therapeutic effect on students with disabilities. Organize a nature walk in a nearby park or reserve, allowing students to appreciate the beauty of their surroundings. Incorporate sensory activities like observing different textures, listening to bird songs, or feeling the breeze. Consider incorporating a picnic where students can enjoy a shared meal outdoors, fostering socialization and a sense of community. And the best part of that is you can use it as a life skills cooking lesson prior to the trip and get your students to make it!

Arrange a Visit to a Local Fire Station or Police Department

Build community and acceptance with these field trip ideas..

Visiting a fire station or police department can be an exciting and educational experience for students with disabilities. Contact these local community services to arrange a tour where students can learn about the important work they do. Encourage interactive experiences, such as sitting in a fire truck or trying on a police uniform, to make the visit more memorable. These encounters also provide opportunities to discuss safety, community helpers, and emergency preparedness. And, let’s not forget how important it can be for our students to be familiar with emergency responders.

Find a Sensory Friendly Event or Playground

Live theater performances designed specifically for individuals with sensory sensitivities are becoming increasingly popular. Many theaters offer sensory-friendly shows where lighting, sound, and other sensory elements are adjusted to create a more inclusive experience. Attending a theater performance can introduce students to the arts, enhance their communication skills, and nurture their imagination. Check with local theaters for sensory-friendly performances or inquire about the possibility of arranging a private showing for your class.

Also, looking for sensory-friendly playgrounds is getting easier and easier as many are showing up in local communities. These often have equipment meant for students with disabilities to access and enjoy. Swings that work for those in wheelchairs, ramps instead of stairs for slides, and lots of sensory toys. I’ve even seen ones with communication boards for students to work on language while at the playground like in this image below!

Awesome Field Trip Ideas- Create a Local Community Project

Lastly, engage students in a community-focused project that helps develop their social skills and sense of responsibility. Consider organizing a park cleanup, planting flowers in public spaces, or volunteering at a local charity. These activities promote teamwork, communication, and a sense of pride in making a positive impact on the community. Coordinate with community organizations and local authorities to ensure the project is accessible and meaningful for all students.

How Can I Add an Academic Component to the Field Trip Ideas?

And what better way to finish those end-of-year activities than with a memory book with differentiation that you can highlight all the fun you had all year? Grab this freebie and find a version that can work for all the students in your class while making a highlight reel of your amazing school year!

End-of-year activities that include field trips provide special education teachers with the opportunity to create lasting memories and meaningful experiences for students with autism. By carefully selecting destinations that accommodate sensory needs, provide hands-on learning , and foster socialization, these field trips can be transformative for students. Remember to plan ahead, communicate with the venues, and adapt activities to meet the unique needs of your students. These end-of-year adventures will not only celebrate their achievements but also leave a lasting impression, sparking joy, curiosity, and a love for exploration in the hearts of your students.

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Politics latest: Key voter on Humza Yousaf's future will make proposals to 'help him out of a tight corner'

Ash Regan, who is the Alba Party's sole MSP and potentially the deciding vote in a no-confidence motion in Mr Yousaf, is expected to meet with the first minister.

Sunday 28 April 2024 10:09, UK

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• Watch the prime minister answer questions on Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips from 8.30am
• Sunak refuses to rule out July general election
• Key voter on Yousaf's future will make proposals to 'help him out of a tight corner'
• Salmond asked Alastair Campbell to negotiate on behalf of Scotland if it gained independence
• Connor Gillies:  First minister must reset relations with very people he's burned bridges with
• Explained: How did we get here - and what happens next?
• Tap here to follow Electoral Dysfunction
• Sam Coates explains why the local elections matter
• Live reporting by Brad Young

A little earlier this morning, Rishi Sunak told Sky News that the movement of migrants from Northern Ireland into the Republic of Ireland showed his Rwanda scheme was working as a deterrent.

But the Irish government is to consider legislative proposals next week on returning asylum seekers back to the UK who have travelled across the land border.

Justice minister Helen McEntee will also meet Home Secretary James Cleverly next week, after saying the number of migrants crossing the border was now "higher than 80%".

"I'll have emergency legislation at cabinet this week to make sure that we can effectively return people to the UK," she told RTE.

Ms McEntee added Brexit was responsible for the UK seeing an increase in people seeking asylum.

A spokesman for Irish premier Simon Harris said he is "very clear about the importance of protecting the integrity" of Ireland's migration system.

"Ireland has a rules-based system that must always be applied firmly and fairly.

"In that context, the Taoiseach has asked the minister for justice to bring proposals to Cabinet next week to amend existing law regarding the designation of safe 'third countries' and allowing the return of inadmissible international protection applicants to the UK."

Alex Salmond asked Alastair Campbell to negotiate on behalf of Scotland with the UK government in the event it voted for independence in 2014, Mr Campbell tells Sky News.

The proposal was made when the pair were in Scotland ahead of the referendum, making tributes to Tony Benn, the former Number 10 communications director says.

"If Scotland had become independent, then that would have been a massive, massive thing for the country, so I would have been very happy to do that.

"I would want people who weren't necessarily pro-indpendence to be part of that team."

As Humza Yousaf fights to maintain leadership of Scotland, the Alba Party's Alex Salmond joins Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips.

Meanwhile, Ash Regan, the Alba Party's sole MP and potentially the deciding vote in a no-confidence motion in Mr Yousaf, is expected to meet with the first minister.

Ms Regan will "make a set of reasonable proposals to help him out of a very tight corner", says Mr Salmond.

"Scotland is lucky that somebody like Ash Regan is in that position."

Independence forces should be "cooperating together to try and get independence back as a priority in Scottish society".

Asked if an agreement can be reached with the SNP, Mr Salmond says Mr Yousaf is "in a very difficult position" but he will be in a "listening mode".

"He wouldn't have sacked the Greens from his administration unless he wanted a significant change in direction," says Mr Salmond.

"One possible outcome of this political crisis is there might be a Scottish election."

Earlier this week, Labour pledged to nationalise the railway system.

Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting says the plan is a "reflection of the failure of privatised rail and the absence of competition".

If you bring the franchises back into public ownership as they come up, the profits can be reinvested into better services and fairs, argues Mr Streeting.

"There is already enormous public ownership of our railways, but they are owned by French, German, Dutch and Italian taxpayers, and our profits go into their countries."

"It's time that we had public ownership of our railways so we can reinvest."

Trevor Phillips continues to put questions to shadow health secretary Wes Streeting.

He is about Keir Starmer's pledge to maintain the triple lock, with Phillips raising statistics showing median wealth for those in their early 60s was nearly nine times higher than those in their early 30s.

"I don't buy into that intergenerational conflict argument. We need to give pensioners the reassurance to know that as they have planned for retirement... that Labour will protect the triple lock."

Wes Streeting is asked about the possibility of a July election, which the prime minister has refused to rule out.

The shadow health secretary says: "He should get on with it. We are not just ready, we are, as with the rest of the country, fed up of waiting."

People are "crying out for an opportunity to deliver their verdict on this government and vote for change", he says.

"That's why the prime minister bottled an election earlier this year, that's why he's bottled it now, and that's why he will have to be taken out of Downing Street by his fingernails."

Labour's shadow health secretary Wes Streeting is next on Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips.

He says Dan Poulter's defection to Labour is a reflection of the "disillusionment of millions of Conservative voters", as well as of a "changed Labour party" because "only Labour can be trusted with the NHS".

Mr Poulter defended and carried out NHS reforms under the Conservative government.

Rishi Sunak's defence spending increase is "Trump-proofing" the UK, should the former president return as American leader in November, says CNN's chief international anchor Christiane Amanpour.

She says it is also indicative of the fact that all Ukrainian allies will need to put themselves on more of a war-footing.

Alastair Campbell adds Labour is in the same place on defence spending, and he believes both party leaders should be putting foreign policy at the heart of the next election.

Labour "understand they have to be very strong on defence", he says.

But this is boxing the next administration in because "there is no money", says former Number 10 communications director, Sir Craig Olive.

"These are major spending decisions and they stop you being able to spend on other things," 

The prime minister is asked whether - if he loses the next general election - he will have any regrets.

"You’re again focused on all this personality stuff. I'm focused on delivering for the country.

"What I'm doing is getting up every single day and working my hardest to deliver for people on the things that matter to them and matter to me. 

"That's what we're doing: significant reforms to our welfare system to support people into work, because that's good for them, because there's dignity and purpose and hope in work, and the current system is simply financially unsustainable.

"Massive investment in our defence, because the world we're living in is more uncertain. 

"A landmark piece of legislation to get our Rwanda scheme up and running to stop the boats, a tax cut worth £900 next week."

The prime minister is pressed several times on whether there will be an election in July, but he refuses to rule out a vote.

"You're going to try and say you're ruling this out, you're ruling that in," says Mr Sunak.

"I just need to know when to book my holidays. July is possible?" responds Phillips.

"Actually, Trevor, it's more important than your holiday or anyone's holiday."

Philips says: "Just answer my question about July and we can move on. So, it could be July?"

The prime minister won't budge: "I'm not, I'm not going to do that."

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