Why field trips? Isn't it better for the parent to know that a child is safely where he or she left him or her? After all, it's only ten hours or so until the parent returns. And isn't it too much for the staff to plan and then execute a trip with small children? What about the cost?
The missing variable in this is the child. Have we forgotten about the child altogether? Is the parent our first priority or is the child? In our business, the child is our number one priority and that means field trips at the GS.
Let's talk about the child.
The first question is, Why field trips? The answer is simple, because field trips teach more than any other activity. When I was writing a novel that took place in the Middle Ages, I read that at least fifty percent of all people at that time traveled extensively. It surprised me. People love to go and do and always have no matter the difficulties, the obstacles and the trouble. People love to see the world, experience new and different sights, sounds, smells, and be a part of what they see. It's called being alive and responding to life in a very real and positive way!
People, and children included, are not content staying still. When you consider what the usual "day care" situation is, one room all day, drapes drawn, thirty five square feet allowed per child, you can imagine how a child feels day after beautiful day. You can imagine the frustration of having to nap all afternoon when all the child really wants to do is to run out side and play. But for the convenience of adults, the child is stuck year after precious year waiting for his or her parent!
Part of the fun of field trips is taking the whole school along for the ride. A child who is lucky enough to go on field trips gets the best of both worlds. He or she gets to go with their friends. It's like a family vacation with all your friends. If the field trip is exciting enough, parents will go along, and that's fun too.
And sadly, there are many children who will not get a summer vacation in the traditional sense of the word. So taking children on field trips becomes their summer vacation. When they go back to school, they can say, "I did this and this and went there and there..."
Next question: Isn't it better for the parent to know that their child is safe... Safety should be the first consideration when planning a field trip or do anything with young children. When you use a school bus, you are choosing the safest mode of transportation there is. When your staff knows each and every child well, you are encouraging the best part of safety. When you choose a field trip that is child friendly, you are staying within the same safety zone. Taking along an attendance sheet, counting every little while, breaking into groups are all ways and means of keeping everyone safe. So is insisting that children wear a school shirt. The school shirt is an absolute. You can spot a child at a hundred yards. But if your staff is on top of things, you won't have to spot anyone. They all stay where they belong.
Now I return the volley about the question isn't it better for the parent to know their child is...
What? Stuck in a room all day waiting to go home? And ten hours in a child's life stuck in a room is a waste of his life. These are the learning years - the years between 3-5 are when any child learns the most. So probably not. Children are not boutique items. They are human beings wanting to go, do and learn.
Next question: Isn't it too much for staff to plan and then execute a field trip? If it is, it's time to find new staff. The purpose of providing care to a child is to provide care to a child...that can either mean the least I have to do to get by without losing my job or the most I can do at all times for the sake of the child. The latter is what we want working in childcare. The staff that hangs back, does the least, doesn't want to pitch in and help are staff who need to find other jobs today.
Planning a field trip is not hard. The first thing to establish is a relationship with your bus driver. You want the same driver every time. You want to know who you are leaving town with and how good they are. At the Garden School, we have had the same driver for fourteen years. We ask her about certain trips. She can tell us how long certain trips will take and where are the best places to stop for toileting. Miss Sandy is a partner in our excursions, and she is a fine person and a good friend. I wouldn't want to do it without her.
The second batch of questions to ask is: can the children do this? Will the children want to do this? What will they learn? And the answers should be yes, yes, and lots. I never plan a trip that is longer than three hours on the bus. And at the end of the three hours, it better be worth it. The kids will let you know if it is or it isn't. Our longest trip is to Mammoth Cave which is the biggest and most exciting cave in the whole world. It's worth it.
Planning to take food is another big issue because there are safety matters to deal with. Let's face it, a picnic is a picnic. The adult in charge can either make it or blow it. Pre-made sandwiches and a cup of milk won't cut it when kids are hungry. If they have exercised all day, they will EAT. So taking a variety of stuff is the ticket. How do you do that?
There is a company that makes "takeable" equipment that keeps food cold for hours. We have several of these takeable food containers. We start at 6:00 a.m. baking cookies. We put together fresh tuna, egg, because this is what the kids will eat. We take peanut butter, jelly and honey and give children a choice. For the parents, we add crab and shrimp salads and sometimes chicken salad. We now make a really nice vegetable salad. We include ham, turkey, balogna, salami, and cheese for the children to choose from. We take long hoagy buns to make sandwiches on the spot so they are fresh and yummy. We take along chips, the cookies, a watermelon, apples, carrots, pickles and dip. We take milk and water and soda for parents.
The key to taking is to have the equipment to take, regular bins for this or that, and a routine of how it's all suppose to be put together. A picnic lunch for 40 takes an hour to prepare and can be taken in a small cooler and a couple of carry on bags.
The only other consideration is clothing and illness. It's frightful to take sick children along on a field trip. We had two sick children one year on the same trip. They vomited all day. It's best if children are checked for temps before they leave their house. Clothing is another issue. Shorts that are drowning the child will encourage heat prostration if it's a hot day. Cute is not cute in an ill child. Better that a child wear something really hideous and be comfortable than something trendy and hot. Shoes are also a big consideration. Slip ons, shoes that are too tight, his sisters shoes and no socks create blisters and woes. No woes please. If a parent cannot find a child's clothing before a field trip, the child should not go. It's as simple as that.
So there are some of the reasons, the methods and the problems of field trips. Ultimately, it's up to the parent to make it a go for a child.
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