September 23, 2009

Field Trips

Today's Staff Musing is from Marie Vaughan, resident educator-at-large. She is great with children! She's also a "calming" factor between intelligent arguments that break out during Staff house Jeopardy night...

The past four years I have been completing my education with a degree in elementary education. As a result of this,I have been in several different classrooms around eastern N.C. Most of these classrooms had one thing in common; when it came to field trips, the students loved them but the teachers were never excited for them. Part of this reason is because of the number of safety issues, and overall chaos that comes with taking a large group of children anywhere. While I can understand these concerns, I also realize that there are many more reasons why field trips are so important to students. When students are on a field trip they can learn and see new things in a way that they never have before.

At the Eastern 4H Center, we give students the opportunity to work together to solve a problem. While they are here they have to communicate with each other and start to build leadership skills that they can use wherever they go. We also have something here that most students have probably never done before, which is our rock wall. When the students first arrive they might seem wary of the rock wal,l but after reaching the top a couple of times their confidence has soared.

In today’s world where T.V., the Internet, and the many other technologies out there are so distracting to students, they need something that will bring them back to the outdoors. What better way to do this than in a small rural county in eastern N.C. that is filled with woods and teambuilding activities. Being on a trip like this gives the students a chance to step away from all the worries of school and home. They come to a place where there are very few people and a whole lot of trees. After they finish the teambuilding exercises or the rock wall, their confidence and happiness will show. They will be able to go back to school with a better and more positive attitude for learning.


Enjoy the day...

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