Raise your hand if you are going on a field trip before the end of the school year.
90% of teachers raise their hands.
When talking about these little adventures called “field trips” with educators, you can separate the emotions teachers feel into two, very distinct categories.
50% of us are insanely pumped up for the opportunity to travel with kids and enrich them with an amazing learning experience and the other…
50% are requesting personal days….
No matter what category you fall into, I’ve got two tips to make your experience AWESOME as you plan your trip to the theater, park, zoo, museum, or something WAY cooler than that because your school fully funds these adventures and you aren’t looking for “free options.”
1.) Get Yourself a Megaphone!
Does your school have a megaphone? The cheerleader kind will work just fine. It projects volume really well and it is likely you will look ridiculously school spirited because your mascot is screen printed on the side. If you have one of those, you should totally bring it along. But that is not the type of megaphone I’m talking about. I’m talking about the kind that takes 6-D batteries, weighs 12 pounds, and is used by Hollywood TV sets. This kind has a siren button, plays various music, and has a handheld attachment that make speaking into it even more fun. When taking 130+ kids out in public this is TOTALLY what you need to get their attention.
I have taught at the same school for 10 years and had never seen this type of megaphone used in our building, but this year I was hell-bent on finding something like it. So I started asking around and I kid you not, I found one! Nobody and ever used that! How did I not know this thing existed??? I loaded those massive batteries in that electronic device and gave it a try. It was like angels were singing down on me when I heard my voice projecting down the entire hallway during my first attempt at speaking. You better believe I brought that on the bus and used it ALL DAY! I HIGHLY recommend finding something like this and saving your voice and your sanity.
2.) Let’s Get Flexible, Flexible, Flexible!
I basically sang Olivia Newton John out loud when I typed that title. Read it again and try it too. That’s the kind joy you also need to bring on the field trip! It is a very REAL possibility that you will miss a very important turn on the bus, miss the very time sensitive start time for the event, and miss a student during the head count on the way home….. ok, maybe don’t miss that last one, that’s not going to go well when you get back to school. But those other “misses”… do me a favor and don’t freak out. These field trips are meant to be crazy, so just roll with it.
Missing lunchboxes, missing fish food money, and missing your plan period are all going to happen and that’s part of the excitement! Embrace the fact that this field trip got you out of the traditional classroom setting for a day and that change of scenery is a refreshing, rewarding thing this time of year! I don’t know about you, but a trip to the courthouse, the county jail, and a university tour on a nice sunny day is a welcomed change of pace! Even if “missing evidence” leads to one of your teachers getting arrested…
Bottom line friends, you are going to crush this field trip! It’s going to be full of loud, awesome, fun, and full of mishaps that you didn’t predict, and that is the beauty behind the whole experience.
And as long as you get a group pic where no student is making some inappropriate gesture, consider it a win!
