Ten tricks for a successful field trip

Teaching Pre K-8, Apr 1998 by Moser, Karen M

Ten things-to-do that will help take the stress out of field trips

I remember my first field trip as a teacher. We went to the Austin (Texas) Children's Museum. The class had to wait 20 minutes for the city bus and we were tired of singing the four songs we'd learned in school. I was terrified I'd lose a child, and my back was killing me from carrying the lunches. Now, seven years later, I know the tricks. They go like this:

1 Do the groundwork. When you call to set up your field trip, discuss the cost, number of students, time and date. Visit the site and obtain any literature that might be offered. Check out the restrooms and eating facilities. Also, see if there's a public address system. You'll find it helpful when you gather students together at the end of the day.

If possible, order a bus from the school district, instead of taking the city bus. You can pay for it by holding a fundraising event or include the cost in the money you collect from parents.

Call the facility you're visiting to reconfirm the week of and day before the field trip.

Don't forget to order your lunches and follow your campus field trip procedures. Send the permission slips home two or three weeks before the trip. Check off the children's names daily and send reminder slips home every Monday and Friday.

2 Obtain a cellular phone. I was very thankful that I had my cellular phone with me the day the bus broke down on the Interstate. The bus was in the middle of the highway and the driver had no way to radio the garage. Thanks to my cellular phone, however, valuable time was saved. Another bus was immediately dispatched and we were back on our way. If you don't own a cellular phone, borrow one from your school. If your school doesn't own one, contact your local cellular phone agencies. They often donate free air time and phones.

3 Make name tags. Make field trip name tags. On the front side, write your name and cellular phone number, the school's name and phone number. On the other side, write the child's name. This protects the child from having a stranger learn his or her name.

You can color code the tags by running them off on different colored paper or by putting colored stickers on the front. Color coding is great when you have to group students with a particular chaperone. Laminate the tags and, before you start the trip, pin them to the students with safety pins. After the trip, collect the tags and keep them in a basket to be used again.

4 Make counting chains To avoid the "Isthe-field-trip-today?" syndrome, have each child make a counting chain. The individual chains can be taken home, but keep a "group chain" in the classroom so the kids can count in school.

5 Bandannas. Buy or make a set of bandannas for the class. Having your children wear bandannas around their necks will help you spot them in a large crowd. If several classes from your school are going to use this idea on the same field trip, each class will have to have its own bandannas.

Another option is to tie-dye or sponge paint T-shirts. Keep the T-shirts at school so that everyone has a shirt ready for the next field trip.

6 Roller ice chest. After my first field trip, I had an excruciating backache from carting a lunch-filled, metal ice chest everywhere. Never again! I now pack lunches in a roller ice chest. You can purchase one of these chests for about $20 at an end-of-summer sale.

7 Discuss happenings. On the day before the event, allow the children to anticipate what they'll see and do on the trip. Encourage them to discuss their anticipations and draw pictures, too. After the trip, debrief the class by having each child talk about one of the pictures that were taken on the adventure. Make a book out of the words and pictures for the class to enjoy all year long.

8 Count, count, count! Count your children at every transition. I count and I have the chaperones count, too. No one goes to the next area until everyone is present. 9 Partners. Have your children team up as partners. Tell them that they are responsible for each other. Appoint a lead team and a caboose team and chaperones for each. Make sure that everyone knows that no one can be in front of the lead team or behind the caboose team.

10 Life-saving backpack. My backpack has saved me several times when the bus has been late or an unexpected delay has occurred. Organize your backpack with the following:

Books - make sure there are enough so that there's one for every two students.

Beans or connecting cubes for math games.

A bag of crayons.

Paper - enough for the whole class.

Camera and film - make sure each child is in at least one picture.

First aid kit - with Band-Aids, latex gloves and alcohol pads. You may also want to include a bottle of antibacterial spray.

Cellular phone - yours or the school's.

Snacks - a box of cookies to cure the "grumbles" when lunch is late.

Change - in case you need a pay phone.

Small horn - a great help when you're trying to gather your kids together.

List of parents' names and phone numbers. This is very helpful if a child is hurt or you're going to return late. With these ten tricks, the next time anyone asks you, "How was your trip?" you can honestly say, "Wonderful!"