Educational Field Trips by Mike Siekkinen

I love a good field trip! My students do also. The chance to leave school for the day and visit somewhere, anywhere, can be a really fun and educational time for students and teachers. I have been my school’s “field trip guy” for many years now. I take my classes (team) on field trips at least once a quarter. When I first started this many years ago, I was told this was difficult, dangerous and expensive. With proper planning and research, field trips are high points of the year for all of us.

First, choose a place that can relate to your curriculum. If you are a biology teacher this may be a national park, a zoo, or a museum. For history, look around your area for historical sites or perhaps even in your home town. Many of these sites can be free for educational groups or very reasonable. I use a local military base, local historical sites, state parks and also cultural celebrations in the local area. 

Most of my trips, I only have to pay for transportation. I fund my field trips (as my district has no funding for field trips) by student donations. I have also been blessed to receive the Target Field Trip Grant a number of years ($700 per year). My field trips are always linked to instruction. For instance, I visit Okefenokee State Wildlife refuge. I link this to standards we have to teach in science, history and we always include writing assignments and research before and after each field trip as well as we finds a way to work in mathematics. Most school systems have some procedure and required paperwork to do before going on a field trip. Ask your principal what the district’s policies are regarding trips. Mine is supportive though I have to find my own money. With good planning, field trips are a great way to get students and teachers out of the classroom to show students real life applications to what they learned at school!

Dr. Mike Siekkinen, a retired U.S. Navy submariner, became a teacher as a second career. He teaches history at St Marys Middle School as well as Adult and Career Education at Valdosta State in Georgia.

Spring Trip! by Mike Siekkinen

What do you do with your Spring Break? For years I spent mine with my children but as they have gotten older and moved on, I was left with an empty nest and a wife who worked. So several years ago, another teacher asked me if I would consider doing a Spring Trip for students. I was skeptical at first but agreed and we got with a company called Worldstrides and planned a trip to Washington D.C.

Advertising for the trip was not hard and we ended up having 57 students who signed up for the trip. We had to get several other teachers to come with us for that crowd! It ended up being a wonderful (and tiring) experience. Students were well behaved and the trip set up by the company was excellent. We visited so many places and even with a few snags (a broken tour bus in South Carolina, a couple sick kids, etc.) it was still an enjoyable experience.

We all committed to doing it again as long as we were all still enjoying the kids and the trips. I am doing my 5^th Spring Trip this March. This year is snorkeling in the Keys and visiting the Everglades. I am still enjoying the kids, the trips and it is a wonderful way to spend my Spring Break! Worldstrides has been a great company to work with and has made it very easy with regards to planning the trips, providing needed materials for advertising and the people they have as guides and drivers have been nothing short of excellent! I highly recommend the company.

Dr. Mike Siekkinen, a retired U.S. Navy submariner, became a teacher as a second career. He teaches history at St Marys Middle School as well as Adult and Career Education at Valdosta State in Georgia.