FIELD TRIPS & OUTDOOR ACTIVITIES:BENEFITS OF SELECTING THE NATURAL WAY OF LEARNING

Esra Kazan

University of Texas at Dallas

November 2002

Benefits of Field Trips &

Outdoor Activities

• Knowledge in Science

• Care for Environment

• Improvement in Personal Skills

Knowledge in Science

• Long-lasting knowledge

• Observe things first hand in real situations

• Participate in hands-on activities

• See, touch, hear, smell, and feel objects

• Ecological sensitivity

• Protection of environment

• Water, air pollution, endangered species

• Gain consciousness and respect

Care for Environment

• Facing challenges which builds:

self-esteem, self-confidence, self-reliance

• Leadership skills: teamwork & trust building

• Student-student & student-teacher interaction

Improving Personal Skills

Making Field Trips More Fruitful

• Forming concepts from experience

• Using outdoor social groups

• Meeting experts on the job

• Examining natural and cultural objects

• Generating interesting questions

• Thinking aloud together

Final Thoughts

~ Challenges ~ ~ Suggestions ~

• Children’s safety

• Keeping their attention on subjects

• Poorly designed schoolyards

• Set up safety rules

• Establish a reward system

• Improve & maintain schoolyards

Let’s turn our habitat into a real bigclassroom and a laboratory in whichstudents are well motivated to learn

and teachers are happy to teach.