Prepare For Summer: Three Easy Summer Field Trips
Field trips that can include the entire family and keep everyone interested and engaged are winners. Here are three quick trips you can take that will keep brains movin’.
The Local Farmer’s Market:
I see Farmer’s Markets as a great place to let kids explore and learn. Here are some ways to make food shopping at your local Farmer’s Market fun:
- Have your child pick out some things they find interesting or are curious to eat. Then go home and figure out how to prepare it (try www.epicurious.com to find recipes). You can also, plan a picnic, sending each member of the family into the market to find their particular contribution.
- Create a basic treasure hunt in the market for your kids with questions such as:
· How many things can you find that are red? Green? Purple? Orange? Black?
· How many different types of eggs are there? Chicken? Maybe ostrich?
· What types of meat do they sell?
· How many different types of carrots can you find?
Remember: if you ask good questions and create interesting activities for your child, you can make cleaning their room interesting, too. So use the questions listed above and think of some of your own, too.
- And if you go to the Farmer’s Market, know what is in season. Ask your kids what’s different from the time they have gone before. And if this is their first trip, ask them why they think strawberries are in the market now and won’t be in the fall. And if you live in the New York City Area, be sure to get a Food Wheel (www.ChewOnThis.org), created by The K5 Specialist Carlin Greenstein.
To find your local farmer’s market, go to Local Harvest.com.
A Minor League Baseball Game:
These days, it costs an arm and a leg to take the family, or even yourself to a baseball game. Why not a minor league game? Most areas have a minor league team and the games are cheap. So cheap, that if it’s boring, you don’t feel guilty leaving in the 5th inning. One of the great parts of minor league baseball is that often the players are more accessible to the kids. You can get autographs and get to see the game up close.
Click here to find your local minor league baseball team.
A Flea Market:
Both boys and girls can find something at a flea market. And there are so many things to look at and for you to explain. I used to go with my Dad on Saturdays and we would spend much of the time talking about the mysterious items I would discover. It was great. My brain was moving a mile a minute from all of the new discoveries. Everything from buck knives to pretty mirrors and ornate jewelry boxes to baseball cards and used clothing. It is all there.
Give them a budget ($5, $10, $15, whatever) and let them find something for themselves. Have them bring a camera and take pictures of what they like and paste the images in journal to write about when they get home. Flea markets can be great to explore – like a living museum of the past.
To find a local flea market, try either of these websites:
June 11th, 2009
