I know that some folk love groups for various reasons, but for our boys it was a drudgery and spoiled the potential for a good time when we met with others to look through a historic house, or visit the local animal park etc.
With this memory in mind I watched to see what would happen yesterday as I let the children set the pace at the animal park.
Two of the little boys had trouble slowing down, wanting to race from one place to the next, hardly seeing any detail, another boy was more careful about his observations, and the girl with the lovely camera needed time and space to interact with the animals slowly.
The challenge for me then was to meet all the needs as best I could. And take photos with the 2nd best camera. And look after the baby.
The solution saw us pretty much racing around all exhibits to the start again, then going a little slower the 2nd time missing the animals they had no interest in, and then separating to allow the older ones to stand quietly and study their favourite animals.
There was, fortunately, a large springless trampoline installed in the playground and so the guy with far too much energy was able to stay relatively happy enclosed in one spot.
I would like to encourage each family to look at what works best for them in relation to field trips. Do the children enjoy the company of other families? Do you enjoy the company of another adult? Are you still able to happily interact with your children if there are too many people/distractions? If there is a conflict of interests can you find a solution if you have a meeting about it?
Let me know how your family does "field trips". All comments welcomed!
We don't cope with group trips. We need our time and space to learn and enjoy. I love your blog and the way your children are learning. I am trying to let go and trust my hut more with my children's learning but we have disabilities and I find we need routine and order so too scared to trust I guess that they will learn. Thank you for sharing your life with us.
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ReplyDeleteWe have disabilities that would benefit from routine and order too (Asperger's), but at this season in our lives it would put more stress on me, so we are just doing what works for the majority of us now. Don't forget that I have been doing this for many years now, and the confidence I have comes from all those years of going back and forth doing different styles of educating for brief times, always returning to natural education. And even so, on some days, I doubt what I am doing!! I think that is quite "normal" (if there is such a thing). xx
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