Field
Trip Presentation
at the WALDSFE 2004 Conference
by Loha Brown
edited by Doreen Blanding
National and State Parks
My family’s favorite field trips are Washington State Parks and our National Parks. We pack and camp, and rangers teach. On our trips the children may study: a volcano, geology, plants, ocean life, tide pools, habitat, weather, clouds, animals and follow their tracks, solar system and night sky (stars), history, study the Oregon Trail, learn about the Pig War, Lewis and Clark, Native American History, and more.
Washington’s State Parks are filled with historic and cultural places, self-guided trails, tours of furnished historic homes, and evening campfire programs. You can find everything from underground limestone formations to lighthouses on the coastline.
While family camping, on these trips, our children learn outdoor skills, make collections through the use of photographs, postcards, and drawings. They make written documentation of their studies. At campsite we read books together (the topics vary from great literature to a book which reinforces the topic they studied in the field that day). We listen to great music on our trips and may read about the composers life. We listen to learning/teaching tapes in the car and at the campsite about: great composers, foreign language, math, science, scriptures, scripture stories, talks of inspiration offered by great men and women. A family member reads a book out loud for the rest to listen to or we have stories on tape and all listen. We read individually and as a group (passing the book around) at camp. We swim and hike. Our time is spent creating bonds and memories. (No phones, no video games, no TV, no internet distractions). (Look to the resource section of this article for tape titles and book titles we use.)
If you wish to do something similar, may I suggest you start with the forts and a study of their history and move on from there? Keep in mind these are great day trips too. Remember our Park Systems have education specialists who have designed curriculum for these sites that meet (exceed) Washington State Learning Standards. Before you go you may wish to do a search of the park website to see if there is pre or post trip curriculum available - check the field trips section of the site. Also look for the Jr. Ranger Program - it’s great fun!
Start here for descriptions of a few of the opportunities available: Or choose a park from the list of parks by name (approx. 120 of them!). Be sure and check for interpretive programs, very educational! This page offers the same list of parks on a map of Washington State which helps you to locate unfamiliar parks.
Loha's Favorites:
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Fort Stevens, OR official park page or information and be sure to visit "The Wreck of the Peter Iredale |
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