This week's Homeschool Memoirs asks for our favorite field trip. Field trips are, of course, one of the huge benefits of homeschooling. I couldn't possibly list on the field trips we've been on, but some recurring favorite ones are:
• The Symphony (we're headed to the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra this morning, in fact)
• Local historic sites like Fort Loudoun
• Children's museums, like this one in Oak Ridge
• Nature centers like Ijams
• Plays, especially those at the Oak Ridge Playhouse
But I do have two very favorite field trips. The first: In the Smokies. I know that for millions of people, coming to the Great Smoky Mountain National Park is a very big deal, even a once-in-a-lifetime trip, like Yosemite would be for us. But for my family, the GSMNP is our big backyard. We go there often, and I never cease to be amazed at the sheer beauty of creation. We've gone to the Smokies mostly just for hiking and camping, but we've also gone for numerous field trips put on by the park rangers or other sources.
My second favorite field trip thus far, to Williamsburg, Jamestown and Yorktown , was one we took last year to go along with our year in American History (up to 1800). That was such a fantastic trip, and it's all detailed in the link above! I'm hoping that at the end of this year, when we "finish" American History, we'll be able to take a trip to Washington, D.C.
Wanna play? Visit Homeschool Memoirs at the link above!
See Memoir #10 here: 10 Timely Facts
(I opted out of Memoir #9)
See Memoir #8 here: Study Spot
See Memoir #7 here: Snacks
See Memoir #6 here: Summer Photo Essay
See Memoir #5 here: My Favorite Things
See Memoir #4 here: Something New
See Memoir #3 here: Routines
See Memoir #2 here: Agendas
See Memoir #1 here: All About Me
Subscribe to SmallWorld here in Google Reader
You have such good field trips...I still need you to teach me more about going to the Smokies....a shame, I know...but, we are planning to go when my M-I-L is here next week :)
ReplyDeleteYou're so good linking all the past HMs!
ReplyDeleteWe love to go to the Smokies! Sounds like you know a lot to do there. I've not thought about what the Park Rangers might have going on. How/where do you find out their schedule?
ReplyDeleteOh, yes. I understand about the "backyard" reference to the Great Smokies and Yosemite. For the first time we went to Yosemite, and while it was interesting, it wasn't as awe-inspiring as all the foreigners say. But then, we live up north in the backyard of Mt. Rainier, the Cascades, and Mt. St. Helens, so grand vistas and rocks and trees don't seem as eye-popping as it would for folks from the Flat Lands. LOL
ReplyDeleteSo go out there and enjoy your big backyard!
We love the Smokies. We are 5 hrs away and its been a couple of years since going. Before money was so tight we used to go often! How blessed you are to have it in your own backyard.
ReplyDeleteAngela
It looks like fun!
ReplyDeleteYorktown, Jamestown and Colonial Williamsburg are on my "list"! Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteLinda B.
I would love to take my children for field trips to those places someday. Forget the children...I would love to go there! :D
ReplyDeleteI, too, love field trips. Your list is awesome. This inspires me to make a list of my own.
ReplyDeleteI would need the word bubble tht says History is fun- I always thought it was BORING!
ReplyDeleteIt'd be hard to narrow a field trip! we homeschoolers take somany!(and everything becomes a field trip!)
We would love to go to the Smokies and hopefully someday we will. I grew up on the East Coast and visited Williamsburg and Jamestown often. What a wonderful place; I hope we'll get to go there too. Thanks for stopping by my blog.
ReplyDeleteYou have an absolutely beautiful blog! No wonder, if the Smokies are your "backyard". :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for your thoughtful comments, but then, it looks like you are naturally a thoughtful and reflective person :)
Wow, those are some awesome field trips and to have the Smokies in your back yard - WOW!
ReplyDelete