A Field Trip to a Strange New Place: Second Grade Visits the Parking Garage

I was taken back at the beginning of the article in which it says "By age 4, the average child in an upper-middle-class family has heard 35 million more words than a poor child."  This quote sent chills through my spine.  Some never really think about exactly how big the educational gap between middle-class students and the poor students is.  That should give proof right there.  

When I think of a field trip, I think of the science museum, however if you teach at a school such as the one described in the article where almost all of the 436 students attending that school qualify for free lunches, field trips such as the parking garage seem appropriate.  This is a place where they are familiar and can relate to.  This unique place to learn also broadens my horizon when I think of places in which my class can make predictions, observe, and ask questions.  This excites me that simple things like this can be such a huge influence on the daily lives of students everywhere.  Becoming familiar with their environment is crucial and gives the students a base in which to apply skills such as reading the signs, and calculating mental math problems when figuring out how much money will be needed after 40 minutes at the parking meter that costs 50 cents for 10 minutes. 

I really enjoyed this article because it started to sprout my own ideas for field trips in my classroom one day.