Field trips at PS1 are an integral part of the learning experience. Our teachers use the rich opportunities afforded us by being an urban school, as well as our access to ocean and mountains and the diverse ecology that exists so close at hand.
Our field trips are actually Learning Expeditions.
The purpose of these trips is to provide students with real-world connections to the curriculum content. From La Plaza de Cultural y Artes to the California Oil Museum to the all-school camping trip, our students are out in the world acquiring and processing information. New research on the power of learning expeditions indicates that enrichment field trips increase critical thinking, motivation to learn, and address multiple learning modes (Neville, 2011). Teachers and students return from these trips rich with anecdotes about connections that the students have made and the thinking that was generated and teachers build on these insights back in the classroom. PS1 Learning Expeditions enrich the curriculum and student learning.