In our homeschool, we do not spend a lot of time at home. As we live, our lives become homeschool field trips. Regular errands and tasks teach about our community. We also learn how all the parts of our community fit together. Field trips are a great way to learn from others, and also bond with friends. Need some ideas getting started? Check out this list of 100 homeschool field trip ideas.
Everyday Life Field Trips
These don’t even require much planning. It’s just a part of your life. If you want, you can add learning moments to the days, but it’s not always necessary. Just doing everyday errands sometimes brings you into contact with these cool places.
- Grocery store
- Dry cleaners
- Bank tellers
- Doctor appointments
- Dentist appointments
- Orthodontist appointments
- Eye doctor checkups
- Post office
- Pharmacy
- Buildings. Learn about the history or architecture of the local buildings you frequent.
Visiting the Community Field Trips
Sometimes you can learn lots of things by just visiting place in your local community. Take an expert along with you or ask someone for a tour and you’ll have a field trip as well!
- Architectural walking tour. I did this in my middle school. A teacher took use around the downtown area of our town and we learned about the various building types.
- Bird watching. I don’t know much about birds, but getting out in nature and learning would be great.
- Tree tour at a local arboretum or forested area. Just learning about trees would be interesting for a forested hike.
- Farm visit. My kids love seeing farm animals.
- Historic town center. Learn about the local history of your town. For example, my town was founded 100 years ago to be a “country” retreat from Chicago. The oldest houses are river side, obviously designed to be closest to the action. We’re an hour and a half or so from Chicago, so I can see how it was a retreat that long ago! Now, it seems the towns never stop from here to the city!
- Historic farm tour. There is a local farm that produces products the way people did 200 years ago!)
- Community sewage treatment plant. Seriously a fascinating field trip!
- Community well or water tower and/or water treatment plant. How is your water made clean for drinking?
- Recycling Center.
- Garbage Sorting Center.
- Train station or museum.
- Retirement home.
Community Helpers and Job Shadowing
Ask for tours from your community to learn how these jobs work and what the community helpers do for your community.
- Fire station. Little kids especially love seeing the firemen.
- Police station. My son loved standing in a jail cell to see what it was like.
- City hall. What duties does the mayor or village president have?
- How the library works. It is interesting for my kids to see how the book return works, how books classification works, and how to find books (i.e., Dewey decimal or Library of Congress, if you have a college campus near you.)
- Veterinarian’s office.
- Animal rescue center. How can your kids help?
- Food pantry. How can your kids help?
- Craft store community training hour. Learn everything from sewing to cooking at a local craft store.
- Home improvement store building hour or training. Home Depot has frequent building hours. Ask about a homeschool one!
- Carpentry.
- Dry wall.
- Doughnut shop.
- Bakery.
- Food service preparation.
- TV Station.
- Radio Station.
- Newspaper office.
- Hospital.
- Book publisher.
- Factory tour.
- Courthouse.
- Greenhouse.
- Regional airport. Our small local airport gave a tour and demonstration.
STEM (Science Technology Engineering Math)
Talking with people in the community can teach you about the various career options in STEM. Can you learn about robotics at a local factory? Can you learn about geology by visiting a local natural park area? What is unique about where you live?
- Geocaching.
- Learn to use a compass in a backyard/park treasure hunt
- 3D printing (at the library or other local center)
- Local ponds, bogs, or marshes.
- Observe animals in local rivers
- Travel to a local island or peninsula.
- Visit caves or caverns and learn about the animals therein.
- Hike a mountain or hill.
- Take a nature walk in your neighborhood.
- Visit a wildlife sanctuary.
Seasonal Field Trips
There is plenty to learn from field trips. But sometimes, understanding the changing seasons and having fun can be great too! Check out these fun ideas that can double as educational opportunities. (Some may be a stretch to be educational, but in general, field trips can be a lot of fun!)
- Sledding
- Ice skating
- Ice carving festival
- Chocolate Candy Making
- St. Patrick’s Day festivities
- Natural Egg Dying
- Berry picking
- Water park
- Fly a kite
- Carnival or seasonal parade.
- Mini golfing.
- Bowling. My son loved his tour of the behind the scenes of the bowling alley.
- Seasonal sporting event
- Farmer’s market
- Camping
- Campfire building
- Shelter building/survival
- Biking
- Apple Picking
- Pumpkin Farm
- Corn Maze
- Arboretum (to see fall colors!)
- Tap for maple syrup
- Natural/organic Turkey farm
- Christmas tree farm
- Local craft fair
Cultural Education Field Trips
Most communities have some sort of local art society, or a community theater. Check the high schools! Even my small town has a barnyard zoo. Not every community will have all of these but you can create your own “zoo” by gathering pets together, or have a star gazing-night and call it the planetarium!
- Art Museum
- Community theater
- Local concert
- Local religious centers (Bahai temple, synagogue, Hindi temple, Mosque, etc.) if they have educational tours or visiting days. It’s important to remember that these are primarily places of worship, so not all of these would be appropriate to visit.
- Local zoo
- Local aquarium
- Local planetarium
- Science museum
- Children’s discovery museum
- Local nature centers or nature preserves
Virtual Field Trips
There are ways to see the world from home too! Here are some intriguing online options for learning about key places.
- Colonial Williamsburg
- National Gallery of Art
- The Sistine Chapel
- Google Earth Tours
- National Museum of American History
- Statue of Liberty
- Grand Canyon Geology
- Panama Canal
- Panoramas of the World
- Google Lit Trips