The Perfect Fall Tour For Your Students

By Beth Hedrick

The season of fall is well upon us, and the weather is ideal for an educational and exciting trip to Pennsylvania Dutch Country and Gettysburg. Your students will basically get three field trips in one and will explore many different subject areas by actually doing and seeing with their own inquisitive eyes. Important core subject areas sprinkled with student inquiry, critical thinking, experience-based and hands-on learning (in addition to generating dialogue) is precisely what this traveling experience will give to the students…and you!

The Amish have always been very intriguing to me. Many of my students have never seen the Amish or their lifestyle. They may have learned about their lifestyle and their beliefs in a textbook, but that is certainly no match to experiencing this culture first hand. Visiting the Pennsylvania Dutch country and the Amish will teach the children about a new culture, and how it is important to respect every culture in our great country. They will see first-hand their way of life, and learn important lessons about how the amenities of our modern day affect our own lifestyle. Learning that “not everyone is the same” in terms of beliefs and lifestyle will allow them to compare their way of life to that of another type of living.

Have you ever been to Hershey Park? I am certain that you can smell the chocolate as soon as you see the Hershey Kiss lights upon entering this extravaganza. It is such a unique amusement park, because it is not only filled with thrilling rides, but offers lessons in math and science at the chocolate factory. The students enjoy learning about the real-world experience of making chocolate – the same popular chocolate they see each time they visit their local grocery store. Touring the factory will give the student’s much insight as to how the chocolate is made from the very start of the process to the end. I have to say, I love thrilling rides, but touring the chocolate factory was the highlight of the trip for me.

When the students visit Gettysburg, they will learn about the Civil War of our country and the most intense battle of this war between the Union and Confederate soldiers. This future-changing battle resulted in 50,000 casualties and was a turning point in the Union’s favor. Learning about our history as a county in the mid-1800’s will shed light on what our country went through to become one again. The Battle Ground tour is about two hours, but your students will be so enthralled that they certainly will not notice. It is a great tour and is very in-depth about the different points of interest in this most important battle.

The Gettysburg National Military Park Museum is an amazing experience for kids as they learn about the “New Birth of Freedom” in the feature film and have an educational tour of our past. Personally, I really, really dig the Cyclorama! If you have never been to a Cyclorama, you will probably enjoy it more than the students! It is like you are standing right there watching the battle but in panorama-picture form. That is my absolute favorite, and every time I go, I notice something new.

There is a relatively new educational approach known as STEAM, which incorporates Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics. This field trip to the Pennsylvania Dutch country and Gettysburg certainly meets all of those areas of learning mixed in with a lot of fun!

Beth Hedrick has been educating students for 22 years. She teaches in a rural southwest Virginia community that values the education of every student. She is the mother of two boys, Aaron and Landon, and is married to Todd.

She is an advocate for Autism Awareness, as her son Landon has Asperger’s Syndrome. She has served on her community and school system’s autism support team. Beth enjoys spending time with family, friends, and her Basset Hound, Lenny. She also likes to read, write, blog, and travel in the summer months.