Learning On The Road

As I write this, I sit in the shadow of the Mamba, a thrilling roller coaster that towers above the rest of the Worlds of Fun Amusement and RV Park in Kansas City, Missouri. If I open the door of my in-laws' coach, I can hear the squeals of the Mamba's passengers as they crest the first hill and plunge into the unknown. For my homeschooling family, our day at the same amusement park provided an excellent lesson in elementary physics; elementary, because my daughter is six and because I know very little about physics beyond e=mc^2 or is it y=mx+b?  Despite my dearth of knowledge in all things Einstein, my daughter and I engaged in meaningful conversations about the science behind rides as simple as the swings and as complex as the Patriot roller coaster. A day of fun served as a reminder of how easy it is to incorporate learning into almost any event.

Since making the decision to home school, I have become increasingly aware of how learning can be seamlessly interwoven into everyday living.  This is true for parents who don't home school, too, but for me this seems to be a revelation that struck the day I made the homeschooling decision. While it might be obvious how to turn a trip to the grocery store into an opportunity to discuss math concepts like measurements and money, I had never thought about how something like a trip to a wedding in Kansas City could also serve as an on-the-road classroom experience. 

As a new homeschooling mom, I find that I am suddenly motivated to discover a learning opportunity around every bend, so when I learned that we would be traveling to Kansas City, a town we'd never visited, I decided to take advantage of the novelty and uncover the city's educational gems. The over-12 hour drive provided ample time to research landmarks and other unique aspects of the city and time for my children and me to plan activities. For example, Kansas City is the headquarters for Hallmark greeting cards, and Hallmark's next-door-neighbor? Sea Life, Kansas City's top-notch aquarium. A trip to Crown Plaza, the home of both, afforded the chance to explore the aquarium and discuss the greeting card industry, which showcases a unique style of writing. When my children and I found out we'd be visiting the aquarium, we checked out books on sharks and dolphins for some preliminary research. Discussions about sea life even led to an interest in the Titanic, which my daughter has pursued knowledge of relentlessly for the past two weeks. A simple wedding invitation has led to a plethora of immediate and future learning endeavors.

The education didn't end at Crown Plaza. The wedding itself allowed A and I to discuss traditions and customs unique to our country and has given us an opportunity to extend our social studies lesson to discovering more about the wedding customs of other countries. The scripture read at the wedding opened the door to bible study in understanding why that particular set of verses may have been chosen for a wedding. The more I explore opportunities to turn the everyday into a classroom the more amazed I am by how many seemingly simple occasions become lessons, even unit studies. A trip to a new town for a wedding easily became a traveling classroom.

It is simple for any novice homeschooling mom to plan a similar approach to impromptu travels.

1. Use the Internet to study the place where you'll be traveling. Many landmarks are obvious and famous, but as you dig deeper, you will most likely discover nuggets of information that will fascinate your children, even if they might not headline the city travel guide.

2. Ask locals where some of the city's hidden gems lie. The wedding we attended had a very unique Kansas City flair. Our hosts prepared goodie bags with itinerary that outlined some of the city's unique qualities. Their wedding place cards also contained photographs of the city's landmarks, which gave us ideas for where to explore.

3. If you study the city before you leave, instead of while on the road, check out books about the city or some educational supplements to some of that town or region's landmarks, as in my earlier example of checking out books on sharks to prepare for the aquarium's shark exhibit.

4.  Understand most places are ripe with learning discoveries to unearth.  We were only in Kansas City for three days, part of which was dedicated to time with family, so we limited our tour to places that would specifically capture our children's interests and imaginations.  They also served as springboards for topics that my children would like to study further once we arrive back home. 

While this trip didn't turn me into a physicist, it did teach me a little more about the one benefit everyone should learn from homeschooling.  Every day provides unlimited chances to transform even the most seemingly mundane trip to the grocery store and turn it into an on-the-road classroom experience.  The world is indeed a laboratory of learning when you seize the opportunity.