Grand Canyon Revisited

You may recall a previous post about a scouting trip for a future potential field trip to the Grand Canyon. Our team of 4th grade teachers and an incredibly supportive principal were able to make it happen!

First, a recap by the numbers:

149 - 4th grade students and parents in attendance
6 - teachers/staff
3 - days spent at the Grand Canyon National Park (South Rim)
2 - charter buses
4 - A.M. wake-up call to watch the sunrise on our final day

The field trip was a great success, but there are always lessons to learn and ways to improve. There are many things we will try to repeat for next year's trip, and there are a few things we'd change and recommend to others considering this field trip.

Successes:

• NPS Travelin' Trunk Program: We reserved a box of materials about Human History of the Grand Canyon before our trip. This piqued students' excitement, and gave them prior knowledge to access once we arrived.
• Keeping a full schedule (and opting not to include a quiet/nap time) - Any unstructured or idle time almost always guarantees mischief!
• Visiting other areas of interest on our way, including Sunset Crater (as mentioned in a previous blog post) and...

 Montezuma Castle.

• Watching sunrise on our final day - This was a controversial decision, mostly because the sun rises so early in May. We decided to make it optional, and were overwhelmed when nearly our entire group helped each other wake up, walk silently, and snuggle together to watch a glorious sunrise! 

• Reserving Ranger programs - The specific educational Ranger programs for school groups are FREE and align with state content standards. The Rangers are excellent teachers, too!
• We used colored handkerchiefs to identify each chaperone group. This was helpful for quick head-counts for both teachers and chaperones. Students could tie them anywhere that was visible, which also gave them a chance to express themselves in a fun way.
• Preparing student journals for the trip - We created activities/questions that had to be answered about our route and stops along the way. We also included the packet that was provided to accompany the Ranger programs.
• Scavenger Hunt - There is so much to see at the Grand Canyon, and it is nearly impossible to see it all in one short trip. We included all the various historical and educational sites along the South Rim (with questions and info from the NPS website) in student journals. Groups could then decide which locations were most interesting (and feasible). Some groups even got to every stop! Afterwards, students from different groups could discuss what they saw and learned with others.
• Chaperone committees - We couldn't have made the trip happen without lots of parent support. We had parents serve on committees for equipment, food, and safety to assist before, during, and after the trip.

Changes/recommendations:

• Talk with campers about quiet hours before arriving - It's important to keep our camp neighbors and Rangers happy when we are such a large and noticeable group.
• Call ahead to discuss any plans to use the free shuttle buses. The park personnel were incredibly accommodating as soon as they saw 150+ visitors crossing the street to catch a bus for sunset. They ran at least one extra bus every day we were there just for us! I'm sure they'd appreciate a little more advance notice next time.

The successes clearly outweigh the changes, and we received lots of positive feedback from students and parents alike. We saw our entire 4th grade community come a little closer together for this trip, and a lot of fun was had by all. As for the teachers/staff, we feel a lot more confident about planning next year's excursion!