Field Trip Day #SOL17 Day 2

I am participating in the Slice of Life Story Challenge (SOLSC; #SOL17) 

hosted by Two Writing Teachers. 

Each day for the month of March I will be posting a "Slice of Life". 

Please feel free to stop back and check out my other posts here.

As a teacher, I have never been a big fan of field trips. Don't get me wrong, I love the experiences and opportunities they provide for our students. But I've never been a fan of the stress that comes with planning and executing a trip. And after a bad experience of parents not paying attention and multiple students getting bee stings on a trip to the zoo, I have just NOT been a fan!

But today was different. Today, I got to attend a field trip as a parent. So I had way less stress and got to really enjoy the day.

I loaded five 5th grade boys into my van and drove a few towns over to the Mondavi Center at UC Davis. 

We enjoyed a leisurely walk through a lovely wooded area, and the kids marveled at squirrels, ducks, birds, trees, cacti, etc. 

Then we headed into the theatre and enjoyed an incredible education performance by the Dance Theatre of Harlem. It was clear that some of the students were not prepared for this type of performance, but for the most part everyone in the audience was quite respectful and engaged by the information and dancing they got to experience. Personally, I loved it, and, happily, my son did as well. 

After a quick restroom stop, we went back out to the arboretum for lunch on the lawn. The kids took a few minutes to sketch some of their observations and it was time to head back to the cars and back to school.

It was leisurely. It was peaceful. It was enjoyable. It was low-key. It was great. 

Being a teacher, I have struggled for years with being able to attend my own children's field trips. After today, I'm glad I made it happen.