Winter months are a tricky time of year, especially when it comes to winter field trip ideas unless you live in an area where you can be outside year-round. Hitting January brings frigid temperatures, long days stuck inside, and cabin fever. Not to mention the dull drums of coming off of the holiday season.
It could be argued that these are the best days to take a homeschool field trip. Read on and find out ways you can get out of the house and continue learning all while having a little fun.
Winter Field Trip Ideas
Outdoor Activities
With the cold temperatures, you might be inclined to think that being outdoors is the last thing you would want to do. But, when it comes to burning off some energy, this might just be where you find yourself!
Of course, in some areas of the country, winter is the perfect time to go ice skating (or find an indoor rink!), skiing, snowboarding, or practice your hand at snow or sculpting. Many state parks (and national parks) will still have trails that are open for hiking on an unusually warm day or for the winter activities mentioned above. Some parks even have classes open to homeschool families that teach about visible winter animals, winter survival, or identifying plants/trees in winter. Our local state nature center even has virtual classes that focus on creatures that you might not want to be up close and personal with. They even teach a class on discovering how to make maple syrup and why recycling old Christmas trees is important. For homeschool programs, our nature center even provides some printables to make the experience learning-friendly.
It might sound funny, but if caverns in your area are open, it could even be warmer in the cave than it is outside!
The botanical gardens are even open in our area during the winter with special educational programs for homeschool groups.
If you live in a warmer area of the country, all of the outdoors is open year-round to you. Your winter field trip ideas may not vary much from other times of the year.
Local Businesses and Civil Services
Local businesses love for you to visit their establishment, and most civil service locations have learning opportunities, as well. Local businesses like pizzerias, bakeries, ice cream shops, pottery shops, and tv stations can be great for winter field trip ideas. If they know ahead of time, businesses are often happy to play tour guide and show you around their place of business to show you how things are done, and often, they’ll have a way for kids to be interactive in the tour. They even give kids the opportunity to learn about being an entrepreneur. Local businesses often love that you are supporting local businesses and the community by coming to them.
Local civil services can be seen in much the same way and provide many learning experiences. You can take a trip to the post office, police station, animal shelter, water supply stations, and fire station. (If you’re lucky enough to live near your state capital, you can even attend special events that our legislature is talking over.) These kinds of places often have school programs in place that give children the opportunity to see how civil services run and they love having groups in!
Other Indoor Options for Homeschool Field Trips
Theaters, libraries, and museums! There are a plethora of indoor options that you can find in the winter months. All of these options generally have group tour options or even guided tour options. Many of them will also have group discounted rates, as well.
Libraries are a great place to spend a cold winter day. You’ve probably been to your local library a thousand times but taking a day to spend a few hours curled up in a comfy chair reading in the corner of the library can be the respite needed from the normal daily grind. For younger kids, libraries offer many storytime options, as well.
Visit your local planetarium. If you live close to a big city or a city with a larger college, chances are you have a planetarium close. Sometimes they reside within a science museum making your options double for exciting tours and activities to participate in.
Children’s museums, history museums, art museums are just a few of the types of museums to keep your eyes on. They often hold homeschool-friendly programs and welcome homeschoolers with group discounts. Tours are generally abundant in museums, as are interactive activities for learning.
Take a trip through a historic home or a historic site. Although this one might be a bit more regional, it is one that is a fun field trip if you have the option to close. Although the home tour might be inside, keep in mind that you’ll probably need to dress warmly to enjoy any outdoor tours that they offer.
A dairy farm could be a place where you could stay warm while learning about the inner workings of the farm. The milk barn is a warm place to learn. Not only a dairy farm, but many farmers would be happy to talk with you about what goes into farming in the winter months.
Hatcheries are another option for learning. Hatcheries might be an indoor/outdoor option so be sure to dress warm! Whether it’s a fish hatchery or a chicken hatchery, there are winter options for learning.
What about an art gallery? Many cities have local artisans display their art at local galleries. This can be a great way to learn about a particular medium or type of art. And, gallery owners and artisans are often ready to talk with groups about the art that’s being displayed.
Many of the winter field trip ideas mentioned here make winter homeschool days more bearable and make homeschool moms more tolerant. Getting out of the house during the winter months for a field trip isn’t as hard as you might think. Look around at the options in your area. I’m sure the options are endless. Is there a particular winter field trip idea that you love to do with your family?