It’s Nice To Know Where You Are Going
Last week I had the chance to bring students on the extended walk to the city park near our school, something I’ve been regularly doing. This time though, it was their second time going. This particular group had gone during the first week of school, so really the tail end of summer. It had been hot, everything was green, including the lake. Everything about that trip was new: a new combination of students with a new teacher, a new spot to visit. It had been fun, built community and formed a base set of observations to build off of.
I was a bit nervous leading up to this latest trip. Would the students wonder why we were going back? Would they feel like they had already been there and done that and become disengaged? It didn’t take very long in our walk to realize the answer to all of those questions would be no. The walk continued to allow students extended time to socialize and get to know classmates, a simple thing that there is never enough time for during a typical day. It also became obvious soon into the walk that students were excited and confident, they knew right where we were going and had landmarks in mind to look out for. This also allowed me to give them known landmarks to use as stop and wait points, letting kids with energy run ahead if they choose.
Differences and changes were noticed quickly and naturally and became a part of the conversation. Some details that we observed inspired us to pay closer attention now so we could compare it next time we come. Which also led us to do a better job of documenting this visit with pictures and words. Students were already talking about coming back again and what might change.
Many things made this trip great for me. I loved seeing the confidence and energy, hearing the conversations and observations brought me joy. It also made me realize the power of doing something again. I think there are times when I feel a push to always be looking for the next new thing. There are times and places for innovation; certainly, if ‘everything’ stayed the same in education our students would be missing out on valuable experiences. But, this trip served as a good reminder for me that it’s also ok to bring back materials, lessons or experiences that are familiar for students. Sometimes it’s nice knowing where you are going.