English day trips

[jeffreyrodrigue]

Day trips are awesome I think, but it really depends on the age of your students and their interests. I would consider going to an aquarium or the zoo before going to the museum, but then again, it would probably be more interesting but less educative. If you go to a museum, if I were you I would check beforehand if the museum offers guided tours and said museum. Because, if you just have your students running around loose and not occupied then it will most likely be hell. If you want to be sure they listen and pay attention to what the museum is showing then tell them they will be evaluated on what they have seen and heard on that trip.

[karineculture]

I like the idea of giving students questions to answer whil they visit the museum but maybe it would be too childlish with adult students. What you can do is prepare an activity related to the museums before your trip. For example, if they will visit a palace, they could do a research on it prior to the visit and present their findings to the group. Another team could search information about another museum. I'm sure they will be happy during the visit to see that the information they searched before were right. If you ask each teams to present something different, they will all benefit from this activity because they will learn something about each attraction you will visit and will have some background knowledge about everything.
I would be interesting to know what you finally decided to do for this trip so please write us back when it will be done! :)

[buniac]

Trips are a great way to get your students involved into a subject that you want to get them to know about. A museum could be a great idea if you are well prepared. Beforehand, I would prepare a guide that shows most of the attractions of the museum. If they are aware of some of the content that is present in the museum, they will have a good feel of what is coming up. Planning an activity around the museum could also be an option. You should create a document that includes pictures of pieces of art, then make them fill a section on what they have learned about each attraction and add a section on surprising facts and personal impressions. Students require motivation in museums because of the prejudices about them. It is all about the way you introduce it to your students.

[nicolasbrunette]

I believe that these types of little trips are really interesting. It is highly motivating for the students and it puts them in a natural learning environment. However, I think you shouldn't use these rare opportunities to take them to a museum. Museum are similar to school: alot of content, a controlled environment (usually) and a general request for silence. I believe you should use this occasion to take them, if possible, somewhere they speak another language or where another culture would be presented. The best example would be the local Chinatown. It gives the opportunity to the students to naturally learn from another culture and they can explore it at their own rhythm. This just a simple suggestion, but I remember that I really appreciated these types trips when I was a student.

[NatGagnonULAVAL]

I believe that when we are dealing with adults, it is important to take different aspects into consideration comparatively to when dealing with kids. Adults have a much more open sense of discovery and passion for knowledge, while kids are simply seeking to be amused and entertained. English trips, such as one at the museum, are in fact a good idea with students, however it is important to associate a task to the visit and set the goals prior to the outing. This way, students will know what information they should pay more attention to and spend less time seeing it as leisure.

[rebra]

I also think that day trips are a good way of having students open to the world. I also believe that day trips should be based upon small project. Depending on where the teacher decides to bring her/his students the project might differ.
I have attended a conference where a teacher asked her students to create her own museum in the classroom. Students, in teams of two or three, prepared a kiosk where other students could visit by walking around the classroom. The students at the kiosk had to give information about their “exposé”.
If the teachers decides to make a day trip, she could assign a topic to each team, and the teams wool have to find information during the day in order to make their presentation.
This is just a suggestion of things to do on a day trip.

[jetar]

I have not organised any English school trip yet for ESL students since I am still a student teacher. However, I participated in several English trips in high school and I enjoyed them all. To answer your question, I think that bringing your students to the museum could be a good idea, but do not visit too many museums. Choose them wisely according to your students' interests. Moreover, I remember from my personal experience that having a dynamic guide was very beneficial for the students and the teachers. The guide provides information and interacts with the students in English all the time. Since it is an English trip, it enables to maximize English input and English use among the students.

[ania]

I think that each attempt to make students speak in their second language can be a wonderful and fruitful opportunity to improve their communication skills. It should be important however, to reflect on to what places you intend to take your students. The idea of museum is good, as long this sort of activity is appealing and interesting to students. You just need to keep in mind if the topic of the exhibition is not very interesting, students certainly will not listen, ask questions and/or participate in this kind of expedition. You must remember that you want to carry on this activity in the learners’ second language, therefore it is essential to motivate students to communicate, if they will be bored, they will, for sure, switch to their first language. Good Luck!

[JEEPY]

Giana, I really like your professionalism and your concern about your students. It tells me you must be a dedicated teacher. The first thing you have to consider is the length of the trip. If your trip is only 1-day long, you might not want to bore them with only museum and you'll probably want to go to more exciting places. There are some interactive museums that could be a good compromise because they are meant for a younger audience. if your trip is longer than a day, then you could probably add a trip to the museum to your agenda, even if might seem boring because you want to educate them and you'll probably want them to interact with people in English and you can motivate them with that.

[mgrima]

No matter the age of the students I think day trips are a great way to get out of the classroom and interact in English. However this does require some preparation not matter the level. First I usually contact the place to see what type if any guided tours they offer. I also inform them that the students are ESL learners and that a simplified version might be required. Most places are very flexible and will adapt to the group. The next step is to prepare students with new vocabulary. This should be done in class before the trip. While on the trip it is a good idea to provide some sort of comprehension activity of task that the students are required to complete. This will not only motivate them but will also insure participation.

Hope this helps