Building up excitement for your trip prior to departure helps students engage with the trip and the lessons you teach leading up to it. When teachers get excited about travel opportunities, students are bound to follow. However, this doesn’t happen by itself — there are things that teachers can do to add to the hype.
Announce the trip in an exciting way. The trip experience begins the moment students find out about it. Get off to a good start with an exciting destination reveal. You can do this by creating a presentation or game where the destination is revealed at the end.
Make the trip visible. Keep the trip top of mind with posters and notices around your classroom or the building. For added engagement, you can have students create their own posters.
Create an online presence. Create a website or private Facebook Group for your trip where you can start sharing resources, pictures, and trip previews to get students — and their parents — excited. You can also send newsletter-style announcements via email to students and their parents with information about the trip.
Teach related lessons. Helping students understand the purpose of the trip will keep them engaged and get them excited. Weave in focused lessons each week that are designed to prepare students for the trip. These lessons will be enhanced by the sites they see on the trip.
Be positive! The energy you display about the trip will be reciprocated tenfold by your students. Be sure to keep a positive attitude about the trip and show your students how excited you are about it. You will be surprised at how well they pick up on your positivity and approach the trip with the same attitude.
Doing these things will build excitement for your trip and have your students looking forward to it. Although it requires some additional effort, it will pay off when your trip is a success.
