Field Trips

Submitted By: Jessica Jones

EDEL 453: Teaching Elementary School Social Science Nevada State College Spring 2014 Instructor: Karen Powell

Field Trips

submitted by: Jessica Jones

Primary (Grades K 2) Field Trips

Social Studies Strand Destination Field Trip Description & Notes

Tra diti ona l Fiel d Trip

Geography

Springs Preserve, Las Vegas

This field trip is to the Springs Preserve is a two hour lesson on water sustainability for grades K-2. It meets Nevada State Standard 8.2.3 which is identifying how people shape the physical environment. This field trip teaches sustainability by letting children explore the different elements of the water cycle and how precious water is in a dessert.

Visit atio n Fiel d Trip

Culture

Park Ranger from Valley of Fire State Park

The presenter will share with the classroom the history of petroglyphs in the Valley of Fire. There will be photographs to be passed around as well as what a petroglyphs are. The park ranger will also discuss the ancient pueblo people the Ansazi.

Virt ual Fiel d Trip s

Mount Vernons Estate is an important part of American History as it as the home of the first Mount Vernon Estate Virtual Field President of the United States George Washington. It Trip is located not far from the US capital. This website History/Politic allows students to take a virtual tour of the estate as s http://www.mountvernon.org/v well as get a feel of what life was like during the 18th irtualtour century and the timeline of George Washingtons life. There is also an interactive site for these grade levels that has games.

Nevada State College

EDEL 453 - Spring 2014

Karen Powell- Instructor

page 2

Field Trips

submitted by: Jessica Jones

Geology of Death Valley Geography

http://www.nature.nps.gov/geo logy/usgsnps/deva/ftmap.html

This virtual field trip takes you through the geology of Death Valley.

Nevada State College

EDEL 453 - Spring 2014

Karen Powell- Instructor

page 3

Field Trips

submitted by: Jessica Jones

Intermediate (Grades 3 5) Field Trips

Social Studies Strand Destination Field Trip Description & Notes

Social Studies Geography 6.3.6 Locate and their community.

Tra diti on al Fie ld Tri p

Geography /Culture

Springs Preserves, Las Vegas

This field trip teaches students about Paiutes in Southern Nevada. It addresses several state standards which include: 6.3.6 Locate and name states that border Nevada. 6.3.3 Identify ways people express culture. 6.3.4 Discuss how people view their own communities. 8.3.5 Describe ways humans depend on and manage natural resources within their community. Students are placed in teams to discuss what they know and what they would like to know about Paiutes. They use a K-W-L chart to do this.

Vis itat ion Fie ld Tri p

Culture/Hist ory

Member of the Friends of Southern Nevada Railroad

The railroad was built to bring supplies to Boulder City during the construction of the Hoover Dam (then known as Boulder Dam). The presenter will speak about the importance of the railroad in construction of the Hoover Dam, how it affected the Great Depression in Southern Nevada, as well as how the railroad linked Boulder City to Las Vegas.

Nevada State College

EDEL 453 - Spring 2014

Karen Powell- Instructor

page 4

Field Trips

submitted by: Jessica Jones

Natural Wonders of the World Geography

http://www.tramline.com/tours/ sci/natwon/_tourlaunch1.htm

Vir tu al Fie ld Tri ps

History/Politi cs

This field trip is for grades 4-8. It teaches about the seven natural wonders of the world. Students will go on an exploration and learn what the natural wonders are and how they were formed. This lesson combines both geography and geology to do so. It incorporates videos, games.

Lincoln Memorial Interactive

http://www.nps.gov/featurecont ent/ncr/linc/interactive/deploy/i ndex.htm#/introduction

The Lincoln Memorial is a monument honoring the 16th President of the United States of America. Abraham Lincoln saved the Union and kept our democracy intact. This website allows students to explore the monument as well as visit interactive reflections on important parts of his Presidency.

Nevada State College

EDEL 453 - Spring 2014

Karen Powell- Instructor

page 5

Field Trips 1. Explain which field trip you are most excited about.

submitted by: Jessica Jones

I am most excited about the water sustainability field trip for K-2 students at the Springs Preserve. The reason for this is because it is an activity based field trip and the museum has a lot of information about water Southern Nevada. I am also excited because it shows the students how much water we receive in the year and why its important to preserve it with our climate.

2. What challenges did you run into during this assignment?

I was challenged with finding visitation field trips. I read a few teachers blogs to see what they had done in their classrooms. I saw having a park ranger come in to discuss the Valley of Fire with students, but it felt like every field trip I found that was remotely interesting or seemed to be fun and engaging was geared toward geography. I didnt want all field trips I listed to be about geography. I also found that some museums in the state, like the Discovery Childrens Museum, did not list much detail to the type of field trips they offered. The Natural History Museum and the Springs Preserve both had field trips and tours listed by grades and also included a detailed list of what it included and also state standards for each subject it covered. Virtual field trips were also difficult to find for me. I had no issue finding field trips for middle and high school grade students, but for elementary school students it was more of a search. I referred to teacher blogs and pinterest forums to find some.

Nevada State College

EDEL 453 - Spring 2014

Karen Powell- Instructor

page 6