A little bit about the Homeschool Field Trips...

Many times I say to those in the community, Hi I'm Christina Bell with Macaroni Kid (I wear lots of other hats too) and I know I get that blank stare because many of you do not know what Macaroni Kid is. In short, it's a National organization that has independent publishers nationwide like me, whose job is to share about all of the events that are going on in our local area as well as share nationwide deals that Corporate Macaroni Kid negotiates for all of our readers. 

A great example is the Great Wolf Lodge promotion running right now or reminding you that 4th graders get a National Parks Pass and many others.

(Save Up to 40% With These Epic Great Wolf Lodge Deals | Macaroni KID Franklin-Hart)

(Wilderness Awaits: 4th Graders Enjoy Free National Park Access | Macaroni KID Franklin-Hart) 

I have a 20, 16 and 7 year old...this past school year, my 7 year old told me, "next year I want to homeschool". So being that my kids have the ability to attend public school or homeschool, and my oldest kids both homeschool(ed) I am able to give him this option. I knew this would push me back into the elementary school field trip life and from what I have seen, being that my 16 year old has homeschooled here for a few years, I knew there was much more I'd like to see of our local area. I decided to merge the background of Local and Family Friendly with Macaroni Kid and the hat I wear as an event organizer, into planning field trips for Homeschoolers! 

So with that being said, the first four field trips are up on the calendar, you can find them under the events tab on the FranklinHart Macaroni website (Events | Macaroni KID Franklin-Hart), they are noted with the 🎒backpack symbol. RSVP's for two are already closed out so I will plan those again for more to participate in. 

Being that I have two vastly different ages of homeschooling kids, 16 and 7 and I graduated one that is at North Georgia Tech and in the working world, I decided to help by offering career field trips for older kids and education and knowledge-based field trips for the younger kids/families. 

I was homeschooled when I was a teenager and experienced many different field trips growing up. I also helped create a co-op years ago when I was in Greenville called INCLUDE (ABOUT US – INCLUDE HOMESCHOOL CO-OP (wordpress.com). I've also coordinated festivals, speaker panels, etc. I'm the oldest of seven and have been a second generation foster/adoptive parent. So I know what it's like to unleash kids of multiple age levels and needs on a business so I am striving for controlled chaos. 

Please understand that some field trips are for everyone, some field trips are just for the older kids, some field trips have to have numbers tightly controlled due to the building size, time to answer questions, etc. I totally understand that each family is unique and this is why you homeschool, so this is why I do my best to honor your needs as well as the facility that we are touring's needs and look out for everyone's safety and welfare.

It's really important for our teens to get that not everyone goes to a four-year college and there are plenty of careers and professions right here in our local area for work. I want them to learn that they can obtain some hands on skills from jobs that are local. They need to explore and learn what is out there and what it takes to obtain those jobs. So you will see field trips for them only. Parents can attend with them as well but we ask that younger siblings come when they are older. You may always drop your child off to me at the door and pick them up from me afterwards. 

Our younger kids will get to see how things work, get to touch and learn about different places and things in our community. I am doing my best to keep it local, so when they drive past a place later on, they remember what's inside it and what it's about. The best way to learn is through exploration and then reinforcement. 

All of the field trips will be posted as an event on the Franklin Hart Macaroni Kid Facebook Page. (Facebook) You must read through the event details to see what it's about and then comment on the event with the ages of your kids that are attending. Please do not use their names, just their age will be fine. 

It will be spelled out in detail about littles attending, if strollers will work, whether you can pack a picnic while there, if parking is icky, etc because lawd knows I hate showing up with out some pertinent information as well. You must comment in that event discussion area and I will comment below once I've taken your info and transferred it to my spreadsheet. This will ensure I have a way to reach all attending for any updates.

If there is a very popular event, then I can plan it a second time in case you've missed it (like the CFA one) As many times as possible, I will strive to plan something for the younger and the older ones to do while they are all there together. (I too know what that bored teen face looks like or little antsy kids look like while their bigger sibling is learning something really cool to them) 

I've thought about creating a group for this, etc but honestly I want these field trips open to all homeschoolers in the area. There are some that are in co-ops, some that are just independent and giving it a shot this year, some that have kids in public or private school with a sibling homeschooling and I really am focusing on being Inclusive vs being Exclusive because friends can be made anywhere for our kids. Sometimes co-ops are hard to find, they might not interest you, etc and I'd rather you not be an unsupported homeschooling parent out there struggling to find your tribe. We can find our tribe together. If you are a co-op that has a hard time planning field trips, get with me and you can join in. 

Thanks for reading my long winded message but hopefully now you get me. 

Christina Bell 

Jackie-of-all-trades

The places I've reached out to so far are below, if you have others please email me at mackidfranklinga@macaronikid.com