Field Trips

Field trips in the formative years are one of the most important things teachers can provide for their students. As we all know, children learn by doing. They remember what they have personally experienced. In addition, concept development is optimized through active, explorative experiences. Field trips are a type of experiential learning that gets children away from the traditional classroom setting and into a new mode of learning. They can be as simple as taking a class of children out on the school grounds for a lesson in observation, or as detailed as an out-of-state visit to a particular field site. Field trips not only expand children's learning and experiences by providing them with hands-on experiences, they also increase children's knowledge and understanding of the world in which they live. Field trips provide students with a window to the real world that they don't get in the classroom, and they can help students understand real-world applications of seemingly abstract topics in math and science, among others.

Bear Creek Community Charter School students are provided with multiple field trip opportunities that enrich the School's curriculum and are a privilege initially offered to all students. A student's school behavior prior to the trip must be cooperative and positive in order to be eligible for the field trip. A student may have field trip privileges withdrawn based upon behavioral and disciplinary issues that occur in school. Please refer to the student discipline section of the Bear Creek Community Charter School Student/Parent Handbook for detailed information.

All students participating in most school field trips require written permission from either parents, or their legal guardian. Since students represent Bear Creek Community Charter School, they should dress appropriately and should behave in a respectable, polite manner towards teachers and chaperons in charge, both on the bus and at the specific destination. All school policies are in effect on field trips. Students who choose not to attend a scheduled field trip will be expected to report to school.

Many field trips include parental participation. Please contact your child's classroom teacher or the Assistant Principal for more information. All volunteers participating in school field trips must have the appropriate state clearances (criminal and child abuse) on file in the School's Main Office. Parent volunteers without the appropriate clearances on file will not be permitted to participate in the field trip – no exceptions will be made. To ensure student safety, parents or other relatives are not permitted to meet the students at the field trip location.