New York Hall of Science & Field Trips

In my 3 years as a staff developer at the district office, we were constantly looking for ways to encourage greater use of science institutions at our disposal in New York City. We've got the Museum of Natural History, which is a great resource for those who can get there easily - a single visit just doesn't cut it. It's my favorite since I'm partial to biology & geology anyway, and it's easy for me to get to. We've also got the NY Hall of Science (more below), parks and environmental study centers, zoos and botanical gardens - all within relatively easy reach.

I personally love field trips with my students. I find that most students are quite well behaved, that they are greatly benefited by getting out of the neighborhood and it allows students and teachers to interact in a much more relaxed atmosphere. It often improves relations with students back in the classroom. They always remember the field trips, and if done properly they even engage in formal learning activities without the usual complaints - in fact, they will enjoy the trip more if there's some structured activity like a worksheet or other written assignment where they have to focus on some aspect of the experience.

On Friday I took my class (along with 3 other teachers and 2 other classes) to the NY Hall of Science in Queens. For us in Upper Manhattan, this is a bit too far to travel, at least by public transportation. It was about 1.5 hours in both directions and we didn't leave the school until 9:00. That left us about 2 hours in the Hall, including check-in and lunch. It's a great setting for students. A relatively small space, very open, tons of hands-on activities that are well made - plenty of "wow! that's cool" exhibits to keep the kids enthusiastic. The other great thing about the Hall is that they have lots of "explainers" lurking around to interact with the students. Students kept themselves engaged and were pretty free to roam the exhibits in plain sight of teachers or other adults. This is quite a contrast to the Museum of Natural History, which is a very large, stuffy, don't-touch-anything kind of place where security is constantly scolding someone for not being supervised or touching something or leaning against something, etc. Not really a good place for large groups.

In spite of the distance, I would still take my other classes to the hall if I could. My school, unfortunately, sees field trips as little more than a waste of instructional time annoyance. Requests for field trips are met with skepticism, and I almost always leave the principal's office after my request feeling guilty and apologizing profusely for making the request. In this instance, the principal reluctantly allowed the trip but was emphatic that there would be no more field trips until after the standardized tests. I could go off now on NCLB, but frankly there's always been an anti-field trip bias at the school. It just shouldn't be that way. I know other schools actively encourage field trips and recognize their value. There should be a distinction made between an academic activity and a trip to the theater to see The SpongeBob Squarepants Movie, for example.

As for my regents biology connection, I had hoped to spend some time on the Marvelous Molecules - a gigantic sugar molecule model and other biochemical concepts. But our schedule in the museum was cut short by the long travel time.