Homeschooling- Fun Field Trips for FREE

I love to get our homeschool group together for a great day out, but some activities can be a little costly! As spring approaches and there will be more opportunities for fun outings thought now would be a great time to take another look at this fun post!

One of my concerns when I started homeschooling was that my kids would miss out on field trips, because, lets face it, who didn’t love field trip day??

Turns out though that field trips become even better when you homeschool. Why? you ask. Because you get to plan them, your group is smaller, and you don’t have to ride a school bus! Being involved in a co-op with other homeschool families opens the doors to group rates, other ideas, and connections.

The best part is that you don’t have to spend money every time. In fact we go on a lot of free field trips. This week I was especially excited because we had the most amazing, handsome tour guide ever… my husband! He works for a local grocery chain at their warehouse and pulled some strings to give us a tour. Now this is probably not a field trip everyone can go on, but it brings me to my first point about finding free field trips.

#1- Think about who you know- know someone with a cool job? Ask about it, you’d be surprised at who is willing to give you a tour!

Our second stop on Tuesday was to one of the stores the warehouse supplies. Did you know that grocery stores give tours? Call and ask! Ours was great! They gave the kids (and the mommies) samples of dipping oil and bread, cheese and meat, pizza, cookies, even gelato!! This mommy loved it! I booked ours through fieldtripfactory.com just a quick phone call and we were set.

#2-Make some calls. Grocery stores, restaurants, banks, and even farms are willing to give tours. Have a favorite place to eat or shop? Call and ask, the worst they can say is no!

Did I mention we got to pet a lobster??

Another kind of tour we’ve all enjoyed are factory tours. (Hello chocolate factory!) We did a tour of a local bread company, a bakery, and a chocolate factory. Google factory tours and your zip code, you’ll be surprised at how many are out there. Be careful when booking though, many have age restrictions and group size limits.

#3- Check out real life “How it’s Made” http://factorytoursusa.com/

My fourth and final tip is to think about charities and public services. One of our favorite trips was to a local fire station. The kids got to see the trucks up close and even go to “put out fire” with a hose. We’ve also taken donations the kids have earned to the Salvation Army and another local food bank and been able to see the inner workings and how they give back.

#4- Look to your community & Volunteer!

So in short, I love a field trip, especially when the kids behave. They don’t have to cost an arm and a leg, or anything for that matter, to be super fun and educational!!

And you might even get free cookies!