A major responsibility of parents is to give their children a good education. The more your kids learn, the higher the chances of setting them up for a secure future. One way to ensure this is through travel. Most kids learn through observation, and travel provides opportunities for your young ones to access knowledge. It has accounted for many students wanting to take a gap year to study. If you’re interested, the average cost for such travel is £2,258 a month, although it can be cheaper. In the meantime, here is how to make travel a learning experience for kids.
- Encourage learning about the destination before travelling
One way to learn about a new place is to read about it even before stepping foot there. It is also a way to generate interest and stimulate excitement about the destination in question. Pre-reading opens your child’s mind to what to expect in this new place. The images created in their minds’ eyes become a prelude to a world of information. This is beneficial because an active mind greatly benefits a learning child.
It would help to start with popular landmarks with a rich history. For example, the Colosseum is a popular landmark in Rome, Italy. That and several others will be a great topic to pre-read before school trips to Rome. The objective here is to engage your kids intellectually and help them learn all they can while there’s time. When you finally arrive at the destination, ensure that the places they read about are visited in person. It is an excellent way to enrich the travel experience.
- Take the time to learn a few lines of the language at the destination
Learning a language different from yours opens you up to a different culture. It is another way to learn about the subtle sensitivities in people’s native languages. For a child, this is important because it sensitises them on language and the need to be mindful of communication styles. It might seem too much for a young mind, but you will be surprised how much children grasp when the learning environment offers these opportunities. Moreover, children learn through examples and practical experiences.
Therefore, learning to speak a new language would be an exciting travel experience for them. Indeed, you don’t expect them to become language experts in a few days or weeks of travel. However, it would help to teach them to speak a few basic lines to kickstart conversations. In this technological age, learning a language can be easy. It starts with downloading an interactive language app. Something with a child-friendly interactive face can keep your kids interested.
- Encourage your kids to reflect on activities for each travel day
Image CreditThis is more like encouraging a summary session of their daily activities. While you’re with your children at the end of a fun-packed day, you should use the moment to conduct some checks. You can start by asking questions bordering on lessons learnt on that day. It would be best to avoid questions that solicit yes and no answers. Instead, frame your questions to encourage your children to talk a lot more about their experiences and observations they made. This approach helps your children connect the dots while summarising their daily experiences. Any travel embarked on with your kids can be a learning experience which ultimately supports school lessons.