Why Travel is Such a Great Teacher for Kids

Vacations can be whatever you want them to be. They are not, by definition, where you go to lounge on a beach and work on your tan. They can be adventurous and daring, relaxing and rejuvenating, or a mixture of anything and everything. A vacation is an escape from your daily life in any way you deem fit. What a vacation isn’t often seen as, however, is a learning opportunity. Sure, you go on a trip to enjoy new experiences, but with a little tweaking, you can take the natural learning benefits of travel and do so much more for your kids.

There are many reasons why travel is such a great teacher, and with a few extra steps, there are many ways that it can be even better.

Why Travel is Such a Great Teacher

Exploring and seeing the world is a must, whether you hop on a plane, invest in a great used RV for sale and enjoy road trip after road trip, or just go somewhere on your bicycle. Wherever you go, there is something new to learn and explore. When you are on the go, everyone, young and old, learns and grows in a few crucial ways.

Travel can:

• Help You Develop Cultural Empathy

Travel to different areas, and you will meet people with different cultural values. This can be very dramatic if you travel to another country, or it can surprise you in little ways if you travel just a few states over. Regardless of how far you go, getting out there and meeting people who are different from you is a huge eye-opener and a great way to learn empathy, both for others and their cultures.

• Help Kids Learn What Truly Matters in Life

When you take them out of their normal habitat, kids will gain an important perspective on the world and learn what actually matters.

• Help Kids to Cultivate a Respect for the Natural World

If you live in a city, then it is a must that you take your kids out to explore the wildlife. Go on hikes, go camping, spend time on a lake or a river or head up to a ski hill. Seeing the pristine, natural landscapes is crucial, especially as climate change threatens to change these landscapes forever.

• Connect Lessons with Reality

Kids learn a lot about the world theoretically, but as with everything learned in theory, it isn’t until they experience it first-hand that the lesson really sinks in. This applies to everything from camping survival skills to how to use a map or even how to navigate a city safely.

How to Do More with Every Trip

If you really want to turn a vacation into a learning experience, then you need to push just a bit further with the following tips:

Have Your Child Research the Area

When you choose a destination to go to, first have your child research the area. You can do this with them when they are younger. Look up places to see and do, read a bit about the history of the area, and create a basic itinerary. Your child will feel more in control of their trip and gain some pretty incredible leadership skills along the way.

Leadership skills are not the only skills they can gain. They can also benefit from learning research skills, organizational skills and an increased love of history. When you let them help you plan their trip and learn more about the history and culture of their destinations, these are just a few of the different advantages of doing so.

Never Skip Museums

You want your kids to learn; therefore, this is a good enough reason as ever why you should never skip a museum. Even small town museums that don’t have much in terms of artifacts beyond their own history are worthwhile. It gives your kids a unique insight into the town they are exploring, helps them learn more, and above all helps them appreciate how each area you visit has evolved over the years.

As a bonus, you’ll be helping support the local museum in the town you visit, which is key to preserving their cultural heritage.

Encourage Them to Try New Things

Your kids don’t have to like everything they try, but they should be willing to try new things. By trying these new things together, you can help teach your children several valuable skills and help them learn more about themselves and their tastes.

This means letting them try different activities, foods, and buying tickets to unique experiences. Place equal emphasis on trying sports activities, foods, and cultural experiences when abroad or even just in the state next to you. This way, your children can develop their interests in several areas, stay fit, and exercise their minds.

Learn With Them

You are never too old to learn something new, and showing your kids that you are still learning as well is as valuable a lesson as learning their addition. Take lead and be a role model and learn with them. Whether you’re learning something new in history at a museum, or you are trying a new food for the first time, do it with their kids and experience these new things together.

It’s great for bonding and learning. Not to mention, it will help your kids become curious adults who strive to learn something new every day.

Put Together Memory Books

Memory can be fickle, which is why memory books can be a great way to put your trip into a simple narrative. For younger kids, make this into a scrapbook so that you can then go over what they have learned and revisit the new knowledge that they have. It’s a fun activity to do together and the end result is a vibrant photo album full of memories you and your children will look back on fondly.

Create lessons to accompany your trip, and you have the opportunity to do so much more than just show them the world; you can give them insight into the world, and in turn, become one of the most important teachers in your child’s life.