School holidays are always a tough time to secure a vehicle
of your choosing, and are also some of the busiest times to be on the road.
However making the choice to take children out of school is a contentious
subject with most parents.
So what exactly can children learn on the road that they
might not learn at school? How can travel help
children with their future learning?
Problem solving abilities
Problem solving abilities
Problem solving is one of the most important life skills and although these skills are taught in schools, road trips are a fantastic way for kids to develop these skills in relation to real life situations. Encouraging your children to take part in decision making and problem solving during travel will help them to grasp the concept of identifying, evaluating and discussing problems, as well as creating an environment of trust and respect that will encourage your children to discuss future problems with you.
A great example of this is if you give your child a small amount of money to purchase a souvenir. Discuss what the options might be, for example, should they buy the first thing they see? Spend all their money on one big souvenir? Or should they buy a few cheaper souvenirs from several shops?
Discuss the pros and cons of each choice with them and what consequences could result from their decision. When guided and encouraged to problem solve, these skills will become second nature and with the fun of a road trip, they won’t even notice they are learning.
Considering the world around them and
appreciating what they have
Visiting destinations that are different to their own helps encourage children to consider the world around them. Children often don’t realise how fortunate they are, often assuming that if they have it, so does everybody else.
Although discussions at school are great at introducing these ideas, if they never see or experience anything outside of the environment they live in, how can they be expected to fully comprehend the world around them?
However parents must be careful to discuss different lifestyles not as a problem but as an opportunity to learn. After leaving a destination it is a great idea to discuss the differences between the culture or lifestyle you have visited and what they perceive the pros and cons to be, as well as prompting curiosity by asking open-ended questions like, ‘why do you think they might need to build houses underground?’ – As is the case with houses in Coober Pedy.
Visiting destinations that are different to their own helps encourage children to consider the world around them. Children often don’t realise how fortunate they are, often assuming that if they have it, so does everybody else.
Although discussions at school are great at introducing these ideas, if they never see or experience anything outside of the environment they live in, how can they be expected to fully comprehend the world around them?
However parents must be careful to discuss different lifestyles not as a problem but as an opportunity to learn. After leaving a destination it is a great idea to discuss the differences between the culture or lifestyle you have visited and what they perceive the pros and cons to be, as well as prompting curiosity by asking open-ended questions like, ‘why do you think they might need to build houses underground?’ – As is the case with houses in Coober Pedy.
Flexibility and Adaptability
Adaptability and flexibility are necessary life skills, for children and parents. Whether it’s not getting the same teacher as their best friend in a new school year, not getting into the university course they wanted or not being successful in a job interview, adaptability will help you and your children turn life’s lemons into lemonade.
Road tips are particularly good for teaching adaptability because of the flexibility offered by campervan holidays, allowing children to step away from the structure of school.
Unlike a resort stay or Contiki tour that is planned to the last second, sometimes the unexpected happens on a road trip. For example the weather might turn, changing your route or destination or you may experience a flat tire, putting off your timeline.
How you react to these situations will influence how your children feel. Encouraging your children to see the positives in a situation or how to overcome an issue calmly, will stick with them for life and help them to open up more opportunities, build self-confidence and increase their general happiness.
Adaptability and flexibility are necessary life skills, for children and parents. Whether it’s not getting the same teacher as their best friend in a new school year, not getting into the university course they wanted or not being successful in a job interview, adaptability will help you and your children turn life’s lemons into lemonade.
Road tips are particularly good for teaching adaptability because of the flexibility offered by campervan holidays, allowing children to step away from the structure of school.
Unlike a resort stay or Contiki tour that is planned to the last second, sometimes the unexpected happens on a road trip. For example the weather might turn, changing your route or destination or you may experience a flat tire, putting off your timeline.
How you react to these situations will influence how your children feel. Encouraging your children to see the positives in a situation or how to overcome an issue calmly, will stick with them for life and help them to open up more opportunities, build self-confidence and increase their general happiness.
Autonomy
If you have ever read a job ad, you will know that the ability to be autonomous is a highly sought after and important skill to master. One day your children will grow up and be required to answer the question, ‘can you work autonomously?’
Travel embraces freedom and independence and is an experience that most employers are very interested in. Whilst school does teach and encourage this, it is difficult in a class of 30 students to be truly autonomous.
Children who can master autonomy are often more inquisitive and self-guided learners, which will help them to grow personally and professionally.
Travelling takes children out of their usual surroundings, allowing them to make unbiased decisions. The exploration of travelling encourages children to take risks that they may not have taken in their comfort zone, that lead to real learning opportunities.
Offering your children choices whilst travelling, creates a monitored environment that will present new experience encouraging self-reliance and moral and cognitive development. There are very simple tools to help you encourage learning and curiosity on a road trip. One of the top suggestions from teachers we have spoken to, is for your children to keep a travel journal. Not only are travel journals a great way for children of all ages to practice literacy skills away from the classroom, but they also encourage children to reflect on what they have experienced and develop critical thinking skills. Journals are also a fantastic souvenir for children to look back on as they grow.
If you have ever read a job ad, you will know that the ability to be autonomous is a highly sought after and important skill to master. One day your children will grow up and be required to answer the question, ‘can you work autonomously?’
Travel embraces freedom and independence and is an experience that most employers are very interested in. Whilst school does teach and encourage this, it is difficult in a class of 30 students to be truly autonomous.
Children who can master autonomy are often more inquisitive and self-guided learners, which will help them to grow personally and professionally.
Travelling takes children out of their usual surroundings, allowing them to make unbiased decisions. The exploration of travelling encourages children to take risks that they may not have taken in their comfort zone, that lead to real learning opportunities.
Offering your children choices whilst travelling, creates a monitored environment that will present new experience encouraging self-reliance and moral and cognitive development. There are very simple tools to help you encourage learning and curiosity on a road trip. One of the top suggestions from teachers we have spoken to, is for your children to keep a travel journal. Not only are travel journals a great way for children of all ages to practice literacy skills away from the classroom, but they also encourage children to reflect on what they have experienced and develop critical thinking skills. Journals are also a fantastic souvenir for children to look back on as they grow.
Help your children to create an itinerary to include in
their journal before you set off. Not only will they gain an understanding of
distance and time, they will also begin to grasp organisational skills. Depending
on your child’s age, you may want to sit with them and collect images from the
internet or books, or allow them to perform self-guided research on the
destinations.
Lastly, don’t forget to give your child a map! Whether it be a paper map or a digital map from an app, allowing children to
enter destinations, discover distances, travel time and allow them to follow
their journey will open their minds to how big the world around us is.
Road trips are a fantastic learning experience for the whole
family, and no matter where the road leads you will be an unforgettable memory.
Start thinking about your next family adventure now! Get a quote today with www.discovery-campervans.com.au
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