Whether it’s traveling to Boundless Adventures, MoMa, The MET, Columbia, or exploring Manhattan, this year students are now able to attend field trips for various courses that they are enrolled in. I believe that it is important to have field trips because of the hands-on learning it provides to students.
Since the majority, if not all, of the COVID-19 guidelines and precautions have been lifted, this fall sophomores were able to travel to Boundless Adventures for their First Friday activity. This field trip worked on collaboration and encouraging each other to get through the ropes course. This allowed students to connect in a different way beyond just the simple activities done during community time.
Sophomore student India Davis-Hanessian said, “I liked the trip, and I wish we had more grade field trips. It was nice to cheer on my peers in a new setting.”
Additionally, various trips to the MoMa or the MET helped facilitate Hackley students’ capabilities to apply the lessons they learned in the classroom, to other environments/situations.
In particular sophomore student, Frances Clifford who attended the filmmaking trip said, “I like field trips! It’s a nice break from school but also can be stressful because you miss school. It was fun to be in a different environment with my peers and it was nice to explore.”
Other filmmaking students shared that they were able to apply the skills that they used even more efficiently after the trip.

Although field trips are fun and engaging, they can also take away from class time or assessments in other classes. Some students in the Upper School believe that they are not the best idea because it is hard to make up the work. Yet they are still good opportunities if all of the teachers are lenient and on the same page in efforts to not fall behind.

So how can we find a balance? I believe that students and teachers should work together to have more field trips and in doing so, make sure that they aren’t giving students too much work during that time.
Freshman Sophie Fraizer said, “It would be easier if it were the entire grade that way everyone would miss school. But when that isn’t the case students and teachers definitely need to do a better job of coordinating.”
Field trips should definitely occur more often as they can provide a new perspective and way of learning. These trips enable students to think and apply the things they’ve learned in class beyond, which evidently helps them grow. Although events like these come with challenges of coordination, this can easily be sorted if students and teachers work together.