(Reblogged from the Midwestern Parent Educators blog post I was honored to write recently.)

MPE provided numerous resources and blessings during our 20 years of homeschooling, but none as important as our small cluster group. Each family in our little group planned and executed an annual field trip or activity, and by the end of each year we had taken in quite a few sights and learned about topics we had not imagined studying.

From the beginning, one of the more industrious moms compiled yearbooks documenting our adventures. Back in the day, that was quite a chore of gathering up photos and hard copies of each page and carting them to the printer! Thankfully she persevered each year and we ended up with a priceless record of our time together.

Recently I published Let’s Go! Field Trips for Teachers, Homeschoolers and Active Families, a generic compilation of tips organized by field trip category, based on our experiences. It is intended to be a guide for learning activities in any locale, but I thought our Kansas City homeschooling friends might be interested in some of our very favorite spots to visit.

Of all the field trip destinations, the most requested one was, hands down, the indoor gym Emerald City (formerly known as Bump City). My perennial favorite was (and still is) the Steamboat Arabia Museum, where the backstory and displays are compelling even for those who don’t fancy themselves museum lovers.

For the rest of the story and the complete list of field trip locations, check out the MPE blog here.