Many envision roadschooling as simply taking schoolwork on the road—picture early mornings at a cramped desk with the same old textbooks and tests.
But true roadschooling transforms travel into a vibrant classroom, where every journey enriches your child’s education. Beyond conventional learning tools, it leverages the adventures and landscapes encountered during travel to provide a dynamic learning environment.
If you’re curious about how to integrate meaningful education into your travels, or simply wish to enhance your family trips with educational experiences, exploring the concept of learning while traveling might just be your answer.
Planning and Budgeting: Learning While Traveling Starts Here
The very first opportunity for learning while traveling as a roadschooling family begins even before you ever hit the road. The planning and budgeting phase of your journey is not just preparation—it’s a fundamental part of the educational experience.
By involving your kids in this process, you can help them grasp the value of money, hone their problem-solving skills, and learn to read maps. This active participation in travel planning offers practical life lessons that enhance their learning experience on the road.
Given these benefits, I highly recommend including your children in the planning stage, especially if you have older children who may have insightful opinions about your destinations and activities. This initial stage of roadschooling ensures that the journey itself becomes a continuous cycle of learning while traveling.
Road Trip “Edu-tainment”
Of course, in order to get from point A to point B in your RV, you will need to drive there. This might sound miserable to some, but for my family, this is actually a huge part of the fun. We use our travel days as a chance to connect as a family through educational fun.
For instance, we might play a science podcast such as “Wow in the World” or “Brains On!” or we might choose instead to listen to an audiobook or listen to our 7-year-old read-aloud. Sometimes, we play a number of word games together, and other times, we play Mad Libs, giving us a chance to work on parts of speech. Still other times our son prefers to play educational games on his tablet or read to himself.
All of these things are great ways to pass the time and they give our son a chance to practice certain academic skills without ever even realizing it.
Educational Attractions: Enhance Learning While Traveling at…
1. Science Centers and Children’s Museums
As you might guess, the attractions we choose to visit are almost always tied to our roadschooling. One type of attraction our son really loves (and gets a lot from) is science centers. Children’s museums also fall into this category for us, and both are simply fantastic. There are tons of amazing science centers and children’s museums all over the country, and almost all of them offer countless opportunities for hands-on learning.
You may wonder how on earth we afford to visit so many museums. After all, science center admission can be pretty pricey. The answer? Museum reciprocal programs. I highly recommend looking into the ASTC program specifically if science and children’s museums are your thing. ACM can also be helpful, but we don’t use it quite as much.
2. Living History Museums
History museums are also a great learning resource. In particular, we really enjoy living history museums because they give our kiddo a chance to interact with the actors who really know their stuff. They always respond well to his inquisitive nature, and we always leave these places knowing something new.
Unfortunately, living history museums are rarely included in reciprocal membership programs. Those that are included tend to be part of the Time Travelers program. Our favorite living history museum was definitely Plimoth Plantation in Massachusetts.
3. National Parks
Getting outside and exploring nature is always a good thing that is chock full of chances to learn and grow. Our national parks offer some of the very best opportunities to do just that. On top of that, national historical sites and national monuments offer even more learning opportunities. Therefore, we make a point of visiting as many NPS locations as possible during our travels.
The Junior Ranger program offered in each location really helps our son engage during our visit, and the badge he earns after completing the program is a fabulous reward and souvenir.
The “America the Beautiful” annual pass is only $80 a year and gives you free admission to all national parks as well as national historical parks and national monuments. It’s a wonderful investment for any traveler, especially roadschoolers.
4. Zoos and Aquariums
We also tend to keep an eye out for zoos and aquariums. While these can get repetitive after a while, there are a few shining stars out there. When we find a good one, it’s really able to pull us in and show us something new and amazing about the animals of the world. We especially love the St. Louis Zoo and Oklahoma City Zoo, as well as Shedd Aquarium in Chicago.
Looking to save money on zoo and aquarium visits? Becoming a member of the AZA reciprocal program may be a good option for you.
Meet New People
Some people assume that because our son is roadschooled he must not have any friends. In fact, the opposite is true. Since hitting the road, we’ve made more friends than we ever had back home.
We’ve met people from all over the country and even all over the world, and our son knows how to be around people of all ages. Meeting all of these people has proven to be surprisingly educational, as it gives us a peek into the ways people live and think, making us a more open-minded family.
Not sure how to meet new people on the road? Simply going to campground events or inviting your campground neighbors over for a campfire can do the trick. However, we also really love Escapees and Fulltime Families for finding traveling friends.
Tips for Enhancing Learning Opportunities
Honestly, just trying out the activities we’ve mentioned can seriously boost your child’s learning while traveling. If you’re looking to take these educational experiences up a notch, here are a few more tips:
- Give Your Kid a Camera — Handing your kid a camera encourages them to be more observant and engaged with the world around them. It also gives you the unique opportunity to see the world through their eyes.
- Be Engaged with Your Child — When you visit attractions, make a point of being engaged in exhibits with your child. Ask questions and take part in activities alongside them to make the experience even more engaging and educational.
- Follow-Up After Field Trips — Shortly after each field trip, follow up with your child. Ask them about their favorite part and what they learned during the visit. You might be surprised by what they pick up on.
- Find Related Reading — If your child shows a particular interest in something during a field trip, find related reading to expand upon the topic.
- Stay in Touch with New Friends — When your family makes new friends, find ways for your kid to stay in touch. This might mean writing letters, sending emails, or downloading Facebook Messenger for Kids. This will encourage your child to connect further, as well as practice their writing skills.
Wrapping Up Learning While Traveling
Roadschooling isn’t just about seeing new places; it’s about embracing learning while traveling as a lifestyle. This approach doesn’t just teach facts; it instills a lifelong love of learning in children by exploring the world around them. So, whether you’re considering a full-time roadschooling journey or just want to enrich your family’s trips, remember that every travel experience is a chance to learn and grow together.
