The classroom is just the start of their learning journey. If your kids are learning the ins and outs of growing food, sustainable farming, and farm animals, why not give them the chance to get hands-on with a farm field trip?
Soil Born Farms is the ideal place to plan your next farm field trip.
Soil Born Farms can be found at Rancho Cordova, California, and it began as a for-profit farm back in 2000.
This 55-acre organic farm has been on a mission to provide healthy food for all, and help improve the well-being and quality of life of people in the local community.
If you want to teach your kids all about sustainability and healthy food, this is the place to be!
Soil Born Farms offers a variety of programs that give both young people and adults the opportunity to learn more about producing their own healthy foods and increasing access to fresh produce in the local community.
When you book a field trip with Soil Born Farms, you’ll give your kids the opportunity to explore themes like cooking, healthy eating, practical activities, and much more. Soil Born Farms will accommodate up to 35 children and 8 adults per field trip.
Discovery Trips
On the discovery field trip (available to pre-k to grade 12), your kids can get involved with plant restoration projects, nature explorations, and fun, educational outdoor lectures on healthy eating.
Kids will have the opportunity to meet the farm animals, explore the farm grounds, and meet the farmers to learn more about how the food is produced.
These discovery trips last for 2.5 hours and visiting times may vary depending on your class size, and the children’s ages.
$5 per adult (free for 8 adults)
$15 per student
Note: You will need a minimum group size of 15 people to take part.
Exploration Trips
You’ll also have the opportunity to book an exploration field trip, which is available from grades 1-12.
Exploration trips are arguably the most popular excursion, and students will have the chance to take part in four field trips to the American River Ranch.
Here, your kids will learn more about planting food, tending to produce, soil fertility, food production, and so much more. They’ll also get plenty of free, fresh snacks from the farm!
As part of the exploration trip, they’ll also get to visit the Youth Garden where they’ll perform various hands-on tasks and come away with a broader understanding of agriculture.
Each field trip has its own agenda, which includes a welcome circle, safety and orientation, a farm tour, snack breaks, practical activities, games and crafts, and more.
There’s nothing quite like a farm field trip, and Shady Brook Farm really pulls out all the stops.
This beautiful farm, located in Yardley, Pennsylvania, offers the perfect treat for classes and camps to visit this 100-year-old farm, and learn more about farming with various hands-on activities, games, and memorable experiences.
Some of the activities on offer include
Wagon rides, for a scenic trip around the farm
Festival field fun, with a playground, go-karts, barn animals, jumping pillows, and much more!
A picnic area, where you can all take some time to enjoy your own lunch or snacks in between the fun
Pick your own, where both adults and kids can pick their own fruits and veggies to take home
Seed planting (spring only). When pick your own isn’t available, you can also plant your own seeds, and leave your own legacy at the farm!
Note: the exact activities on offer may vary depending on the season.
In the spring and summer, tours feature the above activities, plus an animated chicken show! Tickets are $10 per person, and you’ll need a minimum group size of 15 people to take part. A non-refundable deposit of $25 is also required to secure your place.
In the fall, field trips may look a little different. Activities may include pumpkin picking, the corn maze, an obstacle course, a sports challenge, the spider web crawl, bears playground, and much more!
Fall tours are available between September and October. Book in advance to avoid disappointment.
For a fun, educational, and memorable field trip, check out Great Country Farms. Great Country Farms can be found in Bluemont, Virginia, and they’ve been hosting some of the area’s most popular farm field trips for over 25 years.
Great Country Farms field tips follow the Virginia Standards of Learning (SOL) requirements, and also adhere to homeschool curriculums, making these trips a great opportunity for all students to learn more about farming!
Great Country Farms field trips are the perfect balance of education and fun. Kids will have the opportunity to:
How fruits and vegetables grow
Explore the properties of local soil
Tour the farm in the back of the wagon!
Learn about compost, and get to add their own scraps to the bins
Meet the farm animals
Play in the 5-acre play area after the tour
Greenhouse your
Strawberry life cycle tour
You’ll also get the opportunity to explore other areas of the farm that aren’t part of the tour, such as the market and bakery, which serve a delicious selection of food and drink, including coffee, donuts, honey, and much more!
Great Country Farms has a variety of sheltered areas, so tours will run rain or shine! Whatever the weather, there’s always an activity for you to enjoy. Field trips usually take around 3 hours, and you’ll get an additional hour for the children to play after the tour.
Tours are available on Tuesdays and Fridays, and with every 15 students, you’ll get one teacher free! Tickets are $14 per guest, and tours run from April until October.
Note: you’ll need to bring your own water bottles or a large water cooler for your group.
Summers Farm, based in Braddock Heights in Maryland, proves that learning can be SO much fun, for adults and kids alike!
Summers Farm offers a variety of educational field trips for schools, daycares, private and public schools, scouts, and other clubs.
Each tour promotes agricultural education (and plenty of fun!), giving kids the opportunity to take part in a variety of exciting, age-appropriate activities, with many hands-on tasks to keep them excited and engaged.
Some of the activities available on the tour include:
A wagon tour
A learning program to fill out as you go
Jumping Pillow and Straw Mountain (to be enjoyed after the tour!)
Meet the farmers
Visit the farm animals
Learn how food is grown
Explore the lifecycle of a pumpkin (and get your own mini pumpkin!)
Learn the importance of bees and see a real beehive!
Learning handout to complete follow-up classroom activities
Field trips cost $8 per person, and you’ll need to reserve your place in advance. Children under 2 go free with a paying adult, and with every 5 student admissions, one teacher goes free.
You’re advised to check the website before your arrival, as some activities may be cancelled or altered due to weather conditions. The farm offers many practical, hands-on activities, so advise your children to dress appropriately!
You can request a tour via the request form on the farm’s website.
If you’re in the Tennessee area, Honeysuckle Hill Farm offers several farm field trips you won’t want to miss! Honeysuckle Hill Farm near Nashville offers over 30 enticing farm attractions that will educate and entertain both kids and adults.
Attractions include:
Tire mountain
Bungee trampolines
Milking parlor
Swings
Rockwall
Corn maze
Bonfire pits
Farmers market
… and more!
Field trips are available from Spring until Autumn, and each tour is designed to reinforce the state standards of education.
Although kids will get the opportunity to take part in most of the fun activities above, the tours also offer a variety of educational opportunities, including learning how to grow pumpkins, and the lifecycle of a pumpkin!
This self-guided tour will give you a little more control over your day, and you can stay to play for as long as you like after the tour. Some of the other educational opportunities on offer include:
Honeysuckle Hayride
Learn about sustainable produce
Meet the farmers
…. And more!
You can bring your own lunch, or purchase food from the Snack Shack, which serves up a selection of tasty treats, including pizza, nachos, and more!
To plan a field trip at Honeysuckle Hill Farm, you’ll need to pay $10 per student. Parents and chaperones will need to pay $10 plus tax for admission, and you’ll need a group of at least 20 people to take part in the trip. Children must be three or older to take part.
Final Thoughts
There’s nothing quite like a farm field trip to educate and excite your students. Whatever their age or educational level, there’s so much fun to be had at the farm.
From learning about fruits and veggies, farm animals and beehives, to hayrides and zip lines, these farm field trips have something for everyone!
Hi, my name is Helena Waters and I was a teacher for 40 years before retiring last year.
During my time as a teacher I dedicated the majority of it to making classrooms as fun as possible, with educational parties, fun activities, and low cost entertainment that made the children excited about learning.
I taught children of all ages, from preschoolers to high school students. Now, with the pandemic having uprooted everything that children once knew about school and learning, I think that the need for my ideas is bigger than ever.
That is why I created School Sparks, a place in which I can write down and share all of my ideas on how to get students excited about going to school again. I hope that you’ll find some useful within a school setting, even at home too!
