Elizabeth
Field trips are hands-down one of my favorite parts of homeschooling. They’re where our lessons come to life. For our family, homeschooling means learning through experience. We’re happiest when we’re out exploring. Recently, we spent a homeschool day at The High Museum of Art in Atlanta, and it reminded me exactly why I love field trips.
My Field Trip Philosophy
When you homeschool, you get to decide what learning looks like for your family. For us, that means getting out of the house. In a world that is increasingly behind a screen, it is nice to get out and just be in a new place. It’s a great reminder that learning doesn’t have to look the same every day.
Why We Love the High Museum of Art
The High Museum of Art is one of those places that just feels good to visit. The building itself is beautiful, and I love the peeks of the city you get from little hidden windows. In October, we went specifically to see the Viktor & Rolf: Fashion Artists exhibition. It was incredible.
The Dutch connection immediately caught our attention (a nod to our years living in the Netherlands!), and the kids were fascinated by how fashion can become art. Fashion is such an approachable entry point for kids. They can talk about colors, shapes, textures, and even practicality.
“Would you wear that?” became a game all on its own.
We also caught the Kim Chong Hak exhibition before it closed. The kids loved seeing the blend of Korean and Japanese influences in his work. Since we’ve done a lot of nature-inspired painting in our homeschool this year, they connected to it right away. His bold flowers and patterns reminded them of the colors we see when sketching outdoors.
Our Approach to Museum Visits
One of my favorite things about belonging to museums or having a reciprocal membership is that it takes away the pressure to “see it all.” When you know you can come back, you can relax and follow your family’s energy. Some days we stay for an hour; other times, we wander all afternoon. In many cases, your local library may also have a “museum pass” you can borrow.
At the High, we also stopped by the children’s gallery. My kids are technically a bit old for it, but since we had the space to ourselves, they dove right in. I love the kind of engagement that comes with play. They were respectful and cleaned up when they were done.
How We Incorporate Art Museums into Our Homeschool Plan
I like to be flexible with our schedule. I would never want to miss a great art exhibition just because it didn’t fit in with what we are studying. (Plus, you can make almost anything fit!)
We keep a simple Field Trip Form to record each outing. One of my kids actually created a Google Form at the start of the school year for this purpose! After each field trip, everyone fills it out. It’s an easy way to document learning for portfolios, and it sparks great dinner conversations. (The kids can be brutally honest!)
When we visit museums, we sometimes bring our sketchbooks and set aside time to draw something that catches our attention. Other times, we bring journals to jot down notes, or we take a photo to reflect on later.
Here are a few journal prompts that can work for different ages:
Elementary:
- What was your favorite artwork today? Describe it and why you liked it.
- If you could step inside one piece of art, what would you do there?
- What colors did you see the most?
Middle:
- Choose one artwork and describe its mood in detail.
- How do you think teh artist made this piece?
- What story do you think this artwork tells?
- If you could change one thing about the exhibit, what would it be?
High:
- Compare two artworks from different artists or time periods – what is similar or different in how they express emotion?
- How do culture or history influence the pieces you saw today?
- Which artworks challenged your expectations the most?
Games to Play in the Gallery
Sometimes I take a decidedly less academic approach, and we play a gallery game. These are great because they remind kids that there is no right or wrong interpretation for art.Here are a few of my favorite ones:
- Pick Your Piece: Everyone chooses one artwork they’d “take home” or “wear,” then explains why.
- I Spy (Art Edition): Works great for younger kids — “I spy something blue,” “I spy something round.”
- Storyteller: Pick a painting and make up a story about what’s happening in it.
- Time Traveler: Imagine what it was like when the piece was created. What might the artist’s life have been like?
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, a homeschool field trip to the High Museum of Art is about so much more than checking the art box. It’s about raising kids who feel comfortable walking into a museum, who know how to slow down, look closely, and form their own opinions. I can get swept up in the checking boxes, so it’s a good reminder for myself before we enter the museum that our time here doesn’t have to look like a class.
Whether you spend an hour or a whole day, the goal isn’t to see everything. The goal is to spark something. (And sometimes with kids, that can be something they absolutely hate!)
Our Sketchbook Kit
We like to keep a small museum kit packed and ready to go for field trip days.
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Fashion is a form of communication. You forgot the Communication inquiry! What is the article of clothing trying to say? What was the designer trying to say? What did it say to you? The answers to these questions can be radically different. And, finally, what was the exhibition as a whole trying to say?