I have a classroom of 7-8 yr olds, and I am planning to take them on a school trip away for four days. The ratio is 1 adult to 5 children, and we have 4 of our teachers who are familiar and have been with the kids all year round to attend said trip.
My question is, are these children too young to be going away, without any parents, even with the teachers they are all comfortable and happy with? (Note: three out of the 4 teachers have raised/are raising children of their own).
First, just let me say how nice it is to see teachers going that extra mile and really putting a lot into their curriculum. Great job, way to go, you deserve a raise!
Now, with that being said, I have to say that with some of your group, they would probably be fine. But many kids that age, including ones that are very well adjusted, are still just not ready for that long away from Mom and/or Dad. My little guy is so social, outgoing, loves to visit people, stay the night at cousins, etc. However, when he was 8, our next door neighbors asked him to stay over with their kids and he very excitedly agreed. By about 10pm to 11:30pm, he was calling, telling me that he just felt really bad leaving me without him and he was worried about me, and that he really thought that he should come home to make sure that I was alright!! It was so precious. This actually happened twice. So, the fact is, many kids might be just fine at first, but do you really want to get miles and miles away from home and half of your group freaking out and crying because they want to go home?
Maybe if you interviewed the parents and children that are fine with it to provide extra reassurance for both, it would eliminate a little of this. And I am positive that there will probably be some parents who simply will say "no" and not sign the permission slip.
You sound like the type of teacher though who is willing to put the extra effort of interviewing or having an information Q&A session first for those who are considering it.
Please post back on how this turns out. And again, kudos to you!
