Whether it’s a vacation, March Break, or just a free weekend, there are always opportunities to bring learning and fun together.
Experiential learning applies classroom knowledge into every day life. This can be through a co-op placement, job shadowing, or volunteer experience. You can help your child identify and explore their skills, strengths and interests through smaller family activities.
For more information, take a look at our Experiential Learning Hub, as well as guides for parents, educators, and employers.
Check out these ideas and local suggestions as you embark on your experiential learning adventures together:
Go to a Museum:
In the modern age of museums, exhibits are often created for all ages to experience. Many museums have hands-on exhibits, where touch and play is encouraged. Kids can try their hands at science experiments, artistic workshops, or engage with materials specifically with them in mind.
Go outside of the box and enjoy a museum in a unique way together. History lessons can come alive through objects in a historical museum or look through time in an art museum. Techniques learned in art class can be found in different pieces in a collection. Be active in museums by looking closely, asking questions, and interpreting works of art together.
Local opportunities:
Chimczuk Museum ○ Duff-Baby Interpretation Centre ○ Art Gallery of Windsor ○ Canadian Transportation Museum & Heritage Village ○ John Freeman Walls Historic Site ○ Tecumseh Historical Museum ○ Detroit Institute of Arts ○ Michigan Science Centre ○ Fort Malden National Historical Site
Get into Nature:
Bring learning into your family outdoor adventures. Take advantage of visitor centres to see exhibits on animal and vegetative life and then look together for those clues while on the path.
Lessons from science class translate to the real world as biology is all around you. Grab a pair of binoculars to spot different types of birds or a magnifying glass to check out creepy crawlers. Stories from English class can leave the page and come alive through imagination and play. No matter the season, going into nature is a great opportunity to get active and explore.
Local opportunities:
Point Pelee National Park ○ Ojibway Nature Centre ○ Hillman March ○ Gatatchio Trail ○ Jackson Park ○ Herb Gray Nature Reserve ○ Jack Miner Bird Sanctuary ○ Belle Isle Conservatory ○ Tourism Windsor Essex Pelee Island Outdoor Activity Guide
Get Cooking:
Math has real world applications in the grocery store and kitchen. Play addition games in the grocery store with prices and see if you’re correct at the cash register. Fractions can be more real when you’re dealing with teaspoons, cups, and ounces in the kitchen.
Chemistry lessons leave the lab and jump into recipes for cakes and cookies. Practice your family’s French vocabulary by identifying different objects en français as you go. Explore cultures from around the world through trying different cuisines and then learning facts together about their history and people.
Learn more about Windsor-Essex’s rich agricultural and culinary worlds by visiting farms, farmer’s markets, and restaurants together. Explore the seasons by trying different activities throughout the year and try out fresh, local products.
Local opportunities:
Maple Syrup events at John R. Park Homestead ○ Farmers Markets ○ Eastern Market Detroit Cooking Classes ○ Colasanti’s ○
Get Crafting:
Get creative together with arts and crafts projects. Work on skills and techniques through drawing, painting, sculpting, and collage. Talk together about ways to express emotions, feelings, and thoughts through art.
Practice writing skills and art by creating special cards for family and friends to send out via snail mail. Put on a puppet show together to try out different dramatic techniques and learn to tell a story. Work together to build a new bird-feeder using planning skills, math, carpentry, and design.
Local opportunities:
Art Gallery of Windsor: Sundays in the Studio ○ City of Windsor Activity Guide ○ YMCA Kids Activities ○ Essex County Library Activities ○ Detroit Institute of Arts Family Activities
Volunteer Together:
Create a family of active citizens by becoming engaged in the community. Open a dialogue about what it means to come from different backgrounds and how we can work together.
Explore career opportunities by volunteering with different organizations. Use these opportunities for your child to ask questions and experience day-to-day work in the area of their interest. As a long term career benefit, those who have done volunteer work have a 27% higher chance of getting hired compared to those who haven’t volunteered*.
Use volunteer experiences as chances to improve on soft skills. Working with animals or with others in a supportive atmosphere can help a shy child come out of their shell. Before getting into the working world, helping out at a community event can teach skills about event organizing, customer service, and engaging with the public in a professional way.
Local opportunities:
WEVolunteer ○ United Way Volunteer Centre ○ Windsor-Essex County Humane Society ○ Habitat For Humanity ○ Windsor Public Library
