Dear Families,
At H-FARM International School, our school trips are more than just excursions; they are designed to integrate and enrich our students’ growth journey, making learning a lively and meaningful experience. Each trip is conceived to directly connect with the objectives of the IB program, guiding students to explore, deepen, and apply their knowledge in real-world contexts.
In line with IB principles, our trips promote an open and global mindset. Through direct interactions with diverse cultures, students learn to see the world with empathy and respect, embracing diversity as a resource.
The Importance of Trips in the Educational Journey
Our educational philosophy is based on the belief that each student’s success results from a balance of experiences and skills, as articulated in the Six Domains of Learning Success. School trips are designed to support each dimension of this growth, offering learning opportunities that enhance each student’s individual journey:
- Emotional Success: Trips help students develop a profound self-awareness and strengthen their emotional well-being. Experiencing new situations, facing challenges, and solving problems in the field fuels resilience and self-confidence.
- Learning Success: Each activity is connected to the curriculum’s themes and subjects. From artistic and scientific explorations to historical and cultural experiences, trips stimulate a love for learning, transforming curiosity into practical skills.
- Community Success: Participating in experiences outside of school develops a sense of responsibility toward others and the world, reinforcing students’ active role in local and global communities. Through creating authentic connections with different cultures and traditions, students are able to foster personal and social growth.
- Language Success: Our linguistic and cultural trips provide opportunities for students to practice language skills in diverse contexts, enhancing their ability to communicate and understand diverse perspectives.
- Future Ready Success: With exposure to advanced technologies during the trips, students acquire digital skills and problem-solving abilities that prepare them for an ever-evolving world. Experiences outside the classroom foster an innovative and flexible mindset, ready for future challenges.
- Social Success: Our experiential learning offerings strengthen students’ social success by enhancing their ability to build relationships, work in teams and understand diverse perspectives. These skills help them navigate complex social environments and boost connections that support their personal and future professional lives.
An Inclusive and Enriching Approach for Every Student
As part of our inclusion policy, trips are planned to offer meaningful experiences to all students, valuing diversity as a strength and creating safe, welcoming environments. We believe that each student, with their unique characteristics and needs, can grow through success. Our activities are designed to support each student’s personal development, ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to participate actively.
Trips as Catalysts for Growth and Discovery
For each academic level, from the youngest in Early Years to the graduates in the DP, our trip plan is designed to accompany and expand specific learning objectives. Daily outings in the PYP stimulate curiosity and promote a deeper understanding of the surrounding environment, while the more targeted experiences in the MYP and DP aim to consolidate interdisciplinary skills and global values. Language and cultural trips, as well as service projects, are particularly centered on values such as international-mindedness and responsible participation.
The “Week Without Walls”
This year, we have taken a more structured approach by organizing the majority of our residential trips during a single, dedicated week, which we have named “Week Without Walls.” This initiative aims to minimize disruptions to regular school activities while also creating opportunities for collaboration with the other schools within our group who will be on trips simultaneously. The concept behind “Week Without Walls” is to emphasize that, even though students are beyond the classroom, they are still actively engaged in learning.
Each school trip is designed to be an experience that goes beyond simple exploration. These outings represent crucial growth moments that integrate and expand the educational goals of each program, from Early Years to the Diploma Programme, allowing students to connect theory to practice in real, stimulating contexts.
- Early Years and Primary (PYP): For our younger students, daily outings provide the opportunity to interact directly with environments, materials, and people who shape their world. From visits to natural parks and museums to hands-on experiences in farms and art workshops, each activity is designed to stimulate curiosity, motor and social skills, and foster a genuine understanding of fundamental concepts, such as the importance of ecosystems or cultural diversity. Furthermore, residential trips for PYP 3, 4, and 5 students progressively increase in duration and intensity, helping children develop independence and self-confidence.
- Middle Years Programme (MYP): In the MYP, trips take on an increasingly interdisciplinary character, focused on personal and cultural discovery. During the “Week Without Walls”, students have the opportunity to deepen subjects like history, science, and cultural studies by immersing themselves in local and international contexts. They will also be centered around service connecting to the IB pillar of International-Mindedness. A concrete example is the language immersion trip for MYP 2 students, which allows them to experience full immersion in the chosen language and culture, enhancing their language skills and cultural understanding. Other trips in the MYP focus on themes like sustainability through field experiences that encourage students to explore environmental issues, or on values such as inclusion and community service, fostering active and responsible global citizenship.
- Diploma Programme (DP): CAS (Creativity, Action, and Service) experiences are central at this stage, helping students understand the importance of individual contributions to collective well-being. Whether involved in an environmental restoration project, such as coral reef restoration, or a local community service initiative, our students experience firsthand how their learning can be a powerful tool for positively impacting the world. We recommend all DP students to engage in their CAS experience during their first year of DP.
In summary, our school trips not only broaden academic skills but also help each student develop a sense of discovery and continuous growth, preparing them to be informed, empathetic, and proactive citizens. These experiences provide added value to the IB education, offering students time and space to explore themselves and their passions, building meaningful and lasting relationships with peers and teachers.
PYP daily educational visits and residential trips list
MYP1-2-3 daily educational visits and residential trips list
MYP 4-5 daily educational visits and residential trips list
DP1-2 daily educational visits and residential trips list