Our special class trips provide just one way in which Mt. Helix Academy fosters curiosity

In the Primary module, field trips are an integral part of the Science and Social Studies units studied throughout the year. Field trips are excellent opportunities for our younger students to explore the world around them under the supervision of a trusted adult other than a member of their family. It gives them a chance to experience hands-on learning while also being introduced to new environments. Through these experiences they increase their cognitive and inquiry skills, learn to problem solve, and increase their self-confidence.

In years past, we have visited sites such as The Birch Aquarium, The San Diego Zoo, the La Mesa Police and Fire Departments, La Mesa Mayor Art Madrid and the La Mesa City Council Chambers, Legoland, the Rueben H. Fleet Science Center, Victoria’s Gardens, and various theater productions across the county.

Mt. Helix Academy students get
a docent's lesson on a trip
to San Juan Capistrano

3rd Grade field trips

Fletcher Hills Library-El Cajon
As part of the third graders preparation for writing book reports and research reports in their Language Arts classes, students take a field trip to the Fletcher Hills Library in El Cajon. At the library, students learn about how the library is organized, how to locate materials in the library using the library’s computer system, and how to check out materials.

Additional field trips for the third grade are scheduled during the school year, depending on availability of quality experiences which tie into the third grade curriculum.

4th grade field trips

Star of India • Overnight – Gold Diggers
As part of their study of California state history, all fourth graders participate on an overnight adventure aboard the “Star of India,” located at the San Diego Maritime Museum. Students embark back into time to the Gold Rush period. The adventure begins in 1851 in San Diego, as California has just become the 31st state in the union. Amongst hidden agendas, well-trained staff guide the students in moving cargo and preparing the vessel to set sail. Students work collaboratively in swabbing decks and raising sails all while singing fun Sea Chanteys. At the end of the voyage, The “Greenhands” will need to decide if they should stay on board as sailors or try their luck in the gold fields. This living history overnight adventure is a favorite for MHA fourth graders and provides students with many opportunities to work collaboratively with their classmates while learning about the history and culture of 19th century California.

Old Town San Diego
Another wonderful learning experience for our fourth graders is their annual trip to Old Town San Diego. Old Town San Diego is considered the birthplace of California. Students tour San Diego sites surrounding the first Spanish settlement. Knowledgeable docents dress the students in an item of clothing representing one of San Diego’s four historic communities: Kumeyaay, Spanish, Mexican, and American. Students visit such sites as La Casa de Estudillo, a mansion built around a garden courtyard; La Casa de Machado y Stewart, which is full of artifacts that reflect ordinary life of the period; Mason Street School (California’s first public schoolhouse); the San Diego Union Printing Office (site of the city’s oldest surviving newspaper office); and the first brick courthouse. As they tour through San Diego’s historical buildings, students expand their knowledge of California state history during its colonial period.

Mission San Juan Capistrano
A train ride transports fourth graders to the beautiful Mission San Juan Capistrano. Once there, students receive a guided tour around the mission grounds exploring the daily life of both the Padres and Native Americans that lived and worked on the mission. Through vivid storytelling, the students experience a unique, first hand account of some of the challenges the Native Americans faced. This field trip provides our fourth graders with a better understanding of the mission system established by Spanish Catholic Missionaries, and its impact on the indigenous population of California. Students won’t leave empty handed either, since they’ll also enjoy a fun filled presentation and make their own adobe brick to take home.

5th grade field trips

Reuben H. Fleet Science Center
As part of their study of Science, all fifth graders participate on a field trip to the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center in Balboa Park. . Students attend a screening of the IMAX movie “The Human Body” which reinforces the students’ understanding of the human body and its systems. In addition to viewing the film, they also view the related human body exhibits in the Center to further expand their understanding of the human body.

Boston • 5-day trip
All fifth graders have the opportunity to participate on the yearly trip to Boston, Massachusetts. As a culmination of their study of the United States during the colonial period, students spend 5 days, 4 nights in Boston. While on this trip, our fifth graders can imagine how Paul Revere made his midnight ride and how other settlers fought for freedom. A journey to Lexington and Concord starts this rich history experience, where they see the location of the famous “Shot heard ‘round the world”, marking the start of the American Revolutionary War. Each day, students explore the city’s historical monuments and its surrounding areas such as: The Freedom Trail, State House, Plimoth Plantation, Mayflower II, Salem Witch Museum, Bunker Hill, Fanueil Hall, Harvard, and The Science Museum. This trip provides the students a chance to experience history in a way that brings it to life.

The Pali Mountain experience provides Middle Schoolers excitement that can be shared
throughout the year.

Carefully planned trips
We try to organize and schedule trips for our Middle School students that will be valuable learning experiences, both academic and social. For example, our Pali Mountain Institute trip, which is three days and two overnights, teaches some interesting science information; however, it has proved to be a powerful bonding experience for our students and staff. Because it has been so effective, we have scheduled it at the very beginning of the year.

Trips for all Middle School Students • every year

Pali Mountain Institute
Each September, all middle school students participate in a 3-day, 2-night adventure at Pali Mountain Institute, located in Running Springs, CA, near Lake Arrowhead.

Student friendships are forged in Pali Mountain Institute's group exercises.

At Pali Mountain Institute, Mt. Helix Academy Middle School students participate in a variety of outdoor and science education activities that involve teamwork and result in bonding experiences. Students build rockets, learn the fundamentals of aerodynamics, learn orienteering, some wilderness survival tactics, and they get to experience the ever popular “Zero Gravity” ride.

Our students are accompanied by Middle School staff members who participate in the activities which are directed by the talented staff of Pali Mountain Institute. By engaging in group cooperation, team-building activities that involve goal setting and group problem solving, our students learn about themselves and most often end up forging strong friendships with classmates who they first met just a couple of weeks earlier.

The 3-day, 2-night experience permits students to learn mutual respect, to appreciate diversity, and to learn to deal positively with peer pressure. They get to practice advanced methods of leadership and gain essential interpersonal skills that can help them throughout their lives.

To see more photos in our photo gallery, click here.

Reuben H. Fleet Science Center in San Diego
At the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center, the Nierman Challenger Learning Center simulations “send students to space” using a realistic mock-up of a Mission Control center and a futuristic Space Station. Our students commonly say: “Wow, that was cool!”

The Fleet Science Center Flight Directors assist students to work as a team to carry out the operations necessary for a successful mission including the collection valuable scientific data.

During the “Return to the Moon” simulation, the year is 2020, and a crew of astronauts is returning to the Moon. Their goals are to establish a permanent base to make further lunar observations, to study the feasibility of creating a self-sustaining lunar settlement, which will serve as a stepping stone for future manned planetary exploration.

Navigating their way into lunar orbit, students perform many realistic activities, including
analyzing data to select a landing site, calculating the thrust needed to leave Earth’s orbit and enter lunar orbit, and conducting investigations and making observations using a variety of sophisticated scientific tools.

For the “Voyage to Mars” simulation, the year is 2076 and students plan to replace a crew stationed at a permanent base on the Martian surface. In addition to continuing research, students calculate trajectories for entering and exiting Martian orbit and, in addition to numerous scientific measurements, launch two probes to the Martian moons of Phobos and Deimos.

End of year celebration at Knotts Berry Farm
One of the highlights of each Middle School year is our end of year trip to Knotts Berry Farm in Buena Park each June. As part of our end of year celebration, students and teachers enjoy the food, fun and thrills of Knotts Berry Farm. It is a great bonding experience for all!

Trips for all Middle School students • every three years

Simon Wiesenthal Museum of Tolerance During the 2010-2011 school year, all Middle School students will visit the Simon Wiesenthal Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles. They will participate in the renowned Tolerancenter/Holocaust Exhibit Tour and engage in state-of-the-art interactive exhibits that expose the dynamics of prejudice and discrimination historically and today. The tour permits our students to become a witness to history, which is made especially real for them as they carry a photo passport card of a child whose life was changed by the Holocaust.

Trips for 7th and 8th graders • every two years

Washington D.C. trip
During the 2011-2012 school year, all 7th and 8th graders have the opportunity to travel to our Nation’s capital for a 5-day, 4-night tour. History comes alive as students see our government in action and visit sites such as the U.S. Capitol Building, Ford’s Theater, Vietnam Memorial, FDR Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery, the National Archives, and the Lincoln Memorial.

In addition to being a “not to miss educational experience”, students also enjoy a dinner dance cruise down the Potomac River, which is specifically designed for Middle School students. The Washington DC experience is one that all 7th and 8th graders will not want to miss!

Trips for 7th graders • every year

Medieval Times
Each year, all 7th graders take a field trip to the 11th Century! A history lesson presented by a King and his Noble Court set within the walls of an 11th century-style castle. Every detail is painstakingly recreated as students take a personal journey back to the Middle Ages. They step back in time and experience spectacular horsemanship, amazing swordplay, medieval games of skill, and an authentic jousting tournament between six brave knights of the realm. As the tournament takes place, the castle’s serfs serve the students a feast fit for a King.

Other trips
Middle School students may take other field trips to Centers in Balboa Park, plays in local theaters, and so on depending on time and relevance to the curriculum.