While outside of the classroom, many students enjoy seeing different places across the globe, and the World Travel Club allows students to do just that. The club grants students the ability to travel abroad during the summer months as an effective aid to their learning.
The World Travel Club is run by a history teacher at OHS who shares a passion with her students for traveling abroad, while also learning about the history of the different countries she visits.
“My philosophy is that you learn more about history by going and exploring and seeing the places and the sights where history happened, so that’s why I feel like it’s an extension of what we learn in the classroom. It’s really great to just be able to go and experience the language and culture of the other countries,” said Laura McKinnon, gen ed and dual enrollment US history teacher.
While traveling abroad with the club, students can learn more about the culture and customs of different countries that they would not have the opportunity to visit otherwise.
“Throughout the road trip, I learned about the local people and got involved in the local culture by participating and looking around,” said Ryan Ku, sophomore.
Many students who participate in the World Travel Club learn about it from their friends who have gone on the trips before, bringing the experience to more people.
“I think you definitely get to meet people and my whole friend group signed up so we get to go together and I feel like not everybody gets to go on trips to all these different countries with their closest friends,” said Ella Faller, senior.
While on their trips, students receive a unique experience provided by the club to show them more than just the usual tourist destinations.
“On these tours, you get to some small little things that are not really big tourist attractions and one of the things that we got to see on this trip was a candy factory and they give a demonstration on how they make their candy so the kids and we got to watch them actually making it,” McKinnon said.
Not only do students gain knowledge of places they would not otherwise, but they are also given free time to explore parts of the country they wish to visit.
“There was one day where kids could pick different things that they wanted to go see that weren’t on the itinerary. There’s a little amusement park and then there’s different museums so that day was really fun because everybody got to do something they just wanted to do,” McKinnon said.
Some students choose to use this time with their friends to tour the city they are in.
“I think it was in Sweden, we had a bunch of free time to explore and we got to ride electric scooters around to explore. I think that was the best part,” Ku said.
While traveling to these other countries, several students discover a new favorite place that helps them appreciate places like Sweden and the history they are witnessing for themselves.
“They have a lot of historic buildings because the United States is only about 200 years old, but they’ve had like thousands of years of history so they have a lot of those monuments still standing,” Faller said.
Before students even arrive on the trip, the countries that are a part of it must be decided and some places the members of the World Travel Club want to see are often included.
“We try to always add at least one new place, but I talk to the students who are in the World Travelers Club and they tell me places they want to go see and then we get a consensus,” McKinnon said.
This process occurs in advance for each trip the World Travel Club goes on, and now their next trip is rapidly approaching.
“This year is Greece and Italy so it’s a little bit more beachy so I just think there’s going to be kind of a contrast from last year because last year was kind of cold and more like a dark kind of vibe and this year we’re going to be right up next to the beach and going through the catacombs and everything so I’m super excited,” Faller said.
