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By James Dunn

Trip of a lifetime

Red Deer middle school students embark on another epic science trip

Mar 1, 2020 | 9:00 AM

It’s the biggest trip Red Deer Public School District offers – 88 kids go with 22 teacher and parent chaperones to one of the most exotic and unique places in the world.

The Ultimate Science Trip (UST) has been offered to grade eight students for over twenty years. It’s an eight day trip to the Orlando area during winter break in the district calendar where students visit each of the Disney parks, Kennedy Space Centre for lunch with an astronaut, airboat rides in alligator-infested waters, Universal Studios, Busch Gardens, Discovery Cove, SeaWorld, and a sunset dinner cruise.

Scott Cline, teacher at Westpark Middle School, has been organizing the trip for around 12 years. Cline says they doubled the number of students on this year’s trip from 44 to 88.

“When you have 200-plus applicants, it’s really hard to say no to so many. We just found a way to double it,” Cline says.

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Students take a late night flight to Orlando, land at noon and immediately go to the Magic Kingdom.

Teacher/chaperone Keenan Anderton says they try to ensure everyone gets a good amount of rest during what is a busy week-plus.

“We tried really hard to tell people that they need to make sure that they’re sleeping on the plane and getting the rest they need, because it’s easy to forget that you’re giving up a night of sleep,” he shared. “The highest we reached in one day was around 32,000 steps. The average was around 25,000 steps because you’re leaving the hotel at 7:30, and your back at 10 at night,” Hunter says.

Science is the whole reason this trip exists, and it goes further than first imagined. Middle school lessons in all the three major areas of science are examined: biology, chemistry, and physics.

“I like to speak of the trip as one-third formal education while another third is exploration. Whether you’re at SeaWorld, Discovery Cove, or at Busch Gardens, there’s a lot of informal animal interaction; swimming with dolphins, petting a giraffe.

“The other third is just your own free time. At Kennedy Space Center, it’s all soaking up the amazing history that Kennedy offers. You have a real Atlantis Shuttle there, you have a real Saturn V rocket there,” Cline explains.

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Another hidden learning objective Cline mentions is the trip’s inclusivity.

“I dare you to look at any other high school or middle school trip: Do they have special needs students coming along? Physical challenges? Dietary? Socially? There’s a whole number of different types of students with different needs. There was a student in a wheelchair this year, and we also had students with physical impairments. There was even a father with a disability who came on the trip with his daughter, and now they have these memories for a lifetime.”

Kids also have a chance to bond and grow as a team in the months leading up to the trip. In June, the group competed in an “Amazing Race” style event, going around downtown Red Deer and completing various tasks.

“Everyone has a clear sense at the end of that night what we’re really dealing with here.” Anderton adds. “You can’t let your group out of your sight, you literally have to link arms to go from one place to the other. It’s all go go, go, go. It really sets the tone for the trip.”

During the trip, Hunter explains, teachers and chaperones see the kids grow, not just as people, but global citizens.

“To be away from home and see them branch out and make new friends. Just pushing themselves to get up early in the morning, picking their clothes for the day; it’s a big step for a lot of kids.”

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When it comes to next year’s trip, it will move back to its regular spring break slot in March/April.

Cline says they will be looking to add an Orlando Magic NBA basketball game, and a Cirque Du Soleil show, both of which were part of the trip in previous years.

“It’s all about creating once in a lifetime opportunities,” he says.