Outer Banks Trip 2023

Because I didn't have the foresight to digitally chronicle our traveling and learning experiences at the beginning of the school year, I'm catching up now! So, while this post is being published in February, this trip actually happened last August.

Let me start by saying that this trip involved a lot of reading! Pumpkin had just recently begun reading independently with ease, and progressed to higher reading levels very quickly. I brought two chapter books for her, thinking she could spend the week working through them, and she read both during the car ride there. She continued to devour any reading material she could get her hands on.

While we were in the Outer Banks, we had the opportunity to visit the North Carolina Aquarium on Roanoke Island. We participated in a sea turtle rescue simulation, and visited an actual sea turtle rescue facility. The girls chatted with staff and asked questions about the sea turtles. We visited many other exhibits, and even got to chat with a diver!

During the rest of our trip, we spent a lot of time at the beach or out in nature, observing the habits of various wildlife that we do not have a home. Pumpkin used various field guides to identify and read about animals such as brown pelicans and other shorebirds, sea butterflies, and various types of crabs.

We also went crabbing with Pop and learned a lot about crabs, and how to catch them! By the end of our time, the girls were able to successfully catch a crab together without grown-up help. On the ride home, Pumpkin drew what she learned.