Getting "Hooked"

Last Thursday, I had the opportunity to chaperone my daughter's first grade class trip to Sandy Hook. Here are some of the highlights:

Each chaperone was assigned four kids to watch. My group consisted of Amy, another girl whom she is friends with, and two boys. They were all very well behaved and I didn't lose any of them. Since I had never chaperoned before, I think the teachers who assigned the groups went easy on me.

Our first stop was at Fort Hancock, where we learned about the history of the fort and how they aimed the cannons at the ships on the Atlantic. Right next to the fort is the Sandy Hook lighthouse, which is the oldest continuously lit lighthouse in the United States. Our tour guide told the class that the lighthouse was older than America, and asked if they knew what year America was "born". When give the hint that it was a long time ago, one of the kids guessed, "1984?"

Next up was a lesson about the various shells and other sea life that we might find. Each class needed two parents to go into the water and drag a large net so that the kids could see what was found. Fortunately, two other fathers volunteered so I stayed on the shore.

One of the creatures they found was a horseshoe crab. We learned that these animals have ten eyes, yet can only see light and dark. Seems like a waste of all those eyes to me.

Soon it was time for lunch. Each small group ate on blankets on the beach. One of the great things about being with kids this age is that it's easy to solve many of their problems. Each juice box or bag of chips I helped open was another chance to be a hero. After we were done eating, each kid got a plastic bag that they could use to bring home shells, rocks, etc. that they found. (Amy's bag is now sitting in a corner of the garage).

By 1:30 it was time to get back on the bus for our return trip. A bus full of first graders sure can make a lot of noise, but don't worry, I managed to fall asleep anyway. I woke up when I heard another kid call out, "Amy, your dad is sleeping!"

Soon we were back at the school and it was time to go home. It was amazing how fast the day went. I had a lot of fun and I look forward to helping out on future class trips.