Before you go outside, take the time to develop a list of safety rules with the class. Record their ideas. Here is a sample list:

RULES FOR FIELD TRIPS

• Always walk.
• Stay in the boundaries.
• Don't stick your hand into anything.
• Find out which plants are poisonous and don't touch or eat them.
• Take along a first aid kit.
• Unless we are collecting, don't take anything.
• Don't leave anything behind, and don't litter.
• Take a wristwatch in each group. Keep on schedule.
• Remember that noise scares away most animals.
• Leave the place the way we found it. Gently replace rocks, logs, or vegetation. This is someone else's home.