What A Very Special Virtual Field Trip From Madison County, Iowa To Los Angeles Means To All Of Us

Hagan and his friends at Van Meter got out of school on May 24th.  One of Hagan's favorite things to do every day is to feed his sister Brianna's horse, Roman.  He gives Roman carrots, apples, corn cobs and makes sure he has water every day.  He always comes right over to Hagan to see what he has.

One night I was talking to my friend Arturo Avina on Facebook.  I was telling Art that we live in Madison County where The Bridges of Madison County was filmed.   It is just a little different from where he lives in California.   Since I have gotten to know his wonderful little kindergarten students over the last couple of months, Art and I thought it would be special to Skype with each other for a virtual field trip to our place out in the country.

Art and his kindergarteners at Olympic Primary School in Los Angeles just got out of school yesterday so it worked out perfect since Hagan and I were home.  We were excited that they were going to visit Roman and our place in Iowa.

We used Skype to connect so I could use the Skype app on my iPhone.  I loved seeing their little faces all ready to visit and see what we had to show them out in the country.  We first showed them Roman and our dog Charlie.  Hagan fed carrots to Roman and told them what else he liked to eat.

After we showed them around, Art's students had lots of questions for Hagan and I.  They were some of the very best questions I have ever been asked.  We heard...

Do you a cow?  Do you have a pig?  Do you ride your horse?  

Is there a farmer there?  

And the cutest question at the very end....

Do you have a crawfish? 

It was so much fun to talk to them about Iowa and the animals we have.  I also told them about my dad Paul and brother Ryan.  They are farmers in eastern Iowa and raise lots of crops and hogs.  

Next year I would love to Skype with Art's students from their farm or even from the field in a tractor.  A real live farmer would be very special to bring to his classroom and students.  

One of the things I will remember the most from this whole school year was when the little boy in the red plaid shirt said, 

"Thank you Miss Shannon.  We will miss you."  

That meant so much to me.  To know that we are all important and special to each other even though we live over 1,000 miles apart and have never met in person.  That is what all of this is all about.  

It just shows we can all make a difference by making these connections with others no matter where we are at.  Art and I became friends on Twitter, our students connected, and this is just the beginning for all of us.  

Thank you friends.....You mean so much to me and you made such an impact on me this year.  I will miss you too. 

You can read all about our first connection in the post How One Amazing Movie Created By Our New Kindergarten Friends In LA Made A Difference At Our School.