Returning to an in-person format for the first time since 2020, the award-winning educational program will place an emphasis on potential and kinetic energy, showcasing numerous examples of energy transfer within the game of hockey. Special guests for the First Flight Field Trip include appearances from Anaheim Ducks players and mascot Wild Wing. All activities will be held at Honda Center beginning at 8 a.m. and conclude at 12:30 p.m.
Registered students will interact with exhibits, watch stage shows and have the opportunity to watch the Anaheim Ducks practice. Following the conclusion of practice, Ducks players will speak to students and lead on-ice activities demonstrating how energy transfer occurs in different scenarios of the game of hockey. The field trip is segmented into two unique parts-The "Playground" and the "Classroom." First Flight encourages students to engage in and explore science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) through a variety of activities and demonstrations. STEM education is a fundamental part of the Anaheim Ducks S.C.O.R.E. program and is utilized to ignite students' interest and passion in the STEM fields.
The "Playground" portion will take place from 8-11 a.m. and provide students a chance to experience interactive exhibits and stage shows provided by like-minded community and corporate organizations in the Honda Center parking lot. Exhibits include Blazing Boltz presented by Sphero, Green Means Go presented by Orange County Waste & Recycling and Orange County Department of Education and Launch Your Learning with First Flight presented by EverFi. Stage shows include Discovering Forces presented by Discovery Cube OC & LA and Ramp Up the Energy! Presented by Keen Ramps.
The "Classroom" segment of the event will take place from 11-12:30 p.m. inside the arena at Honda Center, where students will learn the different forms of energy with demonstrations by Anaheim Ducks players and team mascot, Wild Wing. Students and teachers will travel from as far away as the Mojave Desert and Imperial Valley for this one-of-a-kind educational experience.
During the First Flight Field Trip, students will refer to a workbook which explores how STEM based concepts affect their daily lives, connecting those examples to Anaheim Ducks game-specific scenarios. With the combination of the First Flight workbook, "Turn Up the Energy" classroom kit, and live demonstrations with players, students will learn about the differences between potential and kinetic energy and how we experience both on a daily basis. The Ducks have also partnered with several local educational organizations and civic-minded corporations to present more hands-on exhibits that supplement lessons found in the First Flight workbook (a complete list of participants is included below).
Alongside event partners like CSU Fullerton and Discovery Cube OC&LA, approximately 150 additional volunteers are scheduled to assist students with educational instruction on the "Playground." Approximately 80 of the volunteers are students from local Orange County high schools.
Recognized as an educational event for all ages by the California State Assembly and as a contributor to informal education by the National Science Teachers' Association, the First Flight Field Trip is completely free to participating schools and students, and the curriculum has been designed to meet the state's educational content standards for grades 3-6. The S.C.O.R.E. program is the primary beneficiary of the Anaheim Ducks Foundation. It was developed in 2005 with the goal of promoting and cultivating healthy living and academic excellence to all students in Southern California.
For more information regarding the First Flight Field Trip, please visit
DucksScore.com
.
The following educational organizations, corporations and volunteer groups have helped to make the First Flight Field Trip possible:
- Bolsa Grande High School
- California State University, Fullerton
- Chapman University
- Children's Hospital of Orange County
- Discovery Cube OC & LA
- EverFi
- Junior League of Orange County, California, Inc.
- Keen Ramps
- Mater Dei High School
- Orange County Department of Education
- Orange County Waste & Recycling
- PBS SoCal
- Rube Goldberg Machine Contest
- Samueli Academy
- Servite High School
- Sphero
- Warrior Sports
