when the school takes students to a natural area for fun

[alpacinou]

Can I use "field trip" to talk about an occasion when the school take students outside the school area and take them to natural areas for fun?

Or is "field trip" only used when the purpose is teaching children something?

Does this work?

When I was in 3rd grade, we went to a field trip near a beautiful lake outside the city.

 

[jutfrank]

Field trips are only for learning purposes.

 

[alpacinou]

Field trips are only for learning purposes.

Okay. Should I use "excursion" if it's for fun?

When I was in 3rd grade, we went on an excursion near a beautiful lake outside the city.

 

[Tarheel]

Perhaps:

We took the day off from classes and went to a beautiful lake near the city.

(on a field trip)

 

[Skrej]

'Field trip' works for me, even if it's not strictly an educational excursion, as long as it's school sponsored.

 

[jutfrank]

We use school trip in the UK.

We went on a school trip to ...

 

[emsr2d2]

We used both terms at my middle school (the only school at which I went on such trips). We used "field trip" for a trip to a single destination at which we were to learn more about a specific subject. For example, we went to Greenwich Observatory for a science field trip, to an archaeological excavation site for a history field trip, and to a local oxbow lake for a geography field trip. We used "school trip" for things that lasted a whole day (or longer) and that didn't involve education in just one narrow field. For example, we went on the cross-Channel ferry to a city in northern France for the day, ostensibly to practise our French but mainly to just have a fun day out, shop and eat. I also went skiing in Italy for a week, twice, with ten other pupils and one schoolteacher. Those holidays were definitely referred to as school [ski] trips.