Teacher Takes Class on Magical Field ‘Trip’ to Mexico: ‘I Want Them to Have Culture’

A love of traveling inspired one Texas teacher to take her students on a pretend trip to Mexico during Hispanic Heritage Month

When first-grade teacher Sonja White discovered that most of her students had never traveled by plane, she let her imagination take flight — and her students', too!

One of those students was Nia, whom White says inspired her to create a Hispanic Heritage Month-themed trip. After a rigorous brainstorming session in which she tried to “put it all together,” she tells PEOPLE, something clicked.

That’s when the idea of taking her students to Mexico from the comfort of their own classroom in Cedar Hill, Texas, was born.

On the day of the pretend trip, White’s classroom transformed into an airplane, ready to welcome its young passengers. The 46-year-old teacher stepped into the role of a TSA agent, sitting at a desk outside, ready to check each student in with their faux boarding passes, passports and packed carry-on bags in hand.

At take-off time, the passengers fidgeted in their chairs to the sounds and visuals of a projected YouTube video at the front of the class. They later enjoyed chips and drinks, which were handed out by White acting as a flight attendant.

As soon as they “landed” in Mexico, White says Nia was “so excited” to become a mini tour guide as she welcomed everyone in Spanish.

“She says the best part is that we got to go together, her and I, and that she got to show me around Mexico,” White recalls.

Nia’s mother played a part as well, by donating the food that the “tourists” enjoyed at a Mexican “restaurant,” like enchiladas and rice, chips with salsa and tres leches cake.

The students even got to exercise their money-handling skills by using a “paycheck” to make purchases at a “gift shop.” White says she decided to add some math to the experience after she realized her students hadn’t fully grasped the money part of the curriculum in her first year of teaching.

“I feel like they really loved it,” White says of her students. “I feel like in some ways their imagination let them believe that we really went to Mexico.”

She says she could even sense their excitement well before the trip when she asked them to pack their carry-on bags. That’s when the parents started chiming in.

“Their parents started texting me Monday night, ‘You got me at Walmart or got me at Target buying a carry-on bag,’ ” White recalls of the trip, which took place later on Friday. “So when the texts started coming about them packing, I knew they were into it.”

Luckily, White says she can always count on the parents to lend a helping hand via her signup sheets.

“My biggest complaint is that it gets filled too quickly,” White says with a laugh. “Somebody didn’t have a chance to help — but they’ve been so excited.”

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Part of the trip’s motivation came from White’s own background growing up and moving frequently with her military family. She wants her students to gain the same perspectives she experienced through traveling, rather than just learning through a textbook.

“I want them to have culture, not just book smarts,” White says. “I really hope that later in life, they have a true desire to travel.”

As soon as White posted a video of the experience to TikTok, many of the 4.1 million viewers were quick to praise her efforts.

Southwest Airlines also took notice and later invited all 70 of the school's first-grade students on a field trip to their corporate campus in Dallas, where each of them got to board an actual airplane. Afterward, Southwest employees hosted a fiesta, complete with a mariachi band and Mexican food for lunch.

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White says everyone now wants to know, “Where are y’all going next?” While she hasn't decided on the location yet, she knows for sure that she'll do something special in February for Black History Month. But for now, she's hoping her Mexico trip will be the catalyst to something much bigger.

“I don’t want this to be it for them, a pretend trip to Mexico,” White says of her students. “I want them to get their passports and go.”

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