Facilitated Field Trips
Facilitated School Group Experiences
During a Facilitated Field Trip at the Anchorage Museum, student groups will explore, reflect, build, and create. We use broad topics to guide these facilitated experiences which include at least two of the following: facilitated discussion in a museum gallery, building and creating activity, and/or a planetarium show. These packages may also include time to free explore in one to two gallery spaces of choice and time for students to enjoy a packed lunch in the museum Atrium.
We offer Facilitated field trips on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays starting at 10 a.m. Facilitated Field Trips are $6 per student and $6 per chaperone. Educators and staff may receive free admission with their staff ID badge. Title 1 school groups are $5 per student. Chaperones, educators, and staff receive free admission.
Field Trips must be scheduled at least 2 weeks in advance of the requested program date. All Field Trips require 1 chaperone per 5 elementary and middle school students and 1 chaperone for every 10 high school students.
A minimum of 10 students is required for facilitated programming.
Pre K-1st Grade |
2nd-8th Grade |
9th-12th Grade |
Offerings
Climate Change
Examine our changing climate. Students will learn about the impacts of climate change in Alaska and consider how humans and animals may adapt to the new challenges presented by global warming. Through hands-on activities and interactive science-based inquiry, students will build problem solving skills and develop approaches to scientific thinking.
Learn how a changing climate affects water and fisheries. Follow the water cycle with a planetarium program and follow salmon from streams to sea and back again with an interactive activity. Join an educator-led tour of the Art of the North galleries to learn about fishing technologies and practices across time.
Duration: 3 Hours
Includes: Orientation, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center, H2O Cycle planetarium program, salmon cycle activity, and museum educator-led gallery experience at Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center and time for lunch
Activities support NGSS: 2-LS4-1, 3-LS4-3, 3-LS4-4, 3-LS1-1, 3-LS4-2, 4-LS1-1, 4-LS1-2
Learn about the engineering challenges presented by building on permafrost. In CoLab, invent a structure that stands as permafrost melts. In the Alaska exhibition, discover the innovations necessary for construction of the Alaska pipeline.
Duration: 3 Hours
Includes: Orientation, museum educator-led gallery experience in Alaska exhibition, a guided experience in CoLab, an interactive activity, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch
Activities support NGSS: 3-5-ETS1-1, 3-5-ETS1-2, 3-5-ETS1-3, 5-ESS2-1, 5-ESS3-1, MS-ETS1-1, MS-ETS1-2, MS-ETS1-3, MS-ETS1-4, MS-LS1-6, MS-LS2-5, MS-ESS3-3, MS-ESS3-4
Learn about how humans and animals are coping with the disappearance of sea ice. In the planetarium film, A Place Like No Other, delve into current science about the impacts of climate change in Alaska. Students build scientific thinking skills through an interactive activity. Explore the ice-bound lives of the walrus and polar bear in a guided Art of the North galleries experience.
Duration: 3 Hours
Includes: Orientation, Wonders of the Arctic planetarium film with a participatory activity, educator-led exploration of the Art of the North galleries, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch
Activities support NGSS: HS-LS2-6, HS-LS2-7, HS-LS2-8, HS-LS4-6, HS-ESS2-2, HS-ESS2-5, HS-ESS2-4, HS-ESS3-5, HS-ESS3-1, HS-ESS3-6
Meet a live reptile and learn about animals and their basic needs. In CoLab, students will create an object or experience to enhance enrichment to the lives of the museum's animals.
Duration: 3 Hours
Includes: Orientation, museum educator-led activities in Art Lab and CoLab, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center, and time for lunch
Reptile Life and Inventing activity supports NGSS: K-LS1-1, K-ESS3-1, 1-LS1-2, 2-LS4-1, K-2-ETS1-1, K-2-ETS1-2, K-2-ETS1-3
Students learn about the history and forces behind flight through the planetarium film Flight Adventures. In CoLab, students will experience the engineering process as they prototype their own flying crafts.
Duration: 3 Hours
Includes: Orientation, Flight Adventures planetarium film and museum educator-led activity in CoLab, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center, and time for lunch
Flight Adventures planetarium film and activity supports NGSS: 3-PS2-1, 3-PS2-2, 3-5-ETS1-1, 3-5-ETS1-2, 3-5-ETS1-3 , MS-ETS1-1, MS-ETS1-2, MS-ETS1-3, MS-ETS1-4, MS-PS2-2
Investigate the ways humans have traveled across Alaska's diverse landscapes with an educator-led tour of the Alaska Exhibition. In CoLab, students will experience the engineering process as they prototype their own travel method.
Duration: 3 Hours
Includes: Orientation, museum educator-led tour of the Alaska Exhibition and activity in CoLab, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch
CoLab activity supports NGSS: 3-5-ETS1-1, 3-5-ETS1-2, 3-5-ETS1-3, MS-ETS1-3, MS-ETS1-2
Students learn about conservation of energy and momentum, and how NASA utilizes planets to aid in spacecraft exploration through the planetarium program Gravity Assist. In CoLab, students experience the engineering process in a hands on activity.
Duration: 3 Hours
Includes: Orientation, Gravity Assist planetarium program and museum educator-led activity in CoLab, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch
Gravity Assist planetarium show and Spark!Lab activity supports NGSS: HS-PS2-2, HS-PS3-1, HS-PS3-2, HS-PS3-3, HS-ETS1-2, HS-ETS1-3
Through a guided gallery experience in the Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center, students look closely at primary sources showcasing innovative technologies Alaska Native peoples create to navigate Alaska’s waters. In the Discovery Center, students meet live aquatic animals at the Intertidal Tank and learn about tidepools in Alaska.
Duration: 2.5 Hours
Orientation, museum educator-led gallery experience, museum educator-led activity with animal encounter in Alaska Marine Life, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch.
Northern Waters gallery experience supports Alaska Content Standards: AH.PPE 1, AH.PPE 2, GEOG.B1, HIST.A 8, Arts.A 1, Arts.C 5
Alaska Marine Life supports NGSS: K-ESS3-1
Through a guided gallery experience in the Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center, students look closely at primary sources showcasing innovative technologies Alaska Native peoples create to navigate Alaska’s waters. Learn how water on Earth is connected in the Water Cycle planetarium film followed by an interactive activity where students learn about tidepools and meet live aquatic animals.
Duration: 3.5 Hours
Orientation, museum educator-led gallery experience, Water Cycle planetarium film and museum educator-led activity with animal encounter in Alaska Marine Life, time in CoLab, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch
Northern Waters gallery experience supports Alaska Content Standards: AH.PPE 1, AH.PPE 2, GEOG.B1, HIST.A 8, Arts.A 1, Arts.C 5
Water Cycle planetarium film and Alaska Marine Life supports NGSS: K-ESS3-1, 2-LS4-1, 2-ESS2-3, 3-LS3-2
Through a guided Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center experience, students look closely at primary sources showcasing innovative technologies Alaska Native peoples create to navigate the waters of Alaska. Students learn about Alaska tidepool habitats and meet live aquatic animals with an educator or watch the River of Bears planetarium program and participate in an interactive activity to learn about food webs in Alaska's rivers. .
Duration: 3.5 Hours
Orientation, museum educator-led gallery experience, museum educator-led activity with animal encounter in Alaska Marine Life or River of Bears planetarium program with participatory activity, time in CoLab, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch
Northern Waters gallery experience supports Alaska Content Standards: AH.PPE 1, AH.PPE 2, GEOG.B1, HIST.A 8, Arts.A 1, Arts.C 5
Alaska Marine Life supports NGSS: 4-LS1-1, 5-LS1-2, MS-LS2-1, MS-LS2
River of Bears planetarium film and activity supports NGSS: 3-LS4-3, 3-LS4-4, 5-PS3-1, 5-LS2-1, MS-LS2-1
Through a guided gallery experience in the Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center, students look closely at primary sources showcasing innovative technologies Alaska Native peoples create to navigate Alaska’s waters. Students meet live aquatic animals to learn about the adaptations of Alaska tidepool creatures and how climate change is impacting these ecosystems.
Duration: 3.5 Hours
Includes: Orientation, museum educator-led gallery experience, museum educator-led activity with animal encounter in Alaska Marine Life, time in CoLab, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch.
Northern Waters gallery experience supports Alaska Content Standards: AH.PPE 1, AH.PPE 2, GEOG.B1, HIST.A 8, Arts.A 1, Arts.C 5
Alaska Marine Life experience (7-8) supports NGSS: MS-LS1-4, MS-LS2-1, MS-LS2-4
Learn about sounds and soundscapes using different instruments. Students create their own soundscapes in an educator-led activity..
Duration: 2.75 Hours
Includes: Orientation, museum educator-led activity, time in CoLab, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch
Soundscapes supports NGSS: K-ESS3-1, 1-PS4-1, 2-LS4-1
Students are introduced to the field of soundscape ecology with a live planetarium program. Students build understanding of scientific approaches through a sound-based interactive activity.
Duration: 3 Hours
Includes: Orientation, Global Soundscapes live planetarium program, museum educator-led activity, time in CoLab, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch
Live Global Soundscapes planetarium program and activity supports NGSS: 3-LS4-4, 4-PS4-1, MS-PS4-1, MS-LS2-2
Students are introduced to the field of soundscape ecology with a live planetarium program. Students learn about current soundscape ecology research and develop their own soundscape ecology research questions and hypotheses, building approaches to scientific thinking.
Duration: 3 Hours
Includes: Orientation, Global Soundscapes live planetarium program, museum educator-led activity, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch
Live Global Soundscapes planetarium program and activity support NGSS: HS-PS4-1, HS-LS2-6
Explore our night sky in an immersive program in the planetarium and learn about the North Star, Big Dipper, Sun and Moon. In a participatory activity, students will explore what it is like to be an astronaut.
Duration: 2 .5 Hours
Includes: Orientation, planetarium program and participatory activity, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch
Learn about the interactions between the earth, moon and sun through a live planetarium program and discover why we have days, nights and seasons with a participatory activity. Through self-guided time in the Alaska exhibition, students look closely at primary sources and examine their relationships to Alaska’s resources and lifestyles.
Duration: 3 Hours
Includes: Orientation, live planetarium program and participatory activity, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch
Live planetarium program and activity supports NGSS: 1-PS4-2, 1-ESS1-1, 1-ESS1-2, 2-ESS2-3
Place self-guided supports Alaska Social Studies Standards: GEOG.A 1, GEOG.A 2, GEOG.A 3, GEOG.B 8, HIST.C 2
Students learn what objects are in our night sky and how what we see changes based on location and time in a live planetarium program and interactive activity. Through self-guided time in the Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center, students look closely at primary sources and examine their relationships to Alaska’s resources and lifestyles.
Duration: 3 Hours
Includes: Orientation, live planetarium program and participatory activity, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch/p>
Live planetarium program and interactive activity supports NGSS: 5-PS2-1, 5-ESS1-1
Self guided Smithsonian Arctic Studies Center experience supports Alaska Social Studies Standards: GEOG.A1, GEOG.A3, GEOG.B8, HIST.C2
Explore the scale of the solar system in a live planetarium program and make a pocket-size solar system in a participatory activity. Through self-guided time in the Alaska exhibition, students look closely at primary sources and examine their relationships to Alaska’s resources and lifestyles.
Duration: 3.5 Hours
Includes: Orientation, live planetarium program and participatory activity, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch
Live planetarium program and participatory activity supports NGSS: MS-PS2-4, MS-ESS1-1, MS-ESS1-2, MS-ESS1-3
Place self-guided experience supports Alaska Content Standards: AH.PPE1, AH.PPE2, AH.ICGP2, ARTS.C5
Students traverse the universe to learn more about our perspective and the relative “place in space” in a live planetarium program and interactive activity. Through self-guided time in the Lines of Sight exhibition, students look at community storytelling and examine their relationships to Alaska’s culture and lifestyles.
Duration: 3.5 Hours
Includes: Orientation, live planetarium program and participatory activity, teacher-led exploration in the Discovery Center and time for lunch
Live planetarium program and participatory activity supports NGSS: HS-ESS1-1, HS-ESS1-4, HS-ESS2-7
Place gallery experience supports Alaska Content Standards: AH.PPE1, AH.PPE2, AH.ICGP2, ARTS.C5
Additional Resources
The Anchorage Museum offers a range of online resources and publications that you can use from home, selectable by grade level and topic. Explore resources for teaching and learning.
ART: DENALI/DENIAL
Examine the artwork Denali/Denial by Chris Jordan with 7th-grade students.
BELONGING
Explore the idea of belonging through artworks created by artists who have made Alaska their home with K12 students.
SCIENCE PASSPORT: HOME EDITION
Explore the world of science in and around your home. Use this passport to mark the scientific adventures you discover in your everyday spaces.
NORTHERN WATERS
Dive into the northern waters of Alaska with K12 students
CITIZEN SCIENCE: REPEAT PHOTOGRAPHY
Learn about repeat photography and then be a citizen scientist by participating in the Anchorage Museum’s repeat photography project.
TWENTY QUESTIONS
Delve deeply by using this deck of twenty questions to ask any museum object with K-12 students.
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS
The Anchorage Museum is grateful to our generous sponsors for supporting our mission and making virtual field trips in the 2022-23 school year possible for students and educators across Alaska.
