NGSS-Based Curriculum Topics
 

Each field trip includes three hands-on learning stations, including one in the water.

*Only K-8th field trips include a water activity*

NEW!! Preschool/TK: Nature Play & Discovery: Sensing the World Around Us
Young learners engage in short, hands-on lessons that spark curiosity and connect them to nature through playful, sensory-rich experiences that nurture wonder and build foundational science skills. Please register for kindergarten and include the actual age group in the comments on the form.

Kindergarten: Wildlife Needs: Exploring Nature’s Survival Patterns
Students discover what plants and animals need to survive as they explore the pond and choose a suitable habitat for a toy salamander.

First Grade: Creek Creatures & Clever Designs
Students explore a local creek to observe and compare immature and adult aquatic organisms. Then, they design and build simple structures inspired by nature to create a shelter.

Second Grade: From Creek Critters to Flying Seeds: Observing Nature’s Strategies
Students observe, draw, and journal about seed structures as they investigate seed dispersal. Then, they explore and compare two different habitats (usually pond and stream).

Third Grade: Cycles and Traits: Exploring Life’s Patterns in Nature
Students seek evidence for the value of variation, discovering that some animals and plants have advantages. They also explore life cycles during a creek investigation.

Fourth Grade: Erosion Explorers: Gold Panning and Dam Building
Students learn about erosion and deposition by engineering a dam and panning for gold.

Fifth Grade: 5th Grade – Earth’s Spheres: Fire, Water, and Living Connections
Students discover how fire models interactions among the atmosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and geosphere, and review adaptations of creek organisms.

Sixth Grade: Adaptive Behaviors & Structures and Watersheds
Students explore the specific behaviors and physical adaptations of creek organisms, then examine the ecological roles (niches) of terrestrial organisms.

Seventh and Eighth Grades - Ecosystems, Nutrient Cycles, and Engineering:
Students explore the connections of creek organisms to nearby terrestrial areas and then look at the elements and processes of decomposition, culminating in designing a composting system that could be used at home.