These field trips involve learning about what an ecosystem is, how we impact ecosystems, and what we can do to protect, preserve, and enhance ecosystems. Activities illustrate human interaction and impact on our environment and the plants and animals that live in it.
Bell Museum of Natural History, St. Paul
The Bell Museum, situated on the St. Paul campus of the University of Minnesota, offers a wide variety of natural history attractions, collections, and classes.
Pre-approved classes for bus funding: Honeybees; Pollination and Plants; Climate Change Solutions: geo-engineering; Minnesota Water Stories; Habitat Earth
Camp Fire Minnesota, Excelsior
Camp Fire Minnesota will spark your students’ curiosity through hands-on, experiential learning outdoors.
Pre-approved classes for bus funding: Big Woods Exploration; Climate Change in Minnesota; Low Impact Living; Nature Friendly Homes; Pollinator Garden; Renewable Energy, Wetlands Exploration
Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve, East Bethel
See science in action at Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve, a University of Minnesota College of Biological Sciences field station. field trips incorporate elements of phenomenon-based learning through hands-on, inquiry-forward, activities.
Pre-approved classes for bus funding: Water, Water, Everywhere; Water Quality; Minnesota Biomes; Forests and Biodiversity; BioCON – global change experiment.
Highpoint Center for Printmaking, Minneapolis
Highpoint is a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing the art of printmaking. In the environmental activism through screen printing class, students will learn about various environmental issues. They choose one of these and create a design to advocate for that issue. Then students learn how to make a screenprint to produce images in a non-toxic and responsible way.
Pre-approved class for bus funding: environmental activism through screen printing
Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Chaska
The Minnesota Landscape Arboretum includes more than 1,200 acres of gardens and tree collections, prairie and woods, and miles of trails. Classes provide students hands-on, science-based learning in Arboretum gardens, greenhouses and research plots that address science standards in every season.
Pre-approved classes for bus funding: pollination investigation; maple syrup trail
North Mississippi Regional Park – Kroening Nature Center, Minneapolis
Carl W. Kroening Nature Center is located adjacent to 94 in north Minneapolis and is within the North Mississippi Regional Park. This area hosts access to the Mississippi River, walking and biking trails.
Pre-approved classes for bus funding: Preventing Waste and Recycling; Composting Lessons and Activities; Sustainability and Green Infrastructure; Seeing Water: watershed management; Forest, Prairie, or Mississippi River Ecology
Staring Lake Outdoor Center, Eden Prairie
The Staring Lake Outdoor Center is a 150-acre natural area spread along the shores of a 150-acre natural lake. The center is dedicated to environmental education, wildlife conservation, and outdoor recreation.
Pre-approved classes for bus funding: Monarch Butterfly Lifecycle; Trees and Apple Cider; Maple Syrup; Lake and Forest Explorers; Lake/Water Quality; Adaptations
Three Rivers Park District – Eastman Nature Center, Dayton
Nestled in a sugar maple floodplain forest, this is a great place to begin an outdoor journey. Our naturalists have designed a variety of hands-on, in-the-field units for all seasons and ages. Programs are designed to support state academic standards. We can work with you to adapt our programs to your group.
Pre-approved classes for bus funding: Pond Life Study; Habitat Study; Water Quality and Aquatic Systems
Three Rivers Park District – Lowry Nature Center, Victoria
Lowry Nature Center is a prairie-style building nestled in the middle of Carver Park Reserve. Visitors can view seasonal interpretive displays, visit live animals, and observe birds in the wildlife viewing area. The 250-acre interpretive area features hiking trails that weave between diverse habitats such as lakes, tamarack bogs, cattail marshes, and hardwood forests.
Pre-approved classes for bus funding: Insects of the Ponds and Wetlands; Bees and Pollinators; Water Quality; Reading the Land: digging into the past; Relationships and Energy Flow
Three Rivers Park District – Richardson Nature Center, Bloomington
Located within Hyland Lake Park Reserve, Richardson Nature Center has several classrooms, colorful clay mosaics and sculptures, and live raptors, reptiles, and amphibians. The interpretive area surrounding the building features hiking trails that weave between the diverse habitats of restored prairie, oak forests, and wetlands.
Pre-approved classes for bus funding: Bees and Other Pollinators; Forest and Trees; Maple Syruping; Pond and Water Studies; Prairie; Solar Energy
Urban Ventures Farm, Minneapolis
Bring your Minneapolis group out to Urban Ventures to experience a working urban farm in South Minneapolis. Visits include harvesting vegetables, interacting with chickens, and preparing a healthy snack. Field trips are offered May 1 through October 20. These experiences are only available to Minneapolis-based groups.
Westwood Hills Nature Center, St. Louis Park
Westwood Hills Nature Center is a 160-acre natural area featuring marsh, woods, and restored prairie.
Pre-approved classes for bus funding: Food Webs; Honeybees; Pond Study; Tree Identification
Wilderness Inquiry, Minneapolis
Wilderness Inquiry offers a range of outdoor learning and adventure opportunities designed for students of all backgrounds and abilities. Programs are available with varying levels of intensity from land-based activities to time spent on the water.
Wood Lake Nature Center, Richfield
Wood Lake Nature Center is a 150-acre natural area dedicated to environmental education, wildlife observation, and outdoor recreation. The park features several wildlife viewing areas, and three miles of trails and boardwalks.
Pre-approved classes for bus funding: Bees and Honey; Endangered Species; Human Impacts and Earth’s Resources; Invasive Species; Maple Syruping; Marsh Explorers; Native American Life; Trees, Leaves, and Seeds; Water Cycle; Water Quality