Field Trips & Group Visits

Field Trips Available:

Sink and Float: Pre-K and Kindergarten
Hands-on activities based around the question, “Does it sink or float?” Children learn about density through hypothesis, testing and verifying whether various objects sink or float. Students will also design & build boats out of aluminum foil and experiment with each vessel’s floating ability.
NC Curriculum Alignment: APL-1, APL-2, LDC-7, CD-1, CD-2, CD-11, K.P.1

Bee School: Pre-K and Kindergarten
Explore what it’s like to be a bee at every stage of life – from baby bees in their honeycomb cell, to nurse bees caring for the hive, to adult bees foraging for nectar and pollen. Activities are designed to spark interest, enthusiasm and empathy for our bee buddies. We’ll spend time in our outdoor garden & create an origami seed packet to take home! Please note: The workshop portion of this field trip will take place outside if weather permits but can also be facilitated inside.
NC Curriculum Alignment: APL-1-2, APL-3, APL-5, HPD-4-6, LDC-7-10, CD-1-3, CD-5, CD-9, CD-11-15, K.L.1, K.P.1, K.L.1.1, K.L.1.2

Sense-ibilities: Pre-K and Kindergarten
Explore the five senses as we find adventure at every sight, sniff, sound, and texture. While working in cooperative groups, learn how our senses can keep us safe and help us understand our world. Children will explore, compare and predict physical properties of mystery objects.
NC Curriculum Alignment: APL-6, HPD-2, HPD-4-5, LDC-7-8, CD-1,11,14-15

Healthy Bodies = Happy Bodies: Kindergarten – 2nd Grade
Explore how healthy habits keep our bodies happy and moving! This high-activity trip leads your students through the museum as we explore healthy foods, yoga, and fun exercises to get your heartbeat going!
NC Curriculum Alignment: K.PCH.1.1, K.NPA.1-2, 1.NPA.1, 1.NPA.2, 1.NPA.3, 1.PCH.1, 1.PCH.2, 1.MEH.1, 2.MEH.1, 2.NPA.1.2

Material Matters: Kindergarten
Sort, classify, & create – all while discovering matter! Learn how all matter is composed of small particles and how to classify & describe everyday objects while exploring the museum! Additionally, students will explore and investigate using iPhone microscopes. The upgraded version of this trip is a make and take creation using real potter’s tools and clay.
NC Curriculum Alignment: K.P.2.1, K.P.2.2

Forces and Motion: 1st grade – 2nd grade
Students will explore forces and motion and experiment with wind and weather while learning to work as a team. We’ll design and engineer with different materials using Kidzu’s portable wind tunnel.
NC Curriculum Alignment: 1.P.1, 1.P.1.1, 1.P.1.2, 2.E.1.2, 2.E.1.4

Mini Makers: 1st grade – 2nd grade
Makers are inventors, tinkerers and scientists! Learn about engineers and then discover your inner maker through planning, designing, and creating a bridge as a team. We will test the creations at the end of the lesson to see which bridges are the strongest, longest, highest, and most effective.
NC Curriculum Alignment: 1.MD.2, 1.P.1, 1.G.2, 1.E.1  2.MD.2, 2.MD.3, 2.E.1

Good Vibrations: 2nd Grade
How do we sense sound? We know that we can hear it, but did you know that you can see it? Feel it? Interact with it? Students will use multiple senses to discover that sound is an invisible form of energy.
NC Curriculum Alignment: 2.P.1, 2.P.1.1, 2.P.1.2

Algorithms and Problem Solving Field Trip: 2nd grade –  3rd grade
How do engineers communicate with computers and other forms of technology? In the Algorithms and Problem Solving field trip, students will have hands-on experience learning how computer scientists develop algorithms through problem solving techniques in order to program these machines.
NC Curriculum Alignment: K2-AP-01, K2-AP-02, K2-AP-03, K2-AP-04, 35-AP-01, 35-AP-02, 35-AP-03, 35-AP-06

In-School STEM Field Trips Available:

Tech for Tots: Pre-K and Kindergarten
Explore robotics and computer programming with engaging, hands-on activities! Children will investigate what makes computers and robots special, while interacting with real robots and learning how to communicate with these types of technology.
NC Curriculum Alignment: CD-2, CD-3, CD-11, CD-12, CD-13, APL-5, APL-6, K2-CS-02, K2-CS-03, K2-CS-04, K2-NI-01, K2-DA-04, K2-AP-02, K2-AP-03, K2-AP-04, K2-AP-05, K2-AP-07, K2-AP-08

Weather: Kindergarten, 2nd Grade
What causes the weather we observe all around us? Participants will get to explore weather tools and perform experiments to dive deeper into the science behind the weather patterns we see and experience every day.
NC Curriculum Alignment: K.E.1, K.E.1.1, 2.E.1, 2.E.1.1, 2.E.1.2, 2.E.1.3, 2.E.1.4

Forces of Flight: 1st grade, 3rd grade
What are the 4 forces of flight and how do they allow airplanes and helicopters to fly through the air? Participants will get to create airplane launchers, paper helicopters, and use Kidzu’s wind tunnels to put their own “flying machines” to the test.
NC Curriculum Alignment: 1.P.1, 1.P.1.1, 1.P.1.3, 3.P.1, 3.P.1.1, 3.P.1.2, 3.P.1.3

Life Cycles: 2nd Grade
Learn about the life cycles of flowering plants, insects, and amphibians! Participants will experience the progression of these life cycle stages through a bean plant experiment, frog craft, and creation of a handheld learning tool explaining the ladybug life cycle.
NC Curriculum Alignment: 2.L.1, 2.L.1.1, 2.L.1.2

Matter: 2nd Grade-3rd Grade
What is matter and how do we study it like scientists? Participants will investigate chemical change, distinguish between the states of matter, and learn about the properties of various materials.
NC Curriculum Alignment: 2.P.2, 3.P.2, 3.P.2.2

Algorithms and Problem Solving: 3rd Grade-5th Grade
Learn how computers solve problems through algorithms created by computer programmers! By interacting with one of Kidzu’s favorite robots, Cubetto, and writing algorithms in small groups and for friends, participants will gain insight into how computers process information and reach goals.
NC Curriculum Alignment: 35-AP-01, 35-AP-02, 35-AP-03, 35-AP-04, 35-AP-05, 35-AP-06, 35-AP-10, 35-AP-11, 35-AP-12

Electricity: 3rd grade-4th Grade
Discover how we generate electricity, how it travels to our homes and schools, and how we transform it to be useful in our daily lives. Participants will experiment with static electricity, create live circuits, and investigate conductive and insulating materials.
NC Curriculum Alignment: 3.P.3, 3.P.3.1, 3.P.3.2, 4.P.2.1

Forces and Motion: 3rd Grade, 5th Grade
Learn about Newton’s laws of motion and how we experience each in our everyday lives. Participants will investigate Newton’s 3 laws through an inertia experiment, using catapults, and putting on balloon races!
NC Curriculum Alignment: 3.P.1, 3.P.1.1, 3.P.1.2, 3.P.1.3, 5.P.1, 5.P.1.1, 5.P.1.2, 5.P.1.4

Renewable Energy: 6th Grade-8th Grade
Take a deep dive into energy and renewable energy resources! Participants will build their own electric motors, mini wind turbines, and solar ovens to investigate how energy can be harnessed to power our lives.
NC Curriculum Alignment: 6.P.3, 6.P.3.3, 7.P.2, 8.P.2, 8.P.2.1, 8.P.2.2

Computational Thinking: 6th Grade-8th Grade
How do computer programmers communicate with machinery through code? To answer this question, participants will try out computers’ binary language, solve game theory riddles, experiment with robotics, and use code to direct friends’ actions.
NC Curriculum Alignment: 68-CS-01, 68-AP-03, 68-AP-04, 68-AP-07, 68-AP-10, 68-AP-12, 68-IC-04, 68-IC-05, 68-IC-06

Biomedical Engineering: 7th Grade-8th Grade
Gain hands-on experience with engineering in the medical field. Learn how prosthetic limbs are designed and help their users, experience how engineering plays a part in medicine we use regularly, and consider how biomedical engineering can help us keep our bodies safe.
NC Curriculum Alignment: 7.L.1, 7.L.1.4, 8.L.2, 8.L.2.1

In-School Outdoor Learning Field Trips Available:

Honeybees: Pre-K, Kindergarten-1st Grade
How do honeybees communicate with one another? Where do honeybees get their food? Why do honeybees build their hives using hexagon shapes? Learn the answers to these questions and more about the fascinating lives of hardworking honeybees!
NC Curriculum Alignment: NC Foundations Cognitive Development, Approaches to Play and Learning, and Language Development and Communication, K.P.1, K.P.2, K.L.1, 1.L.1, 1.L.2

Earth and Ecosystems: Pre-K, Kindergarten-2nd Grade
Investigate the science of the way the Earth works from the sky all the way down to the dirt in the ground! Participants will learn about and observe clouds, collect weather data, and experiment with worms and soil to gain an understanding of our planet’s patterns and ecosystems.
NC Curriculum Alignment: APL-1, LDC-2, LDC-8, LDC-9, CD-1, CD-14, CD -15, K.E.1, K.E.1.1, K.E.1.2, K.E.1.3, 1.L.1, 1.L.1.1, 1.L.1.2, 1.L.1.3, 2.E.1, 2.E.1.2, 2.E.1.4

Forces and Motion: Pre-K, Kindergarten-2nd Grade
Explore the concepts of forces and motion through fairy rings, handmade bird gliders, and sound! Participants will practice positional language and movement, discuss the science behind flying objects, and play with boom whackers to learn about pitch and volume.
NC Curriculum Alignment: CD-4, CD-5, CD-10, CD-11, CD-14, CD-15, K.P.1, K.P.1.1, K.P.1.2, 1.P.1, 1.P.1.3, 2.P.1, 2.P.1.1, 2.P.1.2

Living Organisms: Pre-K, Kindergarten, 2nd Grade
Enjoy the stories The Big Book of Bugs, Amazing Bees, and A Butterfly is Patient to learn about the lives of living organisms. Then, participants will hunt for bugs in the garden, learn about insect life cycles, and compare butterflies and moths.
NC Curriculum Alignment: CD-5, CD-10, CD-11, CD-14, CD-15, APL-1, APL-2, K.L.1, K.L.1.1, 2.L.2.1, 2.L.2.2