School Field Trips

Thank you for your interest in bringing your class to the Arboretum. We are currently accepting reservations for Self-Guided Visits and NGSS Field Study Programs with limited availability remaining. Guided Nature Investigations are fully booked for the current school year. To reserve a field trip date, please submit your request at the appropriate link below. A representative will get back to you within the week to confirm your reservation. 

We are fully booked through the end of the 22/23 school year!

Please check back in the fall.

Reservations open August 9th, 2023.

GENERAL INFORMATION

• • Reservations are required.
  • Students are admitted free of charge.
  • Adult chaperones are admitted free of charge up to a ratio of 1 adult per 5 students. Tickets for any adult over this ratio are $15.00 and must be bough online in advance.
  • The Arboretum requires a 1:10 ratio of adults to students. CHAPERONES CANNOT BE OTHER STUDENTS- THEY MUST BE STAFF MEMBERS OR GUARDIANS. 
  • Students must be accompanied by a chaperone at all times (college students excepted).
  • Self-guided visits are available Monday through Friday for grades preK-College. The Arboretum opens at 9:00 am. Schools cannot enter past 4:00pm.
  • Guided Nature Investigations are available Tuesday through Friday for grades 1st-12th.
  • NGSS Field Study programs are available Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:30am-12pm and offered exclusively for 4^th and 5^th grade classes from Title 1 schools. This program can only accommodate 36 students. 
  • For all other rules and regulations, please read our Arboretum Field Trip Guidelines.
  • To help guide your school group, please download the Self-Guided Tour Information. 
  • For preK-2nd graders, download the Picture Scavenger Hunt. 
  • A limited amount of bus funding is available for Title 1 schools. Please see the “Transportation Grant” section below. 

SELF-GUIDED VISITS  –Fully booked

Available to all grade levels, self-guided visits of the Arboretum present a wonderful opportunity to enhance your classroom curriculum. With their chaperone as their guide, students can explore science, history, wildlife, or simply spend a day discovering nature in a free-choice learning environment. Click the link below to book a self-guided visit.  

NGSS FIELD STUDY PROGRAM  –Fully booked

The Next Generation Science Standards Field Study program is available to 4^th and 5^th grade students from Title 1 Schools. Available on Wednesday and Thursday mornings, this 2.5 hour program includes a guided garden exploration followed by field journaling and hands-on science activities. Click the link below to learn more and book an NGSS Field Study program.  

GUIDED NATURE INVESTIGATIONS  –Fully booked

Available to grades 1st through 12th, Nature Investigations are hands-on, interactive programs led by Arboretum educators. Each Nature Investigation leads students on a journey into the garden where they will take a closer look at the incredible natural systems at work through the lens of different themes, including Habitat, Pollination, Plant Adaptation, Ethnobotany, and Biodiversity. While these themes are different, they contain overarching, crosscutting concepts that connect all five programs. Each program can accommodate approximately 20 students for up to a total/maximum of 100 students per day. Schools may experience one or several of these programs depending on how may students attend. Programs will be assigned to groups upon arrival. Students will delight in sharing what they learned and experienced in their different programs when they rejoin the larger group. This provides unique opportunities for collective learning and dynamic peer exchange. Nature Investigations are 45-60 minutes long, allowing school groups time after the program ends to explore the gardens on their own and synthesize what they’ve learned. Nature Investigations have replaced our former Guided Tours program, and are offered Tuesdays through Fridays. Click the link below to book a Guided Nature Investigation.  

TRANSPORTATION GRANTS

All Transportation Grants for the current school year have been awarded. Please check back in August to apply for the 2023/2024 school year.

ARBORETUN IN THE CLASSROOM

Want to experience the Arboretum virtually instead? Check out some of our educational videos below:

• Monarch Butterflies & Their Habitat: The Arboretum’s Butterfly Waystation
• Lucky Baldwin’s San Gabriel Valley: Arboretum & Arcadia History
• Crescent Farm: A Model of Sustainability

Can’t make it to the garden, but still want to explore nature-based learning?

• Click HERE to explore our library of At-Home Nature Adventures that can easily be conducted in any school setting.