Field Trips
Our field trips require a minimum of 15 students per reservation.
Field trip reservations must be made two weeks in advance. For groups of fewer than
15 students, please go directly to our admission counter upon arrival, or consider
purchasing a membership.
Download a copy of our 2011-2012 Student and Teacher Programs brochure!
The PDF format is available here.
Mobile device user? Download the EPUB file by saving this zip file. Unpack and add the EPUB to your mobile device's library.
Are your students studying a particular topic in Washington's history? Are you interested
in exploring the museum at your own pace? If so, a self-guided visit is the option
for you! We even supply a teachers' field guide.
Exhibits at the museum are interactive and self-paced. We don't give guided tours
of the museum, but your class will receive an orientation to our galleries, along
with information about the featured exhibits on view during your visit. Students
will have the opportunity to view artifacts up close. Our volunteer gallery interpreters
will help students in their search for information, answer questions about the museum,
and provide insight about objects and exhibits.
For the 2011-2012 school year, we are scheduling self-directed visits Wednesday
through Friday through the first week of June.
Additional information
on the Great Hall of Washington History.
Make a reservation
for a self-directed tour of the Great Hall of Washington History. Admission prices
are $4 per student. The museum admits one chaperone per five students for free.
Thank you for your interest in History Lab. Due to high demand, the History Lab is booked through the end of the school year. If you would
like to be added to our waiting list, particularly for a 9:30 slot, please fill out the History Lab
reservation form. We will contact groups on the waiting list if any spaces should
open.
From the moment a class walks into the History Lab, the excitement begins. Students
become detectives in this engaging, one-and-a-half hour facilitated field trip where
they learn about historical evidence by using the "Tools of the History Trade."
Artifacts, ephemera, images, and electronic media are all tools that your class
will use to solve a particular mystery in Washington state’s history. Armed with
a map, a clue, and a code, students must crack the case and find the answer to one
of the many secrets in Washington's past.
For the 2011-2012 school year, we are scheduling History Lab at 9:30 and 11 am
(15-35 students per Lab) on Thursdays in December
and Thursdays and Fridays in January through the first week of June.
Additional information
on the History Lab Learning Center.
Make a reservation
for a facilitated visit to the History Lab Learning Center. Admission prices are
$6 per student. The museum admits one chaperone per five students for free.
Our Ghosts of the Great Hall programs capture the imagination of your students while
building a foundation for studying history in the classroom. While your students
are here, they will be introduced to program themes through listening to a series
of dramatic monologues performed by local professional actors.
At the conclusion
of each, the actors encourage students to ask questions about the event and/or life
of their character. Students will have opportunities to explore the museum exhibits before and/or after the guided portion of the tour.
This facilitated program can accommodate large groups.
Please note: History Lab facilitated visits will be unavailable
during the run of these programs.
Hope in Hard Times: Washington During the Great Depression
Wednesdays only: February 29, March 7, 14, 21, & 28, 2012
Dance to the tunes of the Great Depression in this Ghosts of the Great Hall! Hobos,
dance marathoners, and hunger marchers will reveal the hope behind the hardships
of the 1930s with period music and exciting stories about life in difficult times.
This program complements the special exhibition “Hope in Hard Times: Washington
During the Great Depression” (opening February 20, 2012).
Make a reservation
for a facilitated visit to a Ghosts of the Great Hall program. Admission prices
are $6 per student. The museum admits one chaperone per five students for free.
Visit the Prep Materials page
for helpful hints and instructions to enhance any field trip visit!