Classes
Add a science program, lab, or planetarium program to your museum visit. Options available for ages Pre-K through high school.
For more information or to make a reservation, call the Reservations Coordinator at 757-534-7410 Monday-Friday, 9am – 4:30pm or complete the online request form.
Science Programs Grades K-5
Through the use of live ambassador animals, museum specimens, and hands-on activities, students become actively involved in these experiences. Science Programs are designed to effectively introduce, reinforce, or review science concepts in a way that makes them exciting and memorable.
Length of Session: PreK – 20 minutes; K – 30 minutes; Grade 1 and up – 45 minutes
Number of Students: 30 maximum
Fee: $12.50 per student (includes self-guided tour of exhibits)
Classroom teachers and school staff are free. One chaperone is recommended for every 10 students and is admitted free. Additional chaperones are $18 each.
Funded in part by Ferguson.
Wonderful Wildlife (PreK-5th)
Building Blocks 1, 5; Science SOLs: K.1, K.6, K.7, 1.1, 1.5, 2.1, 2.4, 2.5, 3.1, 3.4, 4.1, 4.3, 5.1
Meet a variety of wildlife and discover their role in the ecosystem.
Web of Life (K-5th)
Science SOLs: K.1, K.6, K.7, 1.1, 1.4, 1.5, 2.1, 2.5, 3.1, 3.4, 4.1, 4.3, 5.1
Let’s start at the bottom of the food chain. Together we’ll work to make a food web and discuss why different animals eat different things.
Thinking Like a Scientist (K-5th)
Science SOLs: K.1, K.5, K.7, 1.1, 1.5, 2.1, 2.5, 3.1, 3.5, 4.1, 4.3, 5.1
Develop science skills like observing, predicting, classifying, interpreting, and measuring while learning how wildlife biologists use these skills to protect sea turtle populations.
Cycles of Survival (K-5th)
Science SOLs: K.1, K.6, K.7, 1.1, 1.5, 1.7, 2.1, 2.4, 2.5, 3.1, 3.4, 3.5, 4.1, 4.2, 5.1
Uncover how wild animals survive through hands-on activities that demonstrate their structural and behavioral adaptations.
Energy Around Us (5th)
Science SOLs: 5.1, 5.9
Explore renewable and non-renewable energy sources and discover why conserving energy is important.
Planetarium Programs Grades K-12
Our Planetarium Programs are out of this world! Inside the digital Abbitt Planetarium theater, students will make important connections to essential space science SOLs as they explore the solar system, travel to distant galaxies, and marvel at the mysterious celestial objects in our own night sky.
Length of Session: 45 minutes
Number of Students: 71 maximum
Fee: $12.50 per student (includes self guided tour of exhibits)
Classroom teachers and school staff are free. One chaperone is recommended for every 10 students and is admitted free. Additional chaperones are $18 each.
Funded in part by Langley Federal Credit Union.
Virginia Skies (Grades K-12)
Science SOLs: Vary based on topics requested
Students view the planetarium’s night sky while a staff astronomer discusses seasonal constellations, visible planets and other celestial happenings around the time of your visit.
Day and Night (Grades K-1)
Science SOLs: K.8, K.9, K.10, 1.6, 1.7
Discover the importance of Earth’s shadow as a staff astronomer takes you on a journey from Day to Night.
Stacey Stormtracker (Grades 2-4)
Science SOLs: 2.6, 2.7, 3.7, 3.8, 4.4, 4.5, 4.6
Journey through the solar system and learn all about the forces behind our home planet’s weather.
Skies of Jamestown (Grades 2-4)
History and Social Science SOLS 2.2, 2.6, VS.1, VS.2, VS.3
Discover the dangers of ocean travel in the early 1600s and learn how important the stars were to two cultures.
Assignment: Earth (Grades 3-4)
Science SOLs: 3.7, 4.5, 4.6
See the Earth through alien eyes as we learn about Moon phases, tides, Earth motions, seasons, and more.
Reason for the Seasons (Grades 4)
Science SOLs: 4.5, 4.6
Witness the power of the tilt of the Earth as one of our staff astronomers helps you explore the reasons for the seasons.
Worlds in Motion (Grades 4-6)
Science SOLs: 4.5, 4.6, 6.3
Explore why objects move across the skies of Earth, why Pluto is no longer a major planet, how fast you are moving when you’re sitting still and other amazing topics…all connected by these worlds in motion.
Oasis in Space (Grades 6-12)
Science SOLs: 6.2, 6.3, ES.2, ES.3
Discover the uniqueness of our home planet as we tour through the solar system, seeking that most basic necessity for life – water. Does water exist elsewhere in the solar system? Can life survive beyond the confines of Earth? These questions and more will be discussed in this visually stunning program about the origins and nature of the worlds that surround us.
Labs Grades 6-12
These in-depth inquiry-based sessions have students actively conducting experiments, collecting data, and analyzing results.
Length of Session: 1.5 hours
Number of Students: 30 maximum
Fee: $14.50 per student (includes self guided visit of exhibits)
Classroom teachers and school staff are free. One chaperone is recommended for every 10 students and is admitted free. Additional chaperones are $18 each.
Funded in part by VuBAY FOUNDATION.
Middle School Labs (Grades 6-8)
Chesapeake Bay Ecology
Science SOLs: 6.1, 6.8, LS.1, LS.5, LS.6, LS.8, LS.9, PS.1
Challenge your students in our station-based lab to improve data collection skills, critical thinking, and understanding real-world issues as they impact our Bay. This program provides a well-rounded view on the ecology of the Bay while inspiring a sense of stewardship to protect our environment.
Plant Power
Science SOLs: 6.1, LS.1, LS.4, PS.1
Dissect a flower to discover its various parts while learning what role they play in pollination. Discuss the importance of pollination, how pollinators help, and ways we can protect and promote pollinators for healthy gardens.
Rockin’ Our Earth
Science SOLs: 5.1, 5.8, 6.1, 6.9, LS. 1, LS. 8, PS. 1
Explore the rock cycle and examine special properties of minerals through a series of experiments and learn why rocks and minerals are important to everyday life.
High School Labs (Grades 9-12)
Fish Dissection
Science SOLs: BIO.1, BIO.3, ES.1, ENV.1, Anatomy and Physiology I, III
Practice using and applying medical terminology during a fish dissection. Similarities and differences of human and fish anatomy will be compared and contrasted throughout the lab.