Kids run from school bus into Bell Museum

K–12 Field Trips & Groups

Explore, discover, and connect with the Bell Museum

K-12 Booking for the 2024-25 school year is now open. This includes in-person field trips, virtual programs, and the ExploraDome traveling planetarium.

Please note: we are fully booked for 2023-2024 field trips.

The Bell Museum brings together science, art, and the environment with a unique Minnesota perspective. We offer school groups a high-quality learning experience, working with you to achieve your educational goals, no matter where you are in the state!

Download our educator brochure for a concise overview of our educator programs, plus offerings by grade.

Educator Programs Brochure

Details:

Field trips are scheduled for Wednesday-Friday (and select Tuesdays)
Field trips must be booked a minimum of four weeks prior to the visit date
Scholarships are available for qualified schools. Please inquire when booking
School groups must be a minimum of 25 students. If you have a large number of students, we may ask to split your group into two bookings or two separate dates
If you are interested in our pilot Indigenous Field Trip programs for the 2024-2025 school year, you can express your interest and be added to a list to stay updated as the planning for those trips are finalized

Pricing

Create your own visit by choosing and combining experiences (museum visit, planetarium, science lab). The first experience is $6 per student and each additional experience is just $3 per student. Pricing includes teachers, 1:1 support staff, and one free adult for every 8 students; additional adults are charged the student rate. Invoices for payment will be sent after your visit.

One experience: $6 per student

Two experiences: $9 per student

Three experiences: $12 per student

Scholarships

Scholarships and bus funding are available for qualified schools.

Learn more

Booking & Visit Details

Field trips must be booked at least four weeks in advance. The minimum size for discounted educational group rates is 15 people.

We encourage you to submit your preferred date/time. You will receive a confirmation of your request:

When bookings open in April, we will prioritize confirmation of field trip dates between September-November 2024.
If you are requesting a field trip for a date after December 1, 2024, you will hear from the booking team by October 9th.
You will receive confirmation of your booking date and scholarship status (if requested) at the same time.
Send only 1 request per field/trip group. Multiple requests (ex. from different teachers) may delay your confirmation.

If you have any questions, please email bellgroups@umn.edu.

K-12 Field Trip Request Form

FAQs

Accessibility: The Bell Museum strives to make its facility accessible to all. We work with groups to provide appropriate accommodations for their specific needs to facilitate a lasting and meaningful experience for everyone. Please let us know of your needs when booking your experience. We are happy to arrange captioning, ASL interpretation, or other accommodations with a two-week notice. For additional information, please ask during booking.

Lunch Space: Limited space is available for groups booking 2 or more experiences at no additional cost. Bag lunches must be brought from school/home—the Bell museum is not able to provide food for lunch or refrigeration. Lunch space must be reserved at time of booking and is not guaranteed.

Inclement Weather: In the case of school closures, we will work with groups to reschedule the visit for a later date as space is available. Please contact us as soon as possible once you know your school will be closed.

Cancellations: Cancellations will only be accepted for cases of extenuating circumstances such as: busing or transportation issues, inclement weather, or other extraordinary circumstances. There is a one-time option to reschedule, dependent on availability.

Chaperones: The required field trip chaperone ratio is 1:10, but 1:8 is preferred. 1:1 support staff/PCAs are not counted in the chaperone ratio. Additional chaperones beyond the 1:8 ratio will be charged at the student rate. Chaperones must supervise their students at all times.

Woolly mammoth Teachers: Planning your field trip and want to learn more before making your final decision? We would love to invite you for a visit to learn more about the museum and our various offerings for school groups to help with your planning process.