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Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History

School Programs

A museum educator holds up two models of human skulls during a school program in Q?rius.
A museum educator instructs students in a "Forensic Mysteries" school program. Photo by Jennifer Renteria, Smithsonian.

List of Program Types

Bring your class to the museum for a school program led by museum educators, or choose a distance learning option. During the school year, we offer programs for grades K-12. Click a link to jump to information about each type of program.

At the Museum

Grades 6-12

Grades K-5

  • Q?rius jr.: a discovery room is an interactive learning space offering programs for students in grades K through 5. Visit the Q?rius jr. page for program descriptions and registration information. We are now offering Q?rius jr.: a discovery room Homeschool Days, starting in 2018.

Distance Learning

Bring Smithsonian scientists into your classroom via live Smithsonian Science How video webcasts.

Programs At the Museum

Q?rius, The Coralyn W. Whitney Science Education Center is an interactive learning space that brings the unique assets of the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History – the science, researchers, and collections – out from behind the scenes. In Q?rius, students enter into the role of our scientists and engage in solving real-world problems. Q?rius is designed for grades 6-12. Scroll down for program descriptions and registration information.

Grades 6-12

A female instructor holds a human skull over a table and students on both sides lean in to look at it.

Q?rius School Programs

  • Led by museum educators
  • Aligned with standards
  • Designed to keep students on task for 60 minutes

Hours

Registered programs, 10:15 a.m. and 11:45 a.m. from October through June.

How to Register

Go to the school programs registrations page, choose your date and time, click the "Sign Up" button, and on the registration form select the program you want. Registration for the 2018-19 school year is now open. 

Program Descriptions

During takeoff from Reagan National Airport, a plane collided with a flock of birds and was forced to make an emergency landing. During this staff-led program, students will follow in the footsteps of Smithsonian scientists to determine the species of bird that brought down the airplane by examining bird fragments and feathers collected from the affected aircraft, and simulating processing DNA. Students will learn how bird strike data is used by airport managers to alter airfield habitats, and debate proposed methods of discouraging bird congregation around airports.

Read Blog Post About Bird Strike Whodunit? | Related Video: Forensic Ornithologist Carla Dove
(15 to 35 students)
DOWNLOAD FIELD TRIP GUIDE | REGISTER YOUR GROUP | GET TEACHING RESOURCES

How do geologists know what lies beneath the earth’s surface? During this staff-led program, students will collaborate and compete with their classmates to identify the most efficient way to find iron ore by learning to read the stories of rocks. Students will develop skills used by Smithsonian scientists to identify geologic features in rocks, interpret geologic maps, piece together drill cores, and model how tectonic forces deform rocks. After honing their geologic skills, they will compete in groups to see who can most accurately find the extent of the natural resource. Read Blog Post About Dig Deep

(15 to 35 students)
DOWNLOAD FIELD TRIP GUIDE | REGISTER YOUR GROUP

A group of hikers stumbled across what looks like human remains. Have they found a crime scene or could there be another explanation? During this staff-led program, students will examine real human bones, objects and artifacts using the forensic tools and techniques of Smithsonian scientists to determine age, sex, time since death, and maybe even cause of death.
Read Blog Post About A Grizzly Discovery | Related Video: Anthropologist Kari Bruwelheide
(15 to 35 students)
DOWNLOAD FIELD TRIP GUIDE | REGISTER YOUR GROUP | GET TEACHING RESOURCES

Erosion along a creek bed produces a startling discovery – a human skeleton! Before the clues are washed away forever, students will get the chance to examine the evidence collected by the archaeologist during this staff-led program. Using the forensic tools and techniques of Smithsonian scientists, they will study the human bones and artifacts found with the skeleton to determine who this person was, when they lived, and what their life might have been like. Uncover the mystery of a person whose burial could turn out to be over 200 years old!
Read Blog Post on Mystery at Yorktown Creek | Related Video: Anthropologist Kari Bruwelheide
(15 to 35 students)
DOWNLOAD FIELD TRIP GUIDE | REGISTER YOUR GROUP | GET TEACHING RESOURCES

The Q?rius Collection Zone includes 6,000 natural history objects, all accessible for student exploration in this staff-led program. Working in teams, students will receive a Collections Challenge Card, which assigns them to work in one of the Museum’s departments: Anthropology, Botany, Entomology, Invertebrate Zoology, Paleobiology, Mineral Sciences, or Vertebrate Zoology. Like scientists and collections managers at the Museum, students will follow protocols for handling valuable and sometimes delicate objects, and agree upon a strategy to curate and interpret a collection of their own while engaging in the scientific method.
Read Blog Post About the Q?rius Collections Challenge
(15 to 35 students)
DOWNLOAD FIELD TRIP GUIDE | REGISTER YOUR GROUP | GET TEACHING RESOURCES

During this staff-led program, students explore how Smithsonian scientists measure the biodiversity of coral reefs using nondestructive methods. They will model the same scientific processes used by our scientists by observing and analyzing images of plates with the actual organisms that live in the Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structures (ARMS) to better understand human impact on coral reefs. Based upon their observations students will develop, test, and refine explanations and potential recommendations for protecting and preserving coral reefs. Join us on select dates to participate in this redesigned pilot program!
Related Video: Marine Biologist Chris Meyer
(15 to 35 students)
REGISTER YOUR GROUP | GET TEACHING RESOURCES

Six teenage students stand around a table with a colored box and rocks on it. They are doing a school program about geology.

Q?rius Homeschool Days

Q?rius Homeschool Days are led by museum educators and take place on the first Monday of every month, October through June, with two time slots available, 10:15 and 11:45 a.m. Participating students must be in grades 6 through 12, and 11 years old by the date of the program. For younger students, please explore the Q?rius jr. Homeschool Kits.

Participants who complete all nine Q?rius Homeschool Programs will receive a certificate of completion from the Museum. Frequently Asked Questions (PDF)

Registration is now open for these programs:

Have you ever wondered what the world looked like when the dinosaurs were alive? We invite students to join our paleontologists here at the National Museum of Natural History in reconstructing past ecosystems by studying and working with real 66-million-year-old microfossils. In addition to observing, classifying, and identifying microfossils, students will also investigate microscopic fossil pollen to identify plants from ecosystems of the past. Students will work together using reasoning skills and evidence from their investigations to hypothesize the effects of climate change and evolution on this ecosystem over time.

Time Slots (click to get info and register): 10:15 or 11:45

A group of hikers stumbled across what looks like human remains. Have they found a crime scene or could there be another explanation? During this staff-led program, students will examine real human bones, objects and artifacts using the forensic tools and techniques of Smithsonian scientists to determine age, sex, time since death, and maybe even cause of death.

Related Video: Anthropologist Kari Bruwelheide | Get Teaching Resources

Time Slots (click to get info and register): 10:15 or 11:45

During takeoff from Reagan National Airport, a plane collided with a flock of birds and was forced to make an emergency landing. During this staff-led program, students will follow in the footsteps of Smithsonian scientists to determine the species of bird that brought down the airplane by examining bird fragments and feathers collected from the affected aircraft, and simulating processing DNA. Students will learn how bird strike data is used by airport managers to alter airfield habitats, and debate proposed methods of discouraging bird congregation around airports.

Related Video: Forensic Ornithologist Carla Dove | Get Teaching Resources

Time Slots (click to get info and register): 10:15 or 11:45

Registration for these programs will open on January 2, 2019.

Join us as we discover how color is created in nature. We will explore the difference between pigment and structural color using different microscope techniques. Samples from the NMNH collection will be studied and different experiments will be performed, and participants will investigate how this discoveries can impact our lives.

 

How do geologists know what lies beneath the earth’s surface? During this staff-led program, students will collaborate and compete with their classmates to identify the most efficient way to find iron ore by learning to read the stories of rocks. Students will develop skills used by Smithsonian scientists to identify geologic features in rocks, interpret geologic maps, piece together drill cores, and model how tectonic forces deform rocks. After honing their geologic skills, they will compete in groups to see who can most accurately find the extent of the natural resource. 

Read Blog Post About Dig Deep

Erosion along a creek bed produces a startling discovery – a human skeleton! Before the clues are washed away forever, students will get the chance to examine the evidence collected by the archaeologist during this staff-led program. Using the forensic tools and techniques of Smithsonian scientists, they will study the human bones and artifacts found with the skeleton to determine who this person was, when they lived, and what their life might have been like. Uncover the mystery of a person whose burial could turn out to be over 200 years old!

Related Video: Anthropologist Kari Bruwelheide | Get Teaching Resources

Identify artifacts from an Egyptian archaeological site in this staff-led program. Craft hypotheses as budding anthropologists about why certain objects were found at the burial site, and discuss what they can tell us about Ancient Egyptian society.

Students examine Museum collection objects as part of a Q?rius school program. Photo by Jennifer Renteria, Smithsonian.

Plan Your Visit to Q?rius, The Coralyn W. Whitney Science Education Center

Q?rius public hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily.

Get the information you need to plan a trip to the museum, including group arrival and departure logistics, restroom and lunch details, and Butterfly Pavilion discounts for groups.

Teacher's Guide (PDF) | School Group Logistics Sheet (PDF) | Chaperones (PDF)

Contact School Programs

Call 202-633-4039 or email NMNHSchoolPrograms@si.edu.