Field Studies

Field studies coupled with classroom activities are an integral part of Meaningful Watershed Educational Experiences. Find a field study program that gets your students' feet wet and hands dirty.

Find a Program Near You

Begin by choosing the criteria for your search. Matching field study programs will be displayed as pin-points on the map below. Click on a pin-point for details about each program. Be sure to scroll through all your results using the "next" button at the bottom of the page.

If you know of a great field study not included in the Bay Backpack let us know by suggesting a field study.

Create Your Own Field Study

Learn how to create your own field study at a local park or on your school grounds.

All Studies by Location
Records: 63

Theme

Level

Length

Organization

Keywords

Field Studies > Land Use and Agriculture   > wildlife  
1 - 25 of 63

Day Trips to Fairview

Programs focus on animal studies, astronomy, campfire, canoeing, challenge course, fishing, geology, hiking, orienteering, weather study, stream study and adventure activities.

Organization(s): Fairview Outdoor Education Center Facilities
Location: 12808 Draper Road Clear Spring, MD 21722 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Early Learning, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: water cycle and movement, wetland, habitat and niche, orienteering, predator prey relationships, stream study, water testing, wildlife
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Hashawha Environmental Center Education Program

Carroll County Outdoor School provides sixth grade students with a unique opportunity for intensive study in a "living laboratory." Each sixth grader has the opportunity to attend a week-long residential environmental education program at the Hashawha Environmental Center. Instruction and supervision are provided by the Outdoor School team, high school student counselors, and visiting classroom teachers.

Organization(s): Carroll County Outdoor School
Location: 300 John Owings Road Westminster, MD 21158 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Middle School
Program Length(s): Day Trips Multi-Day Trips
Keywords: pollution, land use, watershed, habitat and niche, water quality, wildlife
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Distance Learning Programs

If you can't come to the museum, we can come to you through our Distance Learning Programs. We are very excited to offer these programs to people in our region, across the country and around the globe.

Organization(s): Calvert Marine Museum
Location: 14200 Solomons Island Rd Solomons, MD 20688 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, History and Culture, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: pollution, wetland, land use, watershed, culture and watermen, ecosystem and biomes, erosion, forest, habitat and niche, John Smith and colonial times, Native American, sediment, soil and rocks, wildlife, fish, economics
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Explore the Education Center

Blackbird State Forest is a free site for outdoor recreation - open all year long with trails. The Education Center, features interactive displays and outdoor trails on Delaware's forests.

Organization(s): Blackbird State Forest Education Center
Location: 502 Blackbird Forest Road Smyrna, DE 19977 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: forest, habitat and niche, wildlife
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MD-DC-VA Audubon School Programs

At the Audubon Naturalist Society we offer a wide variety of educational programs that foster an appreciation, understanding and stewardship of the natural environment. Our programs are open to public schools, private schools, homeschool groups, and scouts in preschool through Grade 5. For programs with middle and high school students, please contact us to learn how we can tailor a program for your students. We can accommodate children with varied needs and are happy to work with teachers to meet their academic goals. We give teachers the convenient choice of taking a field trip to one of our beautiful nature sanctuaries in Chevy Chase, Maryland or Leesburg, Virginia OR having a naturalist come to your school with our Naturalist in Your Classroom program. We provide multilevel programs that meet state standards as well as developmental milestones in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia.

Organization(s): Audubon Naturalist Society
Location: 802 Children's Center Road Leesburg, VA 20175 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Restoration, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Early Learning, Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: food web, forest, habitat and niche, schoolyard habitat, wildlife
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MD-DC-VA Audubon School Programs

At the Audubon Naturalist Society we offer a wide variety of educational programs that foster an appreciation, understanding and stewardship of the natural environment. Our programs are open to public schools, private schools, homeschool groups, and scouts in preschool through Grade 5. For programs with middle and high school students, please contact us to learn how we can tailor a program for your students. We can accommodate children with varied needs and are happy to work with teachers to meet their academic goals. We give teachers the convenient choice of taking a field trip to one of our beautiful nature sanctuaries in Chevy Chase, Maryland or Leesburg, Virginia OR having a naturalist come to your school with our Naturalist in Your Classroom program. We provide multilevel programs that meet state standards as well as developmental milestones in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia.

Organization(s): Audubon Naturalist Society
Location: 8940 Jones Mill Road Chevy Chase, MD 20815 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Early Learning, Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: food web, forest, habitat and niche, schoolyard habitat, wildlife
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Forest Ecology Program

Learn all about the myriad of living systems in the forest environment; how they adapt and function individually and as a whole. They will cover a whole selection of concepts including habitats, predator-prey interaction, food webs, life cycles, and camouflage.

Organization(s): Apple Ridge Farm
Location: 541 Luck Avenue Roanoke, VA 24016 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: food web, adaptation, biodiversity, forest, habitat and niche, predator prey relationships, wildlife
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Children’s Garden

In our half-acre working vegetable garden, students have the opportunity to experientially learn about how food is grown and take part in its production. They share in the seasonally appropriate tasks of soil preparation, weeding, planting and harvesting and, when possible, also share in tasting the garden’s bounty as well. Because the site is also a haven for pollinators, students have the opportunity to observe the interplay between native pollinators and our food systems and watch the farm’s foraging honey bees.

Organization(s): Alice Ferguson Foundation
Location: 2001 Bryant Point Rd Accokeek, MD 20607 (Map It)
Theme(s): Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Early Learning, Elementary School, Middle School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: agriculture, wildlife
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Overnight and Extended-Day Programs

Overnights and Extended Days are a special adventure for everyone! One to three day programs are developed collaboratively with school leaders, assuring that educational standards and objectives are integrated into program design. The nature preserve supports a variety of forested, field and wetland habitats along Johnson and Tantrough Branch. Hiking trails, boardwalks and teaching stations provide unique education opportunities discovering the natural wonders of Southern Delaware.

Organization(s): Abbott's Mill Nature Center
Location: 15411 Abbott's Pond Road Milford, DE 19963 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, History and Culture, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips Multi-Day Trips
Keywords: pollution, wetland, land use, food web, adaptation, watershed, biodiversity, ecosystem and biomes, forest, habitat and niche, predator prey relationships, water quality, wildlife
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VIMS Discovery Labs

The monthly Discovery Lab series provides fun, family-friendly experiences and lifelong learning. Each lab focuses on a specific topic through a series of stations that provide hands-on activities for kids and adults. Participants look through microscopes, observe live animals, partake in crafts and games, and view research posters.

Organization(s): Virginia National Estuarine Research Reserve at VIMS
Location: Gloucester Rd Gloucester Point, VA 23062 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Restoration, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: pollution, land use, watershed, blue crab, experiments and investigations, habitat and niche, restoration, water quality, wildlife, fish
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Life in the Chesapeake Bay - A "Meaningful Watershed Experience" Program

Compare marine vertebrate and invertebrate phyla to discover the amazing diversity of life in the Bay. Identify and classify live and preserved specimens such as sea stars, anemones, whelks and crabs, as well as bony and cartilaginous fish. Animal adaptations and survival strategies are emphasized.

Organization(s): Virginia Living Museum
Location: 524 J Clyde Morris Boulevard Newport News, VA 23601 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, History and Culture, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: adaptation, watershed, blue crab, ecosystem and biomes, habitat and niche, predator prey relationships, stream study, water quality, water testing, wildlife, fish
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Interpretive Programs

The park offers 18 miles of hiking trails, the remains of sawmill and grist mill are still present and the spectacular view of the Great Falls.

Organization(s): Valley Falls State Park
Location: Rt. 6 Fairmont, WV 26273 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Early Learning, Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: culture and watermen, forest, habitat and niche, wildlife
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Chesapeake Bay Ecology Program

This hands-on, 90-minute program allows students to explore the Chesapeake Bay estuary through its history, bounty, and ecology. Beach seining, aquaculture, and seagrass restoration activities help students to understand the complex nature of estuarine systems and our coastal environments.

Organization(s): The Watermen's Museum
Location: 309 Water Street Yorktown, VA 23690 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: pollution, wetland, watershed, oyster, blue crab, aquatic grass SAV, ecosystem and biomes, habitat and niche, restoration, water quality, wildlife, fish
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Strawberry Hill Educational Programs

Strawberry Hill programs are fun as well as educational, featuring hands-on activities that involve all the students. Programs can range from 90 to 240 minutes in length. Programs are offered both at Strawberry Hill and at your site. Programs cover a diversity range of topics such as watersheds, wetlands, ecology, adaptation, energy.

Organization(s): Strawberry Hill Nature Center
Location: 1537 Mount Hope Road Fairfield, PA 17320 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Early Learning, Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: pollution, water cycle and movement, wetland, land use, adaptation, watershed, water and energy conservation, ecosystem and biomes, forest, predator prey relationships, stream study, water quality, water testing, wildlife
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Discovering Wetlands

Upper elementary students define and explore the wetland communities of Renfrew Park. They learn the three major types of wetlands and examine the plants, animals, soils, energy flow and water chemistry of these special ecosystems. Hands-on activities involve soil sampling, water testing for pH, plant study, and macroinvertebrate investigation. Students use watershed models to see how wetlands act as sponges and filters.

Organization(s): Renfrew Institute for Cultural and Environmental Science
Location: 1010 East Main Street Waynesboro, PA 17268 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Middle School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: water cycle and movement, wetland, watershed, habitat and niche, stream study, water quality, water testing, wildlife, fish
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Lifesavers of the Chesapeake Bay

Students launch on a journey to four high-activity learning stations. Earning a large wooden lifesaver at each station, students gain important information about the geography, biology, and ecology of the Chesapeake Bay. They discover its relationship to themselves as watershed residents and ways they can help to preserve and protect the estuary and our local waterways. In the process, students see that the water quality in our local stream, the Antietam Creek, is directly related to the health of all water bodies downstream, including the Bay. Point and non-point sources of pollution are discussed.

Organization(s): Renfrew Institute for Cultural and Environmental Science
Location: 1010 East Main Street Waynesboro, PA 17268 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: pollution, point source, water cycle and movement, watershed, water and energy conservation, ecosystem and biomes, forest, habitat and niche, stream study, water quality, water testing, wildlife
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Audubon Watershed Experience (Signature Program)

Audubon Watershed Experience is designed to connect students in a tangible way to their place in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed through meaningful experiences reinforced by comprehensive in-class activities. Through fishing, seining and bird watching, students will learn about the environment, conservation, and their own relationship to the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

Organization(s): Pickering Creek Audubon Center
Location: 11450 Audubon Lane Easton, MD 21601 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips Multi-Day Trips
Keywords: pollution, water cycle and movement, wetland, watershed, ecosystem and biomes, habitat and niche, stream study, water quality, water testing, wildlife, fish
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Emerging Scientist Project

The Emerging Scientist Project (ESP) connects high school classrooms with local NOAA resources to expose students to oceanic and atmospheric research in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. The program encourages students to pursue scientific careers and challenges them to seek local solutions to problems facing the Bay. ESP has been used by biology, environmental science, and other science teachers to assist in teaching standards and concepts while actively engaging their students in local environmental issues.This flexible program is designed to be carried out over the course of one semester during normally scheduled classes.

Organization(s): National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Location: 410 Severn Ave Annapolis, MD 21403 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): High School
Program Length(s): Multi-Day Trips
Keywords: nitrogen and carbon cycle, pollution, point source, non-point source, wetland, land use, watershed, agriculture, blue crab, development, aquatic grass SAV, ecosystem and biomes, experiments and investigations, forest, habitat and niche, stream study, water quality, water testing, wildlife, salinity, fish, dissolved oxygen, student action
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Watersheds and You

Explore wetlands and look for biodiversity and interdependence of plants and animals in that particular habitat.

Organization(s): Irvine Nature Center
Location: 11201 Garrison Forest Road Owings Mills , MD 21117 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Middle School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: wetland, watershed, habitat and niche, wildlife
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Kids’ Bay Adventures Program

This program consists of several week-long educational sessions focused on different environmental topics. Children are given the opportunity to have fun in the outdoors, while learning about science and nature in their “own backyard.” Craft projects, games, and other activities are included as part of the educational experience. This program is offered for children entering pre-K – 8th grades in the upcoming school year.

Organization(s): Horn Point Laboratory
Location: 2020 Horn Point Road Cambridge, MD 21613 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Early Learning, Elementary School, Middle School
Program Length(s): Multi-Day Trips
Keywords: boats, canoes and kayaks, pollution, water cycle and movement, wetland, land use, watershed, ecosystem and biomes, forest, habitat and niche, stream study, water quality, water testing, wildlife
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Horn Point Environmental Education Program

The Horn Point Environmental Education (EE) Program provides hands-on age appropriate educational activities that focus on science and the ecology of the local environment. Primarily targeting pre-K – 5th grade student

Organization(s): Horn Point Laboratory
Location: 2020 Horn Point Road Cambridge, MD 21613 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Early Learning, Elementary School, Middle School
Program Length(s): Multi-Day Trips
Keywords: pollution, water cycle and movement, photosynthesis, wetland, food web, adaptation, weather, watershed, ecosystem and biomes, forest, habitat and niche, predator prey relationships, stream study, water quality, water testing, wildlife, fish
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BVW School Programs

Geared to address specific environmental concepts in outdoor classrooms through hands-on experiential learning and are focused around the farm, forest, field, pond and stream habitats located nearby.

Organization(s): Brandywine Valley Association
Location: 1760 Unionville-Wawaset Road West Chester, PA 19382 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, History and Culture, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Day Trips
Keywords: pollution, water cycle and movement, wetland, land use, watershed, agriculture, ecosystem and biomes, experiments and investigations, forest, habitat and niche, identification, predator prey relationships, sediment, soil and rocks, stream study, water quality, water testing, wildlife
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Smith Island Study Center

Located within Tylerton MD, one of three watermen's communities on Smith Island, this center emphasizes the culture and ecology of a Chesapeake fishing village. Steeped in Chesapeake lore and heritage, Smith Island is the largest inhabited offshore island in the Bay. Participants gain insight into island culture to better understand how the community has interacted with the Bay for more than 300 years. Extensive wetlands, underwater grass beds, oyster reefs, and forests are easily explored on foot and by canoe and workboat.

Organization(s): Chesapeake Bay Foundation
Location: 20846 Caleb Jones Rd Ewell, MD 21824 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, History and Culture, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Multi-Day Trips
Keywords: boats, canoes and kayaks, pollution, wetland, watershed, oyster, blue crab, forest, habitat and niche, restoration, stream study, water quality, water testing, wildlife
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Port Isobel Island Study Center

Port Isobel is a 250-acre island east of Tangier Island. It is the southernmost point between the Tangier Sound and the Chesapeake Bay proper. All buildings have electricity, central air, and heating systems, and Clivus Multrum composting toilets that use no water or chemicals. The dorm and the conference center were architecturally adapted from working barns in Pennsylvania to become some of CBF's first environmentally friendly buildings. Facilities include a full kitchen with a stove, microwave, refrigerator, and oven.

Organization(s): Chesapeake Bay Foundation
Location: Port Isobel Island Port Isobel Island, VA 0 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, History and Culture, Pollution and Pressures, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Multi-Day Trips
Keywords: boats, canoes and kayaks, pollution, wetland, land use, watershed, green development, habitat and niche, restoration, stream study, water quality, water testing, wildlife
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Karen Noonan Study Center Residential Program

The Karen Noonan Memorial Environmental Education Center is situated on 20 acres of marsh in southern Dorchester County, Maryland. Participants explore pine forests, underwater grass beds, and native oyster reefs that surround the center. The nearby Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, one of the largest tidal wetlands on the East Coast, also provides opportunities from which to investigate this ecosystem. Once one of the great Chesapeake hunting lodges, the Karen Noonan Center was completely renovated in 1995 to create an environmentally sound, state-of-the-art residential center. Participants in our program can see how a “green building,” with its alternative energy sources and composting waste facilities, can function not only as a learning tool, but also as a home.

Organization(s): Chesapeake Bay Foundation
Location: 1304 Phillips Gunning Club Rd. Crocheron, MD 21627 (Map It)
Theme(s): Habitats and Critters, Pollution and Pressures, Restoration, Land Use and Agriculture
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Program Length(s): Multi-Day Trips
Keywords: pollution, wetland, watershed, water and energy conservation, green development, habitat and niche, renewable resource, restoration, stream study, water quality, water testing, wildlife
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