chicago virtual field trips

Experience Chicago online: Virtual tours and digital experiences

Last updated on December 3, 2020 by Choose Chicago

Chicago is home to awe-inspiring museums, iconic architecture, and world-famous sites — and you can explore them all without leaving your living room with virtual tours and experiences. These digital resources allow you to experience Chicago in a new way, from our home to yours. Check back regularly as we add more experiences.

Art museums

History museums, science museums.

• Zoos & animals

Attractions

Architecture.

• Theatre & music

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago is known for their astounding collection, which includes some of the most famous paintings on the planet. And more than 40,000 of their works have been digitized in high-resolution, so you can explore them from the comfort of your own home. A good place to start is with some of the museum’s essential works — zoom in to see each tiny dot in a A Sunday on La Grande Jatte or admire the brushstrokes in Monet’s Water Lilies .

See the digital collection Take a virtual tour of the museum Explore more ways to visit virtually

Museum of Contemporary Photography The Museum of Contemporary Photography is the world’s premier college art museum dedicated to photography. Located within the Columbia College Chicago’s Loop campus, the museum is home to more than 15,000 objects by over 1,500 artists. Their digital collections showcase photographs from the MoCP permanent collection that have been selected by artists, curators, and students.

Explore digital exhibitions

National Museum of Mexican Art In the heart of the city’s vibrant Pilsen community, the National Museum of Mexican Art showcases more than 3,000 years of Mexican art and culture. The free museum is home to one of the country’s largest Mexican art collections, with a 10,000-piece permanent collection that celebrates the rich diversity of Mexican art across centuries. This virtual tour walks you through the museum’s colorful galleries, where you can view paintings, pottery, textiles, and more.

Take a online tour Book a virtual tour of their Day of the Dead exhibit

Museum of Contemporary Art The Commons Online is a new digital extension of the Museum of Contemporary Art ‘s community space. The portal brings together the museum’s online programs and resources, designed to foster social belonging during social distancing. Tune in to virtual programs, try your hand at creative projects, and dig into their archives of artist interviews. Check back soon, they’ll be adding new experiences every week.

Explore The Commons Online

Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art Experience outsider art across mediums in Intuit ‘s digital collection. View a portion of the museum’s 1,200 works, including pieces from the world’s most well-known self-taught artists.

Explore the online gallery

Wrightwood 659 Wrightwood 659 is a striking exhibition space in Lincoln Park designed by Tadao Ando. Check out their new virtual programming complementing their latest critically acclaimed exhibition Balkrishna Doshi: Architecture for the People.  Other digital offerings include a film series and virtual panel discussions.

Explore online exhibits and events

Oriental Institute This hidden gem, located on the University of Chicago campus, houses a treasure trove of artifacts from the most ancient days of Egypt, Persia, Mesopotamia, Syria, and beyond. The Oriental Institute ‘s virtual tour lets you explore many of the objects uncovered during their excavations, from early pottery to a massive statue of King Tut. 

Take the virtual tour

Field Museum The Field Museum of Natural History is one of the largest museum’s of its kind in the world. The original collection began with artifacts from the 1893 World’s Fair, and has grown into 40 million specimens and artifacts from all over the globe that span millennia. Take a peek at some of these fascinating items via their digital collection, which includes online imagery of ancient pottery, extinct animals, and historic sites.

Explore the museum at home

National Hellenic Museum The National Hellenic Museum in Chicago’s Greektown neighborhood is the second oldest U.S. institution dedicated to celebrating the cultural contributions of Greeks and Greek-Americans. Their free digital museum displays the largest Greek/Hellenic collection of its kind in the world, with more than 20,000 artifacts, photos, historic newspapers, and books, plus over 450 recorded oral histories.

Enter the digital museum

Chicago History Museum  Delve into Chicago’s rich history with the Chicago History Museum ‘s entire portal of online exhibitions, which presents a fascinating look at our city’s past. Learn about the Great Chicago Fire, the life of Abraham Lincoln, the Haymarket riots, and the evolution of Chicago’s culinary scene. One of their coolest digital experience is the Chicago θθ Project, which offers free virtual reality experiences of defining Chicago moments like the SS Eastland Disaster and the 1933 World’s Fair.

Explore online exhibits

DuSable Museum of African American History The DuSable Museum is the nation’s first independent museum dedicated to the collection, preservation and study of the history and culture of Africans and Americans of African descent. Their online exhibit — Freedom, Resistance, and the Journey Toward Equality — includes artifacts that represent the story of African American struggle and achievement across centuries.

Explore the online exhibit

Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center

As the third largest museum of its kind in the world, Illinois Holocaust Museum shares first-hand survivor narratives that inspire visitors to learn from the lessons of the past to transform the future. Their virtual museum allows you to watch documentaries of survivor stories, take audio tours, and tour the museum’s blockbuster exhibition,  Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg.

Explore the virtual museum  

American Writers Museum The American Writers Museum   has launched a virtual hub with blogs, podcasts, exhibits, author talks, and more. Check out their latest exhibit, My America: Immigrant and Refugee Writers Today , an immersive multimedia exploration of the influence of modern immigrant and refugee writing .

Explore the virtual exhibits

Pritzker Military Museum & Library The Pritzker Military Museum & Library has launched Pritzker Military Presents . This original series airs each week on Chicago Public Television, WTTW Prime, and is available to stream via their website. Topics cover the full spectrum of military history and include lectures, discussions, and interviews with authors, scholars, and veterans.

Watch the video series

Museum of Science and Industry Keep the whole family entertained with the new Science at Home series from the Museum of Science and Industry . The kid-friendly activities and videos cover a wide variety of topics, from basic engineering to kinetic energy to human biology. The resources include interactive activities, videos, web-based games, and more. You can also join live tours of their popular exhibits, like Christmas Around the World and the U-505 Submarine .

Explore Science at Home games and activities

Adler Planetarium  Take a walk through space without leaving your couch. The Adler Planetarium presents a rich array of online exhibits, digitized images and artifacts, and virtual walk-throughs. Online exhibitions cover everything from women in space to rare astronomy books to first-hand stories from the Apollo 11 mission. And the virtual tours allow you to walk through the exhibits as if you were really there.

Check out online exhibits and tours

Zoos & animals

Shedd Aquarium  The Shedd Aquarium is home more than 1,500 species, including sea otters, seahorses, beluga whales, reef sharks, stingrays, Pacific white-sided dolphins, and beyond. Get up close and personal with the aquatic creatures via high-resolution images and virtual online tours. Walk through exhibits and get behind-the-scenes peeks at trainers and museum employees hard at work. And for a moment of zen, watch the live stream of their stunning Underwater Beauty exhibit.

Explore virtual programs and animal encounters

Lincoln Park Zoo  Lincoln Park Zoo is one of the largest and oldest free zoos in the country. While the zoo is temporarily closed through March 2021, you can stay connected to your favorite animals through their new Stay Tuned to the Zoo web series. The family-friendly videos will feature creatures from all over the world, from giraffes to Japanese macaques to meerkats.

Watch their animal videos

Brookfield Zoo Take a walk on the wild side with Brookfield Zoo ‘s new live streams. The suburban zoo’s Facebook page is # BringingTheZooToYou with videos of a different zoo animal each day at 11 a.m. CDT. So far they’ve featured Mexican wolves, snakes, and a bearcat while zookeepers provide informative and interesting narration. Viewers can even ask questions to be answered in real time. If you can’t make it right on time, each daily video is saved on their Facebook and YouTube pages.

Watch the daily live stream

Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum Get to know birds, mammals, reptiles, and more with the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum . This super family-friendly museum has a massive collection of plants, animals, insects, fossils and more to teach people of all ages about the natural world. Check out their online exhibit   about the importance of biodiversity, along with a collection of digital artifacts.

Explore online programs

Millennium Park Millennium Park is the green heart of Chicago. The lakefront park is home to iconic public art, outdoor concerts, skyline views, seasonal ice rinks, and more. The centerpiece of the park is Cloud Gate, aka “The Bean” , one of Chicago’s most famous attractions. It’s also where you’ll find the soaring Pritzker Pavilion, home to the popular (and free!) summer movie series, the tranquil Lurie Garden, and so much more.

Take a video tour

Garfield Park Conservatory The Garfield Park Conservatory , often referred to as “landscape art under glass,” is one of the largest conservatories in the nation. The conservatory spans two acres of public greenhouse space and 10 acres of outdoor gardens, with a diverse collection of plants representing all different climates. Take a virtual tour of their gardens, including a digital color safari and an architecture-based tour. 

Take a digital tour

Morton Arboretum The Morton Arboretum , located just outside Chicago in Lisle, is offering online resources for all ages. Find horticulture classes; virtual video walks; and educational offerings on tree care, ecology, climate change, and plant identification. These online webinars are designed for children and families, students and teachers, or just lifelong learners and home gardeners.

View all digital programs and webinars

Fox in a Box escape rooms Challenge your friends and family from afar with this one-of-a-kind virtual experience from Fox in a Box Chicago. This online escape room takes participants to the height of the Cold War, where you must coach a live actor on how to disarm a nuclear warhead before it’s too late.

Experience the live virtual escape room

Frank Lloyd Wright architecture The Chicagoland area, including nearby Oak Park, is home to the largest collection of Frank Lloyd Wright -designed structures in the world. This is where you’ll find some of the iconic architect’s most influential works, including UNESCO World Heritage sites like the Frederick C. Robie House in Hyde Park . Take a look inside with these video tours.

Take a video tour of the Robie House Take a video tour of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Home and Studio

Chicago Architecture Center The Chicago Architecture Center has launched a new online mini-magazine, CAC@Home. The digital publication brings new and archival video, reading material, fun for the family, quizzes, interactive content, and more straight to subscribers’ inboxes. Read the first issue here and make sure to subscribe for more.

Chicago Detours Explore every corner of Chicago from your couch. Chicago Detours offers tons of virtual video tours that explore architecture all around the city, focusing on hidden gems and lesser known stories. They also cover a variety of other topics, from historic bars to the 1893 World’s Fair to LGBTQ history, all led by expert guides.

See the virtual tours

Chicago Cultural Center Check out these free virtual tours of “The People’s Palace”. The virtual tours, which are available on-demand on the 1st and 3rd Wednesday of each month, cover the stunning architecture and history of the Chicago Cultural Center, built in 1897.

Request your virtual tour 

Theatre & music

Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra , part of Chicago’s museum scene for more than 130 years, is consistently hailed as one of the greatest orchestras in the world. And now you can experience the acclaimed group from home.

Experience the CSO from home Watch the CSO in concert

Steppenwolf Theatre Steppenwolf Theatre , one of the nation’s premier ensemble theatre, is providing a variety of ways to connect with their productions and cast virtually. Listen to their new interview-based podcast “Half Hour” for candid one-on-one conversations between ensemble members. Or subscribe to their new virtual stage to stream brand new Steppenwolf content from anywhere.

Join Steppenwolf NOW Listen to the podcast

Chicago Shakespeare Theater The Chicago Shakespeare Theater ‘s new Shakes@Home initiative that brings history’s most famous playwright to life in your living room. Explore this fun and educational online portal, which features creative experiences like a Living Room Sonnet Series, video playlists of top Chicago Shakespeare moments, audio recordings of pre-show talks by Shakespeare scholars, a documentary, cooking videos, and activities for kids.

Explore Shakes@Home

Belmont Theatre District The Belmont Theater District is home to more than 50 theaters, from independent movie houses to legendary comedy clubs. And many of those theatres have now launched digital programming to enjoy from the comfort of your own home. Check out podcasts, sketch shows, movie streams, and more.

Check out all virtual shows

Joffrey Ballet The world famous Joffrey Ballet is staying active on their YouTube channel. You can stream the acclaimed documentary Joffrey Mavericks of American Dance , which draws on rare archival footage to tell the history of the dance company and dance itself. And don’t miss ballet lessons and dance-inspired workouts.

Visit their YouTube channel

Lookingglass Theatre Lookingglass Theatre is a cutting-edge theatre located in a historic space in the Loop. They’ll be streaming their annual holiday show The Steadfast Tin Soldier for the entire month of December. You can also subscribe to The Secret Passage, a digital series that offers an exclusive peek into their process.

Stream their online holiday show Subscribe to their new digital series

Lyric Opera Check out Lyric Opera ‘s blog, Lyric Lately, for content and activities from the acclaimed group. Try your hand at Lyric trivia , see unreleased footage and virtual performances, and check out backstage perspectives, family activities, quizzes, and more.

Explore online programs and shows

Music Box Theatre The Music Box Theatre is a historic, independently owned cinema that’s a favorite in the Lakeview neighborhood. Their new virtual cinema series lets you watch Music Box-curated films at home, while supporting the theatre during its closure.

Stream movies at home

Auditorium Theatre This landmark Auditorium Theatre is offering two virtual holiday shows: A Celtic Family Christmas and A Holiday Concert with Alfreda Burke & Rodrick Dixon . You can also join historic theatre tours from the comfort of your own home. And check out their YouTube page for archived footage of past shows, talks with special guests, and performances.

View virtual content and tours

Virtual field trips with Mayor Lori Lightfoot

These virtual tours of Chicago’s cultural treasures, led by Mayor Lori Lightfoot, are designed for local students studying at home. Stay Home, Hit Play will go behind the scenes of a new museum each week, including the Shedd Aquarium, Field Museum, National Museum of Mexican Art, Museum of Science and Industry, DuSable Museum, the Art Institute, and more.

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From this blog post

Art Institute of Chicago

Museum of Contemporary Photography

National Museum of Mexican Art

The Field Museum

Tours & Attractions

Chicago history museum.

Lincoln Park

Adler Planetarium

Special Event Venues

Shedd aquarium.

Lincoln Park Zoo

Brookfield Zoo Chicago

Southwest Suburbs

Millennium Park

Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum

Theater & Performing Arts

Steppenwolf theatre company.

Griffin Museum of Science and Industry

Auditorium Theatre

Garfield Park Conservatory

Garfield Park

Chicago Shakespeare Theater

Streeterville

Belmont Theater District

Museum of Contemporary Art

American Writers Museum

The Joffrey Ballet

Music Box Theatre

Intuit: The Center for Intuitive and Outsider Art

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Wherever you are, whatever the time, our online resources are always here to connect you to our collection of art from around the world—whether you’re seeking inspiration, community, or a little adventure.

Spend time with old favorites and find new surprises in the collection through a variety of search options, themed highlights tours, or interactive features.

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Field Trips

Give students a fresh spin on science and social studies lessons with a day outside the classroom.

Pre-Registered Illinois field trips are FREE everyday of the week! 

The Field Museum’s field trip experiences offer exciting, up-close exposure to science and social studies in a historic Chicago setting. Schools and community groups in Illinois serving Pre-K–12th grade students can register for a FREE field trip by completing this form at least 14 days before your desired visit date. There is no charge for additional chaperones for Illinois schools.

School groups can enjoy a deep dive into Ancient American cultures or watch groundbreaking DNA research happen before their eyes. Students learn about evolution through fossils and dinosaur skeletons and discover what centuries-old specimens and artifacts can teach us about how we live today.

A journey through the Field Museum’s diverse range of exhibitions is easily tailored to curricula for groups of all ages, including pre-K, elementary school, middle school, and high school students. All school groups are welcome, including home school students. 

We also offer engaging and hands-on classes for students on field trips!  Field trip classes are available for grades Pre-K-12th and focus on a range of topics.  For a list of class offerings and more information please check out our Class Catalog. 

To begin planning a field trip, please fill out the online registration form 14 days before your desired visit date.

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The American Writers Museum believes in the power of writing to influence our history, our culture and our daily lives. Our educational programming aims to inspire future generations of American writers. In these materials you will find downloadable curriculum to use at your own pace, guided virtual tours of our online exhibits, video tours and information about virtual field trips including online meet-and-greets with renowned and emerging writers working today. 

Get your students excited about discovering new authors, revisiting beloved favorites, and writing their way into America’s ongoing story. For more information enter your email below or contact [email protected].

If your class is interested in an in-person field trip at the American Writers Museum, please visit this page for more information.

This virtual field trip far exceeded my expectations! The kids were engaged, learning, and having fun! They couldn’t stop talking about it. This was absolutely a top notch experience! – Elaine Temel, 5th Grade Teacher, West Vine Street School, CT

The students were interested and engaged the entire time. They said it was fun and something new.  – Denise McBroom, Oscar DePreist School. IL:

The virtual field trip on Mind of a Writer was so cool!  My creative writers loved it! – Jennifer Jepsen, English teacher, Oak Lawn Community High School

Awesome opportunity! And kudos to @AWMuseum for using Jamboard to communicate and engage our Creative Writers! – Jennifer Wargin

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Sign up for education updates from the Museum to stay up to date on new resources, field trip opportunities, professional development, and more. 

This list is for education updates ONLY so that you get the information that is most relevant to you.

The American Writers Museum is excited to offer a wide array of educational opportunities for students in grades 3-12. Young scholars can learn about the cultural and historical significance of writing in America. Students also learn about writing styles, writing habits of authors, and new perspectives on writing—from the practical to the creative. Fill out the form on the request a field trip page to reserve your spot today!

The American Writers Museum offers virtual field trips for students in grades 3-12. Synchronous and asynchronous offerings are available for classrooms of all types, sizes, and in any location! Students will learn about the breadth of writing forms through games, interactive online exhibits, and a growing library of video content. Young people even have the opportunity to work with a writer directly in their classroom via Zoom or Google Meet.

Themed Field Trips

Make every trip to the museum a new experience for your class by signing up for a themed field trip!

Our guided explorations will highlight a distinct theme, allowing students to more closely study and engage with significant issues found in American literature. New themes each month will allow students to see the museum with fresh eyes on every visit.

Online Resources

Access American Writers Museums’ online educational resources and choose from a variety of activities that are designed for Grade levels 3-12. Available by exhibit and also by grade level, select the activities that best suit your class curriculum. Explore online exhibits, watch videos of readings and author talks, and more! 

Youth education at the American Writers Museum is generously supported by the Saul Zaentz Charitable Foundation, the Abra Prentice Foundation, S&C Electric Company Fund, The Efroymson Family Fund, the Elizabeth Morse Charitable Trust, the Ralph and Evelyn Davis Family Foundation, the Dr. Scholl Foundation, The Brinson Foundation, Laughing Acres Foundation, and a Teaching with Primary Sources grant from the Library of Congress.

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Museum staff facilitate these interactive programs using your video conferencing platform or our Zoom account. Workshop fees cover pre- and post-program resources, a short informational meeting in advance with workshop facilitators, and workshop facilitation. Please review the Virtual Student Workshop Information Sheet in advance. Workshops can be delivered to a range of teaching situations including full remote, in person, and a mix of both.

Download our  Virtual Student Workshop Information Sheet .

Painted Memories: The Great Chicago Fire

Recommended for students in grades 3‒5 Length:  40-45 minutes; maximum 35 students per session Cost:  $50 per session

There are no known photographs of the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, but artists’ vivid depictions of it help us understand this important event and its lasting impact. Via videoconferencing, this workshop engages students in a close reading experience with Julia Lemos’s painting  Memories of the Chicago Fire  and her written account of the disaster. Students share their responses to the painting and the artist’s words through writing, drawing, discussion, and movement. The workshop wraps up with a discussion around the effects of disasters and the lessons we can learn from the Great Chicago Fire to help us manage similar situations today. The session concludes with time for student questions.

Facing Freedom

Recommended for students in grades 6-12 Length: 45-50 minutes; maximum 35 students per session Cost:  $50 per session

Based on the  Facing Freedom in America  exhibition and companion website, this workshop offered via videoconferencing encourages critical thought about freedom and issues of social justice, particularly in the areas of workers’ rights, public protest, and race and citizenship. Using a framework of essential questions, students analyze and discuss primary source materials to further their understanding of history, while making connections to contemporary life.

Choose one of these five topics for your workshop experience:

• United Farm Workers
• Pullman Porters
• School Boycott
• Votes for Women
• American Indian Rights

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The Chicago Botanic Garden has 385 acres of nature, beauty, and respite to discover.  

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Field Trips

Student field trips.

Your students are sure to have a wonderful time investigating a rich variety of plants and nature in our field trips. Bring your class to the Garden for an experience you lead or for a workshop taught by our staff. Or, choose a virtual experience from your own classroom. All workshops are phenomenon-based and correlated with the Next Generation Science Standards .

Scholarship funding to cover the cost of the workshop is available on a first-come, first-served basis for qualifying schools. Visit the Chicago Botanic Garden scholarship application to learn more and apply.

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Available in winter , most weekdays

Bring the Garden to your classroom with a virtual field trip or our new Classroom Connections program.

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Available in fall and spring , most weekdays

Visit the Garden for a guided investigation of NGSS-related phenomena led by Garden educators.

On Your Own Field Trips

Available weekdays, year-round

Allow your students to explore at their own pace while you lead them through the Garden.

Homeschool Field Trips

Availabile in fall , winter , and spring

The Garden has opportunities designed specifically for homeschool families and groups. Come and participate in guided, plant-based opportunities offered seasonally.

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Availability varies

Enrich your curriculum and have the Garden come to you! Choose from a variety of programs that feature plant topics appropriate for specific grade levels.

If you have any questions, please email or call the Registrar's Office at (847) 835-6801.

Field Trip Programs Registrar Contact Information    Phone: (847) 835-6801 | Fax: (847) 242-6330   Click here to show mail address

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Virtual Field Trips & Workshops

Enhance your school’s teaching and learning with a virtual field trip to the Nature Museum that includes a live interactive workshop centered around unique museum resources!

Register for our creative science and nature workshops to focus your virtual field trip and create meaningful connections between in- and out-of-school learning experiences in real-world contexts. All workshops are taught by an experienced museum educator and correlate with the Next Generation Science Standards.

field trip request form

Explore the diversity of local living things! Students will compare and contrast Chicago-area land and water habitats – and the living things that call those places home – on an interactive virtual hike integrating the Museum’s collection.

NGSS: LS4, ESS3

Get a look behind the scenes of our Istock Family Look in Lab , home for many of the animals in our living collection! Then, using a live “critter cam,” students will get up close with a local frog or salamander. Students will use observations and their critical thinking skills to compare and contrast the features and movements of local frogs and salamanders.

Practice sampling populations of local butterflies just like our scientists do! Students will unpack the importance of biodiversity in butterfly habitats, the work of Nature Museum scientists, and the ways in which people impact local butterfly populations.

NGSS: LS2, LS4

Sample for pollinator diversity around the Nature Museum grounds! Students will sample pollinator populations in different habitats around the Nature Museum. Students will then analyze the data to explore differences in pollinator diversity in human altered environments.

NGSS: LS1, LS4

"I was excited to provide some unique learning experiences for my students!"

Preparing for your Virtual Field Trip

Once you register for your workshop, you’ll receive your Virtual Field Trip Guide and confirmation, where you’ll find your virtual student workshop time, FAQs, and an asynchronous pre-visit activity to ground your Nature Museum experience!

Bring locally focused science education to your class and create meaningful connections to the Nature Museum through an interactive, educator-led virtual workshop.

After your virtual visit, share the asynchronous post-visit activities and resources in the Virtual Field Trip Guide with your students and families to continue your Nature Museum experiences.

Cost & Registration

To ensure the quality of the interactive virtual experience, schools may not combine multiple classrooms into one workshop.

• $120/45-minute workshop
• Payment is due 14 days prior to the program date or the program will be cancelled.

Questions? Special requests? Email [email protected].

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"Guided virtual experiences are a wonderful way for our young learners to still explore the world even during a pandemic! Thank you!"

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Virtual Resources & Field Trips

Virtual Field Trips offer the benefits of experiences anywhere and at time that include Virtual Performances, Virtual STEM Field Trips, Virtual Farm Videos Field Trips, Virtual Museums Tours, Virtual Botanical Garden Online Learning, Virtual Zoo Fun, Virtual Aquarium digital learning and much more. To learn about these virtual field trips and programs select the ACTIVITY filter below.

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• Videos on Solar Systems, Astronomy, Planetariums
• Videos on The Arts
• Early Childhood Virtual Activities & Worksheets
• Fitness & Nutrition Virtual Activities & Worksheets
• Language Arts Virtual Activities & Worksheets
• Science Virtual Activities & Worksheets
• Social Studies/History Virtual Activities & Worksheets
• The Arts Virtual Activities & Worksheets
• Virtual Art & Craft Classes
• Virtual Cooking Classes
• Virtual Fitness & Recreation Classes
• Virtual Reading, Writing & Literacy Programs
• Virtual Science & Nature Classes
• Virtual STEM/Tech/Coding Classes
• Virtual APPS for Reading, Writing & Literature
• Virtual APPS for Science
• Character Education & Reflective Learning Virtual Educational Products
• Early Childhood Virtual Educational Products
• Language Arts Virtual Educational Products
• Science Virtual Educational Products
• Virtual Arts Field Trips
• Virtual Early Childhood Field Trips
• Virtual Performing Arts Field Trips
• Virtual Science Field Trips
• Virtual Social Studies Field Trips
• Virtual Zoo Field Trips
• Virtual Anti-Bullying, Disability Awareness, Empathy, Tolerance
• Virtual Astronomy, Math, Science, STEM, STEAM & Technology
• Virtual Authors, Literacy, Poetry, Puppets, Storytelling
• Virtual Black History, Earth Day, Hispanic Heritage, Holidays
• Virtual Character Education & Ethics
• Virtual Climate Change, Environmental Studies, Nature, Sustainability
• Virtual Emotional & Social Wellness, Substance Abuse
• Virtual Entertainers, Magicians, Mimes, Jugglers
• Virtual History & Multicultural
• Virtual Life Skills & Team Building
• Virtual Music & Dance Performances
• Virtual Performing Arts & Entertainment
• Virtual Recreational & Fitness
• Virtual Women's History Month
• Early Childhood
• Elementary School
• Middle School
• High School

Art Institute of Chicago

The Art Institute of Chicago is one of the world’s great art museums, with a collection that spans centuries and the globe. View some of  the museum’s collection virtually. 

AWE – The Early Literacy Station™

AWE Learning has more than 20 years of experience providing literacy-focused digital learning solutions for early learners. Offers free printables for early learning practice.

Awesome Laser Assemblies

Prismatic Magic provides educational and entertaining laser light virtual and in-person performances. Our programs are dazzling, and your kids will sing and cheer while they learn. In-Person Performances: Nationwide.

Bash The Trash

Bash the Trash builds, performs and educates with musical instruments made from found objects, with connections to science, music, climate change and plastic pollution. In-person performances: Nationwide.

Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum

Join Samuel Adams and the Sons and Daughters of Liberty in protest of King George’s unjust taxes at the Boston Tea Party Ships & Museum. Explore via virtual tours and the research library.

Boxtales Theatre Company

High quality Boxtales’ virtual shows, along with new Social Emotional Learning (SEL) focused teacher guides, (plus extensions), and designed for maximum engagement on ZOOM platforms. 20-60 minute length.

BUBBLEDAD BUBBLE SHOWS

Bubbledad has brought smiles to tens of thousands of kids from Manhattan to Mumbai with his bubble wizardry-could your students next?! Bubbledad offers science shows for schools, scout councils, camps and libraries and birthday parties. In-Person Metro NY.

Chick-fil-A® Backstage Tour

The guided Chick-fil-A® Backstage Tour offers a fun, storytelling experience about the fascinating history, culture, and values of Chick-fil-A® founder S. Truett Cathy, the unique “Eat Mor Chikin®” Cows business model, and more!

Cradle of Aviation Museum

The Cradle of Aviation Museum is a state-of-the-art aerospace, science, and technology center that celebrates Long Island’s role in aviation history.

Dauphin Island Sea Lab

The Dauphin Island Sea Lab is the state of Alabama’s marine research and education center, located on the eastern tip of Dauphin Island, a barrier island in the northern Gulf of Mexico. Today, there’s a hands-on learning experience for every age to learn about our world’s ocean.

DINOSAURS ROCK® & Other Science Fun

DINOSAURS ROCK® brings The Museum To You – Virtual and In-Person Outreach! Giant exhibits! We’ll transform your space into a science museum with our highly interactive events. Five themes: Dinosaurs & Fossils, Sharks & Oceans, Insects or Rocks & Minerals.

Fantasy Theatre Factory

Fantasy Theatre Factory is dedicated to creating original and quality educational theatrical programs for children, families, and the public, and to expanding access to these programs to people of all cultures and backgrounds.

THE MAJOR BENEFITS OF VIRTUAL FIELD TRIPS

Virtual field trips are not limited by distance and are typically more cost-effective than traditional in-person field trips for school, scout, camp and homeschool groups. No cost for transportation or for refreshments and meals. They eliminate safety concerns (no permission slips required.)

The technology allows students to travel the world, both in time and space. Allowing students to explore places that they might not have been able to visit otherwise. Especially for elementary school students since their field trips are often limited by distance and time constraints. Students of all ages can experience traveling to far-off locations—from Antarctica to outer space—through a virtual trip.

Virtual Field trips are easy to manage for teachers, camp directors, homeschool parents and scout leaders. No need for loss of instructional time. Limited prep time for trips. No name tags, no permission slip, no collecting money, no parent chaperones. But most important, you can schedule virtual field trips based on you schedule and needs!

BEST VIRTUAL FARM FIELD TRIP VIDEOS FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL GRADES

BEST VIRTUAL ZOO FIELD TRIPS

BEST VIRTUAL THEATER FIELD TRIPS FOR ELEMENTARY SCHOOL GRADES

Virtual Field Trips

Book Links: August/September 2001 (v.11, no.1)

by Gillian Engberg

Imagine taking your students to Africa to view an eclipse. Or joining scientists in the field on a dinosaur dig. Or traveling to the studios where great artists worked. And imagine doing all of this without leaving the classroom. New museum Web sites are making this, and more, possible. When tight budgets or a dearth of local opportunities limit field trip options, more teachers are turning to the Web to bring the resources of world-class institutions into their classrooms. Increasingly, museums are offering a wide range of educational materials online, via Web sites that nearly explode with interactive exhibits, live Web broadcasts, and a wealth of searchable lesson plans, databases, and links to related information.

While a Web visit can never replace a trip to the brick-and-mortar museum, its unique, exciting possibilities can enrich classroom studies and even teachers' confidence in ways that traditional visits cannot. The Exploratorium in San Francisco and Chicago's Field Museum, for example, both offer Web broadcasts that show scientists at work behind the scenes, both at the museum and out in the field. At the Field Museum, extensive curricular activities accompany the show. And at the Exploratorium, these broadcasts are interactive. A recent program about a solar eclipse alternated between scientists actually observing the eclipse and astronomers commenting on what was happening. Viewers were able to e-mail questions to the museum that were then answered live. And of course, there are the exotic locations that students can visit on the Web. One site links students to a museum in Italy where, through video footage, students can explore the study where Galileo worked.

Instructional videos are also appearing on Web sites. Barbara Furbush, a manager of the Teacher Resource Center at the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles, says that the Getty's Web site now includes a media gallery with short, concise videos about how to make a Greek vase, for example. "Through these videos," she says, "kids can see what those processes really are, which is so much easier than trying to describe them. And this is all free." All of this slick technology is an attractive lure, but the sites' real richness lies in their extensive lesson plans. Ranging from extremely detailed to more open-ended, these exercises often come with easy links to images, articles, relevant Web sites, and additional information that encourage teachers to create dynamic, individual lessons from the material. And the lessons are cross-curricular, with math and science lessons found on art museum sites. Barbara Furbush says, "I just type in the word 'math,' and the search engine will pull up not only articles about math and about why art should be part of the curriculum, but it also pulls up the lessons, so the teacher can directly make those connections." Many lesson plans also ease the intimidation factor. Teachers who don't know much about art may be less inclined to include it in their lessons, but sites such as the Getty's ArtsEdNet are designed for teachers without any art background. "It's so wonderful to give teachers a demonstration," Furbush says, "and to see the light go on in their eyes when they realize that the site does it all for them."

More support comes from online communities and listservs that some museum sites sponsor. The Exploratorium and ArtsEdNet both offer dynamic discussion groups where teachers can ask questions, clarify lessons, and share successes and failures with an international group. In fact, according to Rosemarie Falanga, an information specialist at the Exploratorium, that museum's electronic community began long before the Web was a commonly known entity, as a way to "empower K-12 teachers." Teachers shared ideas and gained confidence in technology and new ways of teaching that, Falanga says, helped them to become "leaders in their schools." It was a fluid, productive dialogue. "Some of our discussion groups about how to use these lessons lasted years," says Falanga.

All of this technology requires equipment and software that may not be available to all schools. Jennifer Eagleton is involved with the Field Museum's "e-field trip" broadcasts. She says, "We were very worried about equity of access." So in addition to offering the broadcasts via the museum's Web site, as well as the Apple computer site, the museum made the show available through satellite dish, VHS tapes, and partnered with local public TV stations to schedule broadcasts. The Exploratorium has developed relationships with libraries who are willing to host Webcast events in areas where the schools lack the necessary technology, and it has published one book of its science experiments online and another is scheduled) so that teachers without computers or decent Internet hookups can still benefit. Most sites inform visitors of which programs are required to run features and they often provide links to where users can download the software at no cost (see sidebar).

If you're new to the online museum world, the best way to understand its scope is to see it for yourself. Below are outstanding Web sites for museums and educational institutions that offer interactive, high-quality curriculum ideas and, often, online exhibits. Although this list only skims the surface, it'll get you started. Also see the accompanying sidebar featuring sites with links to multiple museums.

Surfing Safaris

• Art Institute of Chicago The museum's extensive online resources include Art Access, which offers superb lesson plans, related book titles, maps, and glossaries related to exhibitions and items in the permanent collection. The museum's Cleopatra: A Multimedia Guide to Ancient Art, is also accessible from this page and includes fully bilingual English and Spanish text, video clips, time lines, and lesson plans for grades 4-12 in five subject areas.
• Asia Society The New York-based society's AskAsia site offers resources for both educators and kids. Teachers will like the lesson plans, reviews of recent Asian books, information on current hot topics, downloadable maps, and the Asia Studies Virtual Library, while kids can explore the Adult Free Zone, which includes language activities and pen pal information, on their own. The site also includes an online travelogue written by American middle-school students participating in an exchange program in Asia.
• Denver Art Museum Designed for students in grades 2-5, the Wacky Kids site focuses on world art and culture. It offers a range of hands-on craft projects based on items in the museum's collection, such as the samurai face mask or Mayan jade jewelry, as well as focus pages that provide background: World of Japan's Samurai Warrior and Maya Rainforest Dwellers, for example. The site also includes links to other museum artifacts and related book titles.
• Exploratorium San Francisco's innovative museum cum educational center is perfect for any teacher looking for ways to incorporate science experiments into the curriculum. The online Web Science Workshop lists full lesson plans, developed by and for teachers during the museum's summer teacher institutes. Live Webcasts (which are archived) link classrooms with science events in progress. Exciting, dynamic, and progressive, this site leads the way in museum outreach to classrooms.
• Field Museum of Chicago The museum's exciting selection of virtual field trips are accessible from this page, such as the recent Project E.R. (Environmental Rescue) Electronic Field Trip and The Sue Files, which provides accompanying online curriculum about the famous dinosaur's story. A highly developed site rich with resources for all grade levels.
• J. Paul Getty Museum Possibly the best online resource for arts education, the Getty's ArtsEdNet offers comprehensive, interdisciplinary lesson plans; a broad image gallery of international artworks (most not owned by the Getty); a Reading Room (with full-text articles about arts education); a listserv; and curricular links for featured exhibitions, such as the recent traveling Jacob Lawrence show. The Los Angeles museum's general site- www.getty.com -features an Explore Art section that gives a tour of the museum's collection following themes such as "How we live," "Mythology," etc., as well as a media gallery with videos that explain processes for making art.
• Metropolitan Museum of Art New York's biggest treasure house provides online teacher resources that cover subjects such as ancient Egypt, Indian carpets, and Byzantine life and art, with ideas for art, math, science, language arts, and social studies curricular links. The site also includes an online archive with 3,500 objects from the collection.
• The Minneapolis Institute of Art and Walker Art Center The Walker Center has a wealth of ideas on integrating art into the curriculum. There's a searchable art gallery and a Playground of activities just for kids. The For Your Classroom section contains the Teacher's Guide to ArtsConnectEd, a useful document that maps out the site and explains how to fully take advantage of its offerings. At the bottom of each page of the guide are "Instant Inspirations," one- or two-sentence ideas for activities, such as imagining what two works of art would say to each other at a party.
• National Gallery of Art The museum's online teacher resources include classroom activities and in-depth studies of works of art and architecture ranging from "The Golden Age of Chinese Archaeology" to the work of Mark Rothko. Accompanying articles give examples of how teachers have used museum resources in their classrooms. Also includes an interactive page just for kids.
• National Museum of American History Among the teacher resources on this Smithsonian Institution's Web site is an excellent interactive online exhibit that studies the presidents from George Washington to George W. Bush and includes lesson plans for grades 4-12, as well as hands-on activities for kids to follow on their own. A well-designed, highly useful site.
• National Museum of the American Indian This Smithsonian Institution museum's site offers the full text of exhibition teacher guides, which work well even independent of the artifacts.
• United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Available on this beautifully designed, sophisticated site is the full text of the museum's excellent Teaching about the Holocaust: A Resource Book for Educators , printable as a whole, or in sections. Also available are printable identification cards that show the experiences of a variety of people who endured the Holocaust; a chronology, bibliography, and videography text about non-Jewish victims and the resistance; photos of artifacts; and a learning site to aid students in their own research.
• University of California-Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive An excellent resource to prepare kids for a field trip, this site takes students on a virtual 3-D tour through the museum, introducing them to the basic concepts, such as what wall text is and how to read it. Highly interactive, the site includes sample questions about artworks-such as "How many geometric shapes can you find?"-that encourage young children to develop visual literacy. The site also features glimpses of exhibitions (including slide shows of works), background about art and artists, lesson plans, and links for further resources. For middle- and high-school students, there's an extensive online guide about the museum's collection of Indian literature, the Hindu religion, and epic tales.
• Whitney Museum of American Art Dedicated to exploring "the richness and diversity of American art and culture," this wide-reaching site includes lesson plans organized thematically for nearly all ages on topics such as rethinking history, representing identity, looking at art and media, and exploring technology. One example introduces how artists use the theme of history in their work by teaching how to conduct an oral history. The site also features a personal online journal, where teachers can upload images and write notes evaluating the success of the activities. Also features comprehensive links to other Web sites.

More Museum Links

Listed below are Web portals that offer access to many museum sites. Many sites include relevant articles, lesson plans, field trip pointers, and classroom-ready materials.

• Musée This non-profit site offers direct links to a long list of museums' educational offerings, with many ways to search for museums (by title, type, etc.).
• MuseumSpot.com With links to thousands of museums worldwide, this site also offers extensive teacher resources, including articles about planning field trips and a Busy Teachers' Website K-12 that groups exhibits, accessible on the Web, by curricular subject.
• MuseumStuff.com Very similar to MuseumSpot, this Web site provides categorized links to virtual exhibits along with its extensive database of museum sites.
• Educational Web Adventures Eduweb creates interactive, online "adventures" in art, science, and history for K-12 students that often link to museums and institutions, such as Chicago's Brookfield Zoo and the Children's Museum of Indianapolis.

Does your computer have the software and power to run all the features on the new museum Web sites? Rose Falanga, an information specialist at San Francisco's Exploratorium, says that some of her site's pages include Shockwave/Flash, Real Media, and Quicktime resources. "We recommend, at minimum, a Mac Power PC or Pentium 1, with 64-128 Mb ram, and 800x600 monitor and speakers," she says. "Both Internet Explorer 5 and Netscape 4.7 or higher will be able to access us just fine." Many sites also use Portable Document Format files (PDFs), which require Adobe Acrobat Reader for viewing. Most Web sites will link visitors to sites where they can download necessary software for free. But Falanga also adds, "Knowing that our teachers and other users do not always have the latest and most expensive software and hardware, we have deliberately designed a user-friendly Web site that is easy to access and sometimes, easy to print. Most of it is HTML."

Gillian Engberg is assistant editor of the Books for Youth section in Booklist .

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Griffin Museum of Science and Industry

What's here.

Providing unique experiences designed to spark scientific inquiry and creativity since 1933.

5700 S. DuSable Lake Shore Drive Chicago, IL 60637

Getting here

Inspire the next generation of scientific leaders and thinkers with a gift today.

Virtual Field Trips

Virtual crime lab.

Become a forensic scientist! Students work as a team to analyze evidence to determine who stole a valuable object.

About the lab

• Grades: 4-8
• Capacity: Up to 35 students
• Duration: 45 minutes
• Live via Zoom or Google Meet
• Offered Tuesdays through Fridays at a flexible time based on your schedule

Next Generation Science Standards

Science and engineering practices:.

• Asking questions and defining problems
• Planning and carrying out investigations
• Analyzing and interpreting data
• Constructing explanations
• Engaging in argument from evidence
• Obtaining, evaluating and communicating information

Crosscutting Concepts:

• Cause and effect
• Systems and system models

Disciplinary Core Ideas:

ETS2: Links among engineering, technology, science and society

Common Core ELA/Literacy Standards

CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.3.1, 3.3, 3.7, 3.10 CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.4, 4.7, 4.10 CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RI.5.1, 5.2, 5.4, 5.7, 5.10

Students will:

• Have an increased awareness of STEM careers.
• Understand the connection between ideas explored and careers that involve forensic science.
• Actively engage in inquiry-based, hands-on science investigation.
• Work collaboratively with peers.
• Communicate using terminology/vocabulary accurately.
• Analyze findings, develop a hypothesis and communicate results of who they infer committed a crime.
• Identify and describe methods of forensic science techniques including fingerprinting, chromatography, analyzing trace evidence and footwear, and powder analysis.

Key concepts

Review key vocabulary and science concepts with your students before your visit.

Activities and resources

Try these hands-on classroom lessons and other resources to extend learning.

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