School Programs at a Forest Preserve

Day at the Farm

Students participate in a wide variety of lessons and activities presented by costumed guides. Visit an 1890s farmhouse to see how families lived more than a century ago. Interact with farm animals and explore fields to learn how farmers used the technology of the 1890s to raise crops and livestock to feed a growing nation. From seasonal chores to pastimes of the past, four hours is barely enough time to see and do it all! Four-hour interactive program for up to 350 students. $10 per student.

2022 - October 20, 21 & 24
2023 - May 18, 19 & 22
Monday, Thursday & Friday
Kline Creek Farm in West Chicago

Standards explored (may vary by season)

Down on the Farm

Students take a hayride to the Danada Model Farm to experience pioneer life on the prairie and to investigate firsthand the staple crops and farming methods of the 1940s - 1960s. Students may also meet horses at the Danada Equestrian Center's Kentucky Barn. This endowed program has no associated fees thanks to the generous support of the Friends of Danada. Bus subsidies are available for Title I schools. Three-hour guided tour for 10 - 60 students.

September 12 - September 30
Monday - Friday
Danada Equestrian Center & Danada Model Farm in Wheaton

This program is geared towards students in Grade 4

Standards Explored
Common Core:

ELA/Literacy

• SL.4.1 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration

Social Studies

• SS.G.3.4 Geography: Human Population: Spatial Patterns and Movements
• SS.EC. 2.4 Economics and Financial Literacy: Exchange and Markets
• SS.H.1.4 History: Perspectives

NGSS:

• 4-ESS2.A Earth Materials and Systems
• 4-ESS3.C Human Impacts on Earth Systems

Students learn about Global Positioning Systems and how they work while using a GPS unit to find waypoints and hidden caches. Ninety-minute interactive program for 10 - 30 students. $10 per student.

Academic year
Monday - Friday
Fullersburg Woods Nature Education Center in Oak Brook,  St. James Farm in Warrenville, or Waterfall Glen in Darien.

Standards Explored

Common Core:

• SL.4.1 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration
• SL4.3 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration
• SL5.1 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration
• SL.5.3 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration

NGSS:

• 4-PS4.C Information technologies and Instrumentation

Get Outside: Outdoor Education Day

Students explore a variety of nature content while rotating between stations and activities. Teachers pre-select the activities from the list below. Four-hour interactive program for 50 - 120 students. $10 per student.

Academic year
Thursday & Friday
Fullersburg Woods Nature Education Center in Oak Brook or St. James Farm in Warrenville.

Activities to choose from include: bird banding, bird watching, fish ID & dichotomous keys, food chains & food webs, geocaching, guided nature hike, habitat restoration, insect investigation, nature art, plant powers, team challenge, tracking, and tree ID.

Standards Explored 

Will vary based on activities selected.  

Are you looking for suggestions on how to pair your activities? 

Biodiversity – food chains & food webs, guided nature hike, habitat restoration, insect investigation 

Community Action – bird banding, birdwatching, habitat restoration, insect investigation, or team challenge 

Creativity & Problem Solving – guided nature hike, nature art, team challenge, or tracking 

End of the Year Fun – bird watching, geocaching, insect investigation, nature art, or team challenge  

Plants – food chains & food webs, guided nature hike, nature art, plant powers, or tree ID 

Wildlife – bird banding, birdwatching, fish ID & dichotomous keys, guided nature hike, insect investigation, or tracking 

Life on the Farm

Students explore Kline Creek Farm while reinforcing many of the concepts they are learning in the classroom with topics ranging from the energy used on an 1890s farm to how plants grow and reproduce. Tours of the animals will explore how nutrients from plants feed animals and how manure is used to fertilize plants. Students will learn about the business of farming, farming innovations and how farming has moved in and then out of DuPage County. Ninety-minute guided tour for 10 - 30 students. $5 per student.

Academic year
Monday, Thursday & Friday
Kline Creek Farm in West Chicago

Standards Explored
Common Core:

ELA/Literacy

• SL.4.1 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration
• SL.5.1 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration

Social Studies

• SS.G.3.4 Geography: Human Population: Spatial Patterns and Movements
• SS.EC. 2.4 Economics and Financial Literacy: Exchange and Markets
• SS.H.1.4 History: Perspectives
• SS.G.1.5 Geography: Human-Environment Interaction: Place, Regions, and Culture
• SS.G.2.5 Geography: Human Population: Spatial Patterns and Movements
• SS.G.3.5 Geography: Human Population: Spatial Patterns and Movements
• SS.H.1.5 History: Change, Continuity, and Context

NGSS:

• 4-LS1.A Structure and Function
• 4-ESS2.A Earth Materials and Systems
• 4-ESS3.C Human Impacts on Earth Systems
• 5-ESS3.C Human Impacts on Earth Systems
• 5-LS1.A Structure and Function
• 5-LS2.B Cycles of Matter and Energy Transfer in Ecosystems
• 5-PS3.B Conservation of Energy and Energy Transfer

Pre-Activity Sheets:

Suggested Reading List (PDF)
Crossword Puzzle (PDF)
Vocabulary List (PDF)

Nature Hike

Students increase their awareness of nature and their interest in the natural world through observation and discussion. Activities and discussion will vary by season and by forest preserve. One-hour guided hike for 10 - 30 students. $5 per student.

Academic year
Monday – Friday

Take a guided nature hike at one of the preserves listed below. Each of these preserves includes school-group friendly amenities including bus parking, picnic areas and public restrooms. If you plan to eat lunch onsite and/or require a picnic shelter reservation, please indicate this on your program request form.

Standards Explored (may vary by season)

Common Core:

ELA/Literacy

• SL.4.1 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration
• SL.5.1 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration

NGSS:

• 4-ESS2.A Earth Materials and Systems
• 4-LS1.D Information Processing
• 5-ESS2.A Earth Materials and Systems
• 5-ESS2.C The Roles of Water in Earth's Surface Processes
• 5-LS2.A Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems
• 5-PS1.A Structure and Properties of Matter

Loan Box Links:

Field Trip Pack

Operation Restoration

Students discover the importance of biodiversity and the impact that change can have on an ecosystem. Afterwards, students will participate in a project to restore a habitat. Ninety-minute interactive program for 10 - 30 students. $10 per student.

Academic year
Monday - Friday
Fullersburg Woods Nature Education Center in Oak Brook or St. James Farm in Warrenville.

Standards Explored

Common Core:

• SL.4.1 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration
• SL.4.3 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration
• SL.5.1 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration
• SL.5.3 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration

NGSS:

• 4-LS1.A Structure and Function
• 4-LS1.D Information Processing
• 5-ESS3.C Human Impacts on Earth Systems

USRC Tour: Saving Aquatic Organisms

Students explore the Urban Stream Research Center while learning about freshwater mussels and a federally endangered insect species. Dive in to discussions about habitat loss and visit a local river where habitats have been improved. Ninety-minute guided tour for 10 - 30 students. $5 per student.

November 3, 9 & 17
March 16, 22 & April 13
Wednesday & Thursday
Urban Stream Research Center, Blackwell Forest Preserve in Warrenville

Standards Explored

Common Core:

• SL.4.1 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration
• SL.4.3 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration
• SL.5.1 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration
• SL.5.3 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration

NGSS:

• LS1.A Structure and Function
• LS1.B Growth and Development of Organisms
• LS1.D Information Processing
• LS2.C Ecosystem Dynamics, functioning, and resilience
• LS4.C Adaptation
• LS4.D Biodiversity and Humans
• ESS3.C Human Impacts on Earth Systems 

Loan Box Links:

Aquatic Illinois

Illinois' Invasive Species

Wildlife Exhibit Hike

Due to construction of the new center, there will be no on-site programs after Jan. 1, 2023. A Willowbrook interpreter takes students on a guided tour of the outdoor wildlife exhibits and discusses the natural history of local wildlife as well as the individual stories of the animals living at the center. Willowbrook’s mission as a center will be discussed as well as an overview of how the animals are cared for both in the rehabilitation center and as permanent residents. One-hour guided tour for 10 - 30 students. $5 per student. At this time, all Willowbrook indoor facilities are closed to the public.

Academic year
Monday – Friday
Willowbrook Wildlife Center in Glen Ellyn

Standards Explored
Common Core:

ELA/Literacy

• SL.4.1 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration
• SL.5.1 Speaking and Listening: Comprehension and Collaboration

NGSS:

• 4-LS1.A Structure and Function
• 5-LS4.D Biodiversity and Humans

Loan Box Links:

Illinois' Birds
Illinois' Wild Mammals
Owls