Field Trips

KID Museum field trips feature maker activities geared towards PreKindergarten, Elementary, and Middle School students. Our hands-on activities encourage creativity and critical thinking, and give students an opportunity to work collaboratively, take risks, and solve problems together. Our programming is differentiated by grade level and we maintain a small student to facilitator ratio.

Field trips are offered either as single session 90 minute experiences or multi-session series of four (packaged with classroom curriculum and teacher PD), all of which are facilitated by our Maker Educators.

Visits can be booked at either our Bethesda Metro Center or Davis Library locations depending on type and availability.

PLEASE NOTE: We are experiencing high demand for visits to our space and cannot currently book additional groups for our Explorer program visits. We will reopen booking for Fall 2023 in the summer. Please complete the Visit Request Form if you’d like to be notified if any space becomes available.

On Sundays, KID Museum Bethesda Metro Center is open to the public and filled with great maker activities similar to those offered in our Explorer program. We encourage you to share this link with families at your school so they can visit KID Museum while we work to create more weekday field trip opportunities.

Explorer Field Trips

An Explorer Field Trip is the perfect way to offer your students a maker-based experience of studio-based activities and larger team challenges that focus on imparting “mind of a maker” skills.

Pricing: $16 per student. $400 minimum per field trip. Title 1 schools are eligible for a 25% discount. Pricing is subject to change.

Every experience includes:

Maker Playground
A space designed to spark curiosity through open-ended discovery and fun engagement through interactive and immersive experiences.

Selection of Studio & Central Makerspace activities which may include:

Woodshop Studio Experience
Tech Arena Robotics and Coding
Big Build Team Challenge Experience
Materials Bar – Cultural Arts & Materials Exploration

To book a field trip, please complete our Visit Request Form.

Multi-Session Packages & Curriculum

Four onsite workshops and classroom curriculum – limited availability

Pricing: Please complete the Visit Request form to receive complete pricing information.

2nd.- 4th Grade
6th - 8th Grade

KID Inventors

KID Inventors is a comprehensive multi-visit student program including field trips to KID Museum, in-class curriculum, and teacher professional development support. Students engage in a robust engineering design process, where they build technical skills, practice creative problem solving, and invent solutions to meaningful problems.

This program is aligned with both Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and key CCSS Math standards and can be integrated into a science class, STEM elective, or enrichment settings for elementary students.

KID Museum’s unique model leverages maker learning, which integrates STEM and project-based learning with creative problem-solving and social-emotional learning. Students build skills related to scientific inquiry, computational thinking, engineering design, coding, and technology. Most importantly, they develop agency and confidence as learners.

2nd Grade: Classroom Innovations
3rd Grade: Electric Explorations
4th Grade: Robotic Inventions

The program can be delivered once a week for about 10 weeks. Schools can adjust the timing to occur in a shorter or longer period of time, depending on scheduling constraints.

4 Field Trips to KID Museum: 2 hours each; 50 students maximum at a time or can be offered as a full-day experience.
6 in-class lessons at school: 45 minutes each, delivered by teacher

For more information, please complete our Visit Request Form.

Invention Studio & Invent the Future

The Invent the Future Challenge is one of the region’s largest maker challenges integrating science, technology, engineering, and design.

Students work in teams to invent solutions to the question: What will you make to improve life on this planet?

Through a series of four field trips to KID Museum, students will learn about coding, technology, electronics, and design. These trips will give students skills that they can use while creating their Invent the Future project.

For more information check out our Invent the Future website or complete the Visit Request Form to begin the booking process.

Sign up for our Educator Newsletter to get the latest news on KID Museum field trips and other programs.

Testimonials

“We had about 50 kids and there wasn't one that wasn't focused and engaged the whole time - when does that ever happen? We all left there amazed about the amount of fun and learning that took place in such a short window of time.”
Susan Eagle

“It made me cry to see our first graders so joyful and engaged from beginning to end. The activities were so brilliantly planned, materials were plentiful, and every single child appeared caught up as if by magic.”
Robin LoubeFirst Grade ESOL Teacher

“The place is amazing and I don't know if I have seen the girls so engaged and excited about anything we have done... It is our new favorite place!”
Liz WeirshouskyJunior Girl Scout Troop Leader

“You could see their faces light up with excitement as they did each activity!”
Martha Thomas WaugamanTroop Parent

FAQs

Program Options

What types of programs are available?

KID Museum offers three distinct types of field trips, all of which are facilitated by our educators.

Explorer Program: 90 minute experience which provides a sample or introduction to our programs.
Multi-session: A more intensive experience, which involves multiple visits throughout the school year and integrated classroom curriculum.

Can we spend the whole day at KID Museum?

When you visit, we only have the activities available which you have scheduled. We do not have self guided exhibits. If you would like to spend the whole day at KID Museum, you must schedule two different activities – one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Your group can take a lunch break in between programs.

Group Size

How many students can you accommodate for a field trip?

The number of students we can accommodate depends on the program that you choose.

Teachers & Chaperones

How many teachers and chaperones should I bring?

We recommend a ratio of 1 adult (teacher or chaperone) to every 10 students. We do not charge admission for adults. Please let us know how many teachers and chaperones you plan to bring with you.

Reservations

How do I make and confirm a reservation?

All field trips are booked through our online reservation form. Completion of the online reservation form does not constitute a confirmation. Your field trip is confirmed when you receive the contract and send your deposit to hold the reservation.

Payment

How can I pay for our field trip?

We will arrange payment details during the booking process.

Is there a minimum payment or number of students required to run a program?

Our minimum payment to run a weekday program is $400. For our Explorer program, that price includes up to 25 students.

When are the deposit and final balance due?

The deposit is due within three weeks after the contract has been sent.
The balance is due one month prior to your scheduled field trip.
If you book a visit less than one month before your scheduled field trip, full payment is due within one week of booking.

Do you offer reduced rates?

If your school is Title I or any other designation, please include that information on your request form.

Arrival & Departure

What should we do if we are running late for our scheduled field trip?

If you are running late for your program, please call the museum to inform our staff.

Bethesda Metro Center: 301-941-4905
Davis Library: 301-897-5437

We understand that it is difficult to arrive exactly at your scheduled time due to traffic, weather, busing and other factors out of your control. If you arrive late, we will make our best effort to accommodate your group for the full program length but we cannot guarantee it.

After our program, can we visit other parts of the museum?

Due to our limited space, the only program(s) available during your visit are those reserved in advance and facilitated by our educators. We do not have exhibits for self-guided activities.

Transportation

Where can we park our school bus or cars?

KID Museum Bethesda Metro Center

For GPS Purposes, search for:
Bethesda Chevy Chase Regional Services Ctr.
4805 Edgemoor Ln. Bethesda, MD

KID Museum bus parking is on Edgemoor Lane. Please use this address to input into your GPS. KID Museum has the ability to park two buses at any given time. Buses need to be parked there and wait for KID Museum staff for pick-up and drop-off of group visits. Bus parking is not available in the Metro Bus Bay

KID Museum Davis Library is located on the lower level of the Davis Library at 6400 Democracy Boulevard, Bethesda, MD 20817. Our entrance is on the back side of the building off of Bells Mill Road and it says KID Museum on the glass doors. There is a free parking lot for you to use if you arrive by car. If you arrive by bus, please inform your bus driver to drop off students at the doors of KID Museum then to park on the street. Note: please do not park too close to the corner of Bells Mill and Montauk Avenue because it blocks the stop sign at that intersection.

Food Options

Can we eat lunch at KID Museum?

Please coordinate with the KID Museum staff member completing your reservation to arrange details.

Do you have food available to purchase?

We do not sell meals or beverages.

Policies

Inclement Weather

In the event of inclement weather, KID Museum follows Montgomery County’s snow and inclement weather policies, not Montgomery County Public Schools’ closures. We will be closed when the County is closed. Closure information will be posted on our website by 8am. Please email us at fieldtrips@kid-museum.org if you are uncertain about the status of your field trip.

If your school district is closed, has a delayed start or an early dismissal due to inclement weather and you are unable to attend your field trip, please contact us at fieldtrips@kid-museum.org as soon as possible. We will do our best to reschedule your field trip at no additional cost. If we are unable to find a suitable date to reschedule, your payment will be returned in full.

Invent the Future Challenge afternoon field trips – MCPS buses reserved as part of the Invent the Future Challenge are able to visit even when there is a two hour delay. Please call the bus lot to confirm that your bus will pick you up at the designated time.

Program Cancellations & Refunds

If you need to cancel your program for any reason other than inclement weather, we will follow the guidelines below:

Full refund up to three months prior to scheduled date (minus processing fee).
50% refund up to two months prior to scheduled date (minus processing fee).
No refund if cancelled less than two months prior to scheduled date.

If you want to reschedule your visit for a different date, we can transfer your payment up to two months prior to your originally scheduled date without penalty. However, we cannot reschedule your visit for a different date if it is less than two months prior to your originally scheduled date.

KID Museum asks for full payment one month in advance of your field trip so that we can properly staff the visit and prepare the necessary materials. In the event that some of your students are unable to attend the field trip, we do not refund your school for those students.

Additional questions? Email us at fieldtrips@kid-museum.org.