education

Spark Your Students’ Interest!

We offer a variety of resources and discounts for teachers that are sure to create memorable learning experiences for students K-12. A field trip to the Reid Park Zoo is just one of the fun ways to ignite your students’ interest in wildlife, conservation, and science!

Looking for a way to engage your students when you cannot come to the Zoo? Click here to learn about VIRTUAL FIELD TRIPS and additional resources available to you from Reid Park Zoo.  

 

Want to Visit the Zoo?

Self-Guided School Field Trips

Did you know school groups who come to the Zoo during the regular school day are eligible for free self-guided trips? It’s true! To receive this discount, self-guided trips must be reserved at least 30 days in advance to secure the date. Please be aware March-May fills up fast! To ease frustrations during the registration process, please submit as soon as possible.

Self-Guided Field Trip Details:

Request Your FREE Self-Guided Field-Trip Today!

Educator-Led Field Trips

Make your students’ visit to Reid Park Zoo a true learning experience by selecting one of the available Zoo Adventure Program (ZAP) topics listed below. The ZAP program curriculum is designed to align with current state and federal science standards and provide a fun and memorable field trip for your students.

Zoo Adventure Program (ZAP) Details:

  • Grades K-12 students only
    (a self-guided trip or Zoo to You Outreach is best for preschool groups)
  • 45-minute program featuring LIVE animal ambassadors
  • 1 adult REQUIRED for every 5 children, adults outside the 1:5 ratio will not be able to join the program.
  • Must take place on a weekday (Mon.-Fri.) during the traditional school year (Aug.-May.) with a start time of 9:30 or 10:00.
    • 40 people maximum for most programs (students and chaperones). Animal Food and Nutrition and Animal Health Care ZAPs have a 30 person limit per program.  
    • Large groups will be scheduled into back-to-back programs automatically.  For example: for a group of 80 people in the 9:30 timeslot, we will  schedule programs for groups of 40 at 9:30 – 10:15 and 10:15-11:00. Reid Park Zoo Staff will work with you as needed based on your group’s size. Please note for groups larger than 160 people, we will need to schedule an additional, extra day to accommodate your group.
  • Must be booked 30 days in advance
  • $8.00 per person (student AND adults/teachers within a 1:5 ratio of adults to students)
  • Additional chaperones outside the 1:5 ratio will need to pay regular zoo admission and will not join the program but can join the group after the program.
    • Grant funding is available to cover program fees for the 2024-2025 school year for Arizona Title 1 Schools. Funding is provided by The William E. Hall Foundation held at the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona, the Hutchens Family Foundation, Zarling’s Zoo Kids, Southwest Gas, the Kasser Family, Cox Charities, Joseph Stanley Leeds Charitable Foundation, and the Arizona Cardinals Charities Fund. Chaperones outside the 1:5 ratio will need to pay regular Zoo admission and will not be able to join the program. 
  • Minimum program price $160.00
  • Additional activities available for purchase: Giraffe Encounters, Train Rides, and Carousel

Programs will focus on the topic of your choice and will include fun activities and presentations with live animal ambassadors.

Zoo Adventure Program (ZAP) Topics:

  • Habitats (designed for all ages): Learn what an animal needs in its habitat and how animals survive in the desert, rainforest and savanna habitats.
  • Adaptations (designed for all ages): Learn about adaptations that help wild animals survive and how people can be inspired by nature’s survival tips.
  • Zoo 101 (designed for all ages): Caring for the animals that call the Zoo home is a big job! Learn how we do it and why what we do is so important.
  • Animal Food and Nutrition – Feeding A Zoo (designed for all ages, 20 people per program limit): Omnivore, herbivore, carnivore, or insectivore? During this program, your group will take a peek at what some of the animals at the Zoo eat and meet live animal ambassadors.
  • Locomotion (designed for grades K-2): Investigate how animals move from here to there by exploring their unique adaptations.
  • Conservation and Endangered Species (designed for grades 3 and up): Discover Reid Park Zoo’s role as a conservation organization and how zoos and scientists work to protect wildlife and wild places.
  • Animal Health Care – Caring for Animals in a Zoo (designed for grades 3 and up, 20 people per program limit):  Visit the Zoo’s Animal Health Center, meet live animal ambassadors, and learn how the Zoo cares for over 250 animal residents in this hands-on, STEM-based program.

Reserve a PROGRAM AT THE ZOO here

THIS PROGRAM IS ALSO AVAILABLE AS A LIVE, INTERACTIVE ONLINE PROGRAM:

Reserve a VIRTUAL PROGRAM here

 

Can’t take your class on a field-trip?

You’re in luck! Our community Zoo to You Outreach program is an affordable option to bring the Zoo to You! Click here to learn more.

Free Resources for Teachers:

Bio Bags

Field trips to the Zoo can be enhanced with a Bio Bag full of hands-on artifacts! These backpacks contain skull and bone replicas and other objects to illustrate scientific concepts, as well as detailed instructions on how to interpret the items for your students. There is no charge to use them, but you must reserve them in advance of your visit to ensure availability. Click here to learn more about Bio Bags, or to request a Bio Bag for your visit.

Activity Packets

Focus your students’ attention while they’re at the Zoo on a field trip with age-appropriate activities you can download and print right from your computer. Packets are available for students K-2 and 3-5; a STEM-based packet is available for grades 3 and up. Click here to download today!

Web Cams

If you have a monitor and have access to the internet, you can observe Zoo animals right from your classroom! This is a great way to introduce your students to wild animals and observe them as they explore their natural habitat. Click here to see more!

For questions about Reid Park Zoo’s Programs email us at education@reidparkzoo.org