Zoo Adventure Programs
Spark Your Students’ Interest!
Make your students’ field trip to Reid Park Zoo a dynamic learning experience by selecting one of the available Zoo Adventure Program (ZAP) topics listed below. This allows your students to extend their learning from the classroom to the Zoo!
Click below to request a Zoo Adventure Program. Select “Zoo Guided Education Program” under field trip types.
Zoo Adventure Programs
Know Before You Go
- Grades K-12 students only (a Self-Guided Field Trip or Zoo to You Outreach is best for preschool groups).
- 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.
- 45-minute program featuring LIVE animal ambassadors. You may choose to explore the Zoo after your program.
- 1 adult REQUIRED for every 5 children, adults outside the 1:5 ratio pay regular admission to enter the zoo and will not join the program.
- 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.
- Groups over 40 will be scheduled into back-to-back programs automatically. Groups larger than 120 will be scheduled over multiple days.
- Must be booked 30 days in advance.
- Additional activities available for purchase: Giraffe Encounters, Train Rides, and Carousel.
- Questions about ZAPs? Contact [email protected] today.
Zoo Adventure Programs
Pricing
$9.25 per person (student AND adults/teachers within a 1:5 ratio of adults to students). Minimum program price: $185.
Grant Opportunities
- To cover the cost of Zoo Adventure Programs, funding is available for the 2026-2027 school year for Arizona Title 1 Schools. Indicate your title status while filling out your field trip request form.
- A bus reimbursement program is available to help offset transportation costs for Arizona schools participating in Zoo Adventure Programs at the Zoo! To request bus funding, please email [email protected] AFTER you request a program.
Funding is provided by the Diane and Bruce Halle Foundation, Cox Charities, Kasser Family, Armstrong McDonald Foundation, Dorrance Foundation for Education, Hutchens Family Foundation, and Joseph Stanley Leeds Foundation.
Zoo Adventure Programs
Topics
K-12th
Habitats
Learn what an animal needs in its habitat and how animals survive in the desert, rainforest, and savanna habitats.
K-12th
Adaptations
Learn about adaptations that help wild animals survive and how people can be inspired by nature’s survival tips.
K-12th
Animal Wellness (previously Zoo 101)
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.
K-2nd
Locomotion
Investigate how animals move from here to there by exploring their unique adaptations.
3rd-12th
Conservation and Endangered Species
Discover Reid Park Zoo’s role as a conservation organization and how zoos and scientists work to protect wild animals and wild places.
3rd-12th (30 people per program limit)
Animal Food and Nutrition – Feeding A Zoo
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.
3rd-12th (30 people per program limit)
Animal Health Care – Caring for Animals in a Zoo
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.
Teachers, looking for a way to engage your students in the classroom but can’t make it to the Zoo?
Sack Lunches for School Groups:
Low-cost sack lunches are available to purchase through the Zoo’s Flamingo Grill. Please submit your order using the order form below:
Please email your completed form to [email protected]
Please contact 326-8999 or [email protected] with any questions you may have.
