School Programs

Elementary students out on the trail at Tualatin Hills Nature Park getting ready to start a hands-on activity to learn about habitats.

Elementary students out on the trail at Tualatin Hills Nature Park getting ready to start a hands-on activity to learn about habitats.

THPRD's experienced environmental educators lead engaging, hands-on programs at both nature parks and natural areas within walking distance of schools. If you have a non-school group, please visit our Group Programs page.

Each School Program incorporates multiple, nature-based activities for a memorable outdoor experience that connects to a variety of crosscutting concepts from the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) to supplement in-classroom instruction. The program descriptions below outline our specific environmental education programs. Each program listed has a description, connection to NGSS, months available, grade level recommendation, and length of program.

Environmental Education School Programs

Nature "Sense-ations"

How do animals use their senses to survive in the wild? Follow a raccoon's path as you smell, feel, listen, and observe your way around the park. Through activities and games, students will compare their five senses to those of animals in the park.

Bug Safari

By exploring three different habitats within the park, students will go on a bug hunt! They will look at bug characteristics, life cycles, and learn about some of the adaptations that bugs have in order to survive. We will search for spiders, centipedes, and other invertebrates using sweep nets and magnifiers.

The Secret Life of Seeds

How does a tiny seed turn into a huge tree? Using the forest as our classroom, students will find out by collecting native plant seeds, matching up plant parts, teting out how seeds travel, and creating their own model seed that can fly, drop, attach, or pop!

Amazing Adaptations

Students will investigate the different body parts and behaviors that help the plants and animals in the park survive. They'll take a close-up look at life in a pond, discover the secrets of plant survival, and examine the teeth, skulls, and pelts of local animals to see their amazing adaptations.

For the Birds

Discover what makes a bird a bird, what they need to survive, and where they live in this egg-citing class. Participants will examine bird specimens, play a bird beak adaptations game and use binoculars to study bird behavior on an expedition in the park.

FBI: Forest Recycles

Using a cedar grove as a classroom, students will become detectives to learn how energy cycles in the forest. They'll find out what creatures live in the soil by using microscopes, go on a hike to see FBIs (Fungus, Bacteria, Insects), discover how fallen logs give life to new trees and learn how disturbances like wind, beavers, and people can change a forest.

Water World

Dive into the water cycle and learn where water exists on Earth by pretending to become a drop of water in a watershed. From maps, create and test out water bodies that shape landforms, and use scientific equipment to evaluate the water quality of local streams and ponds.

NGSS Core Ideas supported: (K-5) ESS2.C, (K-2) ESS2.A, ESS2.B
Months available: September through June
Recommended grade levels: 2nd through 5th
Length: 2 to 3 hours

Wild Habitats

Explore and hike through several different habitats within the Nature Park while making observations about which animals live there and how they adapt to environmental changes. Do some hands-on learning about the five things all living things need to survive.

NGSS Core Ideas supported: (K-5) LS2.C, LS4.D, ESS2.E
Months available: September through June
Recommended grade levels: Kindergarten through 4th
Length: 1.5 to 2 hours

Custom School Programs

We are always looking for new ways to support teachers and provide opportunities for students to get outside and connect with nature, so please tell us what you need to support your classroom curriculum and objectives. We can customize a program for any grade level or specific NGSS standard to fit your needs. A custom program fee will apply.

Interested in bringing the Nature Park into your classroom without leaving your school? Let us know your learning goals and we can find an hour long program to bring nature to your students.

Come On Your Own - Self-Guided Program

If you are interested in taking your class for your own self-guided hike in a THPRD natural area, please call us ahead of time so that we know to expect your school group. Our staff can help you find less congested areas to best fit your class' needs. On the right-side of this page, we have provided several free self-guided activity sheets to help enhance your environmental education experience.

Locations

Tualatin Hills Nature Center acts as the gateway to the 222-acres of the Tualatin Hills Nature Park, where 5 miles of trails and a mosaic of habitats provide endless opportunities for discovery await.

Cooper Mountain Nature Park is a 230-acre property within 3 miles of trails including amazing views of the Tualatin Valley and a variety of habitats that are becoming rare in our region.

Neighborhood Parks: Many of our school programs can be modified for any of the natural areas in the Tualatin Hills Park District. We can send an environmental education instructor to your favorite park near your school to guide your program. Our staff can help you decide which program best fits the park and your school group's needs. Use our Find a Park tool to discover parks near your school!

Reservation Information

Group size: 12-36 students per program with up to two programs per day.

Time: Programs generally run between 8:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.

Availability: Weekdays, September through June (see program descriptions above). Programs are rain or shine.

Cost: Prices are listed below. We have scholarships available for qualifying classrooms. Chaperones and teachers are free. Prices good through June 30, 2025.

Reservations: Please fill out our Group Nature Program Request Form or email or call the school program director at the Tualatin Hills Nature Center at 503-629-6350. Please have the following information ready:

• Contact person (first and last name)
• School name, phone number, address, grade level and number of students
• Program choice
• First and second choice date preferences

Upon confirmation you will receive a Teacher's Guide filled with trip information and a map of the park to help your class get the most from their outdoor experience.

Cancellations & Other School Program Policies: Groups that fail to show up on the day of their reservation will be billed for the full program fee. Cancellations must be made in writing at least 14 days in advance.

Teacher Newsletter

If you are interested in learning more about opportunities to engage your students in nature, please sign up to receive our Teacher Newsletter. We send it out every couple of months and will keep your contact information confidential.