Field Trips and Special Projects for Educators
Field Trips and Special Projects for Educators
Science festival opportunities for educators
The Wisconsin Science Festival is for everyone, especially teachers, who inspire curiosity in the youth they work with every day. Explore the many ways to connect elementary, middle and high school classes with the incredible science happening across Wisconsin. Subscribe to our mailing list to stay informed about future opportunities.
Discovery Building Field Trip Expo
Discover dozens of interactive hands-on stations that cover a wide range of topics from engineering to biology and much more. Exploration stations are open-ended and mostly drop-in experiences. Explore at your own pace and let students spend as much time as they want at each station. There are activities for all grade levels. You will have the option to indicate interest in joining hands-on workshops and shows during the expo or visiting other Wisconsin Science Festival sites on UW-Madison’s campus.
The 2025 Wisconsin Science Festival Discovery Building Field Trip Expo will take place on Wednesday, October 22nd from 9:30am-1pm. The form to apply for the field trip is available here.
At this time, the expo is at capacity and any additional applications will be placed on the waitlist. Consider registering for one of the virtual field trip offerings below!
Virtual Field Trips
During the week of the Wisconsin Science Festival, groups are able to register to join a selection of virtual field trip opportunities.
2025 Virtual Field Trip Sessions:
1. Tues, Oct 21, 2025 (11:30-12:15pm) – Tour of the Core Repository with WGNHS (3rd-8th grade) – REGISTRATION LINK
2. Tues, Oct 21, 2025 (12:30-1:15pm) – Invertebrates Rock! with Aldo Leopold Nature Center (K-5th grade) – REGISTRATION LINK
Recordings of the 2024 virtual sessions can be enjoyed on our YouTube channel.
How It’s Made in Wisconsin Project
This year-round program is seeking school groups, community organizations and 4-H programs of all sizes to discover a unique “behind-the-scenes” perspective of Wisconsin-made products via facility tours, demonstrations or open house opportunities as part of the Wisconsin Science Festival.
BioBlitz: Connect with Wisconsin’s Biodiversity
The Wisconsin Science Festival is working with partners throughout the state to organize BioBlitzes. These easy-to-customize events focus on identifying as many species as possible within a certain niche, from forests to your school playground.
It’s easy to do, and we can help!
Meet the Lab
Meet the Lab is a collection of educational resources for middle school science classrooms that introduces learners to relevant real-world issues, cutting edge research and the human element—the people working together to research, innovate and solve problems using science. Click the link below or reach out to us if you’d like to connect with any of these labs.
Workshops for Educators
See below for upcoming Educator Workshops. New workshops will be added as they become available!
- 2025 BioBlitz educator webinar – September 10th, 11:30am
- Data Nuggets: Bringing Authentic Climate Change Research to the Classroom – October 23rd, 6:00pm
“The topics were great this year! My students had several favorites! The off-site visit to the art museum was a great experience for our rural students, as many of them had never been to a museum before.”
“We just loved the virtual field trip of both BioBlitz and the human brain. The brain hats were a huge hit!! Students were very engaged. Thanks again for this opportunity.”
“Variety of topics, minimal people, not a lot of wait time for stations, lots of hands-on for students. Extra field trips were wonderfully planned with great communication beforehand.”
Gallery and banner images by Ueda Photography
