Teacher FAQ’s.

More information is available in the Program Booklet under the Education Tab. 

What are the tour choices?

You may come for a self-guided tour, a guided tour or an all-day visit with educational programming, available for K-12. Reservation is required.

A self-guided tour will require at least 1.5 hours for an average classroom. This type of visit includes access to all exhibits including time in the navigation simulator and our 17-minute museum film, entitled Rivers: The Heart of our Nation.

A guided tour is reserved in advance and a staff member will host your group. It includes all of the above and the guide will provide additional information.

An “all-day” field trip is one that takes up most of the school day. This tour provides educational programming that is age/grade-specific and is available 10:00am-1:30 pm unless other arrangements have been made. RDC is considered an off-site classroom for this type of visit. Programming can be adjusted for content and for your time constraints.

Can home-schools participate in RDC programming?

Yes. Since many homeschool groups have a wide age range of students, please contact education@riverdiscoverycenter.org for programming that will fit your students' needs. 

How many students do you allow in a tour?

25-30 is the ideal tour group size. RDC staff will work with you to accommodate larger groups.

Are we required to have a guided tour?

No, the exhibits are designed to be self-guided.

Where does the bus park?

School buses may drop the students off in front of RDC, but will then need to park in the city parking lot located one block away between Broadway and Jefferson.

Do you have a place for us to eat lunch?

If visiting the center over lunch time, arrangements may be made for the students to eat inside the museum or down at the riverfront if preferred. Lunches are not provided by RDC.

Do the students shop in the gift shop?

We offer a new program now that makes shopping so easy for teachers. We deliver pre-sell sheets to the teachers about a week prior to your visit. Those forms are sent home with the children and then they are brought in the day of the visit. The orders will be filled and bagged up with the students’ names. There will just be one large bag or box to take back to school to be distributed. This method allows the students to shop, allows more time devoted to learning and the teacher doesn’t have to worry about the hectic nature of students shopping en masse. Also, this is a private way to make purchases that results in no child feeling left out. Non-profits depend on gift shop sales for operation expenses. Thank you in advance for shopping with us.

Do you have preparatory or summation materials for the teachers?

When a teacher schedules their class for one of our educational programs, the teacher can request a graded lesson (during the actual field trip), and a follow-up activity/assessment.  For guided tours, there is an end of tour questions and answers as time permits.  

How much does it cost?

Every field trip is unique and may have different costs associated with it. Our 3rd-grade Skippers program is free thanks to generous donations from sponsors. Please contact kwatson@riverdiscoverycenter.org for more information about pricing. 

How can we expect the day to go?

Two dynamics govern your schedule for the day: the number of students and the total time you are here. We divide your total number into sub-groups and we strive to limit those to #10-15 students per staff member. We will rotate groups through with everyone doing all the same activities. Your registration form will ask for your arrival and your departure times. This is important information and must be accurate. We make out a schedule for the entire day and when a group arrives late, that first rotation is cut short, likewise, when a teacher tells us that they will be leaving early (usually because of the bus driver), then that last rotation will be shorted. If in doubt, check with the bus drivers BEFORE you send in your reservation. It is difficult to change a finely-tuned schedule after you arrive.

We will still start the program at the designated time. If you arrive early, students may view the floodwall, or guardians may otherwise engage their students until the start time. Our programming starts at the specified time- no exceptions.

For more information, contact Russell Orr at 270-575-9958 or education@riverdiscoverycenter.org