Outdoor Science School

Registration now open for Fall 2013 and Spring 2014 Outdoor School Programming! E-mail register@omsi.edu for more information.

Experience a one-of-a-kind, completely customized science learning opportunity! OMSI offers three different outdoor school sites with varied curricula all aligned with Oregon’s content standards and benchmarks. It’s an experience your students will never forget!

The days begin with an early morning walk and breakfast, followed by five hours of field study, getting up close and personal with your customized topics. It’s back to camp in the early afternoon for a little rest and relaxation followed by interest groups. These 90–minute group sessions allow students to delve deeper into more focused topics ranging from survival skills to the formation of fossils. Students then unwind with some free time and a homecooked meal followed by an evening program, which might include a bat slide show or a night hike. Days end with the time-honored camp tradition of songs and skits around the campfire!


Download our Complete Educator Resource Guide: 2012–2013 OMSI Educator Resource Guide

For more information or to register: Call: 503.797.4661 Email: register@omsi.edu

Pricing & Subject Options

Day Trips $350/OMSI Instructor
(1 instructor per 15 students)

Meet OMSI Outdoor Instructors on location for the hands-on interactive programming that makes OMSI Outdoor Science School so popular. Schools are responsible for transportation to and from sites, as well as lunch. Programs are typically 6 hours in length.

Mount St. Helens
Explore the remnants of past eruptions at Mount St. Helens. Walk in the lava tubes of Ape Caves, see the lava trees of the Trail of Two Forests, and examine the layers of the Lahar Viewpoint to discuss how eruptions from the past are connected to those of the future. Look at images of the past thirty years to understand forest succession through plant identification and soil profiles.
Maximum 150 participants • grades 5– 12
Available September, October, June

Tide Pools
The rocky shores of the Oregon Coast are an amazing place to learn about taxonomy and adaptations. Meet OMSI instructors at the tide pools and let them guide your students’ explorations. Discover how mussels attach to rocks and sea anemones feed. There are multiple locations where instructors can meet you for a day at the coast. This program is dependent upon the tide; contact OMSI for possible program dates.
Maximum 80 participants • Grades k–12
Available September - November, April - June


Columbia Gorge
Hike the beautiful Columbia River Gorge with an OMSI naturalist! Learn geology basics like plate tectonics, rock cycle, erosion, and deposition through magnificent Northwest events in geologic history. The class will focus on the formation of the Cascade Mountain Range, the Columbia River Basalts, and the awesome Missoula Floods.
Maximum 45 participants • Grades 5– 12
Available September - November, March - June 
 

2 Night, 3 Day Program
Grades 1–12, college students, adults, families
12 Person Minimum $145 - $155 per person

4 Night, 5 Day Program
Grades 1–12, college students, adults, families
12 Person Minimum $245 - $260 per person

Customize Your Experience
contact us to discuss additional options

Subject Options

One great feature of Outdoor Science School is the amount of choice you have in designing an outdoor experience that works for your particular interests and styles. For example, for each day of your visit, you choose field study topics, including cultural history, ecological mapping techniques, and many others. You also select from a long list of interest groups, which are short classes that meet after field study. Topics include paleontology field techniques, spiders and insects, and aquatic study. Evening programs occur between dinner and campfire and run the gamut from a slide show about bats to Eco-Jeopardy. 

Cost includes:

One OMSI educator for every 15 students, program coordination, lodging, meals, pre-and post-materials, and field equipment.

Groups provide transportation, chaperones at a 1:8 ratio, and lunch on the first day.

Typical Schedule

Arrival Day Full Day Departure Day

12:00pm Arrival & Orientation
1:30pm Field Study
4:00pm Snack
4:15pm Class Time
5:00pm Free Time
6:00pm Dinner
7:30pm Evening Program
8:30pm Campfire
9:15pm Bedtime
6:30am Optional Walk
7:30am Breakfast
9:00am Field Study
2:00pm Cabin Time
3:00pm Class Time
3:30pm Interest Groups
5:00pm Free Time
6:00pm Dinner
7:30pm Evening Program
8:30pm Campfire
9:15pm Bedtime
7:30am Breakfast
8:30am Pack and Clean
9:30am Interest Groups
11:00am Lunch
12:00pm Depart

Science Store

Visit the OMSI Science StoreThe OMSI Science Store has the perfect mix of educational and entertaining gifts, games, and gadgets. Shop in the museum or online.
Visit the OMSI Science Store

Summer Outdoors

Enjoy OMSI's outdoor school programs? Spend the summer with us too!