Field Trip Add-Ons

Looking to make the most of your field trip? Check out our Field Trip Add-Ons to request these additional reservations for your students' visit! 

These guided programs, temporary exhibitions, and performances listed below are add-ons for school visits. All of these special opportunities have capacity limitations and require an additional reservation made in advance (at least two weeks prior to your visit date) when booking your onsite field trip. Field trip add-on requests are not guaranteed and are based on availability and capacity. Some add-on experiences have costs associated.

*Policy for Field Trip Add-on Equity: To provide an equitable museum experience for all school visitors, we require that all students in your order be booked into any add-on reservation. Additionally, schools are limited to only one add-on per visit (pending availability and capacity) to ensure equal opportunity to all interested school groups booking a field trip to the Museum.

Please note: To prioritize student accessibility to special experiences, chaperones may not be included in add-on reservations (i.e. Butterfly Pavilion, 3D movies, shows, etc.) Check your confirmation to see if your group is booked for any add-ons.

Performances and Shows

Ocean Encounters

Ocean Encounters is a live theatrical performance that will plunge our audiences into the primeval seas. Everyone will become a deep-sea explorer as they marvel at Mosasaurs, play with Plesiosaurs, and bask in glowing bioluminescence! Ocean Encounters are live 20-minute interactive puppet shows provided by our Performing Arts team.

Available at 10:30 am and 11:30 am on Fridays with advanced reservations.

GRADE LEVELS: All grades
DURATION: 15 - 20 minutes
LOCATION: Commons Theater
COST: $3 per ticket

Please Note: This performance includes verbal dialogue. American Sign Language interpretation or CART services are provided at no fee. To request ASL interpretation or CART services, please contact info@nhm.org at least two weeks in advance of your visit. 

Animals Alive! 

Los Angeles is wild! Every week, Museum Educators share how their furry, scaly, slimy, or leggy friends help make L.A. a biodiversity hotspot—along with creatures from all over the planet. Discover how they survive in our sprawling city as well as habitats across the globe, and what we can all do to help protect our animal neighbors. *Animals subject to change

Currently on hiatus through August.

GRADE LEVELS: All grades
DURATION: 20 minutes
LOCATION: Commons Theater
COST: Free

Collections Revealed

The Museum Collections contain over 35 million specimens and objects and only a small fraction of them are on display! This weekly program offers guests the chance to meet the Museum's scientists and collections staff while learning about rarely seen collection items. The staff, active research, and collection items are all part of NHM’s treasures!

Available every Thursday at 11 am with advanced reservations.

GRADE LEVELS: All grades
DURATION: 30 minutes
LOCATION: Commons Theater
COST: Free

2D and 3D Films

Please Note: Closed captioning and assistive listening devices are available for our movies upon request from theater staff. 

Temporary Exhibitions 

Temporary exhibitions are self-guided opportunities to explore reservation-only spaces in the Museum. These popular exhibits have space limitations and require an additional reservation. While you and your group would be exploring the exhibit on your own, we have free downloadable Learning Resources (including activities, videos, lesson plans, teacher guides, and more!) to help you prepare an itinerary for your time in the exhibits. Exhibit dates vary; please view descriptions for details. 

Fierce! The Story of Cats  

Visiting from the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle in France, Fierce! offers an up-close-and-personal experience that highlights the beauty, diversity, and predatory skills of felines. Spanning continents and the ages, Fierce! includes interactive displays, cultural objects, and a special focus on iconic cats of Los Angeles illuminating the importance of protecting the world’s wild cats and their habitats.

Available with advanced reservations July 13 - February 18, 2026 Monday–Friday.  

GRADE LEVELS: All Grades 
LOCATION: Special Exhibition G, Ground Level
CAPACITY: 100 per timeslot (2 timeslots per day) - Call in advance for more details or during check-in at the South Desk.
COST: Free!

Please Note: This exhibit includes potentially sensitive imagery of animal predation and mortalities. Please review our Fierce Social Narrative for more details.

Butterfly Pavilion 

Wonder takes flight at the Museum! Walk among beautiful butterflies in our seasonal Butterfly Pavilion. This springtime exhibition features hundreds of butterflies, colorful native plants, and plenty of natural light to help you see these creatures shimmer. With lots of flight space and a variety of resting spots, come get one of the best views in Los Angeles of these amazing insects. 

Available seasonally in the Spring with advanced reservations and payment, Monday–Friday, 10 am–12 pm . Access to this outdoor exhibit is weather-dependent. 

GRADE LEVELS: All Grades 
DURATION: 30 minute timeslot 
LOCATION: Outdoor Pavilion 
CAPACITY: 30 per timeslot (5 timeslots per day) 
COST: $3 per ticket 

A golden silk spider

Spider Pavilion 

Discover the secret beauty of spiders as they freely spin webs, lay eggs, and eat in our Pavilion garden! This one-of-a-kind seasonal experience provides a glimpse into the secret life of spiders. Stroll through the open air pavilion to see hundreds of live orb weavers. Then enter the spider den to peer into the enclosed habitats that house different species from tarantulas to jumping spiders. Along the way you'll hear amazing stories and get answers to all your arachnid questions from our Museum Educators. 

Available seasonally in the Fall with advanced reservations and payment, Monday–Friday, 10 am–12 pm. Access to this outdoor exhibit is weather-dependent. 

GRADE LEVELS: All Grades 
DURATION: 30 minute timeslot 
LOCATION: Outdoor Pavilion 
CAPACITY: 30 per timeslot (5 timeslots per day) 
COST: $3 per ticket 

Guided Programs 

Guided programs are engaging, hands-on experiences designed for your students' grade level and led by Museum Educators. 
Available at 10 am and 11 am, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday October 1 – December 12 with advanced reservations.  
Cost: Free! 

Windows Into Nature

Take a deep-dive into one of our many North American animals! Through different animal stories, students will learn about a specific animal and how it lives. Then, we'll find our animal thought a scavenger hunt in the museum. Our educators will lead interactive discussions through dialogic reading and Visual Thinking Strategies of our corresponding animal diorama. Students will also have the chance to touch an animal specimen from our collection, like a porcupine quill or a coyote pelt! 

GRADE LEVELS: Grades Pre-K–1 
DURATION: 30–40 minutes 
LOCATION: Diorama Halls (indoors) 
CAPACITY: 20 per time slot (4 time slots per day) 

Growing Home

Come learn about insect habitats in our Nature Gardens! Drawing upon what young students already know about what animals need to survive, this hands-on and exploratory activity allows students to discover what a habitat is and what insects need to survive. In our Edible Garden, students will have the opportunity to discuss their ideas about habitats, find examples of what bugs need in a garden scavenger hunt, and build their own bug home out of natural materials. 

GRADE LEVELS: Grades Pre-K–1 
DURATION: 30–40 minutes
LOCATION: Nature Gardens (outdoors and weather-dependent)
CAPACITY: 20 per time slot (4 time slots per day)

Fossil Detectives

Solve the mystery! What were ancient animals like when they were alive? Through observation and questioning, students will investigate fossil animals and their habitat to find the answer. Our guides will lead students to practice coming up with hypotheses and recording ideas in a field journal, just like real paleontologists! The foundation of this program comes from a method known as Visual Thinking Strategies (VTS). For more information on VTS, visit vtshome.org. 

GRADE LEVELS: Grades 2–5 
DURATION: 45–50 minutes 
LOCATION: Dinosaur Hall or Age of Mammals (indoors)
CAPACITY: 20 per time slot (4 time slots per day) 

Pond Life

Discover the diversity of life in our pond! Students will explore the many specimens in our Nature Gardens pond by using scientific observation skills. Our guides will lead students to safely collect and document macro-invertebrates in our pond, just like real scientists! Students will have the chance to use authentic tools like magnifying glasses and field guides to learn more about the unique wildlife that lives here in Los Angeles. 

GRADE LEVELS: Grades 2–5 
DURATION: 45–50 minutes
LOCATION: Nature Gardens (outdoors & weather-dependent)
CAPACITY: 16 per time slot (4 time slots per day)

Backyard Biodiversity

Discover biodiversity here in Los Angeles! Using scientific practices, our guides will lead students to safely collect, observe, record, and identify insects in our NHM Nature Gardens. Students will have the chance to use authentic tools like magnifying glasses and field guides to learn more about the unique wildlife in their city through this insect survey. 

GRADE LEVELS: Grades 6–12 
DURATION: 50–60 minutes
LOCATION: Nature Gardens (outdoors & weather-dependent)
CAPACITY: 16 per time slot (4 time slots per day)

Urban Carnivores

Did you know Angelenos share their urban environment with carnivores? Students can step into the shoes of a wildlife biologist by making close observations of real museum collections, studying carnivores living in an urban environment and tuning into ongoing research projects led by biologists in the field. 

GRADE LEVELS: Grades 6–12 
DURATION: 50–60 minutes
LOCATION: Diorama Halls (indoors)
CAPACITY: 20 per time slot (4 time slots per day)
 

Permanent Exhibitions 

Looking for other spaces to explore inside (and outside!) the Museum? Learn more about our permanent exhibitions and see all that your students can discover on their field trip—no additional reservations for school groups required!