We've got a lot to offer.
Many programs are available for booking this fall, with more exciting experiences returning in the spring. Click on the links for each program to confirm availability. Book your program today!
Astrotots to the Moon!
Virtual Science Academy
Recommended for ages 3-5
Countdown to lunar exploration and fun! Put on your helmet and buckle up as we blast off together for an adventure that takes us to Earth’s moon and back, all powered by our rocket-fueled imaginations. Students will have a chance to practice their science skills as they travel virtually with our professional Museum educators.
Virtual Heart
Grades 3 - 8
Virtual Science Academy
Available for bookings now!
2022 VSA Heart Science Standards
Get your students' pulse going with this live dissection experience. Your class will participate in interactive experiments and discussion, as well as guide the dissection of a real sheep heart.
Virtual Lung
Grades 3 - 8
Virtual Science Academy
Available for bookings now!
2022 VSA Lung Science Standards
Take your classes' breath away as they get to peer inside the respiratory system. Explore lung anatomy while observing a sheep lung dissection and participate in activities, then make observations to learn how the respiratory system works.
Virtual Art Station: Titan
Grades 1 - 8
Virtual Science Academy
Available for bookings now!
2022 VSA Titan Science Standards
Blast off to new discoveries with this live program that merges space science and scientific illustration! Titan is Saturn's largest moon and one of the most fascinating places in our solar system. Students and teachers will learn how to capture their own Titan investigations using scientifically accurate illustrations, just as other great scientists have done throughout history.
Virtual New Me
Grades 5 - 6
Virtual Science Academy
Available for bookings now!
2022 VSA New Me Science Standards
Explore the physical, emotional and chemical changes to the human body during a sensitive, respectful, co-ed discussion led by a professional educator. Ask honest questions and get honest answers. This class is now only offered as a Distance Learning course.
Scientists in Action: The Grandest Canyon and Greatest Mysteries
Grades 4 - 12
Scientists In Action
Thursday, April 18, 2024
9 a.m., 10 a.m., 11 a.m., and 1 p.m. Mountain Time
Created for grades 4-12, but all are welcome.
Join us for a field trip through time - deep time, as we visit one of the world’s best known natural wonders: the Grand Canyon. Billion-year-old mysteries hide within miles of rocky walls, from fossils of prehistoric oceans to missing chapters of geologic timelines that still have scientists scratching their heads. Student questions and curiosity will help guide this live program. Register today for this amazing opportunity to virtually visit the canyon’s South Rim from the comfort of your own classroom!
Scientists in Action: Bygone Bugs & Prehistoric Flowers
Grades 4 - 12
Scientists In Action
Thursday, May 9, 2024
9 a.m., 10 a.m., 11 a.m., and 1 p.m. Mountain Time
Created for grades 4-12, but all are welcome.
Sixty-six million years ago, insects crawled, hopped, and flew alongside dinosaurs that lived in a subtropical area that is today's Front Range of Colorado. Unbeknownst to critters living at the time, the world would be dramatically changed by a mass extinction event that would do away with 75% of all life on Earth. But did bugs die with the dinosaurs? And how have they changed since then? Join us to study flora and fauna hidden within the rocks of the Corral Bluffs dig site. Sixty-six million years in the making, this un-bee-lievable virtual field trip will wow you. Sign up today!
Registration opens soon!
Blended Course: Sense-Making By Design - with Patrick Brown
Grades 3 - 8
In-Person Portion
(Required) Weds-Fri June 12 - 14 and Sat October 5 (Pat only present on June 12 & June 13 and virtually for an hour on Oct 5)
Asynchronous On-Line Portion
(Required only for University Credit) Sept 2 - Oct 13 (Complete Four Classroom Implementation Assignments & A Weekly Discussion Forum (approx 2 hrs per week of work for 6 weeks)
Learn why the sequence of your lessons and labs matters! Join renowned science educator and author Patrick Brown for a fun and interactive course about bringing conceptual coherence for learners to your lessons and labs.
The session is designed as a complete guided tour for novice teachers, classroom veterans, curriculum specialists, methods course instructors, and informal science educators
Topics include:
- What you need to do. An overview of an effective instructional model called “Explore Before Explain” with considerations about planning and designing effectively
- How to do it. Ready-to-teach lessons to cover a variety of science topics. Detailed examples show how specific aspects of all three dimensions of the NGSS can translate into your classroom.
- What to do next. Reflection questions will spark thinking throughout the sequencing process and help you to develop the knowledge necessary to adapt these concepts to your curriculum and students’ needs.
Demystifying STEM: An introduction to fun and practical approaches to STEM
Grades K - 5
Dates and times:
Face-to-Face Sessions
June 20 8:00am - 4:00pm
June 21 8:00am - 4:00pm
June 22 8:00am - 12:00pm
Online Implementation
September - October
You don't need to be a scientist or an engineer to teach STEM. You just need a little curiosity!
Demystifying STEM is your entry point into engaging and ready to implement STEM
teaching practices tailored specifically for the elementary school classroom.
Come learn how teaching STEM can go hand-in-hand with teaching literacy, and
how you can give your students a head start in developing 21st century skills.
Native Plants, Animals, People and Skies Reimagined: A Natural History Immersion Experience along the Colorado River
Grades K - 12
Immerse yourself for 3 days in the wild and secluded beauty of Western Colorado and Eastern Utah as you float the Ruby Horsethief Canyon section of the Colorado River accompanied by a teacher-trainer and naturalist from the Denver Museum of Nature & Science.
Explore the interactions that occur every day in nature. See how human activity, past and present, has continuously impacted these native interactions. Hear stories of resilience and survival from our indigenous plants, animals and people who have survived invaders. Visit the world’s second largest concentration of arches as you hike through Rattlesnake Canyon and learn the geologic history of that unique landscape.
Date and Time:
Session 1: Onsite Museum Orientation Day 10:00 am – 3:00 pm on June 7, 2024
Although all are welcome at this session, it is only required for participants seeking the optional credit.
Guests who live 100 miles or more from the museum may join this session by Zoom, link will be sent prior to event.
Session 2: 3 Day/2 Night River Field Course: June 29th, 30th and July 1st
For practicing K-12 teachers
Family Members & Friends Welcome (must be 12 years old)
Rocky Mountain Mind, Brain & Education Conference
Grades K - 12
Join us for the 4th Annual Rocky Mountain Mind, Brain & Education Conference hosted by Denver Museum of Nature & Science in partnership with researchED. This conference brings together K–12 educators and university researchers with a common interest in applying research-based methods from psychology and neuroscience to their practice.
Date: Saturday, November 9th, 2024
Time: 8:00am to 4:30pm
Archive: 2020-2021 Tools @ Tea Time Program
K-12 TPD
Teachers! Grab your afternoon tea and log in for an end-of-the day boost, with tips and resources from the Museum Teacher Professional Development Team and an opportunity to share strategies with other teachers about remote and hybrid learning.
Museum 101
Specially designed for Preservice Teachers, these in-depth two-part sessions provide our future teachers of science and social studies the opportunity to:
- Participate in an inquiry-based activity that involves evidence gathering in one of the museum exhibition halls AND
- Explore the Museum’s unique resources and programs for students and teachers that can support both curriculum and teacher professional development.
Contact us at [email protected] to schedule.
Wild Senses
Wonder Workshops
Must be ages 4-7 years old
We will transform your room into a natural wonderland ready to be explored. Young learners take on animal behaviors to experience the natural world around them, as animals would. Kids smell out their food like a squirrel, hunt in the dark like a raccoon, and use infrared detection to see prey like a snake. An adventurous Museum educator will guide your explorers as they discover adaptation and senses firsthand through animals’ wild senses. This program will amaze and delight your animals—er, kids—with pretend play and fun, educational activities.
Mission To Mars
Grades 3 - 5
Wonder Workshops
Blast off on a journey of discovery and make room for a space station orbiting Mars, transporting your classroom of young astronauts. This transformation will challenge your group to use teamwork, critical thinking, and creativity to solve problems and design the future of space travel. Your Mars mission takes science to a new stratosphere! Junior astronauts will be left feeling inspired by human ingenuity and the universe around them.
Body Systems in Motion
Grades 4 - 8
Wonder Workshops
Get your body systems up and running while racing against the clock to complete challenges about your own body. The entire group will work together to bring their avatar to life.
Invisible Forces: A Physics Challenge
Grades 4 - 8
Wonder Workshops
Our apologies but this workshop is unavailable until further notice.
Race against the clock and use the invisible forces all around us to uncover mysterious codes and secrets. Your classroom will become a physics laboratory, where students will build, experiment, complete hands-on challenges, and reveal the physics behind sound waves, air pressure, and electricity. Let the adventure begin!
Built to Fly
Grades 2 - 5
Curiosity Kits
Available for bookings now!
Discover the marvels of natural engineering! Explore the secrets of nature’s best fliers as your students build gliders and experiment with wing structures inspired by insects, birds, and bats. Imaginations will soar as your students learn about flight through this hands-on design challenge. A maximum of 105 students can be accommodated over three days.
Lost Worlds of Colorado
Grades 2 - 5
Curiosity Kits
From tropical rainforests to saltwater shores—surprise, discovery, and creativity await! Dig into Colorado’s past using the scientific process as paleontologists and geologists do. Analyze evidence and iconic discoveries, and create simulations of Colorado’s lost worlds where dinosaurs once roamed.
Powered By Nature
Grades 4 - 8
Curiosity Kits
Harness the power of Colorado’s natural resources in this hands-on game of geographic discovery and real-world ingenuity. Teams will be challenged to power cities across Colorado while balancing energy needs with environmental impacts and cost. Colorado’s future is in the hands of your students!
Preview the program here:
Wildlife Exhibits
On Permanent Display
Animals big and small come to life in exquisitely detailed dioramas that transport you around the world.
Secrets of the Sea 3D
Runtime: 45 minutes
Dive into the fascinating world of the ocean in "Secrets of the Sea." This film takes you on an underwater journey with an incredible variety of enchanting marine creatures, from pygmy seahorses and dazzling opalescent squid to majestic manta rays, tiger sharks and even a clever coconut octopus. This extraordinary film showcases the indispensable role of marine biodiversity in maintaining the well-being of our oceans. Filmed in 16 stunning locations, including Tahiti, Mexico, the Philippines and California.
Antarctica 3D
Runtime: 45 minutes
Experience the wonders of life in our planet’s frozen frontier. Narrated by the Academy Award®-nominated actor, Benedict Cumberbatch and produced by the filmmakers who brought you “Planet Earth II,” this stunning visual masterpiece immerses you in the captivating life of our planet’s frozen frontier. Plunge beneath more than six feet of ice to experience a mesmerizing undersea ballet of starfish and jellyfish. Swim alongside playful seals, soar across ice-covered mountain peaks and immerse yourself in the largest congregation of fin and humpback whales ever filmed. Come experience this profound film that not only serves to entertain but also inspires us to care for and protect Antarctica and our awe-inspiring natural world.
Antarctica is produced by BBC Earth Natural History Unit and distributed by SK Films.
Ancient Caves 3D
Runtime: 45 minutes
Embark on an extraordinary journey into Earth’s deepest realms in “Ancient Caves.” This incredible film follows a group of scientists as they explore the planet’s hidden secrets in stunning caves from Europe to North America and the Caribbean Sea. Witness their bravery as they delve hundreds of feet underground in search of ancient clues that reveal our planet's climate history. Dive into a world of adventure and discovery in this captivating film, where science and excitement collide, promising an unforgettable experience for all ages!
“Ancient Caves” is an Oceanic Research Group Films production produced with support from the Giant Dome Theater Consortium and presented by MacGillivray Freeman Films.
Amazing Animal Adaptations: Orcas
Grades 2 - 5
Field Trip Adventures
Now accepting bookings for programs!
In this fun, interactive adventure, your students will participate in a facilitated program highlighting adaptations of animals in six different habitats, including oceans, using Museum collections and visit the Museum’s special exhibition, Orcas: Our Shared Future.
Entrance into the Orcas: Our Shared Future temporary exhibition only included for Field Trip Adventures scheduled between March 15, 2024 and May 24, 2024.
UnEarth Colorado
Grades 2 - 5
Field Trip Adventures
Now accepting bookings for programs!
Dig up Colorado’s prehistoric past! Use real prehistoric evidence found in fossil analysis to become a junior paleontologist. This immersive experience allows students to interact with authentic prehistoric specimens and gather clues from ancient plants and animals.
Heart Lab
Grades 3 - 5
Field Trip Adventures
Now accepting bookings for programs!
Explore the human body and the parts and function of the circulatory system using hands-on investigations and small-group dissections of real sheep hearts.
Lung Lab
Grades 3 - 5
Field Trip Adventures
Now accepting bookings for programs!
Explore the human body and the parts and function of the respiratory system using hands-on investigations and small-group dissections of real sheep lungs.
Unraveling Mummies: Modern Technology, Dissection, and Ancient Egypt
Grades 6 - 8
Field Trip Adventures
Now accepting bookings for programs!
In our Unraveling Mummies Field Trip Adventure, students use CT imaging and dissections of a real sheep heart to dig into the culture, anatomy, and mummification & burial practices exercised by ancient Egyptians.
The Bear Necessities
Grades PreK - 1
Field Trip Adventures
Now accepting bookings for programs!
In this facilitated studio program, your students will be immersed in a Colorado habitat as they become black bears and search for food, water, and shelter. Also, explore the Bears & Sea Mammals diorama halls using an exhibit guide that is designed to connect your class with the exhibition and learn through play in the Discovery Zone.
Dinosaur Detectives
Grades PreK - 1
Field Trip Adventures
Now accepting bookings for programs!
Become a paleontologist in this studio program. Your students will uncover clues from the past in order to imagine what it was like when Colorado’s state dinosaur, Stegosaurus, roamed the land.
Design Your Own Adventure
Grades K - 8
Design Your Own
Feeling creative? This option allows you to plan your own adventure at the Museum. Curate your trip to meet your group's needs with temporary exhibitions and Planetarium shows. Permanent exhibitions and Museum entry are free for PreK-12 school and youth groups.