Groups: School Field Trips

Let us take your classroom, home school group, or children program on a tour exploring Portland. Our field trips are designed for students from 3rd grade on up and focus on lessons and activities that will assist in achieving Oregon State Social Science standards while providing a fun and unforgettable experience.

We emphasize guided discovery and actively encourage student participation and interaction. Just ask anyone whose been on one of our school tours, our time together is much more than reciting boring lists of facts about Portland’s history and landmarks. We want everyone (including the chaperones) to depart from our time together having learned something that cannot be easily taught in a classroom.

For the current tour season we are offering our most popular school tour, the “History, Art & Transit” for elementary school-age groups. This tour last about 2 hours. It begins at Pioneer Courthouse Square and ends at the waterfront by the Salmon Street Springs. On the way we explores three basic themes:

  • Early Portland History: Who founded Portland? Who lived here before Portland was a city? Who were the Pioneers? And what was the Oregon Trail?
  • Public Art: What is art? What are some of the different types of public art you find downtown? What are some of the materials used?
  • Transportation: How do people get around in a city? In addition to cars, what other options are there for people?
We are always able to adapt this tour to accommodate your group, or to better fulfill the needs of your curricula.