Field Trips: Reach and Impact
Never brought a class to the Academy before? See just how many teachers schedule a field trip each year!
What do teachers think about bringing a class to the Academy? Read some feedback from teachers of grades ranging from preschool to highschool, and browse maps that highlight the volume of students we serve each year.
Above you'll find an aggregated map of schools and youth-serving organizations who arranged a field trip to the Academy in 2015. Although we've removed duplicates wherever possible, the sheer volume of sites warrants zooming in to your location of interest. Feel free to toggle off schools or youth groups, respectively.
By the Numbers: 2016-2017
Over the last school year:
- More than 144,000 people attended the Academy with a school group, and another 16,600 attended a field trip with a youth-serving organization during out-of-school time.
- More than 5,000 individual classrooms walked through our front doors, and hundreds of summer camps, afterschool programs, and community-based organizations explored our exhibits.
- Approximately 78% of our field trip guests came from the Bay Area, and a full 22% traveled from farther afield!
- Over 1,350 unique schools and 300+ unique youth-serving organizations took advantage of our heavily discounted field trip rates.
- Although youth groups tend to bring kids of mixed ages, we can see trends in visitor data for school groups:
- 17%: Preschool-1st Grade
- 21%: 2nd-3rd Grade
- 27%: 4th-5th Grade
- 24%: 6th-8th Grade
- 11%: 9th-12th Grade
Feedback from Field Trip Organizers
"This was my first time doing a field trip to the Academy. I will be bringing 2 more classes and cannot wait. The staff made everything so easy. Thank you!"
"Thanks for making our trip affordable. The students were raving afterwards; some said it was their best field trip ever!"
"Thank you for your organization and efficient way to book. I also appreciate how friendly and organized the people were during check in. Of course the program in the planetarium was awesome."
“Having the activities available in multiple languages was FANTASTIC! Our bilingual students were able to do the work in our normal language of instruction.”
“My students loved the academy! One student said that she wanted to live there. Some of my students have never been to San Francisco and they appreciated this opportunity so much. They were engaged and responsible throughout the day. I was so impressed with them.”
“I'll never forget the sustained atmosphere of wonder my kids participated in. They moved from exhibit to exhibit, even more excited about each in turn. And they learned so much! They keep coming up to me to tell me about connections with what we saw and with their lives.”
“Watching the thrill of actually experiencing earthquakes, going undersea, and being in the midst of beautiful butterflies! Watching my students who recently came from difficult situations in Yemen and Eritrea light up because science, and beauty, don't always language was something to treasure. Thank you!”
"Students wrote that this was the best fieldtrip ever in their journals. I've taken kindergarteners before and found the Academy of Sciences to be welcoming and age appropriate for the 5 year olds."
"Students had a great time. Thanks for offering free field trips to SFUSD students. Many of our students would not be able to afford to go to the Academy if they had to pay full price. It was great watching them get so excited about science."
"Loved this field trip. This was the best trip I have taken students on in my 14 years of teaching."
"We went at a great time of the year when it wasn't crowded at all. We will definitely do this again."
"This was one of the most influential trips for the students. They loved the variety of science content available for them to explore. I am grateful that even from the Central Valley we can visit. I will each year!"
"This is my favorite field trip for my low-income, ELL 6 year olds! It does not require reading skills, is totally engaging for the children, and offers opportunities for them to connect to the science curriculum for the entire year. And it is easy for them to behave appropriately because the Academy is quiet, beautiful, and visually accessible even to the littlest ones."
"The docents walking about in their orange coats were easy to locate and approach with questions. Docents were informed, friendly, outgoing, and engaged."
"The rainforest is awesome! Absolutely the most enthralling for my 2nd graders."
"Thank you for being so organized throughout the whole process. I also really appreciated being able to visit for free before our field trip as I had never been to the Academy. Overall, it was a great trip!"
"I don't think there is a better place in the Bay Area for a field trip."