School Visits

Teachers who preregister may bring their classes to the Garden for self-directed explorations of the Garden grounds and the Steinhardt Conservatory during BBG's hours of operation. Admission for school groups is free.

Preregistered classes will receive an admission pass for entry to the Garden grounds and Steinhardt Conservatory, travel directions, and school group guidelines.

Garden exploration tours, led by volunteer Garden Guides, are 90-minute programs. They include a hands-on planting activity and a tour of the grounds and/or Steinhardt Conservatory. Ask about our discount for Title I schools.

Sensory Explorations

Grades Pre-K–2

How do scientists observe the world around them? In this tour, designed for our youngest explorers, students will use their senses of smell, sight, touch, and hearing to discover flowers, leaves, bark, and many aspects of the plants and animals at BBG. Students will pot up an herb or flowering plant as part of this program.
Sensory Explorations Pre-Visit Activities (pdf)

Flower Explorations

Grades K–5

Tour available March–June

Flowers are beautiful, but do their colors, fragrance, and patterns have a purpose? We all appreciate flowers for their special beauty, but a flower's real and very important function is for reproduction of the plant. On a tour of the Garden's plants in bloom, students will learn about pollination and fruit formation, and they will pot a flowering plant to take home.
Flower Explorations Pre-Visit Activities (pdf)

Exploring for Plants We Use

Grades K–8

Most students know that food comes from plants, and many know that medicines, spices, cloth fibers, and even paper are made from plants. What other uses might plants have in our everyday lives? This tour will give students an opportunity to see a number of these "useful" plants growing here in Brooklyn. Each student will pot up a plant with a multitude of uses.
Exploring for Plants We Use Pre-Visit Activities (pdf)

Ecological Explorations

Grades 2–8

What does a plant need to grow? How do plants survive the challenges presented by environments as diverse as deserts and rainforests? Animals rely on plants for food and shelter. Do plants need animals? Comparing and contrasting various biome collections at BBG will inspire young plant ecologists to find answers to these questions. Each student will plant a mini-terrarium to take home.
Ecological Explorations Pre-Visit Activities (pdf)

Science Standards Connections

Use this matrix to find NYC Science Performance Standards supported in BBG School Programs.

Exploration Tours

Take students on a journey that includes a hands-on planting activity and a tour of the grounds and/or Steinhardt Conservatory.

Key

• S1 - Physical Science Concepts
• S2 - Life Science Concepts
• S3 - Earth and Space Science Concepts
• S4 - Science Connections and Applications
• S5 - Scientific Thinking
• S6 - Scientific Tools and Technologies
• S7 - Scientific Communications
• S8 - Scientific Investigation

Project Green Reach (PGR) is an outreach program for K–8 teachers and their classes from Brooklyn's Title I schools. PGR provides a curriculum package for the topic of your choice, inquiry-based instruction in your classroom with a plant for each student, transportation to and from and a guided tour of BBG, as well as teacher training and supplies for a community horticulture project.

Project Green Reach offers the following curriculum options:

Life Cycle of a Bulb (Fall Only)

The fast-growing paperwhite narcissus is the perfect subject for scientific observation and data collection. Students can see these bulbs bloom within six weeks of being planted. Find out with your class why bulbs grow so fast!

Life Cycle of a Seed (Spring Only)

We all love plants for their beautiful flowers, but what do flowers do for the plant? What role do fruits play in the lifecycle of a flowering plant? Students will explore, dissect and plant fast-growing bean seeds in order to observe a complete lifecycle in the classroom.

Kitchen Botany

Do people eat plants? When you eat a carrot, what part of the plant are you eating? Students will observe, plant, and cultivate their own carrots as they answer these questions and learn about the different plant parts and their functions.

Desert Environments

The desert environment is both harsh and fascinating. Students will discover how plants have adapted to survive the arid conditions and extreme temperatures of this environment. In class, students will dissect a cactus and pot up a desert plant of their own.

Tropical Rainforests

The tropical rainforest is home to an incredible diversity of plants. We will examine tropical plants up close to discover their particular niches within the rainforest environment. In class, students will each plant their own terrarium with tropical plants they propagate themselves. Themes of biodiversity, adaptation, and plant-animal interdependence are introduced.

Science Standards Connections

Use this matrix to find NYS Science Core Curriculum Standards supported by Project Green Reach.

Key

• S - Scientific Inquiry
• LE - The Living Environment

Leadership support for Project Green Reach provided by National Grid