The SENCKENBERG Nature Museum in Dresden is an exciting place for learning outside of school. Our guided tours, workshops, and field trips are aligned with the current curriculum, offering a diverse complement to classroom instruction and preschool programs.
Daycare centers and schools
Our workshops and field trips:
Not all rocks are gray, and they’re certainly not boring! To those who know how to “read” them, rocks tell fascinating stories: about their formation, their origin, and even their names.
What exactly is a rock, what is it made of, and how can you study rocks? Why isn’t one rock the same as another? In this hands-on workshop, you’ll learn how different types of rocks form and how to tell them apart. We’ll also get creative with rocks.
Age group: 6–12 years
Elementary school (Duration: 90 min)
Curriculum reference:
Elementary School Grades 1–2, Competency Area WB1
• Rocks
Elementary School Grade 3, Competency Area WB3
• Rocks and the region’s stone culture
Most people are familiar with the fascinating world of mineral colors primarily through gemstones. But how do the many different colors of minerals and gemstones actually form? Where can they be found? And what do minerals actually have to do with rocks?
Join us on a journey through the mineralogical collection and discover the diversity of minerals.
Age group: 6–10 years
Elementary school (Duration: 120 min)
Fossils can tell us stories about times long past. Fossils come in many shapes and sizes—learn to read and understand them like a scientist.
In our fossil workshop, you’ll learn about creatures that are millions of years old and the stories they tell. Why are these remains important to scientists, and how are they studied?
Age group: 6–16 years
Elementary school (Duration: 90 min)
Middle school/High school (Duration: 120 min)
Curriculum reference:
OS Grade 10 Bio LB2
• Evolution
OS Grade 10 Bio WB3
• Reconstructing fossils
GY Grade 10 Bio LB2
• Origin of biodiversity
GY Grade 10 Bio WB2
• Origin of life
Our Earth is constantly in motion; it has been steadily changing its appearance for more than 4.5 billion years.
What is the Earth’s internal structure, and what forces act on the Earth’s crust to set the tectonic plates in motion? At various stations, students explore the processes of plate tectonics under guidance and learn about the Wilson cycle.
Age group: 10–12 years
Middle school / High school (Duration: 120 min)
Curriculum reference:
GY Grade 7 LB.1
• Movement and structure of the Earth
GY Grade 11 GK LB.1
• Geodynamic processes
GY Grade 11 LK LB.2
• Geodynamic processes
What traces do animals leave behind?
We’ll go on a hunt for clues in nature. Who nibbled on that leaf? Whose blue feather is this? Did someone spit in the meadow? Who actually lives in that tree hollow?
With these and many other exciting questions, we’ll take a closer look at different animal traces during our tour. And it won’t just be about paw prints.
Age group: 5–12 years
Preschool (Duration: 60 min)
Elementary school (Duration: 90 min)
High school (Duration: 120 min)
Curriculum reference:
Elementary School Grade 4, Subject 3
• Encounters with animals and plants
• Forest
Join us in discovering the world of fire salamanders!
With their yellow and black coloring, they’re so striking—yet you rarely get to see them.
You’ll learn where and how fire salamanders live, what their habitat looks like, and how we study them. What can we actively do to protect these black-and-yellow amphibians? Get creative and design your own salamander!
Age group: 6–12 years
Elementary school (Duration: 90 min)
Curriculum reference:
Elementary School Grades 1–2, Science Unit 3
• Encounters with animals and plants
Together, we’ll set out on an expedition to explore life in and around the water. With magnifying glasses and binoculars, we’ll discover even the tiniest creatures. Have you ever sat quietly by a stream or pond and watched the different creatures on its banks and in the water? It’s teeming with animals here! Depending on the season, in addition to beetles, frogs, dragonflies, and various larvae, you can discover a host of microscopic organisms that are invisible to the naked eye.
Age group: 6–12 years
Elementary school (Duration: 120 min)
Middle school / High school (Duration: 120 min)
Curriculum reference:
Elementary School Grade 5 Biology Unit 3
• Amphibians/Reptiles
High School Grade 5 Unit 3
• Amphibians
High School Grade 11 General Course Unit 4
• Streams
Not all meadows are the same—and what actually distinguishes a meadow from a lawn?
We’ll explore meadow plants and examine the different layers of a meadow.
What flies, crawls, and creeps through the meadow? We’ll explore the meadow as a habitat and take a closer look at both large and small meadow animals.
Age group: 6–10 years
Elementary school (Duration: 120 min)
Curriculum reference:
Elementary School Grade 3, Science, Level 3
• Meadow – Microorganisms
Blackbirds, thrushes, finches, and starlings… our local birdlife is more diverse than you might think.
Join us in discovering local birds and their way of life. Where and how do birds live and nest? What are resident and migratory birds? How and why do birds build nests? How can we help our local birds?
Age group: 5–14 years
Kindergarten (Duration: 60 min)
Elementary School (Duration: 90 min)
Middle School / High School (Duration: 120 min)
Curriculum Reference:
Elementary School Grades 1–2, Unit 3
• Birds Throughout the Year
Middle School Grade 5, Unit 4
• Birds
High School Grade 5, Unit 5
• Birds
What distinguishes the insect group, and what are their most important characteristics? We’ll examine a few selected insect orders and explore the topic of metamorphosis.
What role do insects play in the ecosystem, and why should we protect them? “Small animals, big impact” is the motto of the magnifying glass safari.
Age group: 6–12 years
Elementary school (Duration: 90 min)
Middle school / High school (Duration: 120 min)
Curriculum reference:
GY Grade 6 Biology LB2
• Invertebrates in their habitats
OS Grade 6 Biology LB5
• Invertebrates in their habitats
When it gets cold in winter, we turn up the heat and snuggle up under a blanket. But what do the animals actually do? Not all of them can just “sleep through” the winter or fly off to the warm south! How do our local animals survive the cold season? In our workshop, you’ll learn the exact difference between hibernation, winter dormancy, and winter torpor. For the birds that stay behind, we’ll make “cookies” together that also make great gifts as tree ornaments!
Age group: 5–12 years
Preschool (Duration: 60 min)
Elementary school (Duration: 90 min)
High school (Duration: 120 min)
Curriculum reference:
GY Grade 5 Biology WB1
• Vertebrates in winter
Let’s take a closer look at the colorful world of animals. What colors do we find in the animal kingdom, and what effects do they have? How did this rich variety of colors come about in the first place? Which group of animals has the widest range of colors, and how do all these color differences arise? Together, we’ll explore the colors, discover how animals benefit from them, and take a closer look at individual animal groups.
Age group: 5–10 years
Preschool (Duration: 45 min)
Elementary school (Duration: 90 min)
Curriculum reference:
Elementary School Grades 1–2, Social Studies Unit 5
• Colors of Nature
“You can’t eat soil, but without soil, we wouldn’t have any food.” How is soil actually formed, and what functions does it serve? Let’s take a closer look at the soil beneath our feet. Who actually lives in the soil and ensures that new soil can form? We’ll go on a journey of discovery into the world of soil animals, and we won’t just encounter earthworms along the way.
Age group: 5–14 years
Preschool (Duration: 60 min)
Elementary school (Duration: 90 min)
Curriculum reference:
Elementary School Grade 3, Subject Area 3
• Meadow – Microorganisms
Middle School Grade 4, Subject Area 3
• Forest – Forest Soil
Contact
If you are interested in any of these offers, please contact us: museumdresden@senckenberg.de