Take the Classroom Outdoors with WildCare Guided Field Trips

Learning about riparian habitats on a field trip

Mrs. T and kids at the beach. Photo by Craig Buchanan

Small Groups

In small groups of five to eight children, Kindergarten through 6th grade students learn about nature's diversity and richness and our personal responsibility to care for the environment. Small groups enhance each child's ability to actively explore and learn.

Multi-sensory Teaching

Using Elizabeth Terwilliger’s renowned multi-sensory teaching techniques, Nature Guides introduce students to first-hand experiences of different habitats. Mrs. T, as she is affectionately known, pioneered a unique and extremely engaging teaching technique that fosters a life-long fascination with and affection for nature.

Half-day Field Trips in a Variety of Natural Habitats

WildCare offers a variety of half-day Field Trips available including visits to forests, woods, lakes and marshes. Children learn about habitats, geology, animal tracks, wildflowers, birds and more. Field Trips for schools can only be arranged by/through a teacher for an entire class. Reservations are taken on a first come, first served basis. Reservations for the upcoming school year open on the first of August.

Four Unique Field Trip Sites

Field Trips are available at four unique sites in Marin and Sonoma counties. Transportation to Field Trip sites must be made in advance and is the responsibility of the school or class. We encourage carpooling.

Miwok Meadows, China Camp, San Rafael

Ring Mountain, Tiburon

Muir Woods

Spring Lake, Santa Rosa

Scholarships Available
WildCare offers full and partial scholarships for Nature Hike Field Trips. These are based on the free and reduced lunch percentage at your school.

To request a Nature Hike Field Trip and apply for a scholarship, please answer the scholarship questions on the Nature Hike Request Form.

Bus scholarships are also available.

Questions? Please contact Eileen Jones at 415-453-1000 x12 or eileen@wildcarebayarea.org.

To Reserve a Field Trip

Please have site, dates and teacher's email and cell phone number available.

Class size: One classroom per trip.
Preparation: Materials to prepare your class for your trip are mailed six weeks prior to your field trip. Invoices are payable prior to the commencement of the trip. A Nature Guide will call to discuss trip details a few days before your trip.

To reserve please use our online Nature Guide Field Trip Request Form or call Eileen Jones, Education Program Manager at 415.453.1000 x 12 or email eileen@wildcarebayarea.org.

Take a Virtual Field Trip with Mrs. Terwilliger

As preparation for your hike, take a virtual field trip with Mrs. T at terwilligerfilms.org!

Produced specifically for Grades K- 5, these wonderful nature education films feature acclaimed naturalist-teacher and conservationist, Elizabeth Terwilliger. Her unique interactive, multi-sensory teaching techniques inspire children to respect and appreciate Nature. As adults, they will be prepared to make responsible decisions to protect and preserve our natural environment.

School librarians may request a free DVD of the Tripping with Terwilliger Habitat Adventure Series at terwilligerfilms.org.

Volunteer as a Terwilliger Nature Guide!

Since 1970, Nature Guides have led school children on hands-on, adventurous discovery walks in natural habitats in Marin and Sonoma County.

Training for new Terwilliger Nature Guides is held in August and September. Visit our Nature Guide Volunteer page for more information and an online registration form. You may also contact Education Program Manager, Eileen Jones at eileen@wildcarebayarea.org or 415-453-1000 x12 for more information.

For great insight into the Nature Guiding experience, visit former Nature Guide Pat Neyman's website at http://www.pats-eduent.net/terwilliger.htm

"I draw my inspiration from Mrs. T. She has taught me her sense of the earth, to be part of it, and to take care of it"— A Terwilliger Nature Guide

Field Trip Sites

Return to site list

Miwok Meadows, China Camp San Rafael Grades K through 6 Fee: $175.00 per class Thursdays, 9:30am - 12noon Students explore the fascinating and diverse habitats of this historic site to discover the life cycles, adaptations and ecology of wetlands, oak woodlands and grasslands.	Ring Mountain Corte Madera Grades 3 through 6 Fee: $175.00 per class Tuesdays, 9:30am - 12:30pm Students investigate ecological interdependency—habitats, geology, energy cycles and food webs—as they visit grassland, freshwater marsh, oak woodlands and a Miwok Indian site.
Spring Lake Santa Rosa Grades K through 6 Fee: $175.00 per class Wednesdays 9:30am - 12noon This is a multi-sensory introduction to three habitats: oak woodlands, fresh-water marsh and lake shore. From Acorn Woodpeckers to Native American uses of native plants, students witness the wild side of Spring Lake Park and uncover some of Nature's best-kept secrets.	Muir Woods Grades K through 6 Fee: $175.00 per class Tuesdays and Fridays 9:30am - 12:30pm A redwood forest provides children the opportunity to explore life in a distinctly Northern California habitat. They will observe the flight patterns of birds, search for animal tracks, and discover diverse adaptive patterns. The site's Redwood Creek is an important habitat for endangered Coho Salmon which can facilitate discussion of species conservation.

WildCare -- Programs -- Field Trips