Bishop Museum Science Programs for school groups
Bishop Museum offers a full set of science-based education programs. This includes programs that are keyed to our Richard T. Mamiya Science Adventure Center and programs on Science on a Sphere.
Science Adventure Center programs
The Science Adventure Center is a 16,500-square-foot facility your students will experience immersive, interactive exhibits on the geology, biology and oceanography of the Hawaiian Islands. Exhibits explore ocean, wind and the volcanic forces that have shaped our islands. The Center has been designed to address the HCPS III Science Standards. Guided, hands-on programs are offered for students visiting the Science Adventure Center.
PRESCHOOL: Here Comes a Lava Flow!
“Watch the Big Volcano Grow,” as you join in this interactive program about Hawaiian volcanoes. Young children will be captivated through body movement, building, counting and singing.
• For Pre-K
• 25 minutes
GRADE 1: Classify It!
One of these things is not like the others; one of these things just doesn’t belong! Students classify specimens embedded in resin to identify the similarities and differences between plants and animals.
• 25 minutes
• 30 students maximum
HCPS III – Benchmarks
Science:
K.1.1 Use the senses to make observations.
K.1.3 Collect data about living and non-living things.
K.3.1 Identify similarities and differences between plants and animals.
GRADE 2: Go with the Flow
Imagine you are lava, flowing from a volcano — what kind of a rock will you become? Students use movement, visuals and rock samples to identify and classify lava rocks.
• 25 minutes
• 30 students maximum
HCPS III – Benchmarks
Science:
2.1.1 Develop predictions based on observations.
2.6.1 Identify ways to change the physical properties of objects.
2.8.1 Identify different Earth materials & classify them by
their physical properties.
GRADE 2: Puppets in Paradise
Students participate in a puppet show about plants and animals of the Hawaiian rainforest and learn how they first settled in the Islands and how “new arrivals” change the environment.
• 25 minutes • 30 students maximum
HCPS III – Benchmarks
Science:
2.5.1 Identify distinct environments and the different kinds of organisms each environment supports.
GRADE 3: Hitching a Ride to Paradise: How Plants and Animals Populated the Hawaiian Islands
Students engage in hands-on activities that test the ways in which the original flora and fauna made their way to the Hawaiian Islands. Have your class raft snails, blow insects, attach seeds and find out which species came to Hawai‘i in the stomach of a bird! Through their experiments they collect data to answer the question “How did it get here?”
• 25 minutes
• 30 students maximum
HCPS III – Benchmarks
Science:
3.1.2 Safely collect and analyze data to answer a question.
3.3.1 Describe how plants depend on animals.
3.4.1 Compare distinct structures of living things that help them to survive.
GRADE 4: This is Your Life: Kupuna Atoll
Experience the life stages of a volcanic island, through a dramatic interactive multimedia presentation. Students will travel back in time to understand how the Hawaiian Islands grow and mature.
• 25 minutes
• 30 students maximum
HCPS III – Benchmarks
Science:
4.8.1 Describe how slow processes sometimes shape and reshape the surface of the earth.
4.8.3 Describe how fast processes (e.g., volcanoes, earthquakes) sometimes shape and reshape the surface of the earth.
GRADE 6: Waves of Destruction: The Science Behind Tsunamis
What is the science behind a devastating tsunami? This interactive demonstration highlights the physical and geological forces behind tsunamis. By creating landslides and earthquakes in a large ocean tank, students will discover how tsunamis form and how they change as they move closer to shore.
• 25 minutes
• 30 students maximum
HCPS III – Benchmarks
Science:
6.6.3 Explain how energy can change forms and is conserved.
6.6.10 Explain how vibrations in materials set up wavelike disturbances that spread away from the source.
GRADE 8: Who Wants to be a Rock Star?
Students will be taken on a multimedia voyage through the rock cycle as they examine different rocks and explain how they formed. Their voyage culminates in a fast-paced game entitled “Who Wants to be a Rock Star?”
• 25 minutes
• 30 students maximum
HCPS III – Benchmarks
Science:
8.8.1 Compare the characteristics of the three main types of rocks.
8.8.2 Illustrate the rock cycle and explain how igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks are formed.
Science on a Sphere School Programs
Grades K-8
Science on a Sphere (opened fall 2006) is a 6-foot globe that can project satellite and other data of the earth and other planets. Sponsored by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Science on a Sphere brings our planet vividly to life.
KINDERGARTEN: Kids Space Quest
Boldly go where no kindergartener has gone before. Through games and songs, search for objects found in our day and night sky.
HCPS III – Benchmarks
SC.K.8.2 Identify different types of celestial objects seen in the day and night sky.
MA.K.5.1 Identify common geometric shapes
MA.K.11.1 Sort objects or people according to stated attributes
GRADE 1: Here Comes the Sun!
Have fun learning about how the sun makes light and heat and why that is important for us living here on Earth!
HCPS III – Benchmarks
SC.1.8.1: Describe that the sun warms the land, air, and water.
GRADE 2: Co-ordinates and Cardinal Directions: Where on Earth are we?
What better way to learn about maps and globes than by using a 6-foot animated sphere? In this lively program, students will find their way around the globe using map symbols, co-ordinates, and cardinal directions. Discover whether or not the North Pole is really on the top of the Earth!
HCPS III – Benchmarks
SS.2.7.2 Describe the purpose and features of maps and globes.
MA.2.8.1 Use cardinal directions that describe the location of an object or place on a co-ordinate map.
GRADE 3: WOW! Wonders of Water
Uncover how the water cycle affects the weather on Earth. Explore how the water cycle affects EXTREME weather events. Through our journey discover how we humans can clean up our ‘water act’ and help with water conservation today!
HCPS III – Benchmarks
SC.3.8.2: Describe how the water cycle is related to weather and climate.
SS.3.7.4: Examine the ways in which people modify the physical environment and the affects of these changes.
GRADE 4: Extreme Makeover: Earth Edition
Take a journey on a time machine and explore the Earth millions of years ago. Witness the movement of the continents, the birth and evolution of the Hawaiian Islands, and the active rumblings of earth today.
HCPS III – Benchmarks
SC.4.8.1 Describe how slow processes sometimes shape and reshape the surface of the Earth.
SC.4.8.2 Describe how fast processes (e.g., volcanoes, earthquakes) sometimes shape and reshape the surface of the Earth.
GRADE 5: Destination Solar System
Take a tour of the solar system to discover what causes day and night, how the moon moves around the earth and characteristics about the planets.
HCPS III – Benchmarks
SC.5.8.1 Describe the relationship (size and distance) of the earth and other components of the solar system.
SC.5.8.3 Explain that the planets orbit the sun and that the moon orbits the earth.
SC.5.8.4 Demonstrate that day and night are caused by the rotation of the earth in its axis.
GRADE 6: Tsunamis: Walls of Water
See the global effects of earthquakes and other disturbances on the world’s oceans. Learn about the role of Hawai‘i’s scientists play in monitoring tsunamis around the world.
HCPS III – Benchmarks
SC.6.2.1 Explain how technology has an impact on society and science.
SC.6.6.10 Explain that vibrations in materials set up wavelike disturbances that spread away from the source.
GRADE 7: Attack of the Giant Cell
In this program, the sphere is transformed into a giant cell so that students can easily identify the component parts of plant and animal cells.
HCPS III – Benchmarks
SC.7.4.2 Describe the basic structure and function of various types of cells.
SC.7.4.3 Describe the levels of organization in organisms (cell. tissue, organ, organ system, whole organism).
GRADE 8: Under the Weather
Uncover the connection between amongst the sun, the earth’s tilt, the oceans, and Hawai‘i’s seasonal weather.
HCPS III – Benchmarks
SC.8.8.3 Describe how the earth’s motions and tilt on its axis affect the seasons and weather patterns.
SC.8.8.4 Explain how the sun is the major source of energy influencing climate and weather on Earth.
SC.8.8.7 Describe the physical characteristics of oceans.