School in the Park

School in the Park is an "experiential" learning program for elementary school children that shifts the location of the classroom from the traditional classroom in City Heights to museums and the San Diego Zoo in Balboa Park. Children in grades three through five at Rosa Parks and Hamilton Elementary Schools spend five or six weeks per year learning in a stimulating environment of museum galleries and Zoo exhibits. Museum educators working with the school teachers provide instruction by using the resources of the various Balboa Park institutions.

The goals of School in the Park are:

  1. Enrich student educational experience thereby motivating and inspiring students to want to learn;
  2. Enhance student achievement;
  3. Enhance student's self esteem and self confidence through cultural experiences;
  4. Support education departments at Balboa Park institutions.

School in the Park pays participating Balboa Park institutions $12 per student/day attendance. All School in the Park curriculum is "standards based." Curriculum developed by School in the Park is often used for other educational programs sponsored by the museums and the Zoo.

As a continuation of the elementary school level School in the Park program, Price Charities funds an experiential learning program for sixth, seventh and eighth graders at Monroe Clark Middle School. This program creates the opportunity for the San Diego Zoo, Salk Institute, Rueben H. Fleet Science Center, Birch Aquarium and Aquatic Adventures to bring their expertise into the classroom, and provides an experiential outing in which students travel to these science institutions for an in depth inquiry into grade level appropriate and standards based content. The goal of this program is for science to come alive for students in a real world setting.

For further information contact Ann Bossler at abossler@pricecharities.org.