Bay Shore Studies

Hands-on scientific exploration in a beautiful natural setting! Bring your students this school season.

Give your students the opportunity to experience hands-on scientific exploration in a beautiful natural setting, learn about San Francisco Bay, and gain an understanding of their connection with the Bay.

BRING YOUR STUDENTS TO THE BAY
Since its’ beginning in 1974, the Bay Shore Studies program at the Richardson Bay Audubon Center & Sanctuary has provided outstanding learning opportunities for 3rd through 6th grade students. The program uses the Bay Shore as a model ecological community and explores themes such as food webs, energy cycles, tidal zonation, adaptation, and general ecological.

This 2 hour field trip is a motivating and valuable learning experience where students participate in a variety of activities from handling live crabs to measuring the density of Bay water. Trained volunteers help small groups of students explore bay shore habitat, experiment with salinity, and use the scientific method to make predictions, collect and compare data, and draw conclusions.

BAY SHORE STUDIES BEGINS IN THE CLASSROOM
Bay Shore Studies is more than just a field trip. Teachers are provided with a comprehensive Teacher’s Guide explaining Bay ecology and conservation, defining concepts and providing strategies for fun and practical classroom activities specifically designed to introduce these concepts to students and prepare them for their field trip.

Each student receives an accompanying Student Handbook which introduces basic concepts and vocabulary, explains the ecology of organisms they may see on their field trip, and provides data sheets for recording their observations and measurements. These materials and activities, as well as the field trip itself, support the Next Generation Science and Common Core Standards.

Each 2-hour field trip is limited to no more than 35 students and costs $250. Limited fee waivers and transportation assistance are available for qualifying schools.

Program availability is based on low tides, and slots fill quickly! To reserve your space, contact Erin Blackwood at erin70@sfsu.edu.

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