School Groups

Eco-explorer Field Trips

Participating educators receive summaries of central concepts, objectives and goals, and content and performance standards. For more information or to book a field trip with Hill-Stead's estate naturalist, contact Sharon Stotz, Education Coordinator, at 860.677.4787 ext 140 or stotzs@hillstead.org


Fields & Flowers, K – 8
Students learn to identify the parts of a flower, classify organisms and understand plant and animal adaptations. Hands-on activities include playing a soil game, collecting seeds and exploring the Sunken Garden through sight, touch and smell.

Pond Study & Water Cycle, K-4
Using Hill-Stead's pond as a focus, students explore the nature of water and its effects on the environment. They identify major sources of water — oceans, glaciers, rivers, groundwater and clouds — and learn about the interdependence of organisms.

Who Gets Eaten & Who Gets to Eat, K – 8
Hill-Stead's meadows provide an in-the-field opportunity to study photosynthesis and learn about the roles of producers, decomposers and consumers in an ecosystem. Using nets and other simple equipment, students collect and examine specimens, while learning scientific methodology. Older students learn how populations fluctuate in response to environmental factors.

Art of the Impressionists
East Meets West
Hill-Stead Highlights
Immersion Days