Guided School Programs

Welcome teachers and students for the 2025-2026 school year!

Check out our menu of programs below. Subscribe to the Educator Newsletter for updates during the school year!

 

In-Person Field Trips:

Join us in person as we explore Nanaimo’s past with various programs suitable for grades K-12!

See below for a full listing and details on each program. Remember to check the Feature Exhibit Programs section below for details on new, limited-time programs connected to upcoming feature exhibits.

School field trips are available Tues-Fri, September 23-December 18, 2025 and January 13-June 25, 2026.

SHOW EXCEPTIONS

  • October 2025:
    • Coal Miner’s Child (K-2) and Black Diamonds (5+) are not available.
    • October field trip availability may be limited due to our evening Lantern Tour programs. Afternoon field trips (12:30-2:00) are more likely to work wtih our scheduling needs.
  • December 2025: Reserved for Yesteryear Christmas (K-2) and Winter Lights (K-3) ONLY.
    • Mon-Fri availability.
  • March 16-27, 2026: Spring Break: What’s in Your Backyard?.
  • June 2026: Mon-Fri availability of all non-seasonal school programs.

 

Virtual Field Trips: 

SHOW VIRTUAL FIELD TRIPS

Invite the museum to your classroom, virtually! Live or pre-recorded

Our live virtual program and follow-up Q&A sessions connect your students with a Museum educator via Teams or Zoom.
Pre-recorded programs offer you one (1) month access and the flexibility to break up the material or mix and match activities to suit your students’ learning style. These can be combined with the live Q&A for an interactive experience! 

 

Feature Exhibit programs (Limited Time!)

Coming soon: Grow Nanaimo Add-on Module!

Availability: April 13 – June 24, 2026     Cost: $25 per class for 30 min

Planning on visiting the Nanaimo Museum this spring for one of our fabulous field trips? Add on an extra 30 minutes for your students to experience our brand new feature exhibit, Grow Nanaimo!

Younger students will enjoy rotating through creative stations and exploring the exhibit in small, supervised groups. Older students can take in the exhibit independently at their own pace, with lots of opportunity for questions and hands-on interactives.

 

For more information, or to book a program, please contact Steph Kveton via the form below.

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 Modules and Add-ons

Educators can add in person or virtual modules or add-ons to an existing program or build their own custom program using modules.

SHOW MODULES & ADD-ONS

In-Person Modules — 30 minutes;  $25 per class

  • Feature exhibit activity and exploration (primary or intermediate, when available)
  • Bastion Tour (all ages)
  • Story of Snuneymuxw  (primary or intermediate)
  • Snuneymuxw Tools (primary or intermediate)
  • Snuneymuxw Weaving (primary)
  • Coal Mine (primary or intermediate)
  • Century Classroom (primary or intermediate)
  • Old-fashioned Toys (primary)

Virtual Add-ons — 15-20 minutes; $10 per class; delivered via Teams or Zoom

  • Nanaimo Notables: Virtual Miner’s Cottage Tour Q&A
  • Nanaimo Notables: Nanaimo Bars Q&A
  • Virtual Yesteryear Christmas Q&A

Under Review 2025-2026

Periodically, we review our school programs to ensure they are up to date and that they reflect new understandings and more nuanced perspectives. Nanaimo Museum staff review programs with guidance from Snuneymuxw Elders and Cultural Knowledge Keepers. See below for the school programs currently under review.

SHOW UNDER REVIEW

From Cedar to Coal (Gr. 4) is under review. Alternative programs are: Snuneymuxw Traditional Life or Black Diamonds.

Far From Home (Gr. 5) is under review. Alternative programs are: Snuneymuxw Traditional Life or West Coast First Nations Art. For a list of resources about Residential Schools, including survivor stories, background information, and lesson plans, check out this resource guide: Residential Schools Resources (PDF)

Classroom and Resource Kits

Classroom kits are unavailable at this time.

Self-Guided Discovery Programs

Explore the museum with your students during this program, which includes discovery sheets that allow students to match pictures with gallery items to find answers to the questions. Each exhibit area has its own unique discovery sheet. A customizable set of four discovery sheets make up one Discovery Sheets Clipboard

SHOW DETAILS

Self Guided Tour:

Discovery Sheets $0.75/clipboard plus Regular Admission per student (chaperones complimentary)

Pre-registration is REQUIRED. Contact Steph Kveton at [email protected], or make an inquiry using the form below.

Virtual Programs

VIRTUAL Yesteryear Christmas

Grade K-3
Learn More

VIRTUAL Snuneymuxw Traditional Life

Grades 2-4
Learn More

Virtual Miner’s Cottage Tour

Grade K-3
Learn More

The Sweet Story of the Nanaimo Bar

Grade 3-10
Learn More

In Person Programs

Snuneymuxw Seasons

Grade K-2
Learn More

Yesteryear Christmas

Grade K-2
Learn More

Petroglyphs

Grade K-2
Learn More

Coal Miner’s Child

Grade 1-2
Learn More

Snuneymuxw Traditional Life

Grade 3
Learn More

Black Diamonds

Grade 5
Learn More

North West Coast First Nations Art

Grade 5-7
Learn More

The Bastion

Grade K-7
Learn More

Winter Lights

K-3
Learn More

Booking Details

Make a Booking Inquiry!

Steph is often leading the school programs you book with her, in addition to public programs! Please be patient, as response times can be up to a week or more. She’ll respond as soon as she can.