Shorebird Park Nature Center Programs

The Shorebird Park Nature Center offers science and nature field trips for kindergarten - 8th grade classes.

The Berkeley Marina has offered innovative hands-on programs for class field-trips since 1979. The unique locations of rocky shore, docks, pier, and the open Bay found at the Marina are used to provide Marine Environmental Education to school children and classes from all over the Bay Area. Each program instills a conservation message empowering the students to help the environment. 

Classes are taught by experienced naturalists and docent volunteers. We base our programs in the Shorebird Nature Center, which has a microscope lab and two 200-gallon aquariums.

register your class for a Program

Please email naturecenter@berkeleyca.gov for availability and registration details for the 2023-2024 school year. Select from a 3-hour, $200 field trip program or a 1-hour, $65 naturalist program.

Nature Center Field Trips

Register your class for an exciting, hands-on 3-hour field trip. Choose from a variety of topics to complement your curriculum. Field trips have $200 registration fee.

Fish program

• Grade level: 1st - 8th 
• Duration: 9:30 am – 12:30 pm

Students will discover the essential elements of fish, rays and sharks. Hands-on experiences include: fish printing, Northern anchovy dissection, aquarium observations and viewing scales and gills under a microscope.

Birds program

• Grade level: K - 8th  
• Duration: 9:30 am – 12:30 pm

Students will gain a greater understanding of local birds and their anatomy. This program offers multimedia presentations and hands-on activity stations: feathers, conservation, sounds, eggs and nests. We'll take an engaging bird walk with high-quality binoculars to identify local marine and land birds.

Marine mammals program

• Grade level: K - 8th 
• Duration: 9:30 am – 12:30 pm

Students will learn about local marine mammals (seals/sea lions, whales, dolphins, porpoises and otters) and the physical features which help them survive. Hands-on stations include: sounds, feeding, conservation and insulation.

Bay scientist program

• Grade level: 4th - 8th 
• Duration: 9:30 am – 12:30 pm

Utilizing our hi-tech projecting microscopes, students examine an array of marine life from the rocky shore and docks of the marina, including plankton samples. Students learn about the water composition of the Bay estuary through hands-on activities. 

Low-tide discovery program

• Grade level: K-3rd 
• Duration: 9:30 am - 12:30 pm

Students receive an estuary education while visiting the rocky shore and the docks of the marina. Students will encounter bay organisms through hands-on discovery and learn about their unique adaptations.

Low-tide research program

• Grade level: 4th-8th
• Duration: 9:30 am – 12:30 pm

This is an advanced level low tide program which focuses on the Bay estuary watershed and history. Students will collect plankton, conduct hydrological testing, discover and compare the habitats of the rocky shore and docks of the marina, view invertebrates under the microscopes and discuss human impacts on the environment.

Sailing program, $255

• Grade level: 4th - 12th 
• Duration: 9:30 am – 12:30 pm

We partner with the Pegasus, a 51-ft. sailboat, to provide this unique experience. We take a class of 24 students or less; half go sailing while the other half learn Bay geography, sailing terminology, compass work and binocular studies.

Naturalist Programs

In addition to the 3-hour field trip programs, we offer One-Hour Naturalist Programs in a variety of subjects. The 1-hour programs have a $65 registration fee.

• Birds – Includes a walk around the waterfront with high-quality binoculars and guides and an introduction to our collections which include nests, eggs, feather and local specimens.
• Low Tide Discovery – Explore the rocky shoreline and identify local wildlife followed by a mini beach clean-up.
• Dock Life Discovery – Explore the flora and fauna that thrive on the underside of the docks. Kids will use a variety of collecting techniques to see who lives in the water!
• Watershed Discovery – Where does water travel? Learn the history of the San Francisco Bay estuary, see it in action through our watershed model and finish with a beach clean-up.
• Marine Mammals – Learn about local marine mammals (seals/sea lions, whales, dolphins, porpoises and otters) and the physical features which help them survive.
• Nautical Skills – Learn the parts of a sailboat, how to tie mariners’ knots, navigate through the bay and use high-quality binoculars.

Our one-hour naturalist programs can be combined with a group visit to Adventure Playground.