School Field Trips to PMEC

Are you looking for an engaging environment outside the classroom? An environment experience that will really grab hold of your student’s attention and imagination?

Peabody Mill Environmental Center (PMEC) is an environmental and science education center which abuts almost 600 acres of Joe English conservation land. PMEC is located in Amherst, NH and is directed by the Amherst Parks and Recreation Department.

Students of all ages can come to PMEC to learn about science, nature, animals in the environment, and much more. The PMEC educators are able to tailor and develop programming that is specific to your own classroom needs and curriculum standards.

If you are interested in scheduling a group to come out to PMEC, or for us to come to your school, please reach out to Program Coordinator Celina Dutremble at cdutemble@amherstnh.gov, or by calling our PMEC office at 603-673-1141.

Nature Hikes - All Ages
Let’s Go For A Hike! Enjoy a guided tour of our peaceful woods while taking in the sights and sounds of the forest. Groups will explore the habitats and eco-systems on the premises of the Joe English Reservation. There are many bridges to cross, and nature’s own obstacle courses to explore.

Pond Life Grade K-3rd
Be a detective! Hands on learning with buckets and nets. Learn about different life cycles of aquatic life creatures at our pond.

Macroinvertebrates Grade 3^rd - Up
What is Macroinvertebrates? Do we need special tools to find them? What information can they tell us about water quality?

Hibernation, Adaptation, Migration Grade 1st-Up
Discuss how human and animals adapt during the seasons. Discussion about migration and hibernation. Includes a hands-on exploration with furs, feathers, and tracks.

Birds Grade 1st-Up
Find out what makes birds unique. What do they eat, and what are some of their habits?

What’s Beneath Your Feet? Grade PreK –Up
We play in it and we eat things that grow in it. What is it? It’s soil! Children will go to an area off one of the trails and gather top soil including things that live in it. Children will plant seeds in containers of topsoil and take their plantings back to the classroom.

Animal Habitats Grade 1st-Up
What do animals need to survive? We will explore some habitats here at PMEC, and hopefully get to experience the animals who live in them!

Herbivores, Carnivores, Omnivores, Insectivores Grade 4th-Up
We will learn how to tell the difference through hands-on exploration of types of teeth, such as, incisors, canines, and molars. What can the placement of the eyes tell us? Why is being an omnivore an adaptation that helps with survival?

Life in an Ecosystem Grade 4th-Up
An Ecosystem includes all living and non-living things in an area. What are the biotic factors? Learn how to tell the difference of the predators and prey, and the difference between animals from their skulls. Learn how plants and animals depends on each other.

Web of Life Grade 4th – Up
Who Eats Who?! Who is at the top of our local food chain? We will cover local food chains and webs, and play a hands-on game exploring food webs.

Life Under Logs (late spring, early fall) Ages 3-5 (about 30 minutes)
Explore the woods of PMEC. Discover fungi and insects. What is an invertebrate, and a Decomposer? Why are they important?

Winter Ecology (Snow Permitting) Grade 4th-Up
The days may be shorter and colder, but it can be a great time to explore the winter woods. Appropriately dressed for snow conditions, children will use snowshoes (provided by PMEC) while they observe how animals and plants adapt to cold weather. Children will be given a clipboard, paper, and a pencil, and encouraged to record their observations. These observations can then be discussed back in the classroom.

Animal Tracking (Snow Permitting) Grade 4th-Up
Winter is a great time to track animals. Before venturing into the woods, children will be shown how to differentiate between a waddler, trotter, and bounder. Children will be provided with tracking cards, snowshoes, clipboard, paper and pencil. While in the woods, children will be encouraged to both identify and diagram observable animal tracks.

Orienteering Grade 7th– Up
The great outdoors is a wonderful place but what happens if you were to take a wrong turn? Would you be able to successfully read a map? What about using a compass? It looks easy enough but would you be able to get home or to safely? Students will learn how to read a map and use a compass. Students will then head out, bushwhacking through the woods, where they will combine their map and compass skills to find hidden “treasures. ”

Soil Grade 1st-Up
Why is soil so important? What is it made up of? We will explore what we can find in soil including humus. We will also discuss weathering and erosion and what possible impact it will have on our environment.

Rocks and Minerals Grade 4th-Up
We will look at our NH mineral collections and explore hands-on stations, such as, florescent glow box, sorting sedimentary metamorphic, and ligneous rocks.

Fossils Grade 4th-Up
What can rock layers and fossils teach us about how the Earths Landscape has changed over time? Where are the found? What patterns can we discover through hands- on explorations?

Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources Grade 4th-Up
How long does it take for things to break down in our landfills? Learn why it is important to reduce, reuse, and recycle, and make a fun project with recyclables.

Solids, Liquids, Gasses Grade 2nd-Up
Get Messy with hands-on science projects

Light and Energy - Grade K-Up
Define and discuss energy and how we use and why we need the sun’s light and heat. Using our solar cookers, we will show you how we can capture that heat in practical ways.

Completing the Circuit – Electricity Grade 4th-Up
Hands-on exploration of electricity using household objects.

Magnetics – Magnetic Slime Grade 4th-Up
How do they work? Make one here while learning why they are used in so many different technologies. What happens when we add magnetic powder to slime? We’ll find out!

How to Book a Field Trip

Field Trips (School groups coming to PMEC):
School Group Fees - 2022-2023
$10.00 per student – The day is based on 3 hours of programming, with lunch/snack breaks creating a 4 hour day. School groups will cycle through three different topics listed above providing lots of hands-on experiences. The minimum charge is $150 (15 students) the maximum is determined by available staffing

School Outreach (PMEC Educators coming into classroom):
$75.00 per class of 23 or less students. Classes exceeding 23 students require an additional educator and will be charged for two classes

Please contact Celina Dutremble at cdutremble@amherstnh.gov for information and to reserve a date.

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