Bellaboo's Reserved Groups - Where learning is FUN
Click here for pdf of Educators Brochure
Bellaboo's offers a series of age appropriate educational activities great for preschool and elementary grades K-3, home schools, and others. Reservations may be made by calling Bellaboo's at 219-963-2070. Discovery Trip options are listed below. Bellaboo's remains open to the public during group trips.
DISCOVERY TRIPS (TUESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY ONLY)
Student/young group member $5.00
Teacher/chaperone FREE
Minimum fee is $75.00
120 students maximum, based upon available space. Introductory pricing of only $5 per student
Discovery Trip chaperones (must be an adult 18 years of age or older) are admitted free-of-charge; however, if space is limited at any of the activity stations, all adults may not be able to participate with their children.
Adult Chaperones should not bring siblings during a Discovery Trip they are supervising.
All children must pay even if they are not participating in the educational segment. Those children not part of the educational segment pay the regular daily admission.
We recommend a one adult to six children ratio for a safe and fun experience for all.
General information
On-site educational activities may be altered or modified depending on the season, weather conditions, group size, and age of children.
Bellaboo’s is ADA friendly. We are always willing to modify activities to meet the physical or developmental needs of your students or group members. Please let us know in advance of any concerns or needs you may have.
Trip leaders should notify our staff of any food allergies or other special needs when making the initial reservation.
Children and students must wear socks if they plan to participate in the soft play area.
Teachers and chaperones should follow the instructions provided by the Bellaboo’s educators when dividing students into smaller groups. This will help facilitate a quick and smooth start to your educational field trip.
It is important that adult chaperones help supervise and monitor the behavior of all children and students throughout the event. We ask that children and students treat all other guests in the facility in a safe and respectful manner to maximize everyone’s experience. Regretfully, groups that violate the general rules of the facility or display unruly behavior may be declined the opportunity to schedule a future event.
Outside food is not permitted in Bellaboo’s. Nutritional food packages are available for Discovery Trips.
We are currently offering the following education programs.
Ecology
How we care for the earth today will have a big impact on the world tomorrow. Our field trip on ecology will teach your students or group members about the natural world around them and the relationship of living things in the biosphere they inhabit. It is about preservation and conservation of our planet. All living things are linked in what we call our habitat. Children will learn how they can pitch in to save the earth. We will explore the 3 R’s –Recycle, Reuse, and Reduce and participate in a recycling-trash sorting race. The children will create their own edible compost pile in the Interactive Kitchen. In addition, your students will learn how to preserve and protect our natural resources - like the local dunes and Lake Michigan.
Click here for Indiana state educational standards for the Ecology program
Dinosaurs
Dinosaurs fascinate children. Dinosaurs are the most interesting way to spark a child’s interest and concern for preservation. Through dinosaurs, children will look at diet and the environment as it relates to extinction. During your educational field trip, your students or group members will conduct hands-on excavating in a dinosaur dig. Acting as young paleontologists, they will try to re-assemble the “fossils” they find to make a dinosaur skeleton. Our young visitors will also explore the meaning of extinction. We will discuss and share ways in which we can help preserve and protect our endangered species.
Click here for Indiana state educational standards for the Dinosaur program
Stuffee
Children love Stuffee, our 8’ cloth doll with soft removable internal organs. Through this educational field trip, your students or group members will learn about the body systems. They will learn how nutrition, good personal hygiene, rest and exercise are essential to maintaining a healthy body. Our young visitors will participate in a science quiz game that explains the function of body parts like the heart, lungs, intestines, and stomach. They will explore and act like young doctors as they listen to Stuffee’s heart through a stethoscope. Your students will also draw a life size body to overlay with their own body organs.
Click here for Indiana state educational standard for the stuffee program
Bats
Bellaboo, our mascot, is an Indiana Bat. Bats are friends of nature. They are valuable to our habitat because they eat insects, pollinate plants, and spread seeds. During your educational field trip, your students or group members will explore with their hands, minds, bodies and senses to learn about how bats interact with and contribute to our environment. We will distill any myths our young visitors may have about bats, and replace them with factual information about these amazing mammals. Your students or group members will learn how bats use echolocation to find food and fly safely in the darkest places. In addition, your students will participate in an interactive experiment by using their senses, like a bat does, to locate and identify their offspring.
Click here for Indiana state educational standard for the Bats program
C.A.T. is a program designed to meet the Indiana Academic Standards in Fine Arts and Physical Education. This program will offer your students an opportunity to move their bodies like a cat in our story time Yoga session. Exploration and Discovery are right around the corner as the children experiment with sound and rhythm. They will use metal, plastic, and wooden containers to make their own music. Your class will practice their culinary skills in our interactive kitchen. They will create a feline treat no cool cat could pass up. To top it off, BeLLABoo’s will be collaborating with Brauer Museum to bring art up close and personal to our guests. Your students will sharpen their museum manners while they learn about abstract art. Every participant will take home their own self created colorful cat.
Click here for Indiana state educational standards for the C.A.T. program
