School & Group Visits

The Hudson River Museum provides onsite and virtual planetarium shows and museum tours for school, homeschool, scout, college, adult, senior, and other groups.

Participants engage with art, science, and history in an informal learning environment, while developing skills in visual literacy, critical thinking, English Language Arts, creative problem solving, communication, and collaboration.

Thank you for your interest in visiting the HRM. We are fully booked for school group visits during the 2022–2023 school year. If you would like to be notified when the portal reopens for school group reservations in September 2023, please fill out this form.

Our onsite and virtual group visits are interactive, interdisciplinary, and inquiry-based, supporting NYS Next Generation Learning Standards and Common Core State Standards, as well as STEM and STEAM concepts, aligned with your current classroom curriculum. We invite you to access our educational resources in new and exciting ways. Please note, we are a NYC DOE Vendor.

For information about summer camp groups, please visit our Camp Visits page.

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Photo: Yuliya Levit

Planetarium Shows & Workshops

1-hour planetarium shows are available for your group Tuesday through Friday between 10am and 2pm. We can accommodate after school groups until 5pm on the same days. We also offer 2-hour experiences that combine an hour-long planetarium show with an hour-long, hands-on workshop. See below for a list of current shows and workshop combinations. Please note, assisted hearing devices are available, and all planetarium shows include live Q&A.

Guided Museum Tours & Workshops

1-hour museum tours are available for your group Tuesday through Friday between 10am and 2pm. We also offer 2-hour experiences that combine an hour-long museum tour with an hour-long, hands-on workshop. Inquiry-based thematic tours are facilitated by trained docents, include access to special exhibitions and collections galleries, and engage visitors in conversation based on guided discovery. See below for a list of current tours and workshop combinations. Please note, Hudson Riverama is not open to onsite tours at this time.

Chaperones

For students Pre-K through Grade 1 (ages 3–7), 1 chaperone is required for every 5 students. For students Grades 2 and up (ages 8+), 1 chaperone is required for every 10 students.  Teachers and chaperones are responsible for their students at all times.

Pricing

A 1-hour experience of either a planetarium show or a guided museum tour costs $180 for up to 20 attendees, PLUS $6 per additional attendee. The required number of chaperones is free of charge. Additional chaperones are $5 each. The maximum capacity is 120 participants for a planetarium show and 60 participants for a guided museum tour.

A 2-hour experience combining a planetarium show, guided tour, and/or hands-on workshop costs $250 for up to 20 attendees, PLUS $9.50 per additional attendee. The required number of chaperones is free of charge. Additional chaperones are $5 each.

A 3-hour experience combining your choice of guided tour(s), planetarium show(s), and/or workshop(s) costs $300 for up to 20 attendees, PLUS $13.50 per additional attendee. The required number of chaperones is free of charge. Additional chaperones are $5 each.

Please note, Title 1 schools may qualify for reduced rates.

Lunch Space

If you are interested in reserving a space for lunch, classrooms may be reserved at an additional cost: $50/hour for 1–60 people; $100/hour for 61–90 people.

Reservations

Advance reservations are required. To lock in a program date, payment must be made in full, and must be confirmed by the Museum, at least two weeks prior to the onsite visit. Any requests to reschedule or cancel must be made in writing via email to groupvisits@hrm.org at least two weeks prior to your confirmed onsite visit date in order to set a new date that is mutually acceptable or to receive a refund or credit. Any group that fails to follow these requirements will forfeit the entire program fee.

Planetarium Shows for Pre-K–Grade 2

Magic Tree House: Space Mission

The Girl Who Walked Upside Down

One World, One Sky: Big Bird’s Adventure

Planetarium Shows for Kindergarten–Grade 4

Earth, Moon, and Sun

Planetarium Shows for Grades 3–12

Beyond the Sun

Birth of Planet Earth

Habitat Earth

Legends of the Night Sky: Perseus and Andromeda

Our Solar System

The Sky Tonight

Tycho Goes to Mars (NEW!)

We Are Aliens

We Are Astronomers

We Are Stars

Planetarium Shows for Grades 7–12

Regents Earth Science

The Victorian’s Guide to the Galaxy

Highlights Tour (Pre-K–Grade 12 & Adult)

Enjoy a varied selection of works of art on view throughout the Museum’s galleries and Glenview, drawing from both our permanent collection and special exhibitions.

Special Exhibitions Tour (Pre-K–Grade 12 & Adult)

We offer guided tours of current exhibitions. Please see descriptions on our exhibitions page.

Portraiture: People and Places in Time (Pre-K–Grade 12 & Adult)

Learn about the art of portraiture and discover what it can reveal about the subject, as well as the time and community in which they lived.

Dreamy Landscapes (Pre-K–Grade 12 & Adult)

Take a closer look at works by Hudson River School artists in our permanent collection to learn about the elements of landscape painting and the relationship of figures to their surroundings.

Gilded Age Upon the Hudson (Pre-K–Grade 12 & Adult)

Travel back in time to 1877! Discover Glenview’s restored rooms, paintings, and furnishings, and learn how the Trevor family spent their time more than 140 years ago.

Shapes and Patterns (Pre-K–Grade 3)

Explore the motifs and patterns of Glenview’s architecture and interior decor, and discover principles of art and design found throughout the HRM’s campus and permanent collection.

Myth Making (Grades 2–12 & Adult)

Find the figures and images on view in Glenview that tell timeless tales of gods and heroes.

Colors of the Sky (Pre-K–Grade 1)

Planetarium show: The Sky Tonight

Workshop: Mix colors to make day and night skyscapes.

Daily Planet (Pre-K–Grade 3)

Planetarium show: Our Solar System OR Tycho Goes to Mars (NEW!)

Workshop: Make three-dimensional soft-sculpture models of planets, real and imaginary.

Moving Moon, Changing Moon (Grades 1–5)

Planetarium show: Earth, Moon, and Sun OR The Sky Tonight

Workshop: Discover the Earth-Moon-Sun relationship through movement, then create a three-dimensional moon phase model.

Sky Legends (Grades 1–4)

Planetarium show: Myths, Legends, and Travelers’ Tales

Workshop: Create glow-in-the-dark constellations and a story to match.

Orbits (Grades 3–6)

Planetarium show: Our Solar System

Workshop: Examine properties of solar system worlds, uncover clues, and reveal the hidden planet.

Naturalist's Journey (Grades 4–12)

Planetarium show: Habitat Earth

Workshop: Students are given hands-on access to the Museum’s teaching “touch collection” and locally gathered materials from nature. They are then walked through an all-skill-levels-welcome sketching exercise and learn to observe like a student of the natural world.

Our Sun's Family (Grades 6–12)

Planetarium show: customized live show

Workshop: Students are given information about various Solar System objects and then tasked with putting them into categories of their own devising. They then model the work of astronomers as they come up with a rationale for their classification scheme.

Regents Earth Science (Grades 9–12)

Planetarium show: customized live show

Workshop: Classify solar system objects based on their properties OR interpret data about a hypothetical solar system and name the planets discovered.

Landscapes (Pre-K–Grade 12 & Adult)

Museum tour: Dreamy Landscapes

Workshop: Design your own landscape using watercolor paint.

Portraiture (Pre-K–Grade 12 & Adult)

Museum tour: Portraiture: People and Places in Time

Workshop: Sketch a self-portrait using fine art materials.

Special Exhibition Tour and Workshop (Pre-K–Grade 12 & Adult)

Museum tour: Special Exhibitions Tour

Workshop: A hands-on experience inspired by a thematic exhibition.

Shapes & Patterns (Pre-K–Grade 3)

Museum tour: Shapes and Patterns

Workshop: Create your own patterns inspired by the examples of interior design found throughout the HRM’s campus and exhibitions.

Myth Making (Grades 2–12 & Adult)

Museum tour: Myth Making

Workshop: Invent and illustrate your own myth inspired by works in the Museum’s collection and your imagination.

The Gilded Age (Grades 4–12 & Adult)

Museum tour: The Gilded Age Upon the Hudson

Workshop: Create and take home a toy drawn from the leisure activities of Victorian youth.

Virtual Experiences

Interactive, 45-minute virtual museum experiences can be scheduled for your group Tuesday through Friday between 10am and 2pm, subject to availability. Each live virtual visit includes an accompanying lesson plan that provides educators with access to guiding questions, an open-ended activity, and supporting pre- and post-visit materials.

Virtual Planetarium Shows

Our live, virtual planetarium shows use simulator software and are led by a science educator. Please contact us at groupvisits@hrm.org for information.

Virtual Museum Tours

Our live, virtual museum tours explore selected artworks and exhibitions at the Museum, as well as our historic home, Glenview, and our environmental teaching gallery, Hudson Riverama, supported by inquiry-based conversation with a museum educator or docent. Please contact us at groupvisits@hrm.org for more information.

Pricing

Virtual planetarium shows and museum tours cost $100 for a group of up to 30 participants. For groups larger than 30, we require multiple sessions be scheduled at this rate.

Reservations

Advance reservations are required. To lock in a program date, payment must be made in full, and must be confirmed by the Museum, at least two weeks prior to the virtual visit. Any requests to reschedule or cancel must be made in writing via email to groupvisits@hrm.org at least two weeks prior to your confirmed virtual visit date in order to set a new date that is mutually acceptable or to receive a refund or credit. Any group that fails to follow these requirements will forfeit the entire program fee.