90

September 15, 2025-June 25, 2026

Explore the world of landscape-inspired artwork through this engaging program. Using the forms of trees,  waterways, and mountains, students discuss ideas of landscape and place. Building on these ideas, participants use techniques of layering, colour mixing, and collage to create a ‘forest’ of trees.

Curriculum Tie-ins: Art Education, Ecology, Indigenous Art

Through games and exploration your students will learn the different parts of a tree (and their functions), who the 'forest friends' are that help our trees thrive, and what all trees need to survive.

Programs for this age group are 1.5 hours long and include a short orientation session in our Lecture Hall with its museum collections, followed by a 1 hr biologist-led walk, during which students will learn the basics of bird identification and the importance of the Sanctuary's biodiversity to migratory birds and other wildlife. The Sanctuary is located in the Fraser River estuary, and trails meader between large treed areas, open ponds and natural tidal mudflats and wetlands. Seasonal highlights in the fall include the arrival of the Lesser Snow Geese from Russia. Winter highlights often include owls and the very friendly Black-capped Chickadees. In spring, the emphasis is on spring migrants and nesting behavior.

This program is designed for the young visitors (pre-school and kindergarten up to Grade 2). Children will be provided with a one-hour group tour of the Sanctuary wetlands, exploring nature under the guidance of our biologist. At the discretion of the leader and teacher, this may be extended to 1.5 hours.The Sanctuary is a noisy place in the spring, with birds getting ready for migration, nesting or in the process of building nests. Children will learn about bird behavior, the process of building nests and how we need to be careful not to disturb the birds during this important process.

(Grades 4-7) Explore local Indigenous People's connections to the environment by comparing traditional salmon fishing tools, and learn how Aboriginal people preserve their culture from two local elders who share oral histories through a storytelling film.

This program is divided into:

• Introduction to program, centre and rules Outside (5 minutes)
• Salmon Origins Storytelling Film Theatre (20 minutes)
• Introduction in Theatre: (10 minutes)
• 2 Stations (25 minutes)
  • Salmon Fishing Tools and Methods (Hands-on inqury of traditional Indigenous fishing tools)
  • Wind-drying Salmon (Exploration of the method used to dry salmon in the Fraser Canyon, and a workshop on sharpening traditional slate knives)
• Conclusion Theatre (5 minutes)

For more information, visit our website or email us. 

Online booking form here. 

Visit the largest collection of Pioneer artifacts in western Canada. While most of our lives may not directly reflect the rural roots of previous generations, almost everyone has a story or a memory of rural life. It was not so long ago that 90% of people lived on farms, and not in cities.

This learning experience is created to allow students to explore the important role of farming in the European settlement and development of British Columbia. Young students will be able to connect to what life was like on the farm at the turn of the century and see how people did common farm jobs over time.