From museum educator-led presentations to object-rich trunks, CRMM offers a wealth of material for your classroom.
Can’t make it to the Museum this school year? We will send a highly-trained museum educator to visit your school and facilitate an exciting array of hands-on programs.
All programs support Common Core and National Curriculum and are FREE to schools in Clatsop, Columbia, Tillamook, Washington, Multnomah, Pacific, Wahkiakum, Cowlitz and Clark Counties.
Please coordinate your visit request with other teachers at your school, as we must visit a minimum of four classrooms per trip.
Who Polluted the Columbia River?
As human populations have increased and land uses have changed over time, many of our rivers have become polluted—including the Columbia River. Students will experience the pollution of the Columbia River over time through an interactive story and will propose methods to protect the river from current and future pollution.
Graveyard of the Pacific
Mariners and insurance companies agree that the combination of high seas and a mighty river with shallow shifting sands makes the Columbia River bar the most dangerous crossing in the world. More than 2,000 ships have wrecked and countless lives have been lost at the mouth of the Columbia River, giving her the nickname, “The Graveyard of the Pacific.” This program will tell the story of the ships that have met their demise in this dangerous stretch of waters and will conclude with a shipwreck activity.
Into the Fog
Cape Disappointment, located in the southwest corner of Washington state, is one of the foggiest places in the world. Each year the Cape experiences 106 days shrouded in fog. Fog is a daily part of life for many along the Pacific coast, and yet little is known by the general public about how or why it occurs. In this program, students will learn the science behind fog through an interactive presentation and experimentation.
Albatross: Cruisers of the Sea
Albatross are one of the most magnificent seabird travelers on Earth. They journey up to 15,000 miles in a single voyage and can circumnavigate the globe in 46 days. Albatross parents scavenge the surface of the ocean for food to bring back to their chicks. Before the chicks fledge, they regurgitate a mass of undigested material from their stomach known as a bolus. Boluses contain natural material, such as squid beaks, and unnatural material, such as marine debris. In this program, students will learn how marine debris affects albatross by dissecting a faux-albatross bolus.