Fees:
- Grades pre-k to 3: $12.00 per student.
- Grades 4 to 8: $15.00 per student, plus applicable materials fees.
- Teachers & Chaperones: No fee for teachers and one chaperone for each 5 to 10 students, depending upon age. Parents and additional chaperones may be charged at the student rate.
- Hard Bargain Farm Brochure
- List of HBF Programs
- Scheduling & Paperwork
One-Day Field Study
Standard Program
Students will take two classes: a Habitat Hike and Farm Life Exploration. These classes are adaptable to grades Pre-K to 8, with age-appropriate activities, and include a wagon ride. Students will complete one activity before and the other after a thirty-minute lunch break. The day typically runs from 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM
Other Options for One-Day Field study (grades 4 to 8)
Two classes may be chosen from the lists of Program Selections listed below, with the exception of Exploration By Canoe, which counts as two classes. Some classes require an additional fee.
Class Descriptions Contract All | Expand All
- Habitat Hike
As students explore the diverse ecosystems of Hard Bargain Farm, they learn how plants and animals adapt to their surroundings and connect in complex energy webs. They will recognize the importance of biodiversity and how the delicate balance of nature can be upset by human intervention. They will discover how physical attributes of land and water shape their use by humans, plants and animals.
Lessons & Activities
- Farm Life Exploration
Students experience a small 1950’s era working family farm to discover where their food comes from, help with farm chores, and learn how technology has changed over time. They will explore the barnyard and pastures, meet goats, geese, chickens, cows and sheep, and relate food and fiber to their plant and animal sources.
Lessons & Activities
- Problem Solving
Students develop critical thinking skills and cooperate as a team to complete a series of physical tasks in a challenge course situat- ed along the banks of Accokeek Creek. As they learn to cooperate and think as a team, they gain confidence in themselves and realize the importance of group participation towards a common goal. - Who Polluted the Potomac
In this interactive role playing activity students discover their personal connection to the Potomac River watershed. An engaging story beginning with the exploration of the local area by Captain John Smith in 1608 leads students to an understanding of how each of us affects the health of the watershed. - Rivers in Action
Students create watersheds in miniature, using stream tables and diatomaceous earth. They create gorges, wa- terfalls, floodplains and deltas as they study how water shapes the landscape and affects human land use deci- sions. (Additional materials fee of $50 per class)
Lessons & Activities
- Fish Adaptation
Students examine the external and internal anatomy of fish to discover clues to their habitats, feeding patterns, and defense strategies. They learn how to “Read a Fish” to understand its adaptations for survival in its habitat. (Additional materials fee of $50 per class)
Lessons & Activities
- Bird Watching
Students use the diverse bird habitats and extensive study skin collection of Hard Bargain Farm Environ- mental Center to learn how to locate and identify our local birds. As students observe birds in the wild, they will discover clues to the birds’ success in adapting to their habitat, and their role in complex ecosystems.
Lessons & Activities
- Down to Earth
Soil is the beginning of all land use decisions we make. In this course students will learn how to identify soil types, , how each is made, the properties of each type of soil, and how soil type and distribution determine land use for farming, building, and support of life. Students will examine erosion and sedimentation to observe how they affect soil and land use, and be introduced to Best Management practices used on Hard Bargain Farm.
Lessons & Activities
- Up A Creek (6th grade and older)
Students will hike along Accokeek Creek to investigate physical characteristics and living organisms of this pristine stream. They will apply what they have learned about water cycles and watersheds as they observe how the creek forms cut banks and sandbars on its way to the Potomac River. Students will learn how to assess the health of a stream by observing the physical characteristics, conduct simple water chemistry tests, and sample macroinvertebrate populations to analyze as bioindicators of a healthy ecosystem.
Lessons & Activities
- Hunter-Gatherers (Pairs well with Corn course)
People have lived at this site in Accokeek for at least 10,000 years, finding food, clothing and shelter in this woodland-riverine environment. Students will step back in time and use recreated artifacts to explore how ancient people used the natural resources found here to live, work and play. (Additional materials fee of $20 per class)
Lessons & Activities
- Corn: From Ancient Ways to Now-A-Days (Pairs well with Hunter-Gatherers course)
Corn is one of very few food crops native to the Americas, and has a long tradition in many cultures. Students will hear history and legend as they learn the story of corn, and practice shelling and grinding corn using ancient and modern techniques.
Lessons & Activities
- Exploration by Canoe (6th grade and older, Counts as 2 classes)
Students will experience the ecology of an aquatic environment from the viewpoint of the plants, fish, birds and mammals that live there. As they learn basic canoeing techniques they will explore the shorelines and marshes of historic Piscataway Creek. They will study plant and animal interactions in complex energy cycles, adaptations to aquatic habitats, and the impact of humans on the watershed. This class is paired with the Habitat Hike. (Additional fee of $250 per class)