Summer Guided Discoveries

2019 Guided Discoveries will be posted in late February. Please see below for examples of past programs.

Guided Discoveries are week-long outdoor natural adventure camps for children ages 4 to 14.

Programs, taught by experienced naturalists and educators, give children an in-depth exploration of nature and science.

Summer 2018 Guided Discoveries

June 25-29

Animal Superheroes I
9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Ages 4-6
You may not consider animals to be superheroes, but they do have super powers. We call them adaptations. Learn about nature’s super powers as we explore ways animals find food, avoid being eaten, and protect themselves from the elements. Discover some of these adaptations through experiments, games, and visits with live animals.
Cost: $140/member; $160/non-member

All About Birds
9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Ages 7-9
Become an ornithologist and learn all about birds. From beaks to feet, we will discover the adaptations that make this group of animals unique. Meet avian animal ambassadors throughout the week during up close encounters with live birds. Activities will include observing birds with binoculars, building bird feeders, and even banding birds like real ornithologists do.
Cost: $150/member; $170/non-member

Animal Superheroes II
1:30-4:30 p.m. | Ages 4-6
You may not consider animals to be superheroes, but they do have super powers. We call them adaptations. Learn about nature’s super powers as we explore ways animals find food, avoid being eaten, and protect themselves from the elements. Discover some of these adaptations through experiments, games, and visits with live animals.
Cost: $140/member; $160/non-member

July 2-6

Yoga Wild
9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Ages 6-8
Come along on a journey and get wild with yoga! Meet a live animal each day and learn new yoga poses expressing its movements and postures. Practice yoga outdoors in fields and forests. Adventures will include nature scavenger hunts, nature journaling, mindful listening, relaxation in the forest, and fun yoga games.
Cost: $170/member; $190/non-member

Junior Animal Keepers I
9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Ages 9-12
Otter popsicles? Training time for a coyote? Treats and puzzles for opossums? Do you love caring for animals? Do you wonder what the Science Center’s animals eat for dinner? Learn how New Hampshire’s wild animals survive. Then apply that knowledge by helping to care for and feed the wildlife at the Science Center. Go behind the scenes to watch staff members train animals, and then make puzzles and treats to engage our resident animals. On the last day, family, friends, and Science Center staff will stop by to learn about your adventures.
Cost: $150/member; $170/non-member

Summer Sensations
1:30-4:30 p.m. | Ages 4-6
Explore New Hampshire’s summer environment with a focus on each of the five senses. Smell, taste, touch, see, and hear your way through a week full of fun.
Cost: $140/member; $160/non-member

July 9-13

Junior Animal Keepers II
9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Ages 9-12
Otter popsicles? Training time for a coyote? Treats and puzzles for opossums? Do you love caring for animals? Do you wonder what the Science Center’s animals eat for dinner? Learn how New Hampshire’s wild animals survive. Then apply that knowledge by helping to care for and feed the wildlife at the Science Center. Go behind the scenes to watch staff members train animals, and then make puzzles and treats to engage our resident animals. On the last day, family, friends, and Science Center staff will stop by to learn about your adventures.
Cost: $150/member; $170/non-member

Be a Survivor: Bushcraft and Wilderness Survival
9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. | Ages 10-14
Learn bushcraft and the wilderness living skills necessary to survive outdoors comfortably. Under the guidance of The School of the Forest staff, explore knife use and safety, fire making and responsible use, outdoor shelter making, trip planning, and making and using tools like baskets and rope. Learn about our ecosystem in a hands-on way by keeping weather journals, pressing plants, and learning about the animals that inhabit the world around you, including up close encounters with live animal ambassadors.
Cost: $280/member; $300/non-member

After Camp Care
Monday-Thursday, 3:30-4:30 p.m. | Ages 10-14
Need to pick up your child after 3:30 p.m.? During After Camp Care children will have a snack and then either go for a hike, explore the live animal exhibit trail, or see a live animal presentation. Not available on Friday.
Cost: $35/member; $45/non-member

Flap, Hop, and Wiggle
1:30-4:30 p.m. | Ages 4-6
Flap like a falcon, hop like a hare, and wiggle like a worm! It's all about movement as we explore different groups of animals and focus on the ways they move. Become an expert on animal locomotion through up close observations of our animal ambassadors, outdoor activities, and stories.
Cost: $140/member; $160/non-member

July 16-20

Marvelous Mammals
9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Ages 4-6
Discover what makes mammals special as we focus on this diverse group of animals. From herbivores and insectivores, to carnivores and omnivores, mammals serve a range of functions in the natural world. Meet a mammal up close each day and learn about the role it plays and the adaptations it has to survive.
Cost: $140/member; $160/non-member

The Nature of Clay I
9:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. | Ages 10-14
Want to take earth and turn it into art? Using wild animal ambassadors and the natural beauty of ponds, fields, and forests as inspiration, we will transform our ideas into ceramic treasures. Under the guidance of Community Clay Center instructors and Science Center staff, explore a variety of ceramic techniques to create functional and sculptural projects.
The ceramic process will be completed at the Community Clay Center in Plymouth. Finished projects will be ready for pickup by August 20. Shipping is available for an additional fee.
Cost: $280/member; $300/non-member

After Camp Care
Monday-Thursday, 2:30-4:30 p.m. | Ages 10-14
Need to pick up your child after 2:30 p.m.? During After Camp Care children will have a snack and then either go for a hike, explore the live animal exhibit trail, or see a live animal presentation. Not available on Friday.
Cost: $45/member; $65/non-member

Fairy Houses and Gnome Homes I
1:30-4:30 p.m. | Ages 7-9
This week of fun is inspired by Tracy Kane’s fairy house stories. We will build and float fairy boats on the pond and construct fairy houses and gnome homes among the trees in the forests and the flowers in the fields. We will even build a few structures big enough to fit inside!
Cost: $140/member; $160/non-member

July 23-27

Nature Explorers
9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Ages 4-6
Our explorations will introduce the wonders of the natural world. Through many outdoor activities and discoveries we will explore, enjoy, and learn together.
Cost: $140/member; $160/non-member

The Nature of Clay II
9:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. | Ages 7-10
Want to take earth and turn it into art? Using wild animal ambassadors and the natural beauty of ponds, fields, and forests as inspiration, we will transform our ideas into ceramic treasures. Under the guidance of Community Clay Center instructors and Science Center staff, explore a variety of ceramic techniques to create functional and sculptural projects.
The ceramic process will be completed at the Community Clay Center in Plymouth. Finished projects will be ready for pickup by August 20. Shipping is available for an additional fee.
Cost: $280/member; $300/non-member

After Camp Care
Monday-Thursday, 2:30-4:30 p.m. | Ages 7-10
Need to pick up your child after 2:30 p.m.? During After Camp Care children will have a snack and then either go for a hike, explore the live animal exhibit trail, or see a live animal presentation. Not available on Friday.
Cost: $45/member; $65/non-member

Mad Science
1:30-4:30 p.m. | Ages 7-9
Experience a week of wacky, hands-on fun as we explore science inspired by the natural world around us. Each day will be filled with mixing, growing, fizzing, bubbling, and more as we ask questions and see what kinds of answers explode around us!
Cost: $150/member; $170/non-member

July 30- August 3

Up, Down, and Around
9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Ages 4-6
Investigate land, water, and air animals. Plan on plenty of outdoor exploration, hands-on activities, and creative crafts. Meet many different species to learn what makes them different from each other and why they live where they do.
Cost: $140/member; $160/non-member

AquaCamp
9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. | Ages 9-12
Water is the key to life! With Senior Naturalist Dave Erler, dive into science to discover the properties of water, learn about the plants and animals that live in water, try your hand at fishing, and measure water quality. Bring your mud boots to do some stream splashing and wetland walking. Adventures include an interactive cruise on Squam Lake, field trips to a local bog, beaver pond, and waterfall, and a fishing adventure. Transportation for field trips included in fee.
Cost: $280/member; $300/non-member

After Camp Care
Monday-Thursday, 3:30-4:30 p.m. | Ages 9-12
Need to pick up your child after 3:30 p.m.? During After Camp Care children will have a snack and then either go for a hike, explore the live animal exhibit trail, or see a live animal presentation. Not available on Friday.
Cost: $35/member; $45/non-member

Nature Adventurers
1:30-4:30 p.m. | Ages 7-9
From the top of Mt. Fayal to the lower pond, go on an adventure to a new seldom seen location at the Science Center each day. Through games and scavenger hunts, learn about the wild plants and animals that live here. Throughout the week we will meet some animal ambassadors for an up close encounter with local wildlife.
Cost: $140/member; $160/non-member

August 6-10

Sky Hunters
9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. | Ages 4-6
Learn about the hunters that command the skies. Investigate the world of flying predators. Visit with live owls, hawks, and falcons. Meet other airborne predators too, such as dragonflies and bats.
Cost: $140/member; $160/non-member

Animal Art
9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. | Ages 9-12
Let animals and their habitats serve as your inspiration as we create art from and of nature. Explore the Science Center grounds from the top of Mt. Fayal to the shores of the lower pond as we study form, examine color, and observe light to inform the art we create. Up close encounters with animal ambassadors will provide the opportunity to focus on detail. Use a variety of media to create two-dimensional and three-dimensional art, and share your work at an art show for family and friends.
Cost: $280/member; $300/non-member

Fairy Houses and Gnome Homes II
1:30-4:30 p.m. | Ages 7-9
This week of fun is inspired by Tracy Kane's fairy house stories. We will build and float fairy boats on the pond and construct fairy houses and gnome homes among the trees in the forests and the flowers in the fields. We will even build a few structures big enough to fit inside!
Cost: $140/member; $160/non-member

August 13-17

Wild Tales and Trails
9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. | Ages 4-6
This full-day session features our favorite nature-based children’s stories, adventures along the trails, visits with live animals, and more! Start each morning with a wild tale – a children’s book featuring nature and wildlife. Venture outdoors to discover and learn about the creatures and habitats from the story and meet a live animal connected to the tale.
Cost: $260/member; $280/non-member

Animal Art for Young Artists
9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. | Ages 6-8
Let animals and their habitats serve as your inspiration as we create art from and of nature. Experience the subject matter of your art through hands-on explorations of forests, fields, and ponds and up close encounters with animal ambassadors. Use a variety of media to create two-dimensional and three-dimensional art, and share your work at an art show for family and friends.
Cost: $280/member; $300/non-member

Animal Experts
9:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. | Ages 9-12
This week is all about animals! Each day will focus on a different class or group of animals through observations, activities, projects, and opportunities to meet animal ambassadors up close. Find out what it means to be a member of a class of animals and how species play a specific role in their natural community.
Cost: $280/member; $300/non-member

For program questions contact Education Director Audrey Eisenhauer at 603-968-7194 x 14 or email

Jason Plant, 12/21/18
Squam Lakes Natural Science Center is a wonderful place for kids and adults alike. The animals are amazing and they are all rehabilitated from either injuries or abandonment at a young age. The atmosphere of this place is great and I highly recommend going and becoming a member to support all of their community efforts and animals!
Howard Nash, 10/08/18
Very well presented exhibit on the wildlife of New Hampshire. Coming from the UK, we had some concerns about the moral question of keeping wild animals in cages. This was set against the very obvious great condition of the animals on display and the effort taken to educate on the natural world - a video or even holograph would not have the same impact. The reason we give it only 4 stars is that not enough effort is made to explain why the animals, particularly the large animals, are kept in relatively small enclosures. Looking at the negative reviews that focus on the moral question, your responses are very encouraging. Perhaps you should cut out the middleman and make more effort at the Centre to explain why the animals are maintained in captivity from a conservation perspective.
Shaun Wyndman, 08/18/18
This is a very pricey cross between a zoo and a nature trail. The science center features several exhibits relating to the animals in the area. It also has exhibits relating to conservation etc. They offer animal shows, demonstrating live animals several times a day, and feedings three days a week, so check the schedule to see if your favorite is on display. In addition to the move animal exhibits the center features several walking trails offering an opportunity to see local wildlife and plant life. Most tree species are marked for easy identification of the local foliage. There is also a ninety minute boat tour of squam lake available for an additional fee.
Chip Work, 07/01/18
We stopped by here on the suggestion of 2 NH natives as a place our 10 year old grandson would enjoy. Well to use "enjoy" would be an understatement, if I were to describe my grandson's experience. There are so many different exhibits, each inviting and engaging young and old minds alike. The animal habitats are brilliant in design. We watched a presentation on the porcupine that had my techno-geek grandson filling up the Q & A session with his curiosity gone wild. The whole staff is very knowledgeable, professional, and polite. The trail and exhibits are clean and well kept. The whole experience was great for our grandson and myself as well.
Sandra Lungariello, 06/10/18
My Husband and I stopped here on the way home from visiting Mt. Washington, and we were pleasantly surprised! It was very clean and well maintained, and there were a lot of healthy active animals. We did the live animal exhibit trail...I’m pregnant and wanted something nice and easy. We took our time and it took about 2 hours (if you have kids, there’s so much to do with them, like a playground and picnic area). There were many benches, most of it was in the shade, no big hills, and it was very stroller friendly and handicap accessible. It was so educational, and lots of care and thought went into all of the exhibits, great for kids and adults! Can’t wait to take the baby back here in a few years!