Plan a Field Trip

Please contact Education Director Diana Overbey with any questions and to schedule your field trip.

Take your class on a field trip back in time. When students visit Historic Bethabara Park, they learn what life was like for children living in the 18th century Moravian settlement of Bethabara. While engaging in fun, hands-on activities, children will experience a world from long ago and understand what was necessary to live in colonial North Carolina.

Historic Bethabara Park offers two different field trip experiences, one for Lower Elementary (grades 1-3) students, and one for Upper Elementary (grades 3-5) students. Both our Lower and Upper Elementary tours are an extension of the elementary Social Studies classroom curriculum and meets many NCSCS Curriculum guidelines.

Lower Elementary Tour (Grades 1-3)

What did children in the 18th century wear? What sort of chores did they have and how did they have fun? What did they eat, and where did their food come from? What was school like in the 1700s?

Our costumed interpreters answer these questions and more as they bring the past to life in our Lower Elementary tour. Taking place in our 1788 Gemeinhaus (which served as the settlement’s church along with the minister’s living quarters), students will experience what life was like as a child living in 18th century Bethabara. Through singing, playing, learning in an 18th century schoolroom setting, and more, children will be able to compare their lives today to those lived long ago.

Available: September-November, April-June

Duration: Approximately 1.5 hours

Group size: Minimum number of students is 10, maximum number of students is 50 (if your group exceeds this number, we can discuss implementing our large group tour, which accommodates up to 65 students)

Upper Elementary Tour (Grades 3-5)

Our Upper Elementary tour emphasizes the importance of community and working together to accomplish a task, concepts that helped the Moravians build a home in colonial North Carolina more than 260 years ago. 

On this tour, guides help students explore our 1754 Village, which features reconstructions of the first buildings the Moravians built in Bethabara. There, they will participate in activities such as wood-sawing, shingling, and plowing as they learn what it took to build the settlement around them.

Available: September-November, April-June

Duration: Approximately 2 hours

Group size: Minimum number of students is 10, maximum number of students is 50 (if your group exceeds this number, we can discuss implementing our large group tour, which accommodates up to 65 students)

Christmas Tour (Grades 1-5)

Enjoy all of the delights of the season at Historic Bethabara Park. Join our costumed guides on a tour of the decorated Gemeinhaus (which served as the settlement’s church along with the minister’s living quarters). Students will learn about Moravian Christmas customs, as well as how Bethabara’s settlers prepared for winter.

Available: Late November-mid-December

Duration: Approximately 1.5 hours

Group size: Minimum number of students is 10, maximum number of students is 50 (if your group exceeds this number, we can discuss implementing our large group tour, which accommodates up to 65 students)

Other tours (Grades 6 & up)

If you are a teacher with older students, please contact Education Director Diana Overbey (336-397-7587, dianao@cityofws.org) to discuss tour options.

Trades & More Tour (Grades 1-5)

This outdoor tour gives students the opportunity to observe one of the trades practiced in Bethabara when it was a bustling commerce center. Watch the blacksmith or potter at work, then learn about other daily activities in the town through hands-on activities.

Available: Fall & Spring

Duration: Approximately 1.5 hours

Group size: Minimum number of students is 10, maximum number of students is 50 (if your group exceeds this number, we can discuss implementing our large group tour, which accommodates up to 65 students)

Admission Fee

Admission is $1 per student (plus tax). Teachers and school employees are free of charge. Admission for parents is $2 (plus tax).

Reservations

Reservations are required for all school programs. These are made on a first-come, first-serve basis, so please contact us early in order to secure the dates you prefer. Reservations must be placed at least one month in advance and require a minimum of 10 students. Please contact Education Director Diana Overbey with any questions and to schedule your field trip: 336-924-8191, or dianao@cityofws.org

Amenities

Historic Bethabara Park has two separate picnic areas you may reserve when scheduling your field trip. Neither area is sheltered, so please have alternate plans in the event of rain. Bethabara also offers a small gift shop located in our Visitor Center that includes Moravian cookies and colonial toys. Please indicate if you would like gift shop time when making your reservation. In addition, Bethabara’s grounds and trails are free to explore, in the event you would like to extend your visit with a self-guided look at the site.

The Day of Your Visit

Please be sure to allow your group plenty of travel time. Late arrivals may not be able to see everything normally included in the tour. It is preferred that groups arrive 10 minutes early to allow time to check in before the tour begins. If you would like your students to use the restroom facilities before their tour, please arrive 15 minutes early.

Site Guidelines

To help us provide a safe and enjoyable experience for our young visitors, we request the assistance of adult chaperones. We ask tour leaders to provide one chaperone for every 10 children in their group.

Please advise your students to wear clothing and footwear appropriate for outdoor activities.

Many of the items located in our 1788 Gemeinhaus are over 200 years old and must be treated very carefully. In order to help us preserve them for future use, we ask that you please do not touch any artifacts or sit on the furniture.

Food, drinks, gum, and backpacks are not allowed in the exhibition buildings; please make arrangements to leave them on the bus.

Please silence your cell phone during guided tours.

Teachers and chaperones must remain with school groups at all times during the visit.