Field Trips: $125 for a maximum of 35 students. Email schoolprograms@mcny.org to book your program. Reservations are required.

Life in New Amsterdam

for Grades 2-6 (90 minutes)

The Seaport Museum is located near the heart of what was once New Amsterdam, a Dutch colony that was established as a trading post in the early 17th century.  Through hands-on investigations of objects, maps, and images, students will learn the history behind the street names that survive until this day and "meet" individuals who lived and worked on these New Amsterdam streets. The class will create a map of New Amsterdam to represent these important people and places from the early 1600s.

Mannahatta: Manhattan in 1609

for Grades 3–6 (90 minutes)

Students will explore the island of Manhattan at the time of Henry Hudson's arrival—a fresh, green new world at the moment of discovery. Using multimedia displays and historical artifacts and maps, students will learn about the natural landscape and ecology of Manhattan in 1609.

Growing Up in the 19th Century Seaport

for Grades 1–6 (90 minutes)

What was it like growing up during the mid- to late-19th century at the South Street Seaport? This historic neighborhood surrounding the Seaport Museum was home to hundreds of immigrant children who went to school, did chores, and played in the city's streets. Students will investigate artifacts and images to compile a list of activities that an immigrant child would perform. Creating a map to indicate where these activities took place, the class will use the map to explore the surrounding neighborhood.

A Sailor's Life

for Grades 4–6 (90 minutes)

Can you imagine a time when the South Street Seaport was lined with so many piers, docks, and sailing vessels of all sizes that it was referred to as the "Street of Ships"? The merchant sailors who worked on these vessels in the 18th and early 19th centuries played a major role in making the Seaport the nation's leading port. Students will explore the tools and objects used by these men to learn about daily life at sea.

Help Wanted!: Job Opportunities in the 19th Century Seaport

for Grades 4–6 (90 minutes)

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Fulton Street was lined with stores of all kinds—from restaurants and chandleries to taverns, bootmakers, and more! Who worked in these businesses? Students will "meet" three of these people who spent their days and nights working at the Seaport and visit the places where they worked: an Irish immigrant woman who worked in the laundry room of the Fulton Ferry hotel, a cartman who transported goods from place to place by wheelbarrow, and a businessman who worked for A.A. Low & Brothers, a firm that built many great clipper ships for the China trade. Students will create a biographical accordion book about one of the people discussed in the program.

New Amsterdam Walking Tour- April through November

for Grades 4–8 (90 minutes)

Discover what life was like for Manhattan's early settlers as you walk back in time to Dutch New Amsterdam. While on this walking tour, students will trace the development of Lower Manhattan during the early 17th century through images, documents, and the street plan itself, which was created by the Dutch almost 400 years ago.

Aboard Ambrose: The 1907 Lightship- April through November

for Grades 2 and up (60 minutes)

A floating lighthouse, Lightship Ambrose anchored at the entrance to New York Harbor with signal lights at the top of her masts that guided ships safely to piers in all five boroughs. Students will tour the ship to learn about the role she played from 1907 to 1964, and practice communicating with signal flags and morse code to experience the technology used aboard Ambrose, which served until 1964.
*Please note: Ambrose can only accommodate 15 children at once, so groups will be divided in order to take part in the tour and activities.

Mysteries of the Museum

for Grades 4 and up (60 minutes; 90 minutes with Timescapes)

Before Schermerhorn Row housed the Seaport Museum along Fulton and South Streets, it was home to counting houses, shops and restaurants, coffee roasters, and hotels throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. Students will learn about the historic district through a close examination of this 1810 building by discovering it’s mysteries-- an original hauling lift used to move goods, graffiti representing the people working in the building at different times, and the original laundry room for the 19th century hotel, to name a few.