Choose Your Own Adventure (for all ages)

$5 each • Choose 4-6 stations • 20 minutes per station • Sept., Oct., Nov., Mar., Apr., May • Max. group size: 100 or 25 students in 4 groups 

Here's your chance to tailor your Historic Arkansas Museum field trip to fit your students' needs. Choose your top four stations, plus two secondary options. This must be scheduled six weeks in advance to assure staff availability.

Visit the Print Shop: Inside the Woodruff Print Shop students will learn how the Arkansas Gazette newspaper was made and how it connected Arkansans to the world. Students will have the chance to operate a reproduction printing press.

Visit the Blacksmith Shop: At the Blacksmith Shop, students will learn about the importance of blacksmithing in the everyday lives of Arkansans 200 years ago. Students will see the Forge in operation. Learning the basic tools and vernacular.

Churning Butter: Students will use a butter churn to make butter the way 19^th-century Arkansans did—with simple ingredients and a lot of elbow grease. After all their hard work, they’ll be rewarded with a taste of fresh-churned butter! 

Washing Clothes: Before washing machines, there were washing boards—and before there was detergent, there was lye soap. Students will learn about old-fashioned methods to clean clothes and get their hands wet as they try it out for themselves. This program builds appreciation for modern technology while demonstrating how laundry is still done in many parts of the world. 

Historical Lighting: In this program students will learn how Arkansans lit their houses centuries ago and explore different types of lanterns and their uses. Then, they’ll create their own candle from a simple string and some beeswax.

Life in a Log Cabin: Life as a farmer differed greatly from life in downtown Little Rock 200 years ago. Through hands-on activities, this program gives students the opportunity to learn about the various aspects of life in a log cabin in Arkansas in the 1820s – 1850s. 

Carding Cotton, historic textiles: Clothing today is defined by fast fashion and flashy styles, but clothing 200 years ago was largely practical and made with what was available. Students will discuss fashion trends and how clothing is made, then learn to card cotton, an old-fashioned process that readies the material for spinning into thread.  

Food Preservation: Without modern appliances like refrigerators how did Arkansans keep their food from spoiling? In this program, students will learn (and taste) the variety of ways Arkansans kept their food safe to eat.

Traveling in the 1830’s & Wagon Wheel Assembly: Students learn the various modes of transportation available 200 years ago, before the invention of cars and planes. They’ll also put a wagon wheel together, giving them an idea of the difference between transportation then and now.

Historic Land Surveying: Surveyors in historic Arkansas had the important task of using primitive tools to provide precise and accurate maps. In this program, students will learn about these tools and how to use them.

Gallery Walk Through: Students will have the opportunity to explore galleries of Arkansas Made art and history ranging from indigenous Arkansans to contemporary artists and artisans.

Storytelling: Students will listen to a lively, age-appropriate story related to a current Museum exhibit.

Outdoor Games: Students will learn about the day-to-day life of children in Arkansas 200 years ago. Then, they’ll get a chance to test their physical coordination and skill by engaging a variety of outdoor games popular in the 1800s.

Indoor Games: Students will learn about the day-to-day life of children in Arkansas 200 years ago. Then, they’ll get a chance to test their mental acuity by playing a variety of indoor games popular in the 1800s.

1 hour • $1 each • Daily • Max. group size: 60; can accommodate 100 for 2 hrs. paired with Museum Center visit - Visit the Parker Westbrook 1850s Farmstead and learn about the two families that lived at the farmstead. Students will discover how life on an 1850s farmstead is different than their lives today by participating in chores and understanding how natural resources were used. Stations visited are: Sifting Flour, Textiles, Life in a Log Cabin, Blacksmith Shop

1 hour • $4 each • Sept., Oct., Nov., Mar., Apr., May • Min. 15 students - Max. group size: 100  - Learn about a day in the life of a young person in the 1840s by comparing and contrasting the old and the new while visiting our historic structures and both seeing and participating in activities young people could have done in the 1800s. Stations visited are: Print Shop, Outdoor Games, Kitchen Comparison, A 1830’s Home Tour

4th Grade - 6th Grade

2 hours • $4 each • Sept., Oct., Nov., Mar., Apr., May • Max. group size: 60  - At the 1850s Plum Bayou log house students will have an in depth look at rural life in Arkansas by participating in activities necessary to meet the needs of a family living on an 1850s farmstead. Stations visited are: Blacksmith Shop, Butter Churning, Candle Dipping, and Life in a Log Cabin

2 hours • $4 each •  Sept., Oct., Nov., Mar., Apr., May • Min. 15 students - Max. group size: 100 Learn about the different occupations that the people who lived on or visited our blocks had by doing some work yourself. It's not all work, though, as you also learn about and play historic games and make your own historic toy to take home with you. Stations visited are: Print Shop, Surveying, Whirligigs, Outdoor Games.

Historic Homes Tour

7th Grade - 12th Grade

1 hour • $1 each • Daily • Max. group size: 60; can accommodate 100 for 2 hrs. paired with Museum Center visit - Learn what brought settlers to Little Rock early in the 19th century. Visit the homes they built, learn what their current events were and find out why some left town in 1849.

Annual Programs