Middle School Institutes

New Institute!

Have you ever looked up at the stars and wondered at the sky? If you have, you’ve taken part in a tradition that goes back to the earliest days of recorded history. From important holidays to zodiac charts, humans have seemingly always sought meaning from the skies above. Explore social structures, belief systems, and daily life through the lens of archaeoastronomy, and find out what types of connections past peoples had with the sky. Investigate how celestial bodies affect a culture’s interpretation of time, mathematics, calendars, and the way whole cities are designed. This institute will have you asking yourself, how much of “time” is all in your mind?

Meeting Times: Monday–Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM

Meeting Dates: June 29–July 3

Cost: $850 ($825 Members)

Please call Central Reservations at 212-769-5200.

We do not offer online registration at this time.

Registration Open

Want to take a stroll on Mars? How about an afternoon flight to Europa, a moon of Jupiter, which may have vast oceans under its icy surface? In this unique program, you will learn to navigate our solar system, galaxy, and beyond using the Museum's cutting-edge three-dimensional digital map of our universe. Digital Universe combines celestial mapmaking with breathtaking and sophisticated data visualization. Using advanced gaming laptops and the Rose Center's Hayden Planetarium, students will have the incredible opportunity to explore this software and the science behind it. Digital Universe Flight School also provides you with the opportunity to learn from the Museum's considerable space science resources, as well as to meet scientists to learn about careers in astrophysics and Earth science.

Meeting Times: Monday–Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM

Meeting Dates: June 6–July 10

Cost: $850 ($825 Members)

Please call Central Reservations at 212-769-5200.

We do not offer online registration at this time.

Registration Open

Did you know that we share our planet with more than five million species? In this program, you will explore the amazing diversity of life on Earth by visiting our fossil halls and learning about genetics, exploring the diversity right in front of us in New York City, and examining our world-famous collections of specimens. Join us to gain an understanding of the genetic and physical evidence for evolution, meet Museum scientists that work in different fields of biology, and look inside the labs of the museum to find out how we learn about the origins of life, and where we’re going!

Meeting Times: Monday–Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM

Meeting Dates: August 3–7

Cost: $850 ($825 Members)

Please call Central Reservations at 212-769-5200.

We do not offer online registration at this time.

Registration Open

Ocean currents, ecology ... computer programming? Coding Climate Change combines climate science and computer science. With Python, a popular coding language used widely by scientists in many fields, students will ask and answer scientific questions by analyzing data from the NASA Earth Observatory. No coding experience necessary—we'll start from the beginning! Along the way, students will take a deep dive into current climate science research and develop basic coding skills. Join us for an opportunity to learn about the forces changing the global climate and the tools scientists use to study them.

Meeting Times: Monday–Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM

Meeting Dates: August 3–7

Cost: $850 ($825 Members)

Please call Central Reservations at 212-769-5200.

We do not offer online registration at this time.

Registration Open

How much of our universe can we really see? With the latest technology and up-to-date data, astronomers across the globe have been working together to develop an open-source coded map of the known universe. Open Space, and the terabytes of data that map everything from the paths of distant galaxies to the surface of Mars as close as three meters off the ground, is a bold new project that visualizes real data into stunning, interactive, 3D depictions. Learn how to use Open Space and explore new questions this new tool is raising in the field of astronomy.

Meeting Times: Monday–Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM

Meeting Dates: August 10–21

Cost: $1700 ($1650 Members)

Please call Central Reservations at 212-769-5200.

We do not offer online registration at this time.

Registration Open

What is life like for anthropologists searching for our earliest human ancestors? Join Museum scientists on a journey to uncover how humans evolved by looking for signs of life at the famous paleontological site of Koobi Fora in northern Kenya. Unparalleled for its geological, fossil, and archaeological evidence for all major stages of human evolution over the last five million years, this site has informed much of what we currently know about the evolution of humans today. Discover what it is like to do fieldwork and learn how scientists identify human fossils, reconstruct prehistoric environments, interpret the behavior of extinct early human species, and determine the age of the fossils.

Meeting Times: Monday–Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM

Meeting Dates: August 17–21 

Cost: $850 ($825 Members)

Please call Central Reservations at 212-769-5200.

We do not offer online registration at this time.

Registration Open

Over the past few decades, observations from space-exploration missions have allowed scientists to determine that planetary bodies within our solar system contain vast reservoirs of water. These “ocean worlds” maybe our best future targets to determine whether or not life exists beyond Earth. Take a deep dive into the dynamic processes of Earth’s oceans, the unique organisms that have adapted to the ocean environment, and the tools and technology used to explore the ocean depths. We will then look toward the skies to see what is known about our solar system’s other “ocean worlds,” culminating in a challenge to design a future mission to explore them!

Cost: $650 ($625 Members)

Please call Central Reservations at 212-769-5200.

We do not offer online registration at this time.

Registration Open