School Tours & Programs
The Detroit Historical Museum provides engaging field trip experiences for students of all ages. Aligned with state social studies standards, our tours and programs will enhance any curriculum. We offer guided tours, scavenger hunts, and self-led tours. Guided school tours are docent lead and tour itineraries are listed below; guided school tours are for grades 3 through college. Group rates for all field trips are for 15 students or more. Please fill out the Request for a Tour form at the bottom of this page.
FIELD TRIP POLICIES
- There must be one chaperone for every 10 students; these tickets are free. Groups will not be permitted entry without the appropriate number of chaperones.
- Should you need to reschedule or cancel your reservation, please contact our education team as soon as possible (education@detroithistorical.org), so we can accommodate your reservation changes.
- We ask that self-led groups of more than 15 call to make a group booking. This gives you access to the group rate and allows us to plan staffing accordingly.
- Guided tours and programs must be scheduled at least four weeks in advance.
- Payment can be made over the phone with a credit card, via Venmo, or via check according to your institution’s payment procedures.
- Detroit Historical Museum does not have a lunchroom or café; there is a limited number of seats available in the Grand Trunk Room Passenger Station in the Detroit's Brewing Heritage exhibition. This space is available on a first-come first-served basis for $50. Please note, this exhibition is about beer brewing.
Download our 2024-25 School Programs Planning Guide
Download our Pre-visit Museum Guide
SELF-LED VISITS
Sometimes students aren't ready for a docent-led tour or they need to experience the museum at their own pace. A self-led visit is perfect for them! Teachers and chaperones lead students throughout the museum, focusing on their areas of interest and on their own timeline.
- Length: we estimate your students will need 60-90 minutes at the museum
- Tour times: Wednesday - Saturday, 10am-4pm, Sunday 1pm-4pm
- Capacity: 125 students* per field trip
- Cost: $5 per student* (includes general admission)
*Note: One teacher/chaperone is required for every 10 students and is free!
Additional chaperones: Free for self-led tours and scavenger hunts.
SCAVENGER HUNT EXPERIENCE
We offer educators the opportunity to guide students as they explore our exhibits, examine artifacts, and uncover Detroit’s history on their own. With a scavenger hunt experience, teachers and chaperones work with small groups of students to facilitate engagement with the museum’s permanent exhibits. A scavenger hunt is a fun addition to a day at the museum!
- Length: we estimate your students will need 60-90 minutes at the museum
- Tour times: Wednesday - Saturday, 10am-4pm, Sunday 1pm-4pm
- Capacity: 125 students* per field trip
- Cost: $6 per student* (includes general admission)
*Note: One teacher/chaperone is required for every 10 students and is free!
Additional chaperones: free for self-led tours and scavenger hunts.
GUIDED TOURS
Museum educators lead students through an interactive tour of key museum exhibits. The tours have been designed to meet Grade Level Content Expectations and Common Core Standards for grades 3 – 8, but our tour guides can accommodate students in grades 3 through college. Please fill out the Register for a Tour form at the bottom of this page.
Historical Perspectives Tours
Recommended for PreK - 12th grade
Native American footpaths started us on a journey that led to major industries (not just cars!) which brought the city of Detroit tremendous growth and waves of new immigrants. Students will explore over 300 years of the city’s development while immersing themselves in the understanding of the city’s landscape, the people who built it, and the growth we continue to see today.
- Length: guided tours are about an hour; we recommend staying a maximum of one additional hour to allow students to explore the museum.
- Tour times: Available Tuesday - Friday at 10am, 11am, 12pm, 1pm, 2pm and 3pm as staffing allows.
- Max capacity: 25 students per tour; multiple tours may be available per timeslot
- Cost: $6 per student*
*Note: One teacher/chaperone is required for every 10 students and is free!
Additional chaperones: $8 per adult
Detroit 67: Perspectives Facilitated Group Experience
Recommended for 9th - 12th grade and college
During this 60-minute facilitated experience of the Detroit 67: Perspectives exhibition, students will take part in discussions surrounding the significant economic, social and cultural factors that led to the turbulent summer of 1967. This experience allows students to fully engage, think through and draw conclusions about this tumultuous summer and its wider ramifications for Detroit.
- Length: guided tours are about an hour; we recommend staying a maximum of one additional hour to allow students to explore the museum.
- Tour times: Available Tuesday - Friday at 10am, 11am, 12pm, 1pm, 2pm and 3pm as staffing allows.
- Max capacity: 20 students per tour
- Cost: $7 per student* (includes general admission)
*Note: One teacher/chaperone is required for every 10 students and is free!
Additional chaperones: $8 per adult
A note to our visitors:
- The Detroit 67: Perspectives facilitated experience is not a typical museum tour! (Typically, a museum guide will lead you through a space and talk to you about the information and objects you see.)
- Because the Detroit 67: Perspectives exhibition is about events, people and social change, your facilitator will provide some key information regarding this history, but will then ask questions to generate dialogue and conversation about the topics in the exhibition.
- Audience participation is a key part of this experience.
- Detroit 67: Perspectives highlights events and ideas that have the potential to be sensitive and personal. Issues of race, social unrest and economic injustice are all a part of what led to this period of civil unrest.
- As an institution, the Detroit Historical Society is not taking a position regarding these events, nor are we judging them. Our commitment is to present as many perspectives as possible from those who experienced the events first hand.
Download our Detroit 67: Perspectives Educator Resource Packet
Detroit's African American Perspectives
Recommended for 3rd - 12th grade
The Detroit Historical Museum is thrilled to offer a series of tours focused on the history, experiences and enduring influence of African Americans in Detroit. Jamon Jordan, founder of the Black Scroll Network and recently designated Official Historian of the City of Detroit, will be the guide for these tours. The tours highlight topics including the Underground Railroad, Detroit's Black Bottom and Paradise Valley neighborhoods, Detroit's African American music history, Detroit's African American leaders, the Civil Rights Movement in Detroit, and Detroit's rebellions and turbulent racial history.
20 guests maximum per tour. Cost is the greater of $300 or $15 per person. (includes general admission)
PROGRAMS
Our programs include hands-on educational fun through music, dance, storytelling, role playing and artifact exploration.
StoryLiving
Bring history to life by booking a StoryLiving program. In these interactive programs, a professional storyteller shares Detroit history with your students using drama, group pantomime, role playing, songs, and creative problem-solving.
- At museum: $400 flat rate for up to 120 students (includes general admission)
- Virtual: $400 flat rate, no capacity limits
- At your school: $450 flat rate *Mileage fee of $50.00 will be charged for venues located more than 30 miles from the Detroit Historical Museum.
The Underground Railroad
Recommended for 3rd grade, can tailor to other age groups
In the mid 1800s, thousands of African Americans escaped through Detroit on their way to freedom in Canada. Students will discover more about the Underground Railroad and the role Detroit played in it.
Block by Block: The Great Fire
Recommended for 1st - 3rd grade, can tailor to other age groups
It’s been over 200 years since the Great Fire set the city of Detroit ablaze displacing over 700 residents. After the destruction, Detroiters did not abandon their city. Through strength and determination they set to work to rebuild Detroit, leaving the legacy of the city we see today. Students will become firefighters who must work together to save the community.
The Great Migration
Recommended for 4th & 5th grade, can tailor to other age groups
Over the course of six decades, nearly six million black southerners left the South and fanned out across the United States transforming urban America. Join us as we highlight three Detroit women and how the circumstances of their family’s migration and their experiences shaped who they were and defined the course of their lives in the 1920s, 1940s and the 1960s.
Other StoryLiving presentations may be available. For more information on our programs or to book a field trip, please complete the short form below.
