School Visit Guide
Thank you for booking your school visit to McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center! School group visits are a major part of what we do. In fact, in 1990, when we originally opened as Christa McAuliffe Planetarium (just the planetarium theater at the time), the whole purpose was to honor Concord, NH teacher, Christa McAuliffe, who was referred to as “the field trip teacher”.
The purpose of this page is to prepare school staff, chaperones, required aids, and students for their upcoming visit to the Discovery Center.
If you have any additional questions or concerns, please direct them to our Director of Visitor Services, Kellee Duckworth, kduckworth@starhop.com.
The following information is subject to change based on your group’s needs.
The Unitil Room has a whiteboard with a detailed itinerary for your visit. The school staff member who books the school visit will confirm this itinerary at least a week before your visit.
The Unitil Room
When your group first arrives at the Discovery Center, you’ll immediately be directed to the Unitil Room to set your items down in one of our storage closets, use the restroom, have a quick snack, and have a brief orientation with one of our Educators.
You will see the following School Visit Expectations displayed in the Unitil Room.
Stay with a teacher or chaperone.
Use inside voices and walking feet.
Leave food and drinks–including water bottles–in the Unitil Room
Be respectful to our building exhibits, staff, and visitors
Be at the planetarium show 5 minutes before the start time if you have one scheduled.
Don’t be shy! Our staff are happy to answer any questions or help out.
Please take a moment to review them before your visit. We expect all teachers, chaperones, and required aids to assist us in ensuring these expectations are met.
The Exhibit Halls
School staff and chaperones are expected to be assigned a maximum of 10 students to oversee while exploring the exhibit halls.
Students should not be left unattended or allowed to explore any section of the exhibits without their chaperone.
School staff and chaperones are expected to play an active role in ensuring students are following the school group expectations.
To ensure everyone’s safety and to maintain the condition of the Discovery Center exhibits, there is no food of drinks allowed beyond the Unitil Room. There are drinking fountains located throughout the building, if needed.
The Science Store
The Science Store is open every day that we’re open to the public from 10:30am-4pm. We ask that if your group is planning to visit the Science Store, that they visit in groups, accompanied by a chaperone, instead of all at once. This way, kids can be moved through quickly, without overwhelming our staff, forcing kids to wait in a long line, or disrupting other visitors.
Please note that the Science Store can be opened for Tuesday field trips by request.
If you would like The Science Store to be open for your group, please contact Kellee Duckworth, kduckworth@starhop.com, in advance of your visit.
Frequently Asked Questions
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The Discovery Center encourages visitors who have lost a member of their party to come to the front desk as soon as possible.
Members of our staff can assist with reunification and always ensure that students and children do not leave the building alone.
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As long as students are accompanied by a school staff member or chaperone, they are welcome to take a break from exploring in the exhibits.
Upon request, our staff can provide quiet spaces for students who need it.
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We honor all school policy around early dismissal and or arranging for a sick child to be picked up.
If this happens, please communicate with our front desk so we can notify school staff that a parent/guardian has arrived for pick up.
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If the fire alarm goes off, Discovery Center staff will escort school groups out of the building and to our designated meeting area.
