Studio Programs

a female ranger with a flat hat on smiles in front of a screen with the NPS arrowhead on it.

NPS/Bethany Szczepanski

Reservations for the 2024-25 school year will open on August 28, 2024.

Bring the Channel Islands into your classroom by participating in a free live virtual program delivered from our mainland studio. Programs are conducted via videoconferencing platforms, such as Zoom.

Program Calendar

Virtual programs will be offered during the following dates and times:

October - December
  • Thursday afternoon - earliest start time 1:00 PM - latest start time 2:00 PM
January - February
  • Tuesday - earliest start time 9:00 AM - latest start time 2:00 PM
May - June
  • Tuesday - earliest start time 9:00 AM - latest start time 2:00 PM
 
An island fox stands with it's tongue out

NPS/Bethany Szczepanski

Program Descriptions

Studio programs support the indicated California Content Standards or Next Generation Science Standard (NGSS) indicated below.

Grades 2-3
Island Fox Explorations

(45-60 minutes)

Students will discover the structures and behaviors of the endemic Island Fox which help them to survive in their isolated environment.

Supports:
 
a painting of a brown skinned woman in a black bird feather dress standing on an island. She holds a woven water bottle basket. Yellow flowers and a dog are in the background.
Historically accurate oil painting of the Lone Woman, based on descriptions by people who actually saw her when she was brought from San Nicolas Island to Santa Barbara, California, in 1853. © Holli Harmon, 2018.

Grades 3 - 5
Island of the Blue Dolphins
(60 minutes)

How can we learn about history and what clues do archeological discoveries on San Nicolas Island tell us about the Lone Woman?
Minimum requirement before program: Students must be reading Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell.

Teacher resource: This web-based resource, developed by the National Park Service and other partners, includes a treasure trove of information about the lone woman of San Nicolas island and Scott O'Dell's book. Follow along chapter by chapter as your students read the story exploring historical evidence from primary and secondary sources, listen to the voices of researchers, explore native island cultures, and more.

Supports:

  • California Content Standard: HSS-3.2.2 Students describe the American Indian nations in their local region long ago and in the recent past.
    • Discuss the ways in which physical geography, including climate, influenced how the local Indian nations adapted to their natural environment (e.g., how they obtained food, clothing, tools).
  • California Content Standard: HSS-3.2.4 Students describe the American Indian nations in their local region long ago and in the recent past.
    • Discuss the interaction of new settlers with the already established Indians of the region.
  • California Content Standard: HSS-4.2 Students describe the social, political, cultural, and economic life and interactions among people of California from the pre-Columbian societies to the Spanish mission and Mexican rancho periods.
    • Discuss the major nations of California Indians, including their geographic distribution, economic activities, legends, and religious beliefs; and describe how they depended on, adapted to, and modified the physical environment by cultivation of land and use of sea resources.
  • California Content Standard: HSS-5.3 Students describe the cooperation and conflict that existed among the American Indians and between the Indian nations and the new settlers.
 
A diver swims in a kelp forest with many fish

NPS/Brett Seymour

Grades 5 - 8
Kelp Forest Monitoring

(50-60 minutes)

Kelp forests provide habitat for over 1,000 species of marine plants and animals around the Channel Islands. The Kelp Forest Monitoring Team at Channel Islands National Park has been monitoring the kelp forests for over 40 years. Students will discover how and why scientists monitor change in the kelp forest ecosystem and why it is important.

Supports:

 

Schedule a Virtual Distance Learning Studio Program

Please follow all three steps to schedule your program.

Step 1:
Choose a program from the Program Descriptions on this page. 

Step 2: Reserve your program date on our Microsoft Bookings Calendar.
  • You will receive an email that says "Your booking is confirmed." This holds the dates for you but your program is not confirmed until you complete step 3 and receive a confirmaiton from the ranger.
Step 3: Complete and submit the Education Reservation Request Form - NPS Form 10-1750 below.
  • Add the day you requested on the Bookings calendar to the "Preferred date of visit" section.
  • Important: If we do not receive your Education Reservation Request Form within 7 days of receiving your Bookings date requestwe will cancel your Microsoft Bookings reservation to open up the dates for other schools.
  • We will send a confirmation email verifying your program day(s) and time(s) within two weeks. If you do not receive this within two weeks, email us at chis_education@nps.gov.

NPS Form 10-1750 (Rev. 04/2021)
National Park Service

OMB Control No. 1024-0228
Expiration Date 11/31/2025

Discussion Points for Virtual / Distance Learning Program

Virtual and/or Distance Learning can vary depending on the technical capabilities of the park and the school. in order to find appropriate accommodations for your learning experience, here are some categories to be prepared to discuss with the park:

  1. Internet Access
  2. Phone Access (speaker phone or conference line)
  3. Mobile or digital video conferencing capabilities
  4. Firewall
  5. Hardware and Software Capabilities
  6. Classroom pre-work or assignments

Disclaimer:

A park representative will follow-up to confirm group details once this request has been received and reviewed.


NPS Form 10-1750 (Rev. 04/2021)
National Park Service

OMB Control No. 1024-0228
Expiration Date 11/31/2025

Notices

Privacy Act Statement

Authority: Public Law 114-289 National Park Service Centennial Act and 54 U.S.C. 100701 Protection, interpretation, and research in System.

Purpose: To administer education programs for education audiences including but not limited to school groups, scouting groups, extracurricular groups, and home school groups.

Routine Uses: To effectively manage requests for education received by the NPS, the Education Reservation Request Form is used to collect basic education reservation information to facilitate operational aspects of scheduling groups for park education programs, including in-park education programs, ranger in classroom programs, and/or online distance learning programs.

Disclosure: Voluntary, however, failure to provide the requested information may impede the ability to grant your education reservation request.

Paperwork Reduction Act Statement

We are collecting this information subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501) to provide park managers and educators the information needed to schedule and conduct education program activities. All applicable parts of the form must be completed in order for your request to be considered. You are not required to respond to this or any other Federal agency-sponsored information collection unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. OMB has approved this collection of information and assigned control number 1024-0288.

Estimated Burden Statement

Public reporting for this collection of information is estimated to average 5 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to the Information Collection Clearance Officer, National Park Service, 1201 Oakridge Drive, Fort Collins, CO 80525. Do not send your completed form to this address.

Last updated: June 11, 2024

Park footer

Contact Info

Mailing Address:

1901 Spinnaker Drive
Ventura, CA 93001

Phone:

805 658-5730

Contact Us