MNHS >
Education >
Field Trips

> Prepare for Your Mill City Museum Field Trip

Kids on field trip at Mill City Museum

Prepare for Your Mill City Museum Field Trip

Tips to prepare yourself, your students, and your chaperones for your field trip.

Before your visit

  • Consider your group's accessibility needs and communicate these to our team at fieldtrips@mnhs.org.
  • Review allergy and Baking Lab lesson information. While summer field trips don’t participate in a Baking Lab micro lesson, the Baking Lab is open as part of the exhibit gallery and students may encounter samples or food ingredients there.
  • Discuss museum manners with your students
  • Share visit schedules with the staff and chaperones.
  • Assign students to specific chaperones. A ratio of one chaperone for every ten students is required and a ratio of one chaperone for every five students is recommended.
  • Review confirmation materials for details on your visit, including schedule of events.

Directions and parking

Share directions and parking information with bus drivers and chaperones.

Mill City Museum Directions & Parking

Mill City Museum provides a bus drop-off and pick-up zone directly in front of the museum’s main entrance on the NORTH side of South Second Street. This bus zone is for drop-off and pick-up only. No bus parking is allowed. Please turn off the bus while loading and unloading. Mill City Museum does not provide bus parking.

On-site parking for vans and cars only is available near Mill City Museum for a fee. The museum cannot validate chaperone parking.

When you arrive at Mill City Museum

  • Your group will be greeted at the door by Mill City Museum staff. Group leaders will be given stickers with their visit schedule for each adult in their group.
  • Be prepared to give an accurate count of the number of students, school staff, and chaperones.
  • The group will gather for a brief orientation before the program begins.

Accessibility

Mill City Museum welcomes all visitors and strives to make everyone’s visit a positive experience. Please let us know if your group has anyone with special accommodation needs. Email fieldtrips@mnhs.org to discuss your group’s access needs.

  • All restrooms are accessible, including several All Gender Family Bathrooms.
  • American Sign Language interpreters are available with two week’s notice.
  • Wheelchairs are available on-site for use during your visit. First come, first serve.
  • A quiet room is available for students in need of privacy.

Review the Mill City Museum Field Trip Social Narrative and Accessibility Map to prepare your group.

Learn more about accessibility at Mill City Museum.

Chaperone tips

  1. Ensure chaperones know their schedule, including arrival, departure, and program times.
  2. Preview: Send them the link to the Mill City Museum webpage to get them excited about their day and familiar with the museum.
  3. Assign students to specific chaperones.

Chaperones are responsible for the conduct of the students they are accompanying. Students are required to remain with their chaperones at all times.

Mill City Museum manners

  • Walk and stay with your group to ensure everyone stays safe.
  • Use indoor voices so everyone can hear and learn. 
  • Only plain water is allowed in sealed bottles in the exhibit gallery (no food or gum).
  • Be respectful of staff, each other, your chaperones and other visitors.
  • Protect historic objects by only touching when a staff member says it's okay.
  • Turn cell phones to vibrate or silent during the field trip.

Lunch

Lunch space is not currently available at Mill City Museum. If you are visiting multiple MNHS locations in one day, you may be able to add lunch to your visit schedule at another site. Reach out to fieldtrips@mnhs.org with questions. 

Field trip preview

Explore the virtual tour of Mill City Museum to get excited for your visit!

Questions?

Please contact our staff at fieldtrips@mnhs.org or schedule an appointment. All booking requests must be submitted through our Request Form.