Educational Programs

Enjoy a day of learning or fun and bring your class, Scouting or Guiding group for a full or half-day Ontario Curriculum-based field trip.

What you learn

We will teach your group the following:

  • Technological, and scientific themes related to Alexander Graham Bell
  • Social themes related to the Bell family and the late 19th century

What's included

We offer our programs year-round unless we let you know otherwise. We will also come to your classroom if we are available. All of our programs include:

  • An interactive tour of the Bell Homestead and Henderson Home
  • Hands-on activities or experiments
  • Making calls with our 1930's telephones

Rates

All of our rates are below and prices are per student. Teachers, chaperones and EA's are free.

Educational program options and rates
OptionRate
Virtual (including program kits and delivery) $56.50 (for grades jk to 2 and workshops without kits the rate is $28.25)
Half-day  $6.25
Half-day visit (we come to you) $6.75
Full-day $12.25
Full-day (we come to you) $12.75

Virtual programs

The Bell Homestead offers virtual programs for classes that are unable to visit the museum.  These programs include a virtual tour of the Bell Homestead.  Classroom supply kit is provided after booking.  Programs are led by the museum’s Education Coordinator. Primary grade workshops are 30 minutes in length and 60 minutes for grades 3 to 8.  

Material World - grades Jk to 2 (science and technology)

Curriculum Links:

  • Materials; Objects and Everyday Structures; Properties of Liquids and Solids

See what materials Mr. Bell used to build his telephones. Listen to the tale of the three little pigs and find out why some materials work better than others. Find materials around you to investigate for properties like hardness, softness, flexibility, rigidity, stretchiness and mass.

The Five Senses – grades Jk to 2 (science and technology)
  • Understanding Life Systems

Read Alexander Graham Bell Answers The Call. See Mr. Bell’s first telephones and his mother’s hearing trumpet. Take part in five guided activities to explore the senses.

Aleck’s Music – grades JK to 2 (the arts)

Curriculum Links:

  • Music; Visual Art

Learn how much Mr. Bell loved music as a boy as we read Alexander Graham Bell Answers The Call. See his telephones. Listen to his favourite music and make drawings inspired by the songs.

Holidays at the Homestead in your classroom - grades JK to 4

Curriculum links:

• Personal and Social Development

• Language – Oral Communication

• Social Studies – Heritage and Citizenship, Canada and The World Connections

• The Arts – Visual Art

Book your class for a fun live virtual session of the NEW Holidays at the Homestead program. Learn how the Bell’s celebrated a Victorian Christmas and a traditional Scottish Hogmanay (New Year’s Eve). Students will learn about Hanukkah, Kwanzaa and Chung Jie (Chinese New Year). We will provide supplies for students to create their own dreidel then learn how to use it to play a game, create a Kwanzaa bracelet and create a Chung Jie red paper cut. When you order your kit, you will also book a live virtual session 
with the Bell Homestead staff and you will receive a link to a video of the Bell Homestead’s Christmas tour. Kits cost $50.00 each. Registration is required at least one week in advance by emailing bellhomestead@brantford.ca or calling 519-756-6220. 
Classroom kits include:
  • red paper cutout templates
  • dreidel game print outs, including a dreidel to cut out and put together
  • beads and pipe cleaners for Kwanza bracelets
  • Hogmanay shortbread for the whole class and recipe cards
Mr. Bell’s Kite Workshop – grades 1 to 6 (science and technology)

Curriculum Links:

  • Understanding Structures and Mechanisms; Understanding Matter and Energy; Understanding Earth and Space Systems

Mr. Bell was fascinated by flight. Build his tetrahedral kite cell and make a paper roto-copter. Grades 3 to 6 will also investigate the properties of air.

Media Literacy and Telephone Ads – grades 1 to 8 (the arts; language arts)

Curriculum Links:

  • Media Literacy
  • Visual Arts

Is there truth in advertising? Look at Bell Canada advertisements from the 1870s to today and find out! See how advertising strategies have changed and how companies try to convince you to buy their products. 30 minute for grades 1 and 2; 45 minutes to 60 minutes for grades 3 to 8.

Boats that Float - grades 2 to 4 (science and technology) 
Curriculum Links:
  • Properties of Liquids and Solids

Alexander Graham Bell built a high-speed boats in his later years. Discover which materials float in water, which ones sink, which ones soak up water and which ones do not. 

Life in the 19th Century – grades 2 to 4 (social studies)

Curriculum Links:

  • Heritage and Identity

Look at artifacts from our collection to see what life was like in the 19th century. We can compare the objects to things in our houses today and find out what they used every day.

Magnetic Forces – grades 3 to 5 (science and technology)

Curriculum Links:

  • Understanding Matter and Energy

What do magnets have to do with the telephone? Find out as we look at Bell’s first three telephones and investigate magnetic forces with hands-on activities.

Strong and Stable Structures – grades 3 to 5 (science and technology)

Curriculum Links:

  • Strong and Stable Structures; Forces Acting on Structures and Mechanisms

How do we make structures stand and stay in place? Build bridges, test out different shapes for stability, and build a structure based on Mr. Bell’s tetrahedral tower.

Light and Sound - grades 3 to 6 (science and technology) 

Curriculum Links:

  • Light and Sound

Through hands-on experiments you will learn about the properties of sound and light and their importance to the invention of the telephone. Choose  four activities from a list of eight to customize your workshop.

Energy in the 19th Century – grades 3 to 8 (science and technology, social studies)

Curriculum Links:

  • Understanding Matter and Energy; Heritage and Identity

We rely on fossil fuels, hydroelectricity, and some green energy sources to power our lives. What did they use in the 1800s? Find out about fuels like whale oil and coal. Discuss how energy use then and now impacts the environment.

Inventing the Future - grades 5 to 8 (science, technology and history) 

Curriculum Links:

  • Canada – A Changing Society

You will explore inventions throughout history, identify what makes an invention succeed or fail, look at its impact on the environment, draw up your own invention plans, and critique each other's inventions. 

Project Telephone - grades 5 to 8 (science, technology and history) 
Curriculum Links:
  • Forms and Functions; Systems in Action
  • Canada – A Changing Society

Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1874. The technology hasn't changed, but the form has. You will analyze and critique the functionality of 20th century telephones. 

Half day programs 

We offer a wide variety of half day programs. 

Music in Motion – grades jk to 3 (the arts, science and technology)

Curriculum Links:

  • Music
  • Materials; Objects and Everyday Structures; Energy in our Lives

Alexander Graham Bell dreamed of being a concert pianist. You will explore sound and music by making a rhythm instrument, move to music, and create art to go with the music.

Living in a Material World – grades jk to 2 (science and technology)

Curriculum Links:

  • Materials; Objects and Everyday Structures; Properties of Liquids and Solids

By testing them, Alexander Graham Bell knew what materials to use to build his telephone, airplane, and hydrofoil. You will investigate the properties of different materials through hands-on experiments. You will compare the materials and objects the Bell's used in their home to what we use today.

Boats that Float – grades 2 to 4 (science and technology)

Curriculum Links:

  • Properties of Liquids and Solids

Alexander Graham Bell built a hydrofoil in his later years. You will explore the properties and behaviours of various liquids and then compete to build the best floating boat.

The Mystery of Magnets – grades 3 to 6 (science and technology)

Curriculum Links:

  • Forces Causing Movement; Properties and Changes in Matter

Alexander Graham Bell's telephone worked using magnets. You will test metals, see magnetic fields, try making your own magnet, and look at how magnets are used in your everyday life.

The Sound of Science – grades 3 to 6 (science and technology)

Curriculum Links:

  • Light and Sound

Through hands-on experiments you will learn about the properties of sound and its importance to the invention of the telephone.

Exploring Electricity – grades 3 to 6 (science and technology)

Curriculum Links:

  • Conservation of Energy and Resources; Electricity and Electrical Devices

Alexander Graham Bell's invention of the telephone began with his work with electricity. You will conduct electrical experiments and compare life before electricity to today.

Towering Tetrahedrons – grades 3 to 6 (science and technology)

Curriculum Links:

  • Strong and Stable Structures; Forces Acting on Structures and Mechanisms

Alexander Graham Bell experimented with a variety of strong and stable structures to build his kites. His solution was the tetrahedral cell. You will test different structures for stability and see the strength and stability in a house.

Dr. Bell Sees the Light – grades 4 to 6 (science and technology)

Curriculum Links:

  • Light and Sound

Alexander Graham Bell used sunlight instead of wires to transmit sound through a special telephone he called the photophone. You will explore the properties and behaviours of light, see how it works with other materials, and see how people in the 1800s used light in their homes.

Inventing the Future – grades 5 to 8 (history)

Curriculum Links:

  • Canada – A Changing Society

You will explore inventions throughout history, identify what makes an invention succeed or fail, look at its impact on the environment, draw up your own invention plans, and critique each other's inventions.

Project Telephone – grades 5 to 8 (science, technology and history)

Curriculum Links:

  • Forms and Functions; Systems in Action
  • Canada – A Changing Society

Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1874. The technology hasn't changed, but the form has. You will analyse and critique the functionality of 20th century telephones and create a model for a new telephone.

Flights of Fancy – grades 6 to 8 (science and technology)

Curriculum Links:

  • Flight; Form and Function

Alexander Graham Bell did many experiments with kites and early airplanes. You will investigate the properties of air and flight and make a kite just like Mr. Bell's.

Holidays at the Homestead – grades jk to 8 (social studies)

Curriculum Links:

  • Traditions and Celebrations

The Holiday season is celebrated differently all over the world. You will:

  • learn how some traditions started
  • tour the homestead decorated for a Victorian Christmas
  • bake Hogmanay cookies in our 19th century kitchen
  • learn about other cultural holiday traditions including Hanukah and Kwanza
  • make a seasonal craft.

This program is offered in December only and we can have up to 40 students.

Full day programs

You can mix any two of our half day programs or select one of our following full day programs which are four hours in length each.

Judging Aleck – grades 7 to 8 (art and history)

Curriculum Links:

  • Drama and Dance
  • British North America; Canada – A Changing Society

Our interactive program include tours, drama, and reading and writing activities. You will learn the influences and events that resulted in Alexander Graham Bell's invention of the telephone. You will also analyze competing claims to the telephone. In a mock court session you present your arguments for and against Alexander Graham Bell.

Habitat Homestead – grades jk to 6 (offered May and June only)

You will explore the natural environment around the Bell Homestead through a series of activity stations, including use of resources, plant and animal identification, baking in the historic kitchen, and making a craft. We can have up to 60 students and it can also be booked as a half-day program upon request.

Sense and Sensibility – grades jk to 6 (offered May and June only)

You will explore the five senses through a series of activity stations, including an archaeological dig, cooking in the historic kitchen, and making a craft. We can have up to 60 students and this can also be booked as a half-day program upon request.

Scouting and Guiding badge programs

Our school field trips are flexible to help kids in all levels of scouting and guiding earn their badges. Book your program on an evening, weekend or at an overnight “camp” in our visitor centre. Speak to our education coordinator for more details.

Scouting and Guiding program options and rates
OptionRate
Half-day $6.25
Overnight $45.00

Contact us

You can call us or email us to book or for more information.