Wanderlust World Wanderlust World Art museums are abundant in Southern California's largest cities such as Los Angeles, San Diego and Santa Barbara. These museums allow students to study ancient and modern paintings and sculptures. Most of these institutions also offer art programs for field trips and after-school groups. The San Diego Museum of Art offers the Renaissance Art Cart, a one-hour tour where students view Renaissance-era art pieces such as frescoes and panel painting. Other Southern California art museums are the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, or LACMA, (lacma.org) and the J. Paul Getty Museums (getty.edu), in Los Angeles.
Southern California's science museums offer interactive, science-related exhibits for school groups. The California Science Center (californiasciencecenter.org) in Los Angeles provides 15-minute demonstration shows for aeronautics, chemical reactions and the earth's ecosystem. This museum is also home to the Earthquake Room, an entire room that shakes and allows students to experience what an earthquake feels like. The Reuben H. Fleet Science Center in San Diego and the San Bernardino County Museum are Southern California museums with science-related exhibits.
Many of Southern California's state and national parks have picnic facilities for school groups to have outdoor picnics. Also, some parks have walking trails, which allow teachers and students to observe wildlife and plants in their natural environment. For younger children, parks may have playground areas. Cleveland National Forest, Mission Trails Regional Park, Mt. San Jacinto State Wilderness, Topanga State Park and Los Padres National Forest are some of Southern California's largest recreation areas.
Certain landmarks throughout Southern California provide in-depth looks into the region's history and culture. Griffith Observatory (griffithobs.org) in Los Angeles features astronomy-related exhibits and provides scenic views of the City of Angels. Students may also catch a glimpse of Southern California's Victorian era at the Kimberly Crest House (kimberlycrest.org); this house also has gardens and walking paths. Rancho La Patera in Goleta provides insight into the Southern California's agricultural life during the 19th century.
Natural history museums allow students to gain insight on local and global histories. Many of Southern California's history institutes have natural history exhibits; these museums feature dinosaur fossils and dioramas of the world's plant and animal evolution. Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History features Nature Adventures, a program with history-based classes and workshops for children ages 2 to 12. The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles (nhm.org) and San Diego Museum of Natural History (sbnature.org) are other Southern California natural history museums.