Thanksgiving Point doesn’t list a discount for individual teachers. We read its field trips page, school programs page, membership page and Ashton Gardens page and found no teacher rate on any of them. What the venue does list is help for schools: field trip scholarships for Utah public and charter schools, free outreach activities for third-grade and eighth-grade classrooms, and check-out kits for public school teachers.
If you’re a Utah teacher trying to get a grade level to the Mountain America Museum of Ancient Life or the Butterfly Biosphere on a budget that doesn’t stretch, the scholarship is the first thing to check, because it covers admission for students and for the adults within the ratio. If you’re coming on a weekend with your own kids, there’s no teacher rate to ask for at the door, and the part of this page about visiting on your own is for you.
How To Get The Thanksgiving Point Teacher Discount
There’s no individual teacher discount to claim, so the way to save is to book a school field trip and apply for a scholarship with it. The field trips page says Thanksgiving Point offers a wide range of field trip options for all students, designed with the Utah State Core Curriculum in mind and focused on inquiry-based science exploration. A Scholarship Request Form has to be submitted with a Field Trip Request Form, and the page says funding can’t be reserved without a scheduled field trip.
The page says Thanksgiving Point can extend scholarships to public schools and public charter schools to visit one venue, once per school year, per grade, while funding is available. The Title 1 Scholarship is for Title 1 public and charter schools in Utah, grades K-8. The iSEE Scholarship is for all public and charter schools in Utah, grades K-8. The Utah County Scholarship is for all Utah County public and charter schools, also grades K-8, and only for trips to the Museum of Natural Curiosity or the Butterfly Biosphere. The page marks each one as limited funding, first-come, first-serve.
The scholarship covers admission costs for students and for adults within the ratio requirement. It doesn’t reach private or non-Utah schools, buses, or add-ons such as fish feed, animal feed and pony rides. The page also lists the months funding is available at each venue, so read that list before you pick a date.
Chaperones, Payment And Lunch
Plan around the ratio first. The page lists 1:5 for PreK through middle school and 1:10 for high school. For students with special needs it allows up to a 1:1 ratio of free adults with prior notice, either on the request form or by calling 801-768-4971. A group that arrives without the required ratio, the page warns, will jeopardize its admission to the venue.
Extra chaperones beyond the ratio on Explorer and Explorer Plus field trips are $6 per person, and the school pays for them in a single transaction. The school can cover a maximum of 10 extra adults. Anyone beyond that checks in at full price as a regular guest and isn’t part of the field trip, and younger children and siblings aren’t allowed on those two trip types. There’s also a combined program for preschool and high school groups at $7 per preschool student, high school student and adult, and the page says to select the Discovery field trip rate and identify as preschool/high school.
On payment, a 50% deposit is due by a date the Education Department sets, and the remaining payment is due the day of the field trip. Checks aren’t accepted for final payment at the venue, and every refund carries a $30 nonrefundable processing fee.
Lunch takes some planning. Schools aren’t allowed to eat lunches within any of the venues, and the cafes, creamery and restaurants won’t accommodate field trip groups. The page calls public parks near Thanksgiving Point a good alternative and lists several, including Olympic Park and Bluffdale Lions Park. Curiosity Farms is the exception: it has a covered outdoor lunch pavilion for field trips scheduled at select times.
Picking A Venue By Grade
Grade level narrows the choice quickly. The page describes the Butterfly Biosphere as perfect for kindergarten through third grade, and the Museum of Natural Curiosity is only available for Grade 3 and below. Curiosity Farms, the Mountain America Museum of Ancient Life and Ashton Gardens are each described as perfect for all grade levels.
A few details help with the choice. Ashton Gardens is described as 50 acres of outdoor themed gardens, walking trails and natural habitats, and the Butterfly Biosphere’s conservatory houses over a thousand free-flying butterflies. Curiosity Farms lists a cow milking program every day. At the Museum of Ancient Life, Jurassic Jungle admission isn’t included in field trip experiences, so don’t promise that part to your class. The page also warns that some areas at the Butterfly Biosphere and the Museum of Natural Curiosity may be unavailable due to renovations during windows it lists, with plenty still to explore.
Free Programs And Resources For Teachers
The school programs page says Thanksgiving Point offers free STEM-based, hands-on learning activities to third-grade and eighth-grade classrooms across Utah, and it lists USU Extension 4-H kits that are available for check-out to public school teachers, after school educators, 4-H volunteers and more. It also invites you to sign up for the Teacher Resources email newsletter, which covers professional development programs for educators and teachers.
Visiting On Your Own
For a visit with your own family, the nearest thing to a teacher benefit is a membership. The membership page lists admission to all seven Thanksgiving Point venues, a 50% discount on admission for accompanying guests (members must be present to receive benefits), and a 10% discount on food, retail and Signature Experiences. That guest discount is the part that helps a teacher who brings extra family along.
The Ashton Gardens page adds one more: with an Electronic Benefits Transfer card (SNAP or WIC) and photo ID, up to six people within the immediate household receive discounted admission.
What We Couldn’t Confirm
A page on Thanksgiving Point’s site thanks visitors for requesting a “Teacher Sneak Peek,” but it’s a bare thank-you page, and nothing we found explains what a Teacher Sneak Peek includes, so we haven’t described it. The field trips page text doesn’t give a per-student price for Explorer and Explorer Plus trips, only the $7 combined rate and the $6 extra chaperone fee, so ask when you submit the request form or call 801.768.2300, the number on the school programs page. We also left out membership prices and the month-by-month scholarship windows, which are on the pages linked above.
Q&A
Does Thanksgiving Point give teachers a discount?
We couldn’t find one. The school help we did find is on the field trips and school programs pages, including the scholarship for Utah public and charter schools.
Who can get a field trip scholarship?
Public schools and public charter schools in Utah, grades K-8, under the Title 1, iSEE or Utah County category. Private and non-Utah schools aren’t eligible, and funding is limited and first-come, first-serve.
What does the scholarship pay for?
Admission for students and for adults within the ratio requirement. It doesn’t pay for buses or add-ons such as fish feed, animal feed and pony rides.
How many chaperones do we need?
One adult for every five students from PreK through middle school, and one for every ten in high school. Extra adults beyond the ratio are $6 each, up to 10.
Can my class eat lunch inside a venue?
No. The page says schools aren’t allowed to eat lunches within any of the venues, and suggests nearby public parks. Curiosity Farms has a covered pavilion for trips scheduled at select times.
How much do we pay up front?
A 50% deposit, due by a date the Education Department sets. The remaining payment is due the day of the field trip.
Can I borrow classroom kits?
The school programs page says USU Extension 4-H kits are available for check-out to public school teachers, after school educators, 4-H volunteers and more.
More Information:
The details above come from Thanksgiving Point’s own field trips, school programs, membership and Ashton Gardens pages as they loaded when we checked, and policies change without notice. See more entertainment discounts for teachers.