Pictured: A guide informs children
of the education aspects of
Meramec Cavern features.
To encourage the growth of knowledge and the development of a greater appreciation of both surface and subsurface environments, Meramec Caverns offers special educational programs for children of all ages. Programs are instructed by a member of our education team in the caverns' very own underground classroom. Programs are available to school groups (public, private, and home-based), Girl Scouts, and Boy Scouts of 15 or more.
School Groups - Underground Adventures
Encourage your students to explore Missouri geology, speology, and history through our Underground Adventures program. Program includes an eighty-minute tour of the caverns led by a trained guide and a FREE mini-workshop (*list of workshops below) instructed in our underground classroom.
- Bats (K-4th)
Learn about the fascinating creatures through instruction and a habitat game.
- Rocks & Minerals (3rd-6th)
Perform identification tests on Ignenous, Sedimentary, and Metamorphic rocks while discussing the Rock Cycle.
- Fossils (3rd-6th)
Create a fossil imprint and discuss their importance in the earth's history.
- Hydrology (7th-12th)
Discover the Water Cycle and experiment how porosity and permeability effects the water table.
- Topograghy (7th-12th)
Learn how topographic maps are created and how to read them
|Cost: Groups of 15+ (per students/adults)
One complimentary pass will be given for every 20 tickets purchased.|
Availability: Monday-Friday, September - May
Scouts - Scouting Programs
Designed for both Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts of all "ranks", Meramec Caverns offers Geology Scouting Programs for groups of 15 or more. Through active participation in both workshops and cavern tour, scouts will fulfill all necessary requirements earning designated badges/pins. Programs include, the viewing of an Introduction to Speology DVD, an 80 minute guided tour of the caverns, and one or more of the following instructional workshops: Bats, Rocks & Minerals, Fossils, Topography, Hydology, Surface Tour.
* Certified Scouting Counselor on Site.
Girl Scouts Programs
Brownie: Ecoexplorer and Earth & Sky Try-Its
Jr. Girl Scouts: Rocks Rock
Senior & Cadet Girl Scouts: Digging Through the Past
Boy Scouts Programs
Webelos/Cub Scouts: Geology Activity Pin/Badge
Boy Scouts: Geology Merit Badge
|Cost: Groups of 15+ (per scout)
|$11.50||Jr. Girl Scout|
|$17.00||Senior & Cadet Girl Scout|
Availability: Saturdays Only, September - May: 9:00am - 1:30pm|
For more information or to schedule educational classes at Meramec Caverns, please contact our staff by calling 573-468-CAVE.