Field Trips
R3Source offers free field trips to qualifying schools, including limited transportation reimbursement. To qualify, schools must be registered with the District's Let's Stop Waste at School (LSW) program and be willing to submit student reflections (PDF) after the trip.
PLEASE NOTE: At least 1 adult chaperone is required for every 10 students on our field trips. (The America Recycles Day field trip requires 1 chaperone for every 7 students.)
Register for a Field Trip
To register for a field trip, complete the Field Trip Registration Form and email to Elise Roalef. To register for the Nature of Recycling, visit Greenacres.org.
Bus Reimbursement
Your school may qualify for bus transportation reimbursement to the landfill, recycling center, or other locations if it is a member of the Hamilton County R3Source Let's Stop Waste program. The Bus Reimbursement Request is page two of the Field Trip Registration Form.
- Cincinnati Zoo: America Recycles Day +
- Civic Garden Center: Compost Kids +
- Gorman Heritage Farm: Reducing Food Waste +
- Greenacres: The Nature of Recycling +
- Rumpke's Material Recovery Facility +
- Rumpke's Landfill and Burnet Woods +
- LaSoupe: Food Rescue and Transformation +
Cincinnati Zoo: America Recycles Day (One-Day Event)
- Grades: 3-5
- Location: Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden
- 2023 Date: This field trip occurs on one day in mid-November. Check back for the specific date at the end of August!
- Itinerary: Students will use a passport to explore the grounds of the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden to learn how recycling helps not only people but creatures all over the world.
- Ohio Learning Standards (PDF)
Civic Garden Center: Compost Kids
- Grades: K-6
- Location: Civic Garden Center of Greater Cincinnati
- Spring 2023 Dates: May 23
- Times/Length: This field trip can start between 9:00am-10:00am. It lasts for 2.5 hours . You may also add an extra 30 minutes for lunch at the end.
- Maximum students: 45; at least 4 chaperones are required to accompany each small group of students at the 4 stations.
- Itinerary: Students learn about composting, environmentally-friendly gardening and pollinating insects while participating in a number of hands-on activities. School groups are welcome to pack a waste-free lunch and eat outdoors on the patio after the program.
- Ohio Learning Standards (PDF)
Gorman Heritage Farm: Reducing Food Waste
- Grades: 3-8
- Location: Gorman Heritage Farm
- Spring 2023 Dates: May 5 and 17
- Times: 2-hour sessions OR an extended 4-hour session
- Maximum Students: 40
- Itinerary: From compost exploration to farm animals, students will learn why and how to reduce food waste through hands-on activities at various stations around the farm. Groups may pack a waste-free lunch and eat on-site after the program.
Greenacres: The Nature of Recycling
- Grades: K-12
- Location: Greenacres Foundation
- Times: 9 to 11:30 am
- Maximum students: 30; one chaperone per 10 students is required.
- Itinerary: Learn about waste reduction through interactive outdoor activities. Programs are tailored for each group. Greenacres provides bus reimbursement for qualifying schools. If your school does not qualify for Greenacres' bus reimbursement, you may apply for the District's bus reimbursement (PDF) after registering for Greenacres' program.
- Register: Online at Greenacres.org
Rumpke's Material Recovery Facility
- Grades: 9-12
- Location: Rumpke's Material Recovery Facility (MRF)
- Spring 2023 Dates: Feb. 15; March 1, 8, 15, 22, 29. These trips occur only on Wednesdays.
- Start Time: 10am
- Maximum Students: 40
- Itinerary: Tour the MRF and learn how recycled items (and non-recyclable contaminants) are sorted by humans, robots, and other technology before getting separated into bales!
- Ohio Learning Standards (PDF)
Rumpke's Landfill and Burnet Woods
- Grades: 1-6
- Locations: Burnet Woods and Rumpke Landfill
- 2022 Dates: Dec. 1
- Times: 9:30 am to 1:30 pm
- Maximum Students: 50
- Itinerary: Students will participate in an interactive program that includes a hike to observe decomposition, followed by games and activities about recycling, composting, and natural cycles at Burnet Woods' Trailside Nature Center. Then, students will go to Rumpke to see an active, working landfill and learn the ways our environment is protected from this mountain of garbage.
- Ohio Learning Standards (PDF)
LaSoupe: Food Rescue and Transformation
- Grades: 10-12
- Location: LaSoupe
- 2022 Dates: Please check with Elise for winter and spring 2023 dates.
- Times: 9:30am to 11:30am
- Maximum Students: 15
- Itinerary: High students will get to learn about LaSoupe's mission to rescue, transform, and share food with those in need in the community. As they learn about hunger and the impact of food waste in the community, students will practice knife skills and prepare food for donation. Then, they will practice improvisational cooking skills as they create dishes that will be shared together for lunch!
- Ohio Learning Standards (PDF)
