Hands-on Programs
Hiller Field Trips
Enhance the Hiller Aviation Museum experience for your students by scheduling a hands-on program as part of your visit. A variety of programs are available for different grade levels and include model aircraft, aviation weather, aerodynamics labs, and flight simulation in the Flight Sim Zone. Programs length vary between 30 minutes and 90 minutes depending on selected program.
Hands-on Programs are available for booking September through May.
For distance-learning virtual programs, visit the Distance Learning Page.
This is an exciting, excellent program that gives students a vision for what they could possibly do in their futures, plus gives them fresh appreciation for the science of flight.
All programs are aligned with California State Content Standards in science or math.
How to Schedule Your School Program
1. Determine at least two possible dates for your field trip program.
2. Request your field trip online using the In-Person Field Trip Request form.
- For virtual field trips, please use the Virtual Field Trip Request Form.
3. A credit card on file is required to confirm all reservations, but payment is not due until the day of the program.
Program Topics – 2024-2025 School Year
Available September through May Only
Aircraft Design and Engineering
Amazing Aircraft 1
Grades K-5, 45-Minute Duration
$6/child (in addition to admission fee)
Our most popular hands-on program! Learn the different kinds of aircraft and identify the parts of an airplane before building and flying a simple balsa glider. It’s an adventure in aviation!
Amazing Aircraft 2
Grades 3-8, 45-Minute Duration
$9/child (in addition to admission fee)
Take flight with a rubber-powered airplane! Recommended for older students, Amazing Aircraft 2 features construction and flight of a larger, propeller powered balsa airplane. Launch into the amazing world of aircraft!
Aero Design Challenge
Grades 4-8, 2.5 hour Duration
NO CHARGE/child (includes student program and admission fees. Adult Admission fees still apply.)
Available November through April and Tuesday through Friday only
The Hiller Aviation Museum’s annual celebration of engineering, the Aero Design Challenge provides middle school students with an immersive, hands-on experience in flight. Students are introduced to the Engineering Design Process, experience different Discovery Station rotations, then work in small groups to design, build, test and improve their aircraft!
Aero Design Challenge is available at no charge for students. Adult admissions still apply. Availability is limited to schools visiting with 30 or more students, and additional date restrictions may apply.
Physical Science
Flight & Motion
Grades 2-8, 45-Minute Duration
$6/child (in addition to admission fee)
How do the forces of flight affect a glider? Children conduct an inquiry-based investigation into lift, weight, thrust and drag and conduct an experiment to discover how changes to an aircraft wing affect performance. All participants keep a small balsa glider.
Flight Simulator Lab
Grades 3-12, 45-Minute Duration
$9/child (in addition to admission fee)
Enter the Museum’s Flight Sim Zone, where every student has the opportunity to control a simulated airplane through several realistic, age-appropriate missions. Using state-of-the-art flight simulation equipment and software, students work in pairs to master aircraft control while flying through a beautiful reproduction of the Bay Area and other locations worldwide.
Flight Planning Lab
Grades 5-12, 90-Minute Duration
$12/child (in addition to admission fee)
Science, math and aviation come together in a three-part experience! Students inspect a small aircraft, use aviation charts to plan a flight between airports, and fly a portion of the planned flight in the Flight Simulators. Careful consideration of terrain contours and calculations of fuel consumption and velocity are essential to ensure a safe mission.
Weather & Earth Science
Eye on the Sky
Grades K-1, 45-minute duration
$6/child (in addition to admission fee)
Explore the world of weather! Discover the water cycle’s role in cloud formation and identify the cloud types that impact aviation. Construct a model of the water cycle and a cloud identification card.
Star Watchers
Grades K-8, 30-Minute Duration
$6/child + one-time $35 setup fee (in addition to admission fee)
Take an adventure into the night-time sky! Students enter a giant inflatable Starlab dome to explore by day the stars, planets and constellations that will be visible in the sky that night and discover the means by which early navigators found directions and plotted their courses by the stars.
Storm Chasers
Grades 3-8, 45-Minute Duration
$9/child (in addition to admission fee)
Explore how weather affects flight in a challenging foul-weather flight simulation. Discover thunderstorms and other weather hazards and how they affect aircraft, and then enter the Flight Sim Zone to embark on a realistic mission into inclement conditions. It’s a thrilling adventure to the edge of aviation!
Preschool & Early Elementary
Flight Explorers
Ages 3-5, Grades Preschool to 1st, 30-Minute Duration
$9/child (in addition to admission fee)
A special hands-on exploration of flight for our youngest aviators! Get up close to a real airplane and reach out to touch it while learning the names of the basic parts. Build and launch a fun-flying, super-durable glider and more in an awesome age-appropriate adventure.
Combo Lesson
Introduction to Aviation: Amazing Aircraft 1 and Flight Simulator Lab
Grades 3-6, 90-minute duration
$12/child (in addition to admission fee)
Fee Waivers for Eligible Schools: Public K-12 schools with an Identified Student Percentage of at least 30% of students qualified to receive free or reduced price meals under federal guidelines may complete an online request for fee waivers and/or transportation reimbursement. See Fee Waiver page for more details.
Fee Waivers for All: Any public or private K-12 school group visiting on an advanced reservation with 12 or more students may visit the Hiller Aviation Museum at no admission charge at select times during the year under one of the following programs:
- Mondays at the Museum - complimentary student admission to K-12 school groups visiting on an advanced reservation during non-holiday Mondays, September through May. Fees for optional hands-on programs, guided tours, and adult admissions apply.
- Aero Design Challenge - an intensive hands-on engineering experience provided at no student charge. Open to groups of 30+ students, Grades 4-8, November through April, Tuesday through Friday. Adult admissions fees apply.
Reservations must be booked in advance of consideration of any and all school program assistance requests. Waivers automatically apply to all qualified schools.
Contact the Education office at education@hiller.org or (650) 654-0200 x 219 for more information.
