School and Group Tours

Chocolate Tours are available for groups of 10 or more when booked in advance. See special information before booking. These tours include the Special Chocolate Exhibition plus Anniston Museum's Permanent Exhibit Halls.

Types of Tours Available
   •   General Tours (10 or more, unguided/teacher led)
   •   Unguided Tour with add-on Special
         "Nature Space Program" (max 60/70, see terms below)
    •   Small group, guided (min 10, max 30)

Pre-Visit Guidelines/Rules For Group Touring

• Teachers/Group Leaders read on-line or download as word doc

• Parents/Adult Chaperones read on-line or download as word doc

When scheduling a tour, please note: the Museum will be closed Sunday, January 23–Friday, January 28, 2011 to install the blockbuster Chocolate exhibit, and closed again Monday, May 23– Friday, May 27 for the removal of the exhibit.

Important Information for group tours: Pre-book your tour at least two weeks in advance for a self-guided and three weeks in advance for a guided tour. You must book your tour in advance to receive the discounted group rate.

Payment will be made upon arrival and must be paid in one payment. Cash, check (with ID), VISA and MasterCard are accepted. Please note: Any adults and children accompanying the group, but who pay individually at the front desk, (anyone whose payment is not included already in the group leader's single payment, made at time of check-in) will be asked to pay regular full price admission. There are no exceptions.

To schedule your tour, e-mail gmorey@annistonmuseum.org or call the Tour Coordinator at 256-237-6766 ext 116 Tuesday – Friday 8:30-1:00pm.

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Chocolate General Group tours for 10 or more visitors: $5/student and chaperone; teachers, bus drivers/free

The Chocolate exhibit focuses on the cultural and natural history of chocolate and addresses environmental and economic issues, as well. It is a chronological exhibit and must be viewed in that manner. School groups will be asked to be divided into groups of no more than 30 visitors (students/chaperones/teachers) per group. Each group will have a specific starting time allowing a certain amount of time between groups to ease traffic flow. Groups waiting for their scheduled time may watch a short film about chocolate and the rainforest.

Throughout the exhibit you will find staff and/or educational volunteers available to answer questions and share hands-on opportunities with students.

It is our intent to move groups in as quickly as possible still allowing for the best experience possible for the entire group. We anticipate no more than a 20 minute wait for all groups to be able to begin the exhibit (groups of 100+). When scheduling groups, the educational staff will discuss this with you.

Touring time may take as long as 2 hours for groups of 100+. This does not include restroom time. If you are able to do so, please make a restroom stop prior to arriving at the Museum. This will make the unloading and touring process move more quickly.

Visitors will exit through the Conservatory (orchid room) doors and leave the Museum through the Courtyard. Because of the “path” of the exhibit, there will be no exits through the main front entrances. Once you have exited through the Conservatory doors, there will be no re-entries to the Museum. In the past, we have allowed re-entry on same day visits, however, due to the layout of this exhibit, re-entry will not be possible. If you would like to shop in the Store please plan to do this prior to exiting.

If you plan to picnic prior to returning to your school, you may have access to Berman Museum’s restrooms before you load buses.

We request that you limit chaperones to 1 adult per every 10 students.

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Chocolate Special Program Opportunity: $6/person (no more than 60 students, plus teachers and up to 6 chaperones for a total of no more than 70 visitors max)

Small group programs in Nature Space- hands-on discovery room

Available for up to 60 students, plus teachers and chaperones (1chaperone/10 students for a max of 6 chaperones) up to a group max of 70 visitors, total. An alternate option would allow chaperones to wait in a separate area (outside Nature Space) while the students attend the program. Group should be divided into 2 groups, each receiving a 30 minute program in Nature Space

Program topic: Chocolate Ecology 101 Ages K-5th grade

         Natural History of Chocolate

         Real cacao beans and pods

         See a live rainforest animal and learn more about chocolate and the rainforest

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Chocolate Small Group Guided Tour: $7/person (min 10, max 30)

Groups of 10-30 visitors can request a guided tour through the Chocolate exhibit and Museum. This will be a 2 hour tour. Call for details.

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Chocolate: Unwrap a great field trip

Teachers/Group Leaders, before you visit Anniston Museum, please read this section in its entirety and familiarize yourself with our group touring policies:

Before your visit to Anniston Museum of Natural History to see the exciting, educational blockbuster exhibit Chocolate: The Exhibition, here are a few reminders to make your visit run smoothly.

Arrival:
Please pay close attention to your arrival time. If you are going to be more than 15 minutes late, please call the Museum. If you are more than 30 minutes early or late there will be the possibility of your group having to wait to enter the Museum.

Buses please pull up to the front entrance of the Museum upon arrival.
Everyone should remain on the buses until a staff member greets your bus.
Only one teacher will be able to check in and pay for the group at the Admissions Desk, which is located right inside the foyer. Please have the total number of teachers/bus drivers, total number of adult chaperones and the total number of children in your group ready for the receptionist to key in at this time, so that you may be correctly billed for your visit.
If you have adults that have not pre-paid with the group, they will be required to enter the front door and go through the queue line. They will be required to pay the full price of $8.00 if they are not included in the group payment. It is highly recommended that there be no more than one (1) chaperone per ten (10) students due to space limitations of this exhibit.
Groups will receive an introduction on each bus by a Museum Staff member unless otherwise directed. From time to time we may use our Outdoor Pavilion (weather permitting). Please instruct students/adults to pay close attention to the Staff member’s instructions.
Groups that need to make a restroom visit will do so as they exit the bus with the Staff person. Each group will make the visit and then proceed into the exhibit area. Unfortunately, due to the chronological nature of this exhibit, everyone cannot unload and visit restrooms at one time.
Please inform the Bus Drivers that they can park in the lot across from the Museum, in the Museum parking lot next door, or along the curb to the left going out of the parking lot. To do this they may circle in the Berman Museum lot and come out to park on the curb.
This exhibit is different from any other exhibit we have offered. It is a wonderful but very large exhibit which sets up certain situations that we have no control over. Crowd movement and restrooms are our main issues. We ask you to be as patient as possible and we will try to make every effort to ensure a great trip for you and your students.

Please inform your chaperones of all of this information prior to arrival at the Museum. So many times parents/grandparents show up uninformed and get upset with the Museum staff. We suggest that you refer all of your traveling adults to our website for information on this exhibit, www.annistonmuseum.org. Click on Chocolate and go to the exhibit overview and visit guide.

Preparing to Tour:

There will be an introduction to the Museum and Exhibition by Museum Staff. This will be done bus by bus unless otherwise instructed. Please inform everyone traveling with the group of this plan.

If your students are going to tour with their parents or in small groups they will still need to begin the visit bus by bus. Please have the students organized with the adults in this manner.
A staff member will assist your group off the bus, to restrooms and to the exhibit. Once you enter you are on your own but you will find guides and staff along the way for questions and directions.
Groups should be divided as follows: (please organize this prior to arrival)

                      1 group                 10-30 students
                          2 groups                31-60
                         3 groups                61-90
                           4 groups                91-120

                   Over 120 students please ask for assistance
                         of the Tour Coordinator prior to arrival.

Please remind students that no gum, candy or liquids are allowed in the Museum.

Once your groups are in the Museum, except in an emergency, there is no re-entry. Please plan your day accordingly. If you plan to shop please do so before you exit the Museum. You may make a second trip to the restrooms before exiting if needed. If you plan to picnic after your tour, you may visit the Berman Museum restroom before you reload the bus.

Other important items:

Picnic– Picnic tables are located throughout the Museum grounds and are available on a first-come, first-served basis. We do not have any indoor eating facilities, however, there is the opportunity to rent Berman Museum Auditorium for $25 if you desire. They can seat 80 visitors at one time. Book this by emailing gmorey@annistonmuseum.org. Covered pavilions in Lagarde Park can be reserved by calling 256.236.8221.

Museum Gift Shop– We encourage you to work time into your schedule to visit the Museum Gift Shop for all the chocolate goodies. The Gift Shop is small and will only be able to handle one group at a time. Please plan your tour time accordingly. We will assist you with your groups and their visit if needed. Gift bags can be pre-purchased by e-mailing Secretary@annistonmuseum.org.

Restrooms– Students will have the opportunity to visit restrooms prior to the Museum introduction if needed. Our facilities are small and it could take up to 30 minutes to do this for a group of 75 or more. We ask that teachers and chaperones help move the groups in and out of the restrooms as quickly as possible. If you are a local group, we strongly urge students to visit restroom prior to leaving school. If you have students that need to re-visit the restrooms while touring please take them in small groups.

Re-entry– Except in an emergency there is no re-entry during this special exhibit.

Group behavior– Please discuss Museum behavior with students prior to arrival. The following are a few rules we require all groups to follow to ensure a safe and fun educational visit for everyone.

• Students under the age of 18 must be with an adult at all times-
no exceptions

• Please no food, candy or liquids in the exhibit area or special
exhibit area. This includes baby bottles and/or cups.

• Please no running, pushing or general disruptive
behavior in the Museum.

• Please use inside voices to respect other visitors.

We look forward to having you at the Museum and would like for you to visit our website and complete a teacher survey after your visit. We love feedback and use it to hopefully make each field trip more enjoyable for everyone. Thank You for visiting.

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Chocolate: Unwrap a great field trip

Chaperone/Parent Guide

We are glad that your child(ren) will be visiting the Museum to see the blockbuster exhibition, Chocolate with their school group. It is important that you have as much information as possible about the exhibit, rules, fees and schedules so you can be prepared to assist the teachers and the students.

Prior to the arrival:

If you will be chaperoning a field trip, you will need to make your admission payment to the teacher/school. We require groups to pay as one payment upon arrival. If your child’s teacher cannot collect chaperone money, you must pay full admission upon arrival which is $8/adults; $6/child (if you have other children traveling with you).

Our parking area is limited. If possible, please try to carpool, if you are not riding the bus with the students. If you are driving, we have parking in front of the building, across the street from the Museum, and next door at the Berman Museum.

We require one (1) chaperone per ten (10) students and we ask that teachers limit it to that number. So often we have as many chaperones traveling as students. If this occurs, it is important that you understand that we can only accommodate a certain number of visitors in the Chocolate exhibit at one time. The more adults, the longer it will take to get the students into the Museum for their tour. We ask for patience with this matter.

Unfortunately, our restrooms are small and it can take large groups up to 30 minutes just to complete this task. If possible, please visit a restroom prior to arrival at the Museum if traveling by car.

Arrival at the Museum:

Buses will pull up to the front door and a Museum staff member will board the buses to give an introduction to the Museum and instructions for touring. Please read the group touring guidelines for teachers (above) so you will be familiar with the rules and regulations.

Only one bus at a time will unload and follow a staff member to the restrooms. At that point, if you are to chaperone that bus, you will join the group. If your bus has not unloaded you will need to wait near the bus that has your student(s).

Please assist teachers in getting the students in and out of the restrooms quickly. As the students exit the restrooms they will gather at the entrance of the Chocolate exhibit until all the group members are ready to tour.

We will unload one bus at a time. As one group starts the exhibit a second group will make the restroom visit and if there is a third, fourth or fifth bus we will have a holding area with a brief video playing to help assist this process.

Once again, we ask that you also read all of the teachers/group leaders information on touring procedures during this exhibit. We hope that your trip will be enjoyable and you will come back for another family visit soon.

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