Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education552

The Schuylkill Center for Environmental Education offers a variety of outdoor and indoor natural history and environmental science programs for all ages.

The center owns 360 acres of land (the largest privately owned open-space area within the city limits of Philadelphia), featuring a variety of habitats, including fields, forests, teaching ponds, and wetlands.

The indoor Education Building houses laboratories, classrooms, a children's interactive Discovery Center, Green Woods Charter School (Kindergarten through grade eight), laboratories and classrooms, a book store, and staff offices.

The center is home to the Wildlife Rehabilitation Clinic, which is in operation to care for injured, sick, and orphaned wildlife native to southeastern Pennsylvania and release them back into their natural habitat. The clinic's staff offers educational programs for all ages.

Hiking enthusiasts (even neophytes - the trails are mostly friendly to little legs) will find four miles of hiking trails of varying difficulty. Upper Fields Trail (1/4 mile, 10 minutes) passes through fields and woods before it joins the Ravine Loop, where you'll happen on a spectacular view. Down at the bottom of the hill, you can see Polliwog Pond, a fun detour to observe aquatic organisms in action! Widener Trail (1/4 mile, 15 minutes), is a flat, gentle trail and leads through fields and forest to the Widener Bird Blind. Feeders are filled year-round so you can stop and observe resident and migratory birds. Midway along the trail is Shadow Pond with a wooden deck and seats. This trail is plowed in the winter.

Birthdays at the Schuylkill Center include two-hour science, nature, and wildlife themed activities for children ages four and older. During the first hour, an environmental educator leads kids on a nature discovery walk. The second hour is spent in the birthday room enjoying activities provided by the parent, such as snack, birthday cake, party games, etc. The birthday child receives a Schuylkill Center t-shirt, and all guests are given a grab bag filled with toys from the center's bookstore. Call for reservations and more information.

The Schuylkill Center also hosts Nature Ramblers Summer Camps, which are open to kids ages four to 15 years old.

Family Memberships at the Schuylkill Center are $60 and include invitations to members-only events, program discounts, and more.