Holiday in the museum: An alternative program for at-risk high school students

Nineteen inner-city, at-risk high school students attended a 4-day pilot program, Holiday in the Museum, for science credit during their winter holiday break. This pilot program was a collaborative effort involving a local education agency, a higher education institution, and a museum of natural history. The main purpose was developing and implementing science activities that were aligned with the new state standards using the resources of an informal educational setting (i.e., the museum). The new standards are intended to help bring all students (e.g., students with disabilities, students whose first language is not English) to higher levels of performance. Several suggestions for developing similar programs are provided.