Residential Programs enable students to have a meaningful, cumulative learning experience. The fact that they stay on-site for several days allows them to draw connections between ecosystems, begin to see patterns that are repeated over and over in nature, and see myriad examples of how processes such as cycles, change, succession, and disturbance work in different areas.

Three Lessons a Day plus Recreation
Each day there is a morning and afternoon lesson, both two hours in length, and an evening lesson that is an hour and a half long. After schools arrive by bus on Monday morning, the first afternoon lesson will be the ABCs of Ecology, a lesson where the themes and concepts for the week are first introduced. Lessons throughout the week include Astronomy, Climate & Geology, Beach & Dunes, Marine Lab, Coastal Watersheds, Forest, Nature at Night, Tide Pools, and Student Choice classes. The final lesson, Connections, is an overview on human impact and interrelationships in the environment. Between lessons students have the chance to relax in the dormitories, play on the beach and have recreation time on grassy playing fields or basketball and volleyball courts. Three meals a day are served family style in the Dining Hall. Meal time is also an opportunity for learning through our Food For Thought Program.

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Sample Lesson Schedule for a Typical 5-Day Week:

Shorter stay residential programs are offered and include a selection of the above lessons. Want to see more about our lessons? Check out our lessons descriptions here.

Typical Daily Schedule
(the Group in charge of supervision indicated in parentheses)

• 7:00 am Students wake up (Teachers)
• 8:00-9:00 Breakfast (All)
• 9:00-9:30 Recreation Time (Teachers)
• 9:30-11:30 Morning Lesson (FBES)
• 11:30-12:30 Free Time (Teachers)
• 12:30-1:30 pm Lunch (All)
  
• 1:30-2:00 Rec.Time (Teachers)
  
• 2:00-4:00 Afternoon Lesson (FBES)
  
• 4:00-5:30 Free Time (Teachers)
  
• 5:30-6:30 Dinner (All)
  
• 6:30-7:00 Recreation Time (Teachers)
  
• 7:00-8:30 Evening Lesson (FBES)
  
• 8:30-9:00 Back to Dorms: Lights out at 9:00. Story, songs, etc.(FBES)
  
• 9:00 pm Teachers in charge of supervision for the night.
  

Residential Program Dates
Spring 2008: March 23rd - June 13, 2008
Fall 2008: September 2 - November 14, 2008
Spring 2009: March 16 - June 12, 2009

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Residential Program Costs

* Tuition for residential programs includes all classes, room and board (meals & snacks) plus busses to Biddeford Tide pools.
* Discounts Rates apply when schools pay at least 50% of their total tuition by July 15th (for Fall Term schools) or by December 1st (for Spring Term schools).
* Deposit Required: A non-refundable deposit of $250 per school, per week is required to secure a place on the schedule.
* Please note: An additional $750 is due at the Discount Rate Deadline Dates of July 15th (for Fall Term schools) & December 1st (for Spring Term schools) for those schools not participating in the discount rate plan.

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Funding a FBES Trip
FBES recognizes that funding ths type of educational field trip can be a challenge. Below are some ideas and tried and true methods from some of our current client schools to help you meet you rfinancial challenge.

School System: Some school systems will pay all or most of the students' tuition. Many school systems look at their trip to FBES as an integral part of their science curriculum, and thus include the cost of the trip in their budget. Science education or field trip funds can also be used for funding the trip, and schools often provide the money to bus students to and from Ferry Beach.

Fundraising: Raffles, T-shirt sales, bake sales, car washes, bottle drives, auctions, yard sales, candy sales, discount booklet sales, and benefit dinners can raise a large portion of the money required-- in fact, some schools raise all their funds this way! PTA and PTO groups can be a huge help in this area. The book The Grassroots Fundraising Book: How to Raise Money in Your Community by Joan Flanagan, Contemporary Books, 1995 has great information on the process of raising funds and also ideas on Fundraising Events and Strategies.

Grants & Donations: Local non-profit organizations like United Way, or local businesses such as banks, large stores, and industries may be open to providing scholarships to low income students, bussing money, or even completely funding a visit to FBES. One school received $10,000 from their local bank to fund their trip! Several other teachers have received Eisenhower grants that enable their class to come to FBES at little or no cost to the students.

Parent Contributions: Parents are sometimes asked to pay some or all of the tuition cost. Parents who are financially able are usually supportive of involving their children in hands-on learning experiences at FBES.

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