Chicago Education Programs: Learning from Nature, Even in the City
When you come to the city for a Chicago education program, your first thought may not be that you will be able to experience nature in the country’s third largest urban center. But even in the “city of big shoulders,” known for its manufacturing and industry, you can explore and learn about nature and the outdoors.
Because of Mayor Richard Daley’s persistent steps to make the city more green, the learning institutions within the city and the park districts throughout the state, Chicago education programs can teach you as much about nature as they do about urban living.
Chicago Education Programs: Experiencing Nature Within the City Limits
Lake Michigan: One of the best amenities of Chicago is its location on the “third coast,” meaning Lake Michigan. While you are with the Chicago Center, you can take advantage of the Lake and all of its natural glory by participating in a variety of beach and water sports.
Promontory Point in Hyde Park, Chicago
If you take part in an education program during the summer, you will get to take part in the season that Chicago loves best. The beaches and lake scene will be in full swing.
Whether you’re running along the lakefront paths, spending an afternoon on the beach, planning a picnic with your roommates or just stopping by for a swim, you can be active in the outdoors while living in the city. You can get sporty on the beachfront in a beach volleyball league. You can rent kayaks or sailboats to head out on the water. You could even train for a triathalon.
It might not be a traditional learning experience, but exploring all facets of the city, including the recreational ones, is highly encouraged by the Chicago Center to enhance your education while in the city. And the Chicago Center apartments where you’ll be living are within walking distance to the lake. The Hyde Park neighborhood borders the lake on the south shore, and students will find themselves visiting Promontory Point as often as possible, a Lakefront park with the best southern views of Chicago.
Museums, Zoos and Other Chicago Institutions
The various museums and learning institutions of Chicago are made especially to expand on traditional education and introduce you to nature in the middle of an urban setting. You can get a close look at rare animals and plants, learn from expert scientists, or see some of the most distinctive urban spaces of Chicago and its many neighborhoods by visiting the institutions that Chicago is known for.
Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum: On the north side of Chicago, you can learn more about the nature of the city in the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum. It has live animal exhibits, teaches about what the ecosystems of the Chicago area were like before the city appeared, and is home to a large butterfly habitat where the colorful bugs flutter all year round. The museum also hosts a year-round farmers’ market, promoting and educating Chicagoans on local agriculture.
Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum in Lincoln Park, Chicago
Lincoln Park Zoo and Brookfield Zoo: The zoos of Chicago are a great place to learn about both local ecology and exotic animals. The Brookfield Zoo has been open since 1934 and puts a focus on nature conservation. The Lincoln Park Zoo is free and includes the Farm-In-The-Zoo exhibit where you can feed and interact with the animals. If you thought city living was going to prevent you from getting up close and personal with animals of all kinds, you were wrong!
Lincoln Park Conservatory and Garfield Park Conservatory: Plant enthusiasts and nature lovers alike can enjoy learning from a trip to these conservatories in Chicago. On a cold winter day, they are still tropical inside and full of lush greenery. Take your camera and practice your photography skills on the rare orchids and ancient ferns. The conservatories are open every day of the year and are free!
Lincoln Park Conservatory in Chicago
Chicago Botanic Garden: To spend a little time outdoors, head north with your group of fellow students to check out the Chicago Botanic Garden. The 385-acre garden features 24 displays and three native plant habitats, uniquely situated on nine islands surrounded by lakes. A peaceful escape from the city, you can enjoy a stroll while taking in the garden scenery and learning about local and exotic plants, or take a class on gardening and start your own green space.
Shedd Aquarium: Chicago has flora and fauna covered, but what about the things that swim under the sea? Well, Shedd Aquarium is second only in size to the Georgia Aquarium, holds 5 million gallons water and is home to 1,500 species including fish, marine mammals, birds, snakes, amphibians, and insects. You’ll find five permanent exhibits called Amazon Rising, Caribbean Reef, Waters of the World, the Oceanarium, and Wild Reef. Plus, Shedd is home to the oldest aquarium fish in the world, a 86-year-old lungfish named Granddad.
Downtown Area Green Spaces
Although the architecture of Chicago is beautiful and often snow covered, the green spaces of Chicago rival its buildings in beauty during warm weather. Downtown, you can find many large parks, perfect for picnicking, enjoying the outdoors or viewing the city, its art and its architecture.
Adjacent to the Art Institute and its new Modern Wing, you’ll find Millennium Park, home of huge art installations like Cloud Gate (the Bean) but also, in fact, a huge green space for the city’s residents. Its large lawns and pavilions host many art and music events all year long, as well as an ice-skating rink in the winter.
The Gardens at the Art Institute, Chicago
The Art Institute also has two large gardens of its own– the South Garden, designed by the master landscape architect Dan Kiley and the North Garden, designed as a sculpture court by landscape architect Laurie Olin. The mixed experience of art and nature that occurs in these urban green spaces in unlike any you’ll find throughout the country.
Buckingham Fountain and Grant Park, Chicago
Chicago education programs, like the ones Chicago Center offers, place you right where you can have these unique learning experiences that combine urban living, nature, science and Chicago.