Homeschool Discounts in Delaware (2026) — Brandywine Estates & Free Field Trips

Delaware's homeschool deals cluster in the Brandywine Valley north of Wilmington, where the du Pont estates open their doors to students. Winterthur — a $22-admission museum, garden, and 1,000-acre estate — makes all its school field trips free for the 2026–27 year and welcomes homeschool groups, while nearby Hagley Museum lets families book any of its nine hands-on history and STEM programs on the site of the original DuPont powder works. Up the road in Newark, the Iron Hill Museum & Science Center runs monthly Homeschool Days at just $3 a student.

Science and nature carry the rest. The Delaware Nature Society leads $9-per-student naturalist field trips at its Wilmington Riverfront and Hockessin nature centers, and down in Dover the Biggs Museum of American Art admits homeschool groups free and hosts a monthly Homeschool Day, while the free Air Mobility Command Museum arranges group tours among 30-plus aircraft. The Delaware Children's Museum and the Delaware Museum of Nature & Science both run homeschool programming on request.

Your Delaware homeschool toolkit

Local resources worth bookmarking

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Delaware homeschool laws

Notice, recordkeeping & assessment rules — straight from the source.

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Check your local library

Free museum passes, classes, makerspaces & interlibrary loan — the cheapest field trips there are. Ask what they offer homeschoolers.

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Always ask about homeschool rates

Many venues give 30–50% off (sometimes free) and never advertise it. Call ahead and ask for a homeschool, education, or co-op rate before you pay.

State parks & history

Free and cheap educational programming statewide — nature centers, historic sites, junior-ranger days.

State parks → · Delaware history →

Free Delaware homeschool printables

Print, pin & take along — no email needed

Free PDF worksheets to bring on any Delaware field trip. Print as many copies as you like.

My Delaware Study

A one-page state study your child fills in — capital, state symbols, flag, and a place to visit.

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Field trip scavenger hunt

A find-it checklist that works at any museum, park, or downtown outing. Reusable every trip.

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Nature journal

A draw-and-observe page for park, trail, and garden days — senses, sketches, and a leaf rubbing.

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Landmarks I want to see in Delaware

A checklist to fill in — the parks and famous places in Delaware you want to visit, with a box to tick off each one.

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Confirmed homeschool pricing

Published price on the venue's own homeschool page — most under $20 per child.

Offers

Homeschool Days

Monthly

per kid

Iron Hill Museum & Science Center

Newark · 5–18 · Register by month online; director@ironhillsciencecenter.org or 302-368-5703

A natural-history and science center in a 1923 schoolhouse on Iron Hill, packed with fossils, minerals, and exhibits on the Lenape people and the area's iron-mining past. The monthly Homeschool Days turn a cheap local museum into a structured, single-day science class for $3 a child.

Regular admission: $2 general admission (gate) — $3-per-student homeschool classes with monthly science themes

Note: Iron Hill runs a Homeschool Day every month for students ages 5–18 at $3 per student, with a different science topic each month taught in a one-hour class (10:30–11:30am). Small co-op and individual-family programs can also be booked Tuesday–Friday. The museum's fossils, rocks and minerals, and Lenape and iron-mining history exhibits round out the visit.

Homeschool page at ironhillsciencecenter.org →

Offers

Homeschool Days

By reservation

per kid

Delaware Nature Society

Wilmington · K–12 · Submit a School/Homeschool Program Request; 302-413-5054

The state's leading nature-education nonprofit runs hands-on outdoor programs at three centers, including the marsh-side DuPont Environmental Education Center on Wilmington's Riverfront. A homeschool co-op can fill a morning catching fish, netting pond life, or testing stream health for $9 a child.

Regular admission: Nature centers free to enter — $9-per-student naturalist-led programs

Note: Delaware Nature Society leads naturalist field-trip programs for school and homeschool groups at $9 per student at the DuPont Environmental Education Center on the Wilmington Riverfront and at Ashland Nature Center in nearby Hockessin ($7 per student at Abbott's Mill in Milford). The 1.5–2 hour programs cover pond ecology, insects, birds, geology, and the water cycle; Ashland field studies need a 5-student minimum, and homeschoolers can also join prescheduled activities.

Homeschool page at delawarenaturesociety.org →

Offers

Field Trips

By reservation

Free

per kid

Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library

Winterthur · All ages · Book ahead; school@winterthur.org or 302-888-4866

Henry Francis du Pont's 175-room country estate is a museum of American decorative arts wrapped in a world-renowned garden. With school field trips free for 2026–27 and homeschool groups welcome, it's the rare marquee venue a budget family can tour at no cost.

Regular admission: $29 adults (gate) — free field trips at a $22-admission du Pont estate

Note: All Winterthur school field trips are FREE for the 2026–27 school year, and homeschool groups are welcome to book. Object-based programs span art, science, design, nature, and social studies across the museum, the 60-acre naturalistic garden, and 1,000 acres of grounds; programs can also come to your group or run virtually, and a free Demonstration Objects Kit is available for grades Pre-K–2.

Homeschool page at winterthur.org →

Offers

Homeschool Days

Monthly

Free

per kid

Biggs Museum of American Art

Dover · All ages · Book a week ahead; programs@biggsmuseum.org or 302-674-2111 x104

Dover's art museum holds the only comprehensive American painting collection on the Delmarva Peninsula, and admission is now free for everyone. Add a monthly Homeschool Day of themed, hands-on programming and it's a genuinely no-cost art-and-history field trip in the heart of the capital.

Regular admission: Free (sponsored admission) — free admission for all plus a free monthly Homeschool Day

Note: Admission to the Biggs is free for everyone (a Dover Federal Credit Union community partnership), and school, homeschool, and children's groups are welcomed with chaperones free at one per five students. The museum also runs a monthly Homeschool Day with a new hands-on theme each month. The collection centers on American fine and decorative arts — Peale-family portraits, Brandywine School illustration, and one of the country's finest regional silver collections — and self-guided QR-code tours make a visit easy.

Homeschool page at biggsmuseum.org →

Offers

Field Trips

By reservation

$7–$11

per kid

Hagley Museum & Library

Wilmington · K–12 · Reserve ~2 weeks ahead; bwirth@hagley.org or 302-658-2400 x259

On the Brandywine site of the original DuPont powder works, Hagley teaches water power, simple machines, the factory system, and 19th-century mill life through nine hands-on history and STEM programs. Homeschool groups can book any of them for $7–$11 a student — a deep, single-day field trip well under the gate price.

Regular admission: $22 adults / $12 children 6–14 (gate) — $7–$11 per-student programs versus the $22 gate

Note: Homeschool families and groups can book any of Hagley's school programs, priced $7–$11 per student (most are $9; the Factory System assembly-line workshop is $7, and 'spend the day' two-program combinations are $13). Choose from hands-on history at the Gibbons House, Nineteenth Century Day in the mill community, and water-power and STEM workshops — all on the site of the original DuPont black-powder works. Need-based scholarships help offset costs.

Homeschool page at hagley.org →

Worth calling about

These venues run homeschool programs but don't publish pricing online. Call before you go.

Offers

Field Trips

Call

no public price

Delaware Children's Museum

Wilmington · Pre-K–8 · (302) 654-2340 or mhawkins@delawarechildrensmuseum.org

A hands-on learning-through-play museum on the Wilmington Riverfront, with a giant climber, oversized building blocks, and STEM exhibits. Group field trips are arranged by phone; the third-Wednesday $2 CAPs nights are an easy low-cost option for homeschool families.

Regular admission: $15 general / Free under 12 months (gate)

How to reach them: DCM books self-guided group field trips, but per-student rates aren't published online — call or email to arrange a homeschool visit. The museum also runs $2 CAPs community-access nights on the third Wednesday of each month, open to all.

Homeschool page at delawarechildrensmuseum.org →

Offers

Homeschool Program

Call

no public price

Delaware Museum of Nature & Science

Wilmington · All ages · Via the School & Group Programs page

Greenville's natural-science museum pairs dinosaurs and a great hall of exhibits with regular homeschool programming. Families can self-schedule events or book group/co-op programs; ask about current homeschool pricing when you sign up for the museum's homeschool email list.

Regular admission: $15.50 ages 3+ / $5.50 ages 1–2 (gate)

How to reach them: The museum schedules homeschool events and programs for groups and co-ops, and can bring Mobile Museum programs to a community location, but pricing isn't posted online — join the homeschool email list or contact School & Group Programs.

Homeschool page at delmns.org →

Offers

Group Visits

Call

no public price

Air Mobility Command Museum

Dover · All ages · (302) 677-3855

On Dover Air Force Base, this free military-airlift museum lines up 30-plus aircraft from cargo haulers to a presidential plane, plus a flight simulator. Admission costs nothing; contact the museum to arrange a homeschool group tour with a guide.

Regular admission: Free

How to reach them: Admission is free; school and homeschool group tours are arranged by phone or email. A flight simulator (ages 10+) and 30-plus aircraft make a strong no-cost aviation field trip — call to set up a group visit.

Homeschool page at amcmuseum.org →

Free field-trip days: when Delaware's museums are free for everyone No group minimums, no booking forms — our verified guide to every recurring free museum day in Delaware →

Gear up for your field trip

A few inexpensive things that turn a museum or nature day into a richer lesson — favorites from homeschooling families.

Kids' field journal

Sketch and note what they see at each stop

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Compact binoculars for kids

Zoos, nature centers, living-history farms

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Bug viewer & magnifier

Turn any nature trail into a science lesson

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Kids' sketchbook

Art-museum and outdoor sketching days

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Scavenger hunt cards

Keep little ones engaged on long visits

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Junior ranger activity book

Pairs with park and museum trips

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Homeschool resources we love

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Plus more free and cheap educational outings in Delaware

Already on DiscoverCheapUS — free and low-cost Delaware attractions homeschool families plan whole field-trip days around.

Rehoboth Beach

3 free or cheap

Cape Henlopen State Park$10 per DE-registered vehicle / $20 per out-of-state vehicle (day use)
Rehoboth Beach MuseumFree / Suggested $5 donation
Indian River Life-Saving Station MuseumSmall admission (~$4 adults)

See all Rehoboth Beach attractions →

Wilmington

11 free or cheap

Fort Christina State ParkFree
Delaware Art Museum$18 adults / $6 youth 7-18 / Free Thu evenings 4–8pm (Apr–Dec)
Delaware Museum of Nature & Science$15.50 ages 3+ / $5.50 toddlers (1–2) / free under 1
Brandywine Zoo$9 adults / $8 seniors / $7 youth 3-17 (May-Oct peak) / $5-7 spring & fall / Free December-February
Rockford Park & TowerFree
Old Swedes Historic Site$12 adults / $7 students 6-15, military, first responders / Free under 6
DuPont Environmental Education CenterFree
Delaware Children's Museum$15 general / $2 Wednesdays / Free under 1
Delaware History Museum$10 adults / $5 ages 6-17 / Free First Fridays
Nemours Estate$12 gardens / $23 full estate / Free 5 & under
Hagley Museum & Library$22 adults / $12 children 6-14 / Free under 6

See all Wilmington attractions →

Newark

4 free or cheap

Iron Hill Museum & Science Center$2 general admission / Free ages 4 & under
White Clay Creek State Park$5 per Delaware vehicle / $10 out-of-state (Mar-Nov)
University of Delaware Botanic GardensFree (metered parking)
UD Mineralogical MuseumFree

See all Newark attractions →

Dover

7 free or cheap

First State Heritage ParkFree
Air Mobility Command MuseumFree
The Green & Old State HouseFree
John Dickinson PlantationFree (donations accepted)
Biggs Museum of American ArtFree
Delaware Agricultural Museum$8 adults / $6 seniors & military / $5 youth 6-17 / Free under 6
Killens Pond State Park$5 per Delaware vehicle / $10 per out-of-state vehicle day-use (March 1–November 30)

See all Dover attractions →

See all 37 Delaware attractions on the directory →