Welcome to an exciting online discovery of our shared public lands with the Every Kid Outdoors program! Public lands are areas of land and water that today are owned collectively by the people and managed by the government on their behalf. In a nutshell, these lands are for everyone to visit and care for! The Every Kid Outdoors program is designed to connect all fourth graders and their families to federal lands and waters in the United States. Federal public land agencies are here to help you begin your virtual public lands journey! Read on for activities, live-streaming webcams, and educational resources for explorers of all ages.
Finish any of the activities and tell us about it! Send us a photo of your completed activities at klse_ranger_activities@nps.gov and/or tag us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter and we’ll give you a shoutout. We want to know – what does the next national park look like? How will you practice stewardship?
*Note – While some of these activities are designed for specific age groups – ‘Activities From the Every Kid Outdoors Program’ are designed for fourth graders – explorers of any age are welcome to participate in all activities! Some adventures require more tools than others – such as a printer or coloring supplies – make sure to read instructions first and gather what you need. Finally, not every activity is the same length. Activities like ‘Junior Ranger’ and ‘Lesson Plans’ will keep you busy longer than the interactive games. Feel free to adapt each activity to your unique learning style!
Activities From the Every Kid Outdoors Program
Travel to Devil’s Tower National Monument for stories about place names; discover the many uses of federal lands and waters; become a resource manager who decides how to protect a lighthouse from sea level rise; and design a stewardship plan for the next national park!
Junior Ranger
Calling all young and young-at-heart explorers! Did you know there are a number of federal public land agencies with a Junior Ranger Program? Many of them are available online. Experience the thrill of the chill – become a Junior Snow Ranger with the United States Forest Service! Pack your bag and get ready to Find Your Path with the Bureau of Land Management! Does time and/or space travel interest you? Join the National Park Service and travel back in time as a Junior Paleontologist to when dinosaurs walked the earth or discover galaxies and constellations in our universe as a Junior Ranger Night Explorer!
Add Some Color to Your Adventure (art projects)
Find Your Way to manatee habitats and fish runs along an Alaskan river with coloring pages from the United States Fish and Wildlife Service! Accept a butterfly or tree coloring challenge with the United States Forest Service! Travel to places like Rochester, New York to color the Susan B. Anthony House and create camouflage for a lizard at Arches National Park! Dive beneath the waves and color a reef scene with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration! Uncover human stories in public lands with coloring sheets from Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument and even draw yourself as a Park Ranger!
Visions of Public Lands (live webcams and virtual reality)
Tune in to see the Old Faithful geyser erupt at Yellowstone National Park! How many bison can you count on the Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie webcam? Visit the deepest lake in the USA at Crater Lake National Park. Explore an underwater kelp forest with a curious sea lion! See if the bald eagles are home on the Channel Islands Live Bald Eagle webcams. Get up close with spiny purple urchins on the Olympic Coast! Take a live look at the monuments on the National Mall in Washington, DC.
Let’s Play!
You are one click away from discovering conservation activities like coloring sheets, science magazines and videos at Just For Kids. Play games like a humpback whale’s migration and build a virtual puzzle at NOAA Games and Activities! Test your National Park knowledge with a mapping challenge! Join Bobber the Water Safety Dog for cartoons, games, and coloring. Guess what baby animals will grow up to be and even color your own Suffrage Cat at NPS Games and Challenges!
Public Lands as Classrooms (lesson plans)
Choose from six animal educational toolboxes and draw a bog turtle or make a graph of bird counts in different habitats. Help Smokey Bear protect the forest! Find out how many species of cactus are found in the desert near Hoover Dam! Join Woodsy Owl on a quest to discover the ABCs of conservation. Decode hydropower messages and play the water cycle game with the United States Army Corps of Engineers! Looking for a good book? Uncover the history of national park sites with these nonfiction reads!
Engage Your Senses (audio)
Check out this playlist to accompany your public lands activities; if you’re looking for something more tranquil, close your eyes and take in the sounds of National Parks while you peruse beautiful photos from public lands!
Virtual Adventures in Seattle’s Neighborhoods
Would you prefer to stick closer to home? No problem! Virtual adventures can happen near and far! Make your own pair of binoculars with help from the Audubon Center at Seward Park! Take a virtual tour inside the Wing Luke Museum and uncover hidden history in the Chinatown-International District. Join the YMCA of Greater Seattle for beach walk bingo and more in the virtual Family Room! Read a book with a Park Ranger and hear from public lands experts on virtual field trips to Washington’s three national parks. Can you identify these 13 animals from Islandwood’s Bainbridge Island campus? Share photos and stories from your neighborhood nature walks with Washington Trails Association’s trip reports. Create your own natural objects memory game and more with NatureBridge!
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In My Backyard 
