Hot Springs National Park (Junior Ranger Program)

We visited our third national park this weekend. We camped at Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas. The younger girls got a Junior Ranger National Park Passport Book to put their stamps in. They also completed the Hot Springs Junior Ranger program and received their Junior Ranger Badges. The older boys enjoyed exploring and hiking.

Junior Ranger Guide

We studied about Hot Springs before we went because they wanted to participate in the National Parks Junior Ranger program. I found this list of all of the Junior Ranger Park Programs here. The girls filled out this National Park Research Paper and Hot Springs Brochure (well, I filled out most of these since Storm broke her right arm again). We used The National Parks Scavenger Hunt by Stacy Tornio for help along with Hot Springs National Park website. We also printed out the Hot Springs Junior Ranger activity guide before we left, so we could look it over and plan out our trip.

Once we got there, they told us that they now have an updated Junior Ranger activity guide and gave us a copy, but they still let us use the one that we had printed out. Below is a picture of both activity guides next to each other, but my instructions are for the online printed one.

We planed our visit to see all of the things that interested us and also the locations that were mentioned in the Hot Springs Junior Ranger activity guide. We read and filled out pages 2, 6, 7, 8, 10, and 11 at home. We learned about the hot water springs water cycle and the growing city on these pages. We also filled out the certificate on last page, so we wouldn’t have so much to do at the park.

We arrived Friday afternoon and went right to our camp site at Gulpha Gorge Campground (read more about this below).

On Saturday morning we were planning on hiking to the Mountain Tower, but it was still raining so we decided to find an indoor family activity. First we went to the Pancake Shop in historic Hot Springs for breakfast. Then we decided to visit the Mid-America Science Museum in Hot Springs, Arkansas. You can read more about our Pancake Shop and Mid-America Science Museum experience below.

Saturday afternoon we it finally stopped raining so we got to visit Bathhouse Row. We started at one end of the street so that we could walk along the front of all of the bathhouses to fill out page 4 in our Hot Springs Junior Ranger activity guide. We stopped in front of each bathhouse and looked at the page in our booklet to match up the architecture of the bathhouse with the name. The girls really enjoyed this scavenger hunt type activity. When we finished that, we went into the Fordyce Bathhouse which is now the visitor center and Hot Springs museum. While on the tour we filled out page 3 of our Hot Springs Junior Ranger activity guide. In the music room we found the answer to page 9 on the ceiling:

Once we were finished in the Fordyce Bathhouse we went back outside to the right so we could see the Grand Entrance and the hot spring fountain. We filled out page 5 in our Hot Springs Junior Ranger activity guide when we saw the 1921 “Hot Springs Reservation” monument statue:

Then we walked behind Bathhouse Row on the Grand Prominade for finish up page 11 in our Hot Springs Junior Ranger activity guide. You can read more about our Grand Prominade walk below. After this we returned our Junior Ranger books to the Fordyce Bathhouse visitor center. the Park Ranger helped the girls say the Junior Ranger Oath, and then she gave them each a badge. Then they got to stamp their Junior Ranger National Park Passport Books.

Sunday morning we finally got to hike before heading home. We also went up in the Mountain Tower, which you can read more about below as well.

Gulpha Gorge Campground

The only campsite at Hot Springs National Park is Gulpha Gorge Campground. Unfortunately the park was under a burn ban so we could not have a campfire this weekend. It also started raining after we set up our campsite so we decided to go out for dinner and then we went back to the campsite and played games in the tent during the rain. It continued to rain and occasionally storm until Saturday afternoon. We set up our CAMPROS tent and the girls liked using our LED lanterns once it got dark. We also used our new Asinking Car Rooftop Bag to pack things in for our drive this time.

Pancake Shop

We were hoping to go for a hike to the Mountain Tower, but since it was still raining, we found a local place for breakfast. The kids all really liked the Pancake Shop. They had giant banana and chocolate chip pancakes along with scrambled eggs and bacon.

Mid-America Science Museum

We didn’t plan on visiting the Mid-America Science Museum, but since it was raining, we decided to give it a try. It was amazing, all of the kids from the 3 year old up to the 20 year old enjoyed much of the museum. They had so many hands on educational activities. The little girls loved the water spouts best and the older boys like making a short video. Titus (15 years) also loved the blacklight climbing area, but this scared the girls too much.

Bathhouse Row

We walked down Bathhouse Row to see the front of all 8 historic bath houses. Then we toured the museum in Fordyce Bathhouse and got to see all sorts of old bath utilities and attire. When we came out of Fordyce Bathhouse we went to the right and saw a hot spring fountain. The kids all tried to touch it, but the water is over 140 degrees so be careful. We also saw the grand entrance to the original Hot Springs Reservation. Once we walked past it we came to the Grand Prominade.

Grand Prominade

Before you reach the Grand Prominade you can see a natural hot spring on the right. The kids also touched this Hot Water Cascade as well. Then we climbed the stairs to reach the Grand Prominade. The Grand Prominade is an easy half mile walk. We found some chess boards, but no chess pieces. The boys thought this one very neat since they both enjoy playing chess. At the other end of the Grand Prominade there was a fountain to fill your water bottles with the hot springs mineral water. It was too hot to drink at first, so be sure to let it cool.

Hiking

We got to hike around the Gulpha Gorge Campground. There were several trails to follow once you crossed the stone path going over the river. All 4 of the kids loved crossing the river and exploring the trails. The 15 year old wanted more time to explore, but hiking was cut short this trip because of all the rain. We tried to cross the river right after the rain, but there was so much water it was covering the stone path.

Mountain Tower

We ended our trip with an adventure up the Mountain Tower. When you enter the bottom (visitor shop) of the Mountain Tower you can purchase your tickets to go up the elevator. If you go to the second floor you get an enclosed window view with a little museum. If you go to the third floor (the top floor) you get an open air view of the surrounding springs. We could see the steam rising from the woods.

Here are some of our other National Park Adventures:

Gateway Arch National Park (Junior Ranger Program)

We visited our second national park this weekend. We took a day trip to Gateway Arch National Park in St Louis, Missouri. The younger girls got to add a stamp to their Junior Ranger National Park Passport Book . They also completed the Gateway Arch Junior Ranger program and received their Junior Ranger Badges. The older boys enjoyed exploring the museum and hiking down by the river.

Junior Ranger Guide

We studied about Gateway Arch before we went because they wanted to participate in the National Parks Junior Ranger program. I found this list of all of the Junior Ranger Park Programs here. The girls filled out this National Park Research Paper and Gateway Arch Brochure. We used The National Parks Encyclopedia by Allison Lassieur for help along with Gateway Arch National Park website.

We were not able to print out the Junior Ranger packet ahead of time, so we picked one up at the front desk of the visitor center. You can get the Junior Ranger book for the Arch at the Visitor Center, and the book for the Old Court House once you enter the Court House. We looked at the Arch book while we were waiting for our turn on the tram to the top of the Arch.

We arrived at the Gateway Arch first thing in the morning, we knew we could explore it all in just one day since it is the smallest National Park. We planed to visit the Gateway Arch museum, the Old Courthouse, a Riverboat ride, and of course a tram ride up to the top of the Arch. The Junior Ranger book is laid out so that you can fill it out as you walk though the museum. We filled out page 1 while waiting for our tram ride, it is all about the Osage American Indians.

Next we visited the Gateway Arch museum. Pages 2 through 7 are laid out so that you can fill them out as you walk though each time period of the museum. While you are at the tram entrance you can see the brick mural and fill out page 8. Page 9 is a list of people whom you can locate as you walk through the museum as well.

We filled out page 10 after our walk down to the Riverboat. Then we returned our books to the visitor center and the Park Ranger helped the girls say the Junior Ranger Oath, then she gave them each a badge. Then they got to stamp their Junior Ranger National Park Passport Books. 

The Junior Range book for the Courthouse is a bit to advanced for my young girls, so we will have to come back in a couple of years to get that one.

Tram Ride to the Top of the Arch

Right after we picked up our Junior Ranger books, we bought out tram tickets to ride to the top of the Arch. We rode in a tiny 5 seat pod that took 4 minutes to travel the 630 feet up to the top. The Tram System was specially made with a mix of elevator, escalator, and Ferris wheel science.

Once we were at the top, we had about 10 minutes to look out of the windows. We saw the Mississippi River, the River boat, Busch Stadium where the Cardinals play, the Old Courthouse, and much more.

Gateway Arch Museum

The Gateway Arch is sometimes called the Gateway to the West, because it was built to commemorate Thomas Jefferson’s vision to explore and settle from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Ocean.

The museum had several hands on exhibits for the girls to try out. You walk through each time period as you move through the museum. It starts at 1764 to today.

Even the boys found something to do in the museum. They spent over half an hour on this puzzle, and they finally solved it.

Riverboat Ride

Then we walked down to the river and discovered that they don’t have riverboat rides in the winter.

So we just played by the water and hiked around the Arch. The kids had fun tossing rocks into the river and leaning against the Arch.

We were able to see the riverboat from out of the Arch window.

Old Courthouse

We decided to skip the Old Courthouse since the girls are still so young, but we plan to go back when they are older. The Old Courthouse is where Dred and Harriet Scott sued for their freedom in 1847 and 1850.

We did see the Old Courthouse from the windows in the top of the Arch though.

The circle at the bottom of this picture is the entrance to the visitor center and the museum (they are both underground).

Here are some of our other National Park Adventures:

L is for Love (preschool)

The girls had fun learning about love today. They enjoyed painting and matching. We got our recourses for today from the Letter L is for Lion, Letter Carrier, & Love Preschool Pack Digital Download.

Love Learning

Love Writing

  • The girls each had a similar writing paper for the letter L. My 3 year old had a capital L and lowercase l with tracing arrows, along with love (hugging hearts) to color. The 5 year old had the same paper, but added a short poem and more tracing L’s and l’s on the bottom. I found both of these in the Letter L is for Lion, Letter Carrier, & Love Preschool Pack Digital Download.

l is for love Craft

I printed this l is for love Craft onto cardstock for the girls to paint. I cut out the lower case “l” for them to paint a favorite color. After that dried they glued it to a piece of pink construction paper. Then I cut out the hearts for them to glue on.

Six Hearts

Love Shape Puzzles

  • I printed out the Love Shape Matching game and then cut the pieces and laminated them. Then the girls took turns making a match as they told me the color and shape that was on the heart.

Love Worksheets

Love Counting

  • I printed out the  love Hearts Counting game and then cut the pieces and laminated them. She counted how many hearts on each piece and then matched it up to the matching number.

AlphaTales

Here are some of our other alphabet preschool posts:

L is for Letter Carrier (preschool)

The girls had fun learning about letter carriers today. They enjoyed coloring and exercise video. We got our recourses for today from the Letter L is for Lion, Letter Carrier, & Love Preschool Pack Digital Download.

Letter Carrier Learning

Letter Carrier Writing

  • The girls each had a similar writing paper for the letter L. My 3 year old had a capital L and lowercase l with tracing arrows, along with a letter carrier to color. The 5 year old had the same paper, but added a short poem and more tracing L’s and l’s on the bottom. I found both of these in the Letter L is for Lion, Letter Carrier, & Love Preschool Pack Digital Download.

Letter Shape Stamp Match

Letter Color Stamp Match

Letter Counting

  • I printed out the Letter Counting game and then cut the pieces and laminated the pieces. She counted the letters as she placed them in the mailbox and reviewed her numbers.

Letter Carrier Names

  • I printed out the Letter Carrier Hat onto  cardstock and the girls wrote their names and a number on the badge spot. I cut them out and placed a strap around the back so the would fit.
  • I printed out the Letter Names and let the girls cut out their names and glue them to the envelope.

Five Letter

The girls each had a similar number 5 paper for counting letters. My 3 year old had the number 5 with tracing arrows, along with a helpful poem, and 5 letters to color. The 5 year old had the same paper, but added more tracing 5’s on the bottom. I found both of these in the Letter L is for Lion, Letter Carrier, & Love Preschool Pack Digital Download.

Letter Carrier Exercise

Here are some of our other alphabet preschool posts:

L is for Lion (preschool)

The girls had fun learning about lions today. They loved all of the painting and crafting. Storm just loves big cats. We got our recourses for today from the Letter L is for Lion, Letter Carrier, & Love Preschool Pack Digital Download.

Lion Science

Lion Writing

L is for Lion Craft

  • I printed this L is for Lion Craft onto cardstock for the girls to paint. I cut out the capitol “L” for them to paint orange. After that dried they glued it to a piece of green construction paper. Then I cut out the head, tail, and legs for them to glue on.

Lion Ten Frame

  • I printed out the Lion Ten Frame game and then cut the pieces and laminated them. Then she would tell me what the number is on the Daddy lion’s sign. Then she counted out the correct number of cubs to add to the ten frame.

Four Lions

Lion Mane Craft

  • I printed out the Lion Mane Craft onto cardstock for the girls to watercolor. After is dried we cut it out. Then the girls cut strips of orange, yellow, and brown construction paper. They curled the strips of paper on a pencil and then glued them to the lion’s mane.

Lion Tracing

Lion Color Match

  • I printed out the Lion Color Match game, and cut them out. I laminated them and the cut them again. Then we turned them all upside down and took turns flipping to try to find matching colors. They enjoyed this game, and did great taking turns.

My “L” Book

Here are some of our other alphabet preschool posts:

K is for Kite (preschool)

The girls had fun learning about kites today. They flying a kite outside and painting as always. We got our recourses for today from the K is for Kangaroo, Koala, & Kite Teachers Pay Teachers pack.

Kite Learning

Kite Writing

  • The girls each had a similar writing paper for the letter K. My 3 year old had a capital K and lowercase k with tracing arrows, along with a kite to color. The 5 year old had the same paper, but added a short poem and more tracing K’s and k’s on the bottom. I found both of these in the K is for Kangaroo, Koala, & Kite Teachers Pay Teachers pack.

K is for Kite Craft

  • I printed this K is for Kite Craft onto cardstock for the girls to paint. I cut out the capital “K” for them to paint blue. After that dried they glued it to a piece of blue construction paper. Then they used their dot daubers to decorate their kites before they glued them on. I cut out the clouds for them to glue on.

Kite Counting

  • I printed out the  Kite Counting Bows game and then cut the pieces and laminated them. She told me the number on the kite and then added the bows to the kite’s string.

Kite Names

  • The girls use the Kite Names paper to practice making their names.

Six Kites

  • The girls each had a similar number 6 paper for counting kites. My 3 year old had the number 6 with tracing arrows, along with a helpful poem, and 6 kites to color. The 5 year old had the same paper, but added more tracing 6’s on the bottom. I found both of these in the K is for Kangaroo, Koala, & Kite Teachers Pay Teachers pack.

Kite Shape Puzzles

  • I printed out the Kite Shape Matching game and then cut the pieces and laminated them. Then the girls took turns making a match as they told me the color and shape that was on the kite.

Kite Worksheets

My “k” Book

I read the My “k” Book by Jane Belk Moncure to the girls too. Little k finds kites to fly.

Kite Flying

  • The girls were glad to have enough wind to fly their kites today.

Here are some of our other alphabet preschool posts:

K is for Koala (preschool)

The girls had fun learning about koalas today. They enjoyed puzzles, coloring, and counting. We got our recourses for today from the K is for Kangaroo, Koala, & Kite Teachers Pay Teachers pack.

Koala Science

Koala Writing

  • The girls each had a similar writing paper for the letter K. My 3 year old had a capital K and lowercase k with tracing arrows, along with a koala to color. The 5 year old had the same paper, but added a short poem and more tracing K’s and k’s on the bottom. I found both of these in the K is for Kangaroo, Koala, & Kite Teachers Pay Teachers pack.

Koala Shapes

  • I printed out the  Koala Shape game and then cut the pieces and laminated them. Then she reviewed her shapes as she matched up the koala to the eucalyptus tree.

Koala Tracing

Counting Eucalyptus

  • I printed out the Counting Eucalyptus game and then cut the pieces and laminated them. She counted the leaves as she fed them to the koala as she reviewed her numbers. We read in our lesson today that the koala smells the each leaf before deciding to eat it, so she made her koala smell each leaf before she fed it to him.

Five Koalas

The girls each had a similar number 5 paper for counting koalas. My 3 year old had the number 5 with tracing arrows, along with a helpful poem, and 5 koalas to color. The 5 year old had the same paper, but added more tracing 5’s on the bottom. I found both of these in the K is for Kangaroo, Koala, & Kite Teachers Pay Teachers pack.

Koala Color Match

I printed out the Koala Color Match game, and cut them out. I laminated them and the cut them again. Then we turned them all upside down and took turns flipping to try to find matching colors. They enjoyed this game, and did great taking turns.

Here are some of our other alphabet preschool posts:

K is for Kangaroo (preschool)

The girls had fun learning about kangaroos today. They enjoyed painting and hopping today. We got our recourses for today from the K is for Kangaroo, Koala, & Kite Teachers Pay Teachers pack.

Kangaroo Science

Kangaroo Writing

  • The girls each had a similar writing paper for the letter K. My 3 year old had a capital K and lowercase k with tracing arrows, along with a kangaroo to color. The 5 year old had the same paper, but added a short poem and more tracing K’s and k’s on the bottom. I found both of these in the K is for Kangaroo, Koala, & Kite Teachers Pay Teachers pack.

k is for kangaroo Craft

  • I printed this k is for kangaroo Craft onto cardstock for the girls to paint. I cut out the lower case “k” for them to paint brown. After that dried they glued it to a piece of green construction paper. Then I cut out the head, tail, and pocket for them to glue on.

Kangaroo Jump

  • We used this Kangaroo Jump Poster to jump as high and as far as we could. The girls loved this as they do with all active play that we have.

Kangaroo Color Match

  • I printed the Kangaroo Color Match on cardstock and cut out the joeys and made a slit in the momma’s pockets. Then she reviewed the colors as she made the joey jump into the momma’s pocket.

Four Kangaroos

  • The girls each had a similar number 4 paper for counting kangaroos. My 3 year old had the number 4 with tracing arrows, along with a helpful poem, and 4 kangaroos to color. The 5 year old had the same paper, but added more tracing 4’s on the bottom. I found both of these in the K is for Kangaroo, Koala, & Kite Teachers Pay Teachers pack.

Kangaroo Cup Pouch

  • Print out the Kangaroo Cup Pouch pages and cut out the momma and the joey. Color a paper cup brown and glue it to the momma kangaroos pouch to help her stand up. The child can make the joey jump into the cup pouch.

AlphaTales

Zoo Field Trip

We got to see a kangaroo jump at the zoo this weekend.

Here are some of our other alphabet preschool posts:

J is for Jam (preschool)

The girls had fun learning about jam today. The girls liked making fresh strawberry jam. We got our recourses for today from the Letter J is for Jaguar, Jellyfish & Jam Preschool Pack Digital Download.

Jam Learning

Jam Writing

  • The girls each had a similar writing paper for the letter J. My 3 year old had a capital J and lowercase j with tracing arrows, along with a jam to color. The 5 year old had the same paper, but added a short poem and more tracing J’s and j’s on the bottom. I found both of these in the Letter J is for Jaguar, Jellyfish & Jam Preschool Pack Digital Download.

Fruit Counting

  • I printed out the  Jam Fruit Counting game and then cut the pieces and laminated them. She counted how much fruit in each jar and then matched it up to the matching number.

Jam Apple Painting

  • I printed out the Empty Jar on cardstock, and then I cut an apple in half. The girls poured paint onto a paper plate and dipped their apples in the paint. Then they stamped the apples onto their jar paper.

I spy the letter J

Jam Color Matching

  • I printed out the  Jam Color Matching game and then cut the pieces and laminated them. She reviewed each color as she matched up the colored fruit with the matching colored jam.

Jam Jar Names

  • The girls use the Jam Jar Names paper to practice making their names.

Five Jars of Jam

  • The girls each had a similar number 5 paper for counting jars of jam. My 3 year old had the number 5 with tracing arrows, along with a helpful poem, and 5 jars of jam to color. The 5 year old had the same paper, but added more tracing 5’s on the bottom. I found both of these in the Letter J is for Jaguar, Jellyfish & Jam Preschool Pack Digital Download.

Homemade Strawberry Jam

  • We washed and cut 4 cups of fresh strawberries.
  • Next we mixed it with 2 cups of sugar and mashed it all together.
  • We grated 1 apple (not the core) and squeezed 1/4 cup of lemon juice and added it too.
  • Then I used my hand held blender till it was smooth.
  • Boiled for 15 minutes scraping the bottom with a spatula.
  • Place the jam in a jar and put the lid on. Leave it on the counter and it should seal.

AlphaTales

Here are some of our other alphabet preschool posts:

J is for Jellyfish (preschool)

The girls had fun learning about jaguars today. The girls liked painting a mask and running fast like jaguars. We got our recourses for today from the Letter J is for Jaguar, Jellyfish & Jam Preschool Pack Digital Download.

Jellyfish Science

Jellyfish Writing

The girls each had a similar writing paper for the letter J. My 3 year old had a capital J and lowercase j with tracing arrows, along with a jellyfish to color. The 5 year old had the same paper, but added a short poem and more tracing J’s and j’s on the bottom. I found both of these in the Letter J is for Jaguar, Jellyfish & Jam Preschool Pack Digital Download.

j is for jellyfish

  • I printed this j is for jellyfish Craft onto cardstock for the girls to paint. I cut out the lowercase “j” for them to paint their favorite colors. After that dried they glued it to a piece of blue construction paper. Then I cut out the head and tentacles for them to glue on.

Jellyfish Patterns

  • Next we cut the bears to complete the Jellyfish Pattern page. She points to the first color and says it out loud, then she moves to the next color. She continues this until she gets to the last color and then she can usually guess the next color correctly.

Jellyfish Emotions

Jellyfish Playdough Mat

Jellyfish Color Match

  • I printed out the Jellyfish Color Match game, and cut them out. I laminated them and the cut them again. Then we turned them all upside down and took turns flipping to try to find matching colors. They enjoyed this game, and did great taking turns.

Four Jellyfish

  • The girls each had a similar number 4 paper for counting jellyfish. My 3 year old had the number 4 with tracing arrows, along with a helpful poem, and 4 jellyfish to color. The 5 year old had the same paper, but added more tracing 4’s on the bottom. I found both of these in the Letter J is for Jaguar, Jellyfish & Jam Preschool Pack Digital Download.

Jellyfish Stuffy

  • She uses this stuffed Jellyfish heating pad every month. She actually used it today, because she has a fever and stomach. She gets a fever with other symptoms every 4 weeks like clockwork for the past 3 years.

Active Jellyfish

Here are some of our other alphabet preschool posts:

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