MINI-HISTORY: A Place
Called Yellowstone (America's First National Park)
From Stormie:
I must tell you a personal story. As a very young child, I wanted a Viewmaster
for Christmas one year--not an ordinary one that you hold up to the light, no,
I wanted the kind with a battery operated light inside so I didn't have to look
up all the time. Well, my wish came true that year. But it was the
reels my parents gave me to go with the Viewmaster that made that particular Christmas
memorable. The picture reels were of a place called "Yellowstone."
To this day, I remember the goose-bumpy wonder I experienced seeing bubbling mud
and steam shooting up out of the earth. It seemed like some kind of fantasy
world to me and I knew I wanted to see it someday--a desire that never left as
I got older. As an adult, I did finally get to see Yellowstone and you know
what, the reality was better than the fantasy. I've loved it from the moment
I saw those pictures. So, I know from experience that young children can
appreciate nature from pictures.
Today,
we are so fortunate in that we can teach almost any concept through books:
*A Yellowstone ABC, by Cyd Martin: This
book introduces children to the wonders of Yellowstone via the alphabet. *Moon in Bear's Eyes, by Stephen
R. Swinburne; Crista Forrest, Illustrator: This book introduces children to
the life of a grizzly bear family in Yellowstone.
Here's
a music CD that can provide some great background sounds for your "Yellowstone"
day. It combines music and natural sounds from the park (thunder, geysers,
etc): The Sounds of Yellowstone, Various Artists (New Age,
Environmental/Nature)
And
here's a children's video: The Big Park: Yellowstone (It is
45 minutes long though so you may have to advance some of it when interest begins
to fade.)
Group Time Discussion: After familiarizing
the children with Yellowstone, and with the use of pictures, talk about (on their
level of understanding) how this beautiful place has been around for many many
many years (before they were born, etc) and how it is our "responsibility"
to take care of it so that when they grow up and have children of their own, it
will be here for them to enjoy too. (For example, you could get into
the subject of how people have been known to throw things into the geysers that
clog them up -- this is not "being responsible.") (By the way,
just this one activity alone combines history, character ed, and environmental
ed.)
Reminder
from Stormie: If you would like to begin collecting ALL my current classroom
ideas (each on a 4 x 6" index card), as well as new ones that I create, you
can do so by ordering my "Activity Cards." Click here
to check them out.
