"Cedar Breaks Amphitheater in Summer" by NPS Photo , public domain
Cedar BreaksJunior Ranger Booklet |
Junior Rangers at Cedar Breaks National Monument (NM) in Utah. Published by the National Park Service (NPS).
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Cedar Breaks
National Park Service
U.S. Department of the Interior
Cedar Breaks National Monument
Junior Ranger Activities
Cedar Breaks Junior Ranger Program
Funded by
Zion Natural History Association
Cedar Breaks National Monument
2390 West Highway 56, Suite 11
Cedar City, UT 84720-4151
(435) 586-9451
www.nps.gov/cebr
EXPERIENCE YOUR AMERICA
Circle your age group above and check off the activities you have
completed below.
Treasure Hunt Bingo
Amazing Bristlecones
That’s the Breaks Crossword
Weather Wonders
Geologist’s Notebook
Lightning
Dot- to- Dot Wildflower
Starry Night
Wild for Wildlife
If I Were Superintendent
Spruce, Fir, or Pine?
Ranger Activities
____________________
Junior Ranger
_____________________
Officiating Ranger
13 and older, do all activities
Cedar Breaks National Monument
10- 12 do 6 activities
at
8- 9 do 5 activities
Junior Ranger
5- 7 do 4 activities
Has earned the title of
To become a Cedar Breaks Junior Ranger, if you are between the ages
of:
_________________________
Activities
This certifies that
Junior Rangers have a very important job. They help the park by
setting a good example for other visitors. To be a Junior Ranger, you
need to follow the park rules by staying on the trails, not picking
wildflowers, and not feeding wildlife. This protects the park and shows
others how to enjoy parks without damaging them. It’s also important
for Junior Rangers to learn about the park’s geology, plants, wildlife,
and weather. Once you know more about something you understand
better how to take care of it.
Junior Ranger Certificate
So You Want to be a Junior Ranger?
Congratulations Ranger!
Now that you’ve completed your activity packet, you’re ready to
assume your duties as a Junior Ranger. The most important part of
your mission is to be a good example to others by knowing and obeying
the rules at the parks you visit.
You can also show your badge to your friends at home and tell them
what you learned at Cedar Breaks. The last thing you can do is to visit
more National Parks and have fun learning what makes each of them
special. Remember to ask about Junior Ranger programs whenever you
visit a National Park.
Treasure Hunt Bingo
For this activity, you will need to keep your eyes and ears open.
When you find one of the items listed below, put an “X” on it. When
you get five X’s in a row (can be side- ways, up and down, or
diagonal), you have finished the activity. Be sure to put an X on all
that you see or hear. Try to find as many as you can even if they are
not in a row.
R.V. or
Arch or
Cave
motorhome
Junior Ranger Pledge
I promise:
Someone
smiling
9 I will have fun exploring the national parks.
9 I will not feed wildlife, pick plants, or disturb any
living thing in the national parks.
Ground
Squirrel
Indian
Paintbrush
Gooseberry bush
Heard a
bird call
Subalpine fir
tree
Chipmunk
I will be a good example to others and share what
I learn both in the national parks and at home.
A Piece of
litter
Aspen Tree
Deer
16
A
Bird
Park
Ranger
Cloud
Yellowbellied
marmot
Red Rocks
A funny
hat
Brian
Head
Peak
Hoo- Doos
Someone
taking a
picture
Colorado
columbine
Engelmann
spruce tree
U.S. Flag
9
Lava rocks
1
That’s the Breaks
Cedar Breaks became a National Monument because of its beautiful
rocks. Learn more about the geology of Cedar Breaks by completing
this crossword puzzle. Most of the answers can be found in the visitor
center.
Down
1. Water _______ in cracks, breaking the rock apart.
2. Another name for iron oxide.
3. What fossil is sometimes found at Cedar Breaks?
4. The porous, black rocks are from ______ flows.
5. Cliff edges at Cedar Breaks erode one foot every ________ years.
6. What makes some rock layers purple?
7. The sediments that formed these rocks were deposited in a ____ bed.
8. What color does limonite stain a rock?
9. A tall, thin spire of rock is called a __________.
10. Iron oxide turns rocks what color?
11. The opposite of out.
Across
1. A break in the earth’s surface along which motion has occurred.
5. A long, thin ridge of rock is called a ____.
12. The kind of rock that forms when particles fall out of air or water into
broad, flat layers which then harden over time.
13. Holes in long, thin ridges of rock.
14. The rocks at Cedar Breaks are approximately _____ million years old.
15. The study of rocks.
16. The rocks on top of Brian Head Peak are made of_____.
17. The white cliff near the top of the breaks is made of ____________.
18. The process that wears away rock over time.
Ranger Activities
Do ONE of the following activities:
(1) Attend a Ranger Program
The Rangers at Cedar Breaks give Geology Talks, Campfire Programs
and Guided Walks to help Visitors learn about the National
Monument. Attend a Ranger Program and see what you find out!
I attended the following program:__________________________
Ranger’s signature and date:_______________________________
(2) Interview a Park Ranger
Park Rangers have a variety of backgrounds. They are also very
friendly people. Find a Ranger at the Visitor Center and interview
them. Here are some questions you might want to ask the Ranger you
interview:
Where did you go to college?
What did you major in?
Why did you decide to become a Park Ranger?
What other parks have you worked at?
What is your favorite wildflower?
Make up your own question:
Ranger’s Signature and Date:_______________________________
2
15
If I Were Superintendent
The mission of the National Park Service is to preserve special places
and to help people enjoy them. Managing a national park or monument
often involves making difficult or controversial decisions. Choose one
of the situations below and write what you would do if you were the
superintendent of Cedar Breaks:
1. National parks and monuments are often referred to as “outdoor
museums.” More than 600,000 people come to Cedar Breaks each
year. One of the reasons they like to come in the summer is to see the
wildflowers blooming in the meadows and forests. Visitors often
think the flowers are so pretty that they want to pick them. But if
every visitor picked flowers, soon there would be no flowers left.
How would you stop people from picking flowers?
2. Spruce bark beetles are an insect native to the forest of Cedar Breaks.
Because the spruce trees are getting old (over 300 years!) and have
been weakened by drought, the beetles can drill into them and lay
their eggs without being drowned in sap. Beetle larvae eat the part of
the tree that carries water and nutrients to the branches and needles.
This kills the tree. Starting in 1993 beetle populations grew and grew
and grew; now most of the spruce trees are dead. Many visitors think
the trees look ugly. The dead trees are also a fire hazard. But the
mission of the National Park Service is to let nature take its course.
What would you do about all the dead spruce trees?
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2
5
1
3
4
12
13
14
8
9
15
7
16
10
17
11
18
14
3
Geologist’s Notebook
Geologists carry a small, waterproof notebook with them when they
go out to look at rocks and landforms. They draw and take notes
about what they see. Drawing helps them remember what they saw,.
It also helps them look at geologic formations more carefully and see
things that they otherwise might have missed. In your geologist’s
notebook, draw one of the rock formations you see:
Astronomers like to look at stars in the night sky. Long ago,
people would name patterns of stars after their important
stories: the Big Bear, the Scorpion, the Swan, Queen
Cassiopeia, and many others. This helped the people to
remember their stories and important information like
seasons and directions. These story- pictures are called
“constellations” today.
People from different cultures around the world look at the
same star- patterns but give them different names. Below are
two constellations. See if you can guess which names
different peoples have given to each of them by drawing a line
between the name and the constellation.
Revolving Male (Diné/ Navajo)
The Plough
(Ireland)
After you’ve finished drawing, write down what drawing the rocks
helped you to notice:
(France)
Caribou Antler (Finland)
The Big Bear
(Ancient Greece)
The Drinking Gourd
(African American)
Revolving Female
(Diné / Navajo)
4
La Casserole
The Painted Hand
(India)
The Cart
(Germany)
Bighorn Sheep
(Paiute)
Cassiopeia (Ancient Greece)
13
Starry Night
Dot-to-Dot Wildflower ID
A special part of Cedar Breaks is its dark night skies. We can see the
Milky Way Galaxy as a fuzzy white band stretching across the sky,
and thousands of brighter stars. Why can we see so many stars at
Cedar Breaks? There are no more stars here than anywhere else, we
are just able to see more of them. Being in the desert above 10,000
feet makes the air very thin and clear here. Cedar Breaks is far from
big cities – so it doesn’t get much “light pollution” or artificial lighting.
Cedar Breaks is famous for its wildflowers, which bloom in the
meadows and forests in midsummer. Complete the dot- to- dots and
use the wildflower guide below to help identify the flowers you drew.
Where do you live?
_____________________
Find your hometown
on the map and then
have a parent or a park
ranger help you find
Cedar Breaks.
.7
.8
. 10
. 13
.5
.1
.4
.3
.8
. 12
.9
.6
. 10
. 11
.2
. 17 . 16
. 18
. 14
. 15
. 19
.6
.9
. 79
. 11
. 13
.5
.2
. 12
. 14
.3 .4
.1
. 20
. 16
. 15
. 18
. 17
. 19
The dark places on the map have darker night skies; the bright areas
have a lot of city light pollution. Do you think you would see more
stars at home or at Cedar Breaks?
______________________________
If you can, spend a night in a ‘dark place’ sometime on your trip, to
see the sky as full of stars as it would have looked to our ancestors!
12
Indian Paintbrush
Columbine
Elkweed
Bluebells
59
Wild for Wildlife
Lightning
When the snows melt in late spring, many animals will be seen at
Cedar Breaks National Monument. Some birds and animals are only
found in the summer months at Cedar Breaks. These animals spend
their winters in other places where they can find food and shelter.
Some animals stay at Cedar Breaks all year round, even during the
long, cold winters. The year- round residents include: yellow- bellied
marmots, chipmunks, golden- mantled ground squirrels, porcupines,
and weasels.
1. How do animals make it through the long, cold winter? Check 9
the words below that describe how animals survive winter.
Hibernate
Tell stories
Get a job
Migrate
Store food
Buy groceries
times you are the tallest point around. That means you must be very
careful during storms. The safest place to be during a storm is in a
building. However, sometimes you might be hiking on a trail when a
thunderstorm approaches. What should you do?
1. DRAW a LIGHTNING BOLT through the activities below that
are DANGEROUS during lightning storms. DRAW a CLOUD
around the activities that will keep you SAFE.
Stand in an open field.
Hold a metal pole.
Gain weight
Get inside the car.
Jump in a lake.
Grow thick fur
Stay at a viewpoint.
Make yourself into a ball.
Crouch low.
Stand under a tall tree.
Change colors
2. What animals or birds have you seen at Cedar Breaks National
Monument?
6
Being safe in unusual
weather also means being
prepared for lightning
activity. At the Cedar
Breaks viewpoints, many
2.
TRUE or FALSE: The earth is struck by lightning an average
of 100 times per second.
11
Weather Wonders
3. Most park visitors have trouble telling the difference between a
chipmunk and a golden- mantled ground squirrel. First, look
at the pictures below and list the differences between the two.
At 10,350 feet ( 3,155 meters), you will experience different weather
than you may be used to. Cedar Breaks can have any type of weather,
at any time of year, including heavy hail or even snow in August. The
sun can also be more harmful to you because there is less atmosphere
to protect you from harmful ultra- violet rays. That is why it is
important to be prepared for these “strange” weather conditions.
1. To prepare for different weather conditions, what should you keep
in your car? CIRCLE the items below that will HELP you prepare
for Cedar Breaks weather?
Water
Ice- Cream
Sandals
Blankets
Shorts Sweater
Compass
Binoculars
Coloring Books
Hat
Maps
Sunblock
Bike Helmet
Camera
2. Describe the weather outside today (rainy, sunny, windy, cold,
warm).
3. What is the current temperature?
4. Copy the 24- hour high temperature ______ and the 24- hour low
temperature _____ from the Visitor Center bulletin board.
10
Now use a mammal guide in the Visitor Center or ask a Park
Ranger to help you label each picture correctly.
REMEMBER: Keep the wild in wildlife. Please DO NOT FEED
any of the chipmunks, squirrels, marmots, birds, or any other
wildlife. When animals are fed by humans, they become
dependent on people for their food and may starve in the long,
cold winter. The animals are WILD, which means they may bite.
7
Spruce, Fir, or Pine?
Amazing Bristlecones
The high elevation and cool temperatures of Cedar Breaks are perfect
growing conditions for conifers. Conifers trees grow cones and are
evergreen, which means they keep their leaves year- round. Conifer
leaves are called needles because of their long, thin, pointed shape.
Three common conifers at Cedar Breaks are spruces, firs, and pines. A
good way to tell them apart is to remember the following words, which
start with the same letter as the tree whose needles they describe:
Bristlecone pines are the oldest living things on earth—they can live
almost 5,000 years old! Scientists learn how old trees are by taking
pencil- shaped “core samples” from the living tree and then counting
the rings.
Single, Square, Scaly SPRUCE
The rings also tell about weather patterns: when a year is dry, the tree
doesn’t grow much and its rings are thin; in good years, they add fat
rings. Draw arrows to two periods of harsh weather on the crosssection below:
Engelmann spruce are common at Cedar Breaks National Monument. The needles
of spruce trees grow singly, each from its own spot on the branch. Most spruce
needles have a square shape, which you can feel if you roll a needle between your
fingers. Besides looking at the needles, you can identify Engelmann spruce by their
pinkish, scaly bark.
In 1978, scientists discovered that the oldest tree on Spectra Point was
1,642 years old. How old is it this year?
Flat, Friendly, FIR
Another common tree at Cedar Breaks National Monument is the sub- alpine fir,
which has beautiful silver bark. Fir trees have flat needles which do not have a
sharp end. Because of their flat needles, fir trees are friendly! It will not hurt to
shake the hand of a fir.
Prickly PINE Packets
Two different kinds of pines grow at Cedar Breaks: the limber pine and the
bristlecone pine. Pine needles grow in packets, which means that more than one
needle grows from the same place on a branch. If you gently push the needles in a
packet together, they will form a circle. Pine needles are usually very sharp, and
shaking the hand of a pine is a prickly experience.
Have a Ranger or a parent sign here when you’ve proven you can tell the
difference between a spruce, a fir, and a pine.
8
_____________________________________
When bristlecone trees are young, they add circular rings around
their center stem. But if the roots on one side of the tree erode out
of the ground, the main stem of the tree will die, while the branches
on the other side to continue growing. When this happens, the
bristlecone adds half- circle rings on the living side of the tree.
How old was this bristlecone when the original stem died?
_________
9