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PRODUCING A NATIONAL PARK EXPERIENCE
Video Segment:
Episode 1 Series Introduction
from THE NATIONAL PARKS: America’s Best Idea, a film by Ken Burns
Grade Level: 3-8
Overview: All of us have a perception of what constitutes a park, depending largely on our past
experiences and where we live. Students in urban areas may see an expanse of green lawn
between buildings. Those in more rural areas might describe a park as acres of untouched
forest. But a survey of America’s national parks reveals many types of environments, from
volcanoes and glaciers to sand dunes and marshlands.
In this lesson, students will research a National Park, document important information about that
park, and present their findings in one of several possible presentation formats. Students will
use online resources such as the “Find a Park” tool from the National Parks Service to gather
information. If students have recently visited a National Park or plan to take a trip in the near
future, they can incorporate their recordings (writings, photos, videos, etc.) of the experience in
their presentation. After they have developed their presentation, they may share their story here
on the National Parks Foundation “Find Your Park” website.
Fourth Grade teachers can provide their students an opportunity to experience their National
Parks throughout the 2015-2016 school year through the “Every Kid in a Park” program. Click
here to learn more about the program.
Objectives: Students will:
 identify the diversity of environments found in the national parks
 research and describe the physical characteristics of a national park
 research and describe the human characteristics of a national park
 create a narrated “tour” of a specific national park using digital presentation tools
 work with others in a group
 share the tour with others in the classroom and beyond
Estimated Time: Approximately three class periods, plus time to develop presentations
Materials:
 Individual or group computer access to the internet
 Digital Tools
o Word Cloud generator
 Examples: Word It Out, Wordle
 Student Handouts:
o Video Viewing Graphic Organizer
o Five Themes of Geography
o Park Profile
o Rubric
 Introductory video clip from THE NATIONAL PARKS: Americas Best Idea
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Procedure
Activity 1: Video Viewing Activity
This activity involves students creating a word cloud of their impressions after viewing a sevenminute video clip from Ken Burns’s THE NATIONAL PARKS: America’s Best Idea. You may
consider a digital word cloud generator, such as the ones listed below, and determine which
might be best for your students.
1. Distribute the Video Viewing Graphic Organizer to each student and review directions.
2. As a class, watch this introductory clip from The National Parks: America’s Best Idea.””
3. Have students watch the clip in pairs or individually, and complete the video viewing
graphic organizer, a word cloud.
4. After students have created their word clouds, have them share these with the class,
describing the various and most salient words they used.
5. After students have completed part two, discuss the handout questions with your class.
Main Activity:
PART 1: Researching Your National Park
If students are not familiar with the five themes of geography, review them with the class. A
handout describing the themes is included with this lesson. Tell students that in this activity they
will virtually visit a specific park and learn more about it through these five themes.
1. Divide students into pairs or small groups. Tell them they will use digital tools to locate,
research, and produce a park experience that they will share.
2. Distribute the handout “Park Profile” to each student. Walk students through the
instructions to help them find their park on the National Parks website.
3. Provide time for them to research information on their park and complete the “Park
Profile” chart. Finally, review students’ charts for completeness.
PART 2: Producing Your National Park Experience
After students have completed their Park Profile chart, they will incorporate the information into
a presentation using a method that you feel is appropriate to their skill level and ability. Students
have the option of developing a presentation through traditional formats such as poster board,
slide presentations or digital presentation in a digital tool you may already use or any other of
the numerous tools available. Once the completed, students can also share their presentations
on the National Parks Foundation website “Find Your Park.”
For more information on digital story-telling go to “Place-Based Digital Storytelling” at THE
NATIONAL PARKS: America’s Best Idea website.
4. After students have completed their chart, have them develop their National Park
experience presentation from a digital tool you may already use or any these other tools:
“Cool Tools for School” or “10 Presentation Tools for Students”
5. Student can also incorporate visual images and videos from any public domain sources
or, if they have visited the park they are profiling, they can include any writings, images
or videos from that experience. They can also build a Google Earth tour of their park
experience. For more information on constructing a Google Earth tour, go to Google
Earth: Learn.
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6. Once students have completed their National Park Experience presentation, have them
save it and then upload it here, to the “Share” section of the National Parks Foundation
website “Find Your Park” website.
7. Invite students to take their classmates on an imaginary tour of their chosen park.
Students in the classroom can also rotate to different stations for specific park tours.
This can be done with traditional or digital presentation methods. Have students take
notes on the different parks they tour so they can participate in a classroom discussion.
8. Facilitate a classroom discussion on students’ tours of America’s National Parks, or have
students complete a journal entry on the activity. Ask for their responses to the following
questions:
 What did you learn about America’s national parks?
 In what ways are the parks similar?
 In what ways are the parks different?
 In what ways are visitors using the parks? How do they get there and how do
they move around in the parks?
 How are the National Parks an example of the physical and human
characteristics of our nation?
 Why do you think the National Parks are important to Americans?
Assessment
Students should be assessed on the quality of their completed work on the graphic organizers
(the video viewing graphic organizer and their Park Profile chart) and inclusion of information
from their Park Profile chart into their presentation and working in a group. A sample rubric is
available at the end of this lesson.
Standards
“Producing a National Park Experience” meets the following curriculum standards set by the
National Council for Geographic Education for grades 5-8:
 Use maps and other geographic representations, tools, and technologies to acquire,
process, and report information;
 Use mental maps to organize information about people, places, and environments;
 Analyze the spatial organization of people, places, and environments;
 Analyze the physical and human characteristics of places;
 Create regions to interpret Earth’s complexity;
 Identify and explain how culture and experience influence people’s perception of
places and regions;
 Explain the characteristics and spatial distribution of ecosystems;
 Analyze how human actions modify the physical environment; and
 Describe changes that occur in the meaning, use, distribution, and importance of
resources.
“Producing a National Park Experience” meets the following Common Core State Standards of
Reading Informational Text for 4th Grade.
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Key Ideas and Detail
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.3: Explain events, procedures, ideas, or concepts in a
historical, scientific, or technical text, including what happened and why, based on
specific information in the text.
Craft and Structure
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.5: Describe the overall structure (e.g., chronology, comparison,
cause/effect, problem/solution) of events, ideas, concepts, or information in a text or part
of a text.
Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.7: Interpret information presented visually, orally, or
quantitatively (e.g., in charts, graphs, diagrams, time lines, animations, or interactive
elements on Web pages) and explain how the information contributes to an
understanding of the text in which it appears.
About the Authors:
Darlene B. Koenig is a writer and editor specializing in the development of educational
components for print, Web-based, and broadcast media. After a career as a news reporter and
editor, she managed program development for USA Today’s in-school education program and
also directed educational programs in support of the PBS literature series, “Wishbone.”
Greg Timmons has been a social studies teacher for over 30 years. He has written lessons for
several PBS productions including The NewsHour, FRONTLINE, and various Ken Burns’s
productions including The War, The National Parks: America’s Best Idea Baseball, Prohibition
and The Dust Bowl.” He resides in Montana and Washington state.
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Video Viewing Graphic Organizer
Name____________________________________________
Directions: As you watch the video clip on “The National Parks: Americas Best Idea”, complete
the graphic organizer below. You may have to watch the video clip more than once.
Part 1: Build a word cloud.
1. As you watch and listen to the video, write down or type up the first words that come to
your mind. You can write a word describing what see or how it makes you feel. Repeat
words that express your thought often.
2. Use Word It Out, Wordle, or another word cloud creation tool.
3. Transfer the words you recorded to the word cloud template.
4. Create your word cloud and submit it to your teacher.
Example of a Word Cloud:
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Part 2: Questions
After you’ve viewed the video clip, complete the chart below to prepare for discussion.
Question
Response
What do you think is
the purpose of the
National Parks?
What types of land
forms did you see in
the video clip?
What types of water
forms did you see in
the video clip?
What things in the
video clip surprised
you?
How do you think the
National Parks affect
people?
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UNDERSTANDING THE FIVE THEMES
OF GEOGRAPHY
Geography is the study of Earth and its features. Geographers also study the distribution of
plant and animal life on the planet, including people and cities.
It’s helpful to look at geography through these five themes:
LOCATION – Where is it? The term can refer to absolute location, such as an address or
geographic coordinates. It can also refer to relative location, or where something is in relation to
something else.
PLACE – What is it like? This term refers to the characteristics that make a place unique. Those
characteristics can be physical, such as landforms and vegetation. They can also be human,
referring to an area’s culture, economy, and government. Every place has a special combination
of physical and human characteristics.
HUMAN-ENVIRONMENT INTERACTION – What is the relationship between the environment
and humans? The term refers to ways that humans adapt to an environment, how they change
it, and how they depend on it. Bridges and dams are examples of ways that humans have
interacted with the environment to meet their needs.
MOVEMENT – How have people, goods, or ideas moved from one place to another? Examples
of movement include America’s westward expansion and the Internet.
REGIONS – What characteristic is shared by a group of places? Putting places into regions
allows us to organize our knowledge of the world. A region can be defined by specific
boundaries, such as a county or the United States. But a region such as the “Rust Belt” or
“Tornado Alley” can also be based on our perceptions of places.
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PARK PROFILE
Name__________________________________________
Directions:
1. Go to the National Park Service website at http://www.nps.gov/.
2. Click “Find a Park.”
3. Scroll down to “Select a Park,” and click the drop-down menu to find the park’s
name, or search by state and click the state where the park is located.
4. Record your information on the following table.
What is the name of your Park? ___________________________
Location
State located
General description
of the region
Physical Characteristics
Park Borders
(areas next to park)
Size of the park
(acres)
Climate description
Landforms
Vegetation
Wildlife
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Human Characteristics
Number of visitors
a year
List the most
popular visitor
sites
Describe the park’s
history of
Development
Changes in
landscape over
time caused by
human interaction
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National Park Experience Rubric
Name ____________________________________
Presentation of Content
Check
Total Points
Points
here
Possible
Given
Did you include the following in your presentation?
2
 The name of the park
3
 The location of the park
5
 A description of the park’s region
Did you include the following in your description of the park’s physical characteristics?
2
 borders
2
 size
3
 Climate
3
 Landforms
3
 Vegetation
3
 Wildlife
Did you include the following in your description of the human characteristics?
2
 Number of visitors per year
2
 Most popular visitor sites
5
 History of the park’s development
5
 Changes in landscape caused by
human interaction
Presentation Quality
Was your presentation organized?
3
Did your presentation contain all the
3
required information?
Did your presentation flow well from
3
one section to the next?
Was your presentation well3
constructed with proper writing
mechanics?
Working with Others
Did you contribute equally to the
3
project?
Did you manage your time well?
3
Did you contribute to helping solve
5
problems and meet challenges?
Did you work well with other
5
members of the group?
Total Points
68
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