National Parks Project

Name ___________________________________ Date__________

GEOLOGICAL HISTORY OF NATIONAL PARKS PROJECT

For this project you will be researching a National Park of your choice. The Park MUST have geological significance of some kind. You will have two options for your presentation format.

Format 1: A PowerPoint presentation

Format 2: A Storybook with illustrations

Neither format will be “easier”, they are simply different. For each one you will be required to present the same amount of information.

Research

• We will be using www.nps.gov (national Park Service website) to gather data.

• Once you arrived at your park website, you should search in the navigation bar under nature & science, then click on Natural Features.

• For more information, go to the link “for kids” and following interesting links from there.

For this project you will be required to find the following information:

Geological History: Why is it geologically significant? What kinds of landforms are there? What did it look like millions of years ago? In this section you need to give a well-rounded idea of why it is an important national park for geologists to study. Be specific! This should be the majority of your research.

Location: Include a map of its location.

Activities: What kinds of activities are available at this park? Camping, Hiking, Etc.

Other Features: What are some other attractions at these parks? (Wildlife, Cultural Resources, Etc)

FORMAT

Depending on the format you choose, you will need to come at this information from a certain angle.

PowerPoint People: You are a business person working at the office of a geological firm who is attempting to convince your boss to send your crew to this national park as a vacation get-away. You want to focus on the interesting geological features, as that is the best way to get your superiors to hop on board with your plan. When you give your presentation, you will be expected to dress for the part!

Storybook People: You are a very creative 4^th grade teacher. You recently went on an amazing trip to a National Park, and you realize that you can tell your story and incorporate this into your earth science lessons. Since you are such a creative person, your book is picked up by a local publisher. The book should tell the national park’s story and how you “experienced” it when you were there. Again, you will dress the part when reading your story to your “4^th grade class”.