This book belongs to:

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WELCOME to the New Hanover County Parks & Gardens

Parks Stars Youth Program!

What is a Parks Star?

Parks Stars are citizens who are dedicated to caring for and improving New Hanover County’s parks. Parks Stars are good stewards. A steward is someone who helps take care of something that belongs to everyone. To become a good steward, you have to learn about the parks and how you can help take care of them. By becoming a good steward and sharing your knowledge with others at a young age, you can help make sure our parks are around for many years.

There are two levels of Youth Parks Stars based on age:

Twinkle Stars - Age 0-5

Junior Stars - Age 6-12

How do you become a Parks Star?

1. Complete Activities 1-5 in this booklet.

2. Complete your choice of either Activity 6 or Activity 7 (you can do both if you want).

3. After completion, fill out the form on the last page of this booklet and take it to the Parks & Gardens office to receive your certificate and prize:

New Hanover County Government Center

230 Government Center Drive

Suite 120

Wilmington, NC 28403

4. Parks Stars will receive email newsletters, additional activities and invitations to upcoming Parks & Gardens events and programs.

New Hanover County Parks

Airlie Gardens - 300 Airlie Road, Wilmington, NC 28403

Arrowhead Park - 720 Arnold Road, Wilmington, NC 28412

Blue Clay Bike Park - 3840 Juvenile Center Drive, Castle Hayne, NC 28429

Hugh MacRae Park - 314 Pine Grove Drive, Wilmington, NC 28409

Kings Grant Park - 5027 Lord Byron Road, Wilmington, NC 28405

Monterey Heights Park - 401 Cathay Road, Wilmington, NC 28412

Northern Regional Park - 4700 Old Avenue, Castle Hayne, NC 28429

Ogden Park - 615 Ogden Park Drive, Wilmington, NC 28411

Parkwood Park - 4827 Canetuck Road, Wilmington, NC 28411

River Road Park - 6500 River Road, Wilmington, NC 28412

Riverside Park - 6710 Old Bridge Site Road, Castle Hayne, NC 28429

Smith Creek Park - 633 Shenandoah Street, Wilmington, NC 28411

Snows Cut Park - 9420 River Road, Wilmington, NC 28412

Summer Rest Trail - 423 Summer Rest Road, Wilmington, NC 28403

Trails End Park - 613 Trails End Road, Wilmington, NC 28409

Veterans Park - 835 Halyburton Memorial Parkway, Wilmington, NC 28412

Activity 1: Sound Map

What do you hear when you go to the park? There are many different sounds to be

heard depending on which park you visit. For this activity, go to any county park and

pick a spot to use your ears and listen to the sounds. You are at location X. What

sounds do you hear? Draw a picture of what you hear as it relates to your location.

X

DOG BIRD

LAUGHTER

CAR

BASEBALL BAT

Example:

Now it’s your turn...

X

You are at location X. What

sounds do you hear? Draw a

picture of what you hear as it

relates to your location.

Activity 1: Sound Map

Activity 2: Who Lives Here?

A habitat is the home of an animal or a plant. Almost every place on Earth—from the hottest desert to the coldest ice pack—is a habitat for some kinds of animal and plant. Most habitats include a community of animals and plants along with water, oxygen, soil, and rocks.

Activity 2: Who Lives Here?

Draw a line to connect the animal with their habitat.

Circle the animals you see when you visit a county park.

Activity 3: Adopt a Tree

1. Go to a county park.

2. Choose your favorite tree! Give it a name.

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3. Observe the tree. Draw what you see. Write what you feel

and smell about the tree.

Does it smell?

Does it have flowers?

What do the leaves look like?

Can you identify what kind of tree it is?

Are there other trees around it?

Activity 3: Adopt a Tree

4. Come visit the tree on a second day. What is different about

the tree? Draw the tree as you see it today and describe the

differences below?

Does it smell different?

Are the flowers the same?

How did the leaves change?

Can you identify what kind of tree it is

with some help from an adult or internet?

Did the environment around the

tree change at all?

Activity 4: Looking at Leaves

Go to a county park and bring a book and a crayon with you.

Collect 3 leaves off of the ground.

Create a leaf print by placing the leaf between your book

and paper and then gently shading the paper over the leaf.

Leaf 1

Activity 4: Looking at Leaves

Leaf 2

Leaf 3

BONUS:

Can you identify the type of tree

each leaf comes from?

Activity 5: Traveling Seeds

In this activity, you will visit a county park and collect seeds. This can be done in different ways:

1. You can pick them up by hand and place them in a paper cup or zip-lock bag.

2. A more fun way is to take a large sock and wear it over your shoes and walk around in a field or grassy area. This represents how seeds are dispersed by animal fur.

After you have collected your seeds, take them home and separate them by categories of dispersal. For example:

Floats on air: dandelion, cottonwood, cattail, orchid

Bounces or rolls: acorn, pecan, tumbleweed (whole plant rolls)

Sticks to animals: burdock, cocklebur, wild barley, Queen Anne’s lace

Flies through air: maple, ash, tulip poplar, pine seeds

After you have separated them into categories, sketch them on the next page and label them with their name and dispersal category. You may need to use the internet to help identify some of the seeds.

Examples of seeds in our area:

Pine Seeds

Dandelion

Cattails

Acorns

Pecans

Burdock

Activity 5: Traveling Seeds

Draw the seeds that you collected and label them with their name

and dispersal category. You may need to use the internet to help

identify some of the seeds.

Optional Activity A

Activity 6:

Take Your Camera for a Walk

1. Go to a county park with your camera or smart phone.

2. Have someone take 5 pictures of you doing 5 activities.

3. Upload your pictures to facebook.com/nhcparksandgardens

Or tape them here:

4. Create a story about your trip to the park by making captions

for each photo.

5. Share your adventure with two friends.

Optional Activity B

1. Go to http://www.geocaching.com/guide/default.aspx

and watch the Geocaching 101 video.

2. Create a geocaching account.

3. Use your smartphone or GPS to find a geocache that is

located in a county park. Hugh MacRae is a great park to start

in. Here is a map of the geocaches in Hugh MacRae:

4. Log your find on geocaching.com

Activity 7: Geocaching

Activity 8: Picture Time

Create a picture of your favorite memory in the parks.

Congratulations!

When you have completed your workbook, fill out the registration form

below and take it to the Parks & Gardens office in the Government Center to

pick up your certificate and prize:

230 Government Center Drive, Suite 120 Wilmington, NC 28405 Phone: 910-798-7620

Hours: Monday– Friday 8am-5pm

Registration Form

Child’s Name:_____________________________________________Birthdate:__________________

Parent Name:_______________________________________________________________________

Address:___________________________________________________________________________

City:____________________________________State:____________Zip:_______________________

Phone:________________________________Email*:______________________________________

*Parks Stars will receive email newsletters, additional activities and invitations to upcoming Parks & Gardens events and programs.

Websites consulted in creation of this booklet:

www.algonquinpark.on.ca/pdf/jrp_2009_lrs.pdf www.familyeducation.com www.missmegsstorytime.com www.nps.gov/biso/forkids/upload/Jr-Ranger-Book2011-updated.pdf www.nps.gov/cana/forkids/upload/junior-ranger-activity-book_lr.pdf www.nps.gov/meve/forkids/upload/meve_jr_ranger_booklet.pdf www.nps.gov/bela/forkids/upload/off-site-jr-ranger-master-onlinelow-res.pdf www.nps.gov/fost/forkids/upload/NPS_FOST_JRBooklet_11-12-Web.pdf www.nps.gov/havo/planyourvisit/upload/Junior%20Ranger%20Workbook.pdf www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=24762