A day was not enough to celebrate Junior Rangers at Badlands National Park. Multiple days sounded better. On Sunday, April 20, Badlands unveiled its new Junior Ranger Activity Book for 9 to 12 year olds to the public and local school children.
Invited to be some of the first Junior Rangers to complete the activities on Wednesday, April 23, 38 Oglala Lakota school children from Rockyford School traveled to the park from the nearby Pine Ridge Reservation. The children enjoyed a nature hike, learned about the importance of National Parks, and completed the book's activities with the help of park staff. At a mass swearing in ceremony, each child was called by name and received personalized Junior Ranger certificates, along with badges, buttons, patches, and coloring books. The children were excited to learn about the park's fossils and took the Junior Ranger motto "Protect" to heart by leaving the picnic area spotless.
On Thursday, 42 children from Interior School trekked out to the park to enjoy the same fanfare, hike, and activities.
The staff was excited to debut the new Junior Ranger Activity Book for the 9 to 12 age range. With the assistance of a Junior Ranger Ambassador this summer, the park plans on revising the Junior Ranger Activity Book for 5 to 8 year olds, which refers to outdated exhibits at the visitor center removed in 2005. A preschool age Junior Ranger Activity Book debuted last summer.
