Colorado

National Monument

National Park Service

U.S. Department of Interior

Junior Ranger Activity Guide
Welcome to Colorado National Monument! 

At Colorado National Monument (COLM) the helpful 

people in green and gray uniforms are rangers. Their job 

is to teach the visitors about this extraordinary place and

protect the animals, plants, and rocks. 

1. Teach visitors about the lptasn ___ ___ ___ ___ __ __, 

 snimala ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ , and geology of the park.

2. Answer questions and pehl ___ ___ ___ ___ visitors. 

3. Patrol rlasit ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ and

 tcporet ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ the natural and cultural resources.

plants

animals

 Clues

protect help

trails

 Can you unscramble the bold words to find out what rangers do?

1

Become a Junior Ranger

 1. Find the animal picture for your age. Give your animal a name: ____________________

 

 2. Look for your animal in the green bands and do those activities. 

 3. Get out there. Take a hike! (pg. 4)

 4. You did it! Go to the visitor center to get your badge and certificate.

Are you up to the challenge?

Here’s how you can earn your badge. 

Explore Colorado National Monument. 

Learn why it is a special place.

Protect it today. Protect it for the future.

7 & under 8-10 over 10

Complete at least 3 activities 

and take one hike. Complete at least 5 activities

and take one hike.

Complete at least 7 activities 

and take two hikes.
 stayed on trails

 left everything where I found it

 watched animals from a safe distance

 picked up trash

 respected other visitors

 looked at rocks but didn’t carve

 or mark on them 

 

 What else did you do?_________________

__________________________________________

Check off the things you have done to protect 

Colorado National Monument.

2

 Match up the if/then statements to find 

out how you can protect this park. 

If you...

•pick flowers

•feed the animals

•walk off the trail

•take rocks

•grab a lizard by its tail

•throw rocks into the canyon

Then...

•its tail might break off

•there will be no seeds for

 new flowers

• you are stealing from the 

 monument

•you may hurt animals or 

 hikers below

•you will bust the soil crust

•the animals might get sick

 What’s Right/What’s Wrong?

Put an X through the activities that are not allowed in the 

monument and circle the activities that help protect the park.
“Living” Soil

As you watch the amazing animals at Colorado National Monument, remember that this 

is their home. Please be a respectful guest and always keep a safe distance.

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8 6 5 2

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4 1 3

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 I am a ___ ___ Z ___ ___ ___!

3

The sandy soil at Colorado National Monument is very dry and 

easily carried away by wind and water. Luckily we have an 

important BIOLOGICAL SOIL CRUST that creates a web that 

binds the soil and holds water in, allowing plants to take root. 

Biological means “living”... so our soil is alive, but fragile. How 

can you help protect it? It’s simple. 

Stay on the trails!

above ground

underground

Key 

1 mosses -green

2 lichens- black

3 algae-brown

4 cyanobacteria-tan

5 fungi-yellow

6 bacteria-orange

Don’t ___ ___ s ___ the ___ ___ u ___ ___!

Wildlife Watch

I have eyes on the side of my head 

to see in all directions.

I have hard scales that protect me from 

the sun, wind, and predators. 

I use my tail to grasp objects and 

to store fat for the winter.

I am cold-blooded, so I sunbathe to keep warm.

Use the key to color the layers below that 

make up the Biological Soil Crust. Take the 

bold letters from the key to fill in the blanks 

of the rhyme. (Use the logo for help.)

Guess what animal you will often see at Colorado National Monument.
Take a Hike!

Trail name:_____________________________________ 

Date:__________________ Time:__________________ 

Distance:_______________________________________

Weather:_______________________________________

Terrain (rocky, sandy, steep, etc.): ________________

________________________________________________

 Describe or draw what you liked 

most about this hike. 

Hiker’s Checklist

 1. Plan your hike using your park map.

 2. To make your hike safe, draw a line from the items you will need to your backpack. 

 Cross out the items you won’t need. Write your name on your backpack.

 5. Fill out the trail report for one of your hikes.

 3. Color in the water bottle to show how many quarts your group will use.

1 quart x ______(# of people)= _________quarts total

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first aid kit

radio

sunscreen

junk food

healthy snacks

compass

sunglasses

raincoat

map soda

umbrella

flashlight

water

sturdy shoes

bathing suit

whistle video games hat

 4. Load your pack and let someone know your plan before you go.

4

Trail Report
1. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 

2. ___ ___ ___ ___ 

3. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

4. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 

5. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

6. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 

7. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

8. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

9. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

10. ___ ___ ___ ___

11. ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___

Wingate

Precambrian Basement

Chinle 

Kayenta

Entrada

Just like us, rocks are all different ages. The stratigraphic column at the left shows the 

different rock layers within the monument. The oldest rocks are found at the bottoms of 

the canyons while the youngest rocks are located at the tops of the canyons.

 1. Hot lava and magma cooled to form ______________________ rocks found at 

 the bottoms of the canyons.

 2. _____________ + pressure = metamorphic rocks.

 3. ____________________ forms the salmon-colored slickrock that is famous

 in Arches National Park.

 4. Fossils of ______________________ are preserved in the Morrison Formation.

 5. Free-standing rock formations are called ______________________, from the 

 greek word meaning one-stone. (Did you see the Kissing Couple?)

 6. Shifting desert winds deposited the __________________ Sandstone 

 that formed the towering canyon walls.

 7. The ____________ Formation is a chili-red rock layer found below

 the Wingate Sandstone.

 8. Rain breaks down the glue in rocks creating ______________ pits.

 9. The dark brown, purple, or black coating on the canyon walls 

 is called desert ____________________.

 10. Better known as rust, _________ oxide gives the Wingate and 

 Entrada their red, orange, and brown colors.

 11. The ______________ caprock on top of Independence Monument keeps 

 the monolith from eroding as quickly as the rock wall that once surrounded it. 

iron

heat

Chinle

varnish

solution

igneous

Entrada

Kayenta

Wingate

dinosaurs

monoliths

Use the numbered clues below to fill in the blanks. The boxed word tells you the most 

common type of rock found in Colorado National Monument.

 (Use the visitor center exhibits for help.)

Rock Layers Clues

5

Layers Through Time 

Morrison
right seed thawing left cliff gravity

mountain freezing feed sun night pet

valley rain mesa streams read meat

wind out roots bead canyon floods

plateau snow ice eat monolith humans

At one time a solid rock wall

 separated Monument 

and Wedding Canyons.

Over time, weathering weakened the 

wall causing cracks to form. Then, 

erosion by flash floods carried pieces 

of rock down the canyon.

The strong Kayenta caprock on top of 

Independence Monument protected it 

like a roof on a house. Without this roof, 

the rock wall surrounding it eroded away. 

Weathering and erosion are the two never-ending forces 

that wear away the land and carve canyons and rock formations.

Weathering

Water, ice, heat, wind, or roots 

break rocks into smaller pieces. 

Erosion

Water, wind, or ice move the pieces of 

rock from one place to another place. 

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3 4

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2

3

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2

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4 5

6 7 8 9

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1. Cross out all the words that rhyme with need.

2. Put an X on all the words ending in t.

3. Circle all the landforms.

4. Fill in the blanks below with the remaining words.

 Put a W next to the weathering agents and an E next to the agents of erosion.

1. 5. 9. 

2. 6. 10. 

3. 7. 11. 

4. 8. 12. 

 The Wear-Away Forces

Making a Monolith

The agents of erosion and weathering are hidden in the boxes. To discover them, follow the directions.

Connect the dots to see how Independence Monument formed.
Chipmunk

Porcupine

Lizard

Peregrine Swift

Falcon

Mule Deer

Striped Bobcat

Skunk

Redspotted Toad

Black-tailed

Jackrabbit

Desert

Cottontail

Bushy-tailed

Woodrat

Wild Ways

I pant like a dog 

to stay cool.

My big ears release heat 

to help me regulate 

body temperature.

I am a fierce predator and 

defend my territory. I hunt 

at night, stalking my prey.

To keep cool in the 

summer I cover my head 

with saliva (spit) and use 

my tail as an umbrella to

 shade me from the sun.

I have a seat patch that helps 

me absorb water from the soil.

Start

Yahoo! 

You made it out of 

the canyon.

Gray Fox Mountain

Lion

Turkey

Vulture

Coyote

I am an omnivore, so

 I eat plants and animals. I eat only plants. 

I am an herbivore.

7

I eat carrion (dead animals). 

I am a scavenger.

I skydive from canyon 

rims as fast as 200 mph 

to capture prey, usually 

smaller birds or rodents.

Use the clues to choose which

 tracks to follow out of the canyon.

 (If you choose the wrong tracks they will fade away.)

Finish

Desert

Bighorn

Sheep

White-tailed

Antelope

Squirrel
Hot summers, cold winters, strong winds, little water, and a scorching sun make the 

desert a harsh place for plants. How do these hardy plants survive and grow? They 

have developed adaptations that help them stay cool and capture and conserve water.

 Use the native plant gardens around the visitor center to find and draw five of the plants listed below.

Big Sagebrush

Single Leaf Ash

Prickly Pear Cactus

Utah Juniper Yucca

Fish-hook Cactus

Indian Paintbrush

Utah Juniper

Showy Four-O’clock Pinyon Pine

Cliffrose

The Pinyon Pines are jealous of my 

pretty waxy berries. They protect 

my seeds and allow less water to 

escape than their cones.

It’s nice to meet you, but 

don’t shake my hand! My sharp 

spines shade me and direct 

water to my roots.

The other plants say I sure do 

shine, but the waxy coating 

on my leaves keeps water

 in and reflects light. 

The other plants tease me because 

I have no leaves. I don’t need 

leaves; I make food in my stems.

 The broadleaf plants make fun of 

my tiny leaves, but they help me. 

I use less energy and water than

 the other plants.

You might think my needles are 

waving at you. Actually, I point 

them up to expose less 

area to the hot sun.

 I’m the stinky one in the garden. 

The smelly oil in my leaves keeps 

hungry animals away.

I am much wiser than the Pinyon 

Pine. Instead of needles, I have 

scaly leaves that reduce water loss.

I’m a bit shy, so I only open my 

beautiful purple blossoms

 in the shade.

Come look, but don’t touch! My 

sharp leaves grow in a spiral to 

help water flow to my base. 

You can rub my soft leaves if you 

want. They have tiny hairs to 

catch water and reflect light. 

Mormon Tea

8

Meet the Plants

Look closely at the accordion-like 

pleats under my spines. They allow 

me to swell when I am full of 

water and shrink when I get thirsty..
What’s in a Name?

Rim Rock Drive is a road unlike any other. Its 23 miles curve around the canyon rims to connect two 

points that are only eight miles apart (as the crow flies)! Men working for the Civilian Conservation 

Corps (CCC) came from all over the country in 1933 to toil on this project, the grand idea of John 

Otto. They were paid $1 a day for the back-breaking job of carving out the road using shovels, 

picks, and hand-hammered drills.

___ ___ ___ h ___ ___ ___ ___ Rock



 

 

 

 

 

- bell

 

 

Clues

Bathtub

Mushroom

Saddlehorn

Liberty

Dogs 

Balanced

Ovens

Fallen

Artists

Devils

Legend

Otto’s ___ ___ t ___ ___ ___ ___

___ ___ t ___ ___ ___ s

Point

___ ___ ___ ___ en Rock

___ ___ b___ ___ ___ ___ Cap

___ ___ ___a ___ ___ed

Rock

___ ___ ___ d ___ ___ horn

___ ___ v ___ ___ s Kitchen

__ ___ ___s Tooth

Coke ___ ___ ___ ____s

9

 

 

Use your park map.

1. Solve the riddles. 

2. Find the highest elevation 

 along the road and mark

 it with a star.

3. Label the trails and circle

 the ones you hiked. 

4. Put an X on places you visited.

N

S

W E

Road

Trail

- beam
 Man With a Plan

In 1907 John Otto wrote, “I came here last year and 

found these canyons, and they felt like the heart of the 

world to me. I’m going to stay... and promote this 

place, because it should be a national park.” He loved 

these canyons and refused to give up on his dream of 

protecting them for people, like you, to enjoy.

Crack the code to learn more about John Otto, 

 the man with a plan. (Use the clues if you get stuck.)

6 ! %  Q J " S ' J u z G ! R ~ L b v x a N M  {

 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

1. He wrote many ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ to government ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ____ ____ ____ ____ 

 z Qv v Q L b R J J ' % ' 6 z b

 asking them to set the area aside as a national park.

2. After the monument was established in 1911, Otto was paid $1 a month to take care of 

 the park as its first ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___.

 % x b v R  ' 6 !

3. He lived in a ___ ___ ___ ___ and built over 20 miles of ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ by himself. 

 v Q ! v v L 6 ' z b

4. Otto carved steps to climb to the top of ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___Monument. 

 ' !  Q  Q !  Q! % Q

Making a Difference

97%

saltwater 

in oceans

2%

freshwater

frozen in glaciers

1%

usable 

freshwater

1.

2.

3.

10

John Otto showed us that one man, with a dream and hard work, can make a big 

difference. Think how YOU can make a difference today by conserving water, the most 

precious resource in the desert. List three ways you will conserve water.

Clues

tent

trails

letters

officials

custodian 

Independence 
M Y M M S H R P E S U L

R I C E G R A S S O P I 

S A G E B R U S H N U Y

U G W Y J N R W G Y W O 

M D S P U R Y A N U I D

A C P I N Y O N H C L E 

C B O N I H O R R C L S

Y M I E P L E D T A O C

G L O B E M A L L O W M 

R W S I R M O R M O N A 

B H I Y B E R A E U R K

Long before the wagon trains made their way out west, native people like the Fremont 

and Ute Indians occupied this arid region. This dry desert is a harsh place to live, but 

Indians were masters at using plants for food, medicine, clothing, tools, shelter, and 

everything else imaginable. If you think science class is hard, imagine all the difficult 

lessons Indian children had to learn about their environment to survive!

Unscramble the plant names in the sentences below, then find them in the puzzle.

11

1. In the spring, Ute Indians made baskets from the soft wood of three-leaf usamc __ __ m __ __.

2. noMrmo __ __ r__ __ __ tea (ephedra) roots were boiled to make a drink to treat colds.

3. Rope was made from the inner bark of Utah njpirue __ u __ __ __ __ __ trees. 

4. Ute Indians used sap from pinyon nepi __ __ __ __ trees as a glue to repair sandals. 

5. Indian ecgrsirsa __ __ __ __ g __ __ s __ seeds were ground into flour or boiled to make hot cereal.

6. cycua __ __ c__ __ fruits and flowers were eaten raw, and the roots were used to make soap.

7. Ute Indians harvested inpyno __ __ n __ __ __ pine nuts in the fall to eat during the winter.

8. Infections were treated with mashed up loblmealgow g __ __ __ __ m __ __ __ __ __ leaves. 

9. ilwolw __ __ l __ __ __ branches were perfect for making bows and arrows. 

10. Ute Indians wove basgerhus __ __ g __ __ __ __ __ h bark into cloth.

Living Off the Land

pine yucca sumac pinyon willow juniper

Mormon ricegrass sagebrush globemallow 

Clues
Fill in the blanks to find out what each symbol stands for.

The mountain is the symbol for the beautiful

 ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___.

The lake depicts the ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ resources 

 and opportunities for recreation.

The tree represents the vegetation, or ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___. 

 The bison symbolizes the animals, or ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___.

The shape of the arrowhead stands for the artifacts of native cultures 

 and the cultural __ __ __ __ __ __ __ of the United States.

Use the box on the right to design a patch 

that represents Colorado National Monument 

and the extraordinary examples of erosion 

the monument protects.

The National Park Service (NPS) protects close to 400 sites. Each site

preserves and protects important natural and cultural resources. The 

arrowhead is the official symbol. Each picture inside the arrowhead 

represents resources protected by the NPS. 

12

tawre

alfromnds

 Protecting This Land Forever 

 Create Your Own Patch 

Ranger Wisdom

Did you know 

that

 Independence 

Monument is 450 

feet tall? That’s as 

tall as a 37 

story skyscraper!

itohsry

Clues

plants

landforms

water

history

wildlife

ldwifeli

lpatns
 Ranger Wisdom

 On July 4, 1910, John Otto climbed to 

 the top of Independence Monument to 

 fly the American flag, a tradition that

 continues today.

adaptation: change in an organism’s structure or behavior that helps it survive in its environment

algae: simple plants without true roots, leaves, or stems

artifact: archeaological or historic object made by humans

bacteria: single-celled microscopic organisms

CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps): program during the Great Depression that gave young men jobs

conserve: to use or manage wisely; preserve; use less

cultural: the shared values and knowledge of a society

cyanobacteria: blue-green algae with filaments (strings) that hold sand grains together and 

 soak up water when it rains

fungi: plants that break down other dead plants or animals

lichen: a fungus and an algae living in harmony to provide for each other (often seen living on rocks)

mesa: a flat-topped mountain

monolith: a free standing rock formation

mosses: tiny, leafy stemmed, flowerless plants

natural: from the Earth (not man-made)

plateau: a flat area of land that is at a higher elevation than the land around it

Precambrian: earliest era in the history of the Earth

resources: natural or cultural objects or areas protected because of their value to a society

sandstone: rock made from layers of sand that have hardened due to pressure over long periods of time

sedimentary: rock made from layers of sediment (smaller pieces of other rocks, sand, clay, gravel, etc.)

stratigraphic column: a visual model that represents rock layers 

13

Glossary

Ranger Wisdom 

On May 24, 1911, President 

Taft established Colorado 

National Monument, making 

it the first national

 monument in Colorado.

Ranger Wisdom 

What makes a national monument different from a national park?... A monument is established by the 

declaration of a president. A national park is established by an act of Congress.

Ranger Wisdom 

Did you know that Balanced 

Rock weighs 600 tons? That’s as 

much as 120 African elephants! 
 As a Junior Ranger, I promise to protect 

Colorado National Monument and its rocks, 

plants, and animals. After I leave, I will 

learn about and protect the natural world 

where I live and all the national parks I visit.

Congratulations!

 

You are a Junior Ranger at

Colorado National Monument.

Park Official

Independence Monument

Colorado 

National Monument

National Park Service

U.S. Department of the Interior
Designed and Created by

Annie Williams

Project Supervisor

Michelle Wheatley

Editor

Lace Stevens

Technical Support

Teri Lindauer

Cover Art

Sally Bellacqua

Illustrations

Larry Eifert www.eifert-art.com

Bill and Sandy Hood

J.J. Johnson

Published by

Colorado National Monument Association

National Park Foundation

This Junior Ranger booklet was funded by the National Park Foundation, national charitable partner of America’s National Parks 

with support from the El Pomar Foundation and the Colorado National Monument Association. The National Park

 Foundation supports the NPS Junior Ranger programs as part of their nationwide effort to connect children to America’s 

heritage and ensure the future of our national parks.

To learn more about the online NPS Junior Ranger program visit www.nps.gov/webrangers

NATIONAL PARK

FOUNDATION