National Park Service

U.S. Department of the Interior

Theodore Roosevelt and His Sagamore Hill Home – A Junior Ranger Activity

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Sagamore Hill National Historic Site Junior Ranger Activities 2

“The nation’s

most valuable asset

is the children; 

for the children 

are the nation of

the future.” —Theodore Roosevelt

at the Jamestown Exposition, VA

June 10, 1907

Junior Ranger Program

Sagamore Hill National Historic Site

Junior Ranger Activities Sagamore Hill National Historic Site is offering our young

visitors a special opportunity to visit President Roosevelt’s

Summer White House and to have fun in the process by

taking part in a number of different Junior Ranger Activities

on site. 

These activities will teach children about the Roosevelt 

family and their home while earning a Junior Ranger badge

and certificate. These programs also introduce Ranger

Activities, the concepts of conservation and stewardship to

young people.

In order to earn the Junior Ranger badge, the young person

must complete any one of several activities. These are the

activities currently offered:

Those completing three or more of the activities are entitled

to the special Sagamore Hill Junior Ranger Patch. (You must

show the certificates or the completed booklets to receive

the patch.)

1. Theodore Roosevelt and His Sagamore Hill Home

2. The Theodore Roosevelt Museum History Hunt

3. Letterboxing Adventures at Sagamore Hill

4. The Wonderbook of Nature: 

Exploring Natural History at Sagamore Hill

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Sagamore Hill National Historic Site Junior Ranger Activities 3

The faces carved into the side of Mount Rushmore

represent four American presidents. 

Can you identify each of them? 

1.

2.

3.

4.

Mount Rushmore

A National Park Service site in South Dakota

What were some

things that made

Theodore Roosevelt

special?

Why do you think 

the sculptor of 

Mount Rushmore

included Theodore’s

face?

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Through the years the

National Park Service arrowhead has represented 

different things to different

people. What do these

things represent to you?

bison

sequoia tree

mountain range

Sagamore Hill National Historic Site Junior Ranger Activities 4

Theodore Roosevelt

and Conservation

Please read the paragraph and circle the correct

answer(s).

One thing Theodore Roosevelt is remembered for today is

his dedication to conservation. Conservation happens when

people decide to save, or conserve, natural resources (such

as animals, forests, lakes, beaches, etc.) and also historic

places (Indian burial grounds, presidents’ homes, battlefields, etc.). Theodore Roosevelt saved millions of acres of

land during his presidency. Many places he saved, like the

Grand Canyon, became National Parks that people know

and love. Even Theodore’s own home, Sagamore Hill,

became a National Park site after his death. 

What does conservation mean?

A. to build new homes on the beach

B. to tear down old buildings 

C. to save forests and lakes and to prevent historic 

buildings and battlefields from being destroyed 

D. to clear forests and build amusement parks

Which of these is a National Park

or a National Historic Site? 

(there may be more than one)

A. Six Flags Great Adventure Park 

B. Disney World Resort 

C. Grand Canyon 

D. Sagamore Hill

E. Mount Rushmore 

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Sagamore Hill National Historic Site Junior Ranger Activities 5

The rangers here at

Sagamore Hill would like

you to design your own

National Park Service 

arrowhead. You might want

to look at the current

arrowhead (on previous

page) for inspiration. 

Think about including

forests, lakes, historic

homes, battlefields,

American animals or

important people from

history.

Please draw your 

arrowhead design in the

blank outline.

An Arrowhead of

Your Own

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Sagamore Hill National Historic Site Junior Ranger Activities 6

Theodore Roosevelt

and Adventure

President Theodore

Roosevelt is doing

his part to dig the

Panama

__________________ 

by operating a

huge steam shovel.

Theodore was 

delighted to be the

first president to fly 

in an _____________.

Theodore loved to explore the world and to experience 

new things. He spent time as a cowboy in the West. He was a

soldier in the U.S. Army. He traveled to foreign countries like

Germany, Panama, Egypt and Brazil. And he experienced

new inventions such as the submarine and airplane. 

Each photograph shows Theodore in different places doing

exciting things. 

Use clues in the pictures and the Word Bank to fill in the

blanks of each sentence.

Use this Word Bank

to help:

safari

cowboy

Canal

airplane

National

Lake Huron

submarine

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Sagamore Hill National Historic Site Junior Ranger Activities 7

Theodore enjoyed 

his year-long

____________________

in Africa with 

his son Kermit.

Theodore Roosevelt

was very dedicated to

conservation.

Whenever he got the

chance, he visited our

country’s

_____________________

Parks, such as

Yosemite in California.

Theodore loved to

travel to the West

where he had been a

____________________

earlier in life.

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Sagamore Hill National Historic Site Junior Ranger Activities 8

The Panama Canal

One of Theodore Roosevelt’s great international accomplishments during his time as president was the completion of the

Panama Canal. It connected two major oceans for the first

time and improved shipping, trade and the mobility of the

U.S. Navy. 

Complete the activities below to test your knowledge 

of the Panama Canal.

1. Match the letters on the map with the correct 

word from the Word Bank on the left. (Hint: The words

can be used only once.)

2. Find Panama on the map (on opposite page) and 

circle it.

3. Draw, with a solid line, the route a ship would have 

to take from New York City to San Francisco before the

canal was built.

4. Draw, with a dotted line, the route a ship could take

after the completion of the Panama Canal. 

Bonus: Why do you think Panama was chosen

for the canal, and not another country?

Use this Word Bank 

to help:

Atlantic Ocean

New York

Lake Erie

Indian Ocean

Detroit

Pacific Ocean

San Francisco

Match these letters for

activity 1.

A.

B.

C.

D.

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Sagamore Hill National Historic Site Junior Ranger Activities 9

Map of 

the Americas

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Sagamore Hill National Historic Site Junior Ranger Activities 10

A Political Cartoon

Cartoons can be used in

different ways. They might

appear in the comic section

of your daily newspaper.

You can also see many cartoon characters on the

screen at your local movie

theater. 

Politicians, including

many presidents, have

appeared in cartoons for

more than one hundred

years. Political cartoons are

different from most others

you have seen. They are

used to make people think

about things that are happening in the world — but

they do it in a fun way.

Spend a minute looking at the cartoon of

Theodore Roosevelt

chasing a lion during

his safari in Africa.

Answer the questions

at right.

Why does Theodore suddenly stop and lift his hat to the lions?

Why do you think the cartoonist drew a lion family with 

six cubs?

Why do you think the cartoonist drew something like this?

(Hint: do you think the cartoonist really liked hunting?)

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Sagamore Hill National Historic Site Junior Ranger Activities 11

A Presidential 

Word Jumble

Each jumble of letters below can be unscrambled to reveal 

a word. Try to unscramble the letters to make a word that has

something to do with Theodore Roosevelt’s life.

Y O W C S B O _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

These men take care of cattle out West.

Y A V N ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

It protects our country at sea.

A P A M N A _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

A country that is famous for its canal.

O B S I N _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

These animals are also called buffalo.

H A T A N M T N A _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The place where Theodore was born.

Y O S R E T Y B A _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The place where Theodore built his own home.

G O U H R I D R E R _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

A soldier in Theodore’s cavalry regiment.

A S M G R O E A I L L H ____________________________

The name Theodore gave to his home.

E L E P O H T N E ___________________________________

A form of communication new to Theodore.

C A A F R I _________________________________________

A place Theodore went on safari.

R I A L A N E P ______________________________________

Theodore was the first president to fly in one.

Z I L B A R __________________________________________

A country where Theodore explored the Amazon River.

Example: 

E R B A

This jumble becomes

the word BEAR.

Use the clues to help 

discover the 

scrambled words.

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20 Sagamore Hill Road

Oyster Bay, New York 11771

EXPERIENCE YOUR AMERICA

1. Theodore Roosevelt and His Sagamore Hill Home

This activity is completed following a visit to the home of the 26th

president. Children may do this when they visit with their families,

or it is administered as a take-back-to-class activity for school

groups who have visited.

2. The Theodore Roosevelt Museum History Hunt

Be a history detective and test your powers of observation. 

This activity is administered to young people and their families 

or during a site visit by school groups. For many children this 

will be their first Junior Ranger experience.

3. Letterboxing Adventures at Sagamore Hill

An activity in which you are the detective in search

of a hidden letterbox using clues in this booklet.

Letterboxing is known as The Outdoor Treasure

Hunting Pastime and involves use of compass

orientation and puzzle solving.

4. The Wonderbook of Nature: 

Exploring Natural History at Sagamore Hill

This activity book is a field guide to some selected species of plant

and animal life found at Sagamore Hill. The activity teaches 

children to use a printed guide book to identify plants and animals.

The Sagamore Hill Series: Connecting America’s Children to Theodore

Roosevelt and His Sagamore Hill Home. It is the purpose of this series to use

historic photos, artifacts, political cartoons and the like, to tell the story at age

appropriate language to reach young people and to serve as a platform and

entry point for additional exploration and discovery via print and web-based

distance-learning activities.

These materials were developed by the professional and volunteer National

Park Service staff at Sagamore Hill NHS, Oyster Bay, New York, to mark the

centenary of TR’s Presidency in 2006.

Explore and enjoy all the Junior Ranger Activities 

currently offered:

National Park Service

U.S. Department of the Interior

Sagamore Hill National Historic Site

Home of Theodore Roosevelt

The National Park Service cares for

special places saved by the American

people so that all may experience 

our heritage.

Thanks to the Friends of Sagamore Hill

for their financial assistance in 

creating and printing these materials.

TM

Your name(s)

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