Mesa Verde National Park Service

U.S. Department of the Interior

Mesa Verde National Park
2 

To earn your Mesa Verde Junior Ranger badge, just 

complete the following steps: 

1. Complete the activity called “Being A Good Steward.” 

2. Then, complete at least 3 more activities. Once you

 choose the activities you want to do, use these 

 special codes to know which questions to answer for 

 your age group:

 

3. Once you have finished steps 1 and 2 above, take 

 your booklet to any park information center to

 receive your Mesa Verde Junior Ranger badge. 

Ages 4-7 Ages 8-9 Ages 10-up

Welcome to Mesa Verde National Park!

This Junior Ranger booklet was created through the partnership of the National 

Park Service (NPS), the National Park Foundation (NPF), and the Student 

Conservation Association (SCA) and was made possible through the generous 

support of Ocean Spray Cranberries, Inc., a National Corporate Partner of NPF. 

Thanks, also, to Junior Ranger Ambassador, Clint Herriman. To learn more 

about the online Junior Ranger program, visit www.nps.gov/webrangers.

Illustrations and artwork by Mary Lloyd, Talela Hales, Marna Bastian, DJ 

Webb, and Jim Tschetter. Use of “Through a Child’s Eyes,” on the cover and 

throughout booklet, courtesy of Mesa Verde Museum Association.

Acknowledgments

The National Park Service and its park rangers care for special places like Mesa Verde for today’s 

and future generations to enjoy. That means YOU, as well as your children and grandchildren!

Hi! My name is Kathy and this is my new friend, Gentle Rain. Gentle Rain and her family 

used to live in a Mesa Verde cliff dwelling 750 years ago. She helped me become a Junior 

Ranger, and now both of us want to help you. 

Becoming a Junior Ranger is fun! As you explore

 the park, you will learn about Gentle Rain’s 

 culture, look for items her family and friends 

might have used, and visit their homes. Just 

follow our directions and you’ll earn a Mesa 

Verde Junior Ranger badge in no time!

Being a Good Steward . . . . . . . 3

Ancestral Puebloan Life . . . . . . . . 4

Times Have Changed . . . . . . . . . . 6

Cliff Dwelling Bingo . . . . . . . . . 10

Suggested Activities

Half Day (2 - 3 hours)

Being a Good Steward . . . . . . . . 3

Ancestral Puebloan Life . . . . . . . . 4

Generations

(Mesa Top Loop Drive) . . . . . . . . 8

A-Mazing Migration . . . . . . . . . 11

or more.....

Suggested Activities

Full Day or More
 3

Being A Good Steward

Activity can be done anywhere.

1.

2.

3.

4.

Kathy: To become a Junior Ranger we need to be good stewards. A steward is someone who 

helps take care of something that belongs to everyone. Since we share our national parks with 

thousands, even millions of other people, a Junior Ranger should know how to be a good 

steward while visiting these special places. It’s easy. All you have to do is learn and follow the 

rules of the park. Learning the rules lets us know how to stay safe and take care of the park.

Look at the picture below. 

•	Circle four things people are 

doing that are harmful, and

•	Describe WHY they are wrong

......................................................................................

Circle 4

Describe 1

Circle 4

Describe 2

Circle 4

Describe 4
4

Look carefully around the diorama. What did the 

Ancestral Puebloans (Modified Basketmakers)

NOT eat?

 Corn Beans Meat Oranges

Gentle Rain: Mesa Verde National Park protects over 700 years of history about my 

people, the Ancestral Puebloans. Throughout the museum, you will discover how we 

learned to adapt to our environment in order to meet our basic needs of food, water, 

and shelter. 

Have fun as you explore the dioramas and exhibits to find the answers to the museum 

activity questions. 

Find the place where the Ancestral Puebloans in 

this Mesa Verde pueblo got their water. What is it?

 Faucet Spring River Ocean

Look for a circular room being built in the ground 

in front of the cliff dwelling. What is it?

 Swimming Pool Kiva Trash Pit 

Ancestral Puebloan Life

Activity for the Chapin Mesa Archeological Museum.

FOOD - 3rd Diorama (Check or circle the right answer)

WATER - 4th Diorama

SHELTER - 5th Diorama

.........................................................................................................................................................................

DECORATE 

THE WATER JAR

Mesa Verde pottery is known for 

its beautiful designs. Draw your 

own design on the jar below. 

(If you want an example, see the 

pottery exhibits.)

Activity continued on next page
5

Find an item that women used to carry the water 

from the springs to their homes. What is it called?

___ ___ ___ ___ (Hint: See “Beginning of Pottery” exhibit)

What is a kiva? How was it used? 

Find a tool they used to plant corn. What is it?

(Hint: See “People of Corn” exhibit)

___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ 

FOOD - Exhibit Area

WATER - Exhibit Area

SHELTER - Exhibit Area

FOOD FIND

Place an X over the plants and

animals you find as you go 

through the museum exhibits.

.........................................................................................................................................................................

Across:

 1. This crop was very important to the Ancestral 

 Puebloans’ way of life. A part of this plant has

 been found in almost every room, kiva, and work

 area in Mesa Verde. (Room 1)

 2. Before the bow and arrow, this spear-throwing

 device was used to hunt large game. (Room 1)

 3. This was the first type of house built in Mesa

 Verde. (Room 2)

Down:

 4. These small bowls with long handles were used 

 for dipping and pouring liquids. (Room 3)

 5. Scientists study wood beams used in the construc-

 tion of a dwelling to learn when the structure was

 built. What is this science called? (Room 4)

 6. The Ancestral Puebloans were good at conserving 

 water in this dry climate. You can save water at 

 home by turning this off while brushing your teeth. 

FOOD, WATER, SHELTER - Exhibit Area

Use the clues below to complete the crossword puzzle. 

Begin in the exhibit room across from the dioramas. CROSSWORD PUZZLE

5.

4.

1.

3.

6.

2.

Bighorn Sheep Corn Turkey

Beans Pinyon nuts

Yucca Rabbit Squash

Prickly pear

Ancestral Puebloan Life (continued)
6

Activity can be done anywhere.

Gentle Rain: My family learned how to adapt and survive at Mesa Verde by using what 

nature provided. Because of this, my life at Mesa Verde was very different from your everyday life. At a young age, children helped with daily chores. We didn’t go to school, but we 

learned valuable life lessons everyday. We learned how to grow crops, hunt, make pottery, 

and build houses with mud and stone. We gathered materials from our surroundings to make 

what we needed. We also learned about our history through stories told by our grandparents. 

Discover how we lived in Mesa Verde by completing the following activities. 

Now Then

Draw a line from each item in the left column (things we use or do today) with an item in the 

right column (things the Ancestral Puebloans used or did then.)

Times Have Changed

Activity continued on next page
7

To learn more about Gentle Rain’s life in Mesa Verde, fill in the blanks to read the following 

story. If you have little brothers or sisters, they might like to hear the story when you are done. 

(Use the word list to fill in the blanks and complete the story.)

.........................................................................................................................................................................

Each box contains a list of items made from natural resources found in Mesa Verde. Use the 

blanks beside each box to write the name of the natural resource used to make everything in 

the list. (If you need a hint, use the word list at the bottom of the page or explore the museum.) 

 

__ __ __ __ 

Bowl

Mug

Mortar

Plaster __ __ __ __ __

Sandal

Rope

Mat

Shampoo

Needle

Basket

Food

Paintbrush

__ __ __ __ __ __

Pine nuts (food)

Timber for building

Pitch for waterproofing

Firewood

__ __ __ __ __ __

Blanket

Food

Bone tools and jewelry

Feathers

clay

corn

hand

kivas

metates

pinyon

pottery

rabbits

seep

turkey

yucca

My family and I live in a stone room of a cliff dwelling. The people of my village wake up very early 

and start cooking fires in the rooms and courtyards. Every morning, my mother goes to collect water 

from the nearest ____________ spring while I feed the turkeys.

As soon as the morning meal is eaten, the men and boys climb up the cliff face using ____________ 

and toe holds to reach the fields. Spring days are spent clearing the fields and planting ___________, 

beans, and squash. Corn is our most important crop. The women use manos and _________________ 

to grind the corn into meal. But for now, my mother is teaching my younger sister how to make 

__________________ from ____________. We use it for cooking, and storing food and water. 

Throughout the year, the men hunt mule deer and __________________, while children help the 

women gather wild plants, such as nuts from the ______________ pine trees, grains from ricegrass, 

and pads from the prickly pear cactus. Much of this food is stored for the winter. We also collect 

_____________ leaves to pound into fibers to make rope, sandals, and baskets. My father weaves 

________________ feathers with yucca fibers to make blankets for the winter.

When the ____________ are not used for ceremonies, we spend time in these warm, underground rooms 

listening to the stories of our people, or working on crafts such as weaving, basketry, and making tools. 

No matter the time of the year, my people are busy with the daily tasks needed to survive in Mesa Verde.

Times Have Changed (continued)
8 

Gentle Rain: My people did not always live in cliff dwellings at Mesa Verde. For the 

first 600 years they lived on the mesa top. As you drive the Mesa Top Loop you will see 

changes in our housing styles from pithouse, to pueblo, and finally to cliff dwelling. 

Generations

Activity for the Mesa Top Loop Drive.

PART 1 - Connect the Dots: 

After driving the Mesa Top Loop, connect the dots to see one of the Ancestral Puebloan 

homes you visited.

.........................................................................................................................................................................

Pithouses & Early Pueblo Villages (A.D. 700 - 950) 

Pithouse (A.D. 600) 

1. The Ancestral Puebloans were starting to build ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ homes, 

and becoming farmers.

2. The Ancestral Puebloans began building above ground villages using ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____

 construction (rough stones loosely cemented with clay).

Sun Point View (A.D. 1200 - 1300) 

3. The Ancestral Puebloans built their cliff dwellings inside cliff ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____.

PART 1 - Scavenger Hunt: 

Drive the Mesa Top Loop Road and read the signs at each of the three stops listed 

below. Use the signs to find the missing word in each sentence. Fill in the blanks 

for each sentence, and write the words in the word list (Part 2) on the next page. 

(Don’t forget to ask your parents for help if you need it.)

Go to PART 3 to draw your 

favorite type of home.

PART 2: Which type of home is it? 

 Circle the answer below. 

Pithouse 

Pueblo

Cliff Dwelling

.........................................................................................................................................................................

Activity continued on next page
9

.........................................................................................................................................................................

PART 3: Draw the type of house you would most like to live in.

PART 2 - Word Search: 

Locate all twelve words in the word search puzzle below. (You should have 

found the three missing words in Part 1.) Circle or draw a line through each 

word in the puzzle to complete it.

y t i n u m m o c h m p t

r p p e r m a n e n t i l

c o o p e r a t i o n t o

s e v o c l a t k o a h l

u m a s o n r y l r r o b

a v i k l o b i l o p u e

g s p r i n g i r o s s u

t i p e r i f a p m v e p

g n i l l e w d f f i l c

1. ___________________

2. ___________________

3. ___________________

4. cliff dwelling

5. community

6. cooperation

 7. fire pit

 8. kiva

 9. pithouse

10. pueblo

11. room

12. spring

Generations (continued)
10

Cliff Dwelling Bingo

Activity can be done at any cliff dwelling.

Gentle Rain: Visit a cliff dwelling, such as Spruce Tree House, to see many of the same 

things I did when I lived here. Remember to be a good steward by not touching, climbing, 

or leaning on the walls.

Look for the items below and place an “X” over the ones you find. Find four in a row across 

or diagonally. 

Pinyon Pine

Juniper Berries Mano and Metate

Kiva

Prickly Pear Cactus Ranger Hat Soot-blackened Wall

Lizard Fire Pit Bird

Viga (roof beam) Seep Spring

Two-story Building

Ladder T-shaped Door

Yucca
11

A-mazing Migration

Activity can be done anywhere.

Kathy: For some time, it was thought that Gentle Rain’s family and the rest of the Ancestral 

Puebloan people simply vanished from Mesa Verde. We now know that they migrated south 

over 700 years ago. Their descendants include the Rio Grande Pueblos in New Mexico, the 

Hopi in Arizona, and the Ysleta del Sur in Texas. 

Follow the paths through the maze from Mesa Verde to find the present-day locations of the 

Ancestral Puebloans’ descendants. You must travel through and find at least one Ancestral 

Puebloan item along the way to each pueblo, and avoid any modern items.

Find the Hopi 

Pueblos.

Find the Hopi 

and Rio Grande 

Pueblos.

Find the Hopi, 

Rio Grande, 

and Ysleta del 

Sur Pueblos.

Start

Here

Mesa Verde

AZ 

Rio Grande

Pueblos

Ysleta del Sur

Pueblo

Hopi

Pueblos

TX

NM 
I am proud to be a Mesa Verde Junior Ranger. I promise to be 

a good steward of Mesa Verde National Park and all national 

parks. I will pick up litter, conserve water and energy, and 

recycle whenever I can. I also promise to be respectful of other 

cultures whose way of life may be different from my own. 

This Certifies That

Mesa Verde National Park

has completed the Junior Ranger Program at

Witnessed by: ________________________________________ Date: ____________________ (Park Ranger signature)

Be An Artist!

What I experienced at Draw a picture or write about what you liked BEST

Mesa Verde National Park...

Place a check mark next to the 

cliff dwellings you visited:

Spruce Tree House Long House 

Balcony House Step House

Cliff Palace

Place a check mark next to other 

activities you did:

Walked a trail

Drove the Mesa Top Loop

Saw a pithouse

Had a picnic

Talked to a ranger

Mesa Verde Junior Ranger

Souvenir Page