To our visitors, though, the most popular natural feature is the rock outcroppings. The ridges support thriving lichen colonies and dwarfed junipers and offer numerous picturesque overlooks of ocean and ponds. Beyond the ridges the land slopes down to brackish marsh. From there, one can look back over the Sanctuary and also out over the adjacent Sachuest Point National Wildlife Refuge and across the Sakonnet River over to Little Compton and out over the Atlantic Ocean. In early autumn, it is a great vantage to view migrating raptors.
Sanctuary staff provide educational programs for all ages, from pre-school though adult.
The most significant audience, though, is the school-age children of Aquidneck Island. During the spring and fall, school children participate in field trips, exploring the woods, ridges, fields, pond, and marsh to learn about the local ecology. During the summer we also run a nature day camp. During the winter months, Sanctuary Naturalists visit schools in the area providing lectures in the classroom. In the summer of 1997, after several years of negotiation, the Norman Bird Sanctuary acquired the original 18th-century farmhouse, outbuildings and property known as Paradise Farm.