A Junior Ranger’s Guide to Learning at U.S. National Parks [2024]

I’m a huge fan of the National Park Service Junior Ranger program. My family loves visiting national parks, and Junior Ranger activities always add to our park visits, guiding us through park features and teaching us about the environment, wildlife, and history in an engaging and interactive way. National parks are the ultimate field trip, and Junior Ranger programs help us make the most out of learning in and enjoying some of America’s greatest natural wonders.

This guide explains the Junior Ranger program, where you can become a Junior Ranger, who can participate, and tips for success in supporting Junior Rangers. Join us as we explore this program that encourages children and families to love nature, history, and conservation.

What Is the Junior Ranger Program?

Starting in the 1930s at Yosemite National Park, National Park Service Junior Ranger programs award badges and Junior Ranger status to park visitors. The program, which was standardized in 2005, educates participants about the significance of the parks and gives them a sense of responsibility for preserving natural and cultural resources.

Designed for young park visitors, Junior Ranger programs are generally intended for children 5 to 13, but people of all ages and abilities can participate. Usually, Junior Ranger requirements involve completing a park-specific activity booklet and turning it in to a ranger to be sworn in as a Junior Ranger and receive a badge.

Junior Ranger badges are typically earned on-site at national park sites — including national historic parks and monuments, not just national parks — but you can complete many Junior Ranger programs from home.

The books and badges are almost always free but may cost a few dollars at a park’s visitor center. You can request booklets in person at a park visitor center, download books online, or contact the park by email, phone, or mail to request a book by mail.

Almost all national park sites offer Junior Ranger programs, so you’re not limited to the 63 national parks. With more than 400 national park sites, including national monuments, seashores, historic sites, and memorials, there are Junior Ranger programs available in every U.S. state. You may find multiple Junior Ranger opportunities on a single trip, especially if you’re visiting historical hot spots such as Washington, D.C.

What Junior Ranger Programs Offer

The Junior Ranger program is designed to educate young park visitors and encourage participation. The booklets offer park-specific education and direct participants to explore each park with activities. 

While each park’s Junior Ranger program is different, booklets usually require scavenger hunts, historical research, identification of plants or animals native to the park, and participation in activities such as hiking.

You can count on the Junior Ranger activity booklets to share details that are important to your park experience. Most books cover:

• Visiting: You’ll learn how to be a good park visitor, such as properly disposing of trash and not feeding wild animals. Visitor tips and information, including maps and warnings such as how to avoid poison oak may be in the booklet, too. Booklets may ask what you enjoyed most about the park, other parks you’ve visited, and which parks you want to visit next.
• Environment: Expect to learn about ecosystems within the park, including trees, flowers, and natural features such as mountains and rivers. For example, you may complete a scavenger hunt for plants and animals, learn about the parts of a tree, or identify features of various park ecosystems.
• Animal Life: Booklets offer details about animals that live in the park, with images that can help you identify them, learn what they eat, and how you can be respectful of them during your visit.
• Activities: Plan to participate in a park activity, whether self-guided or ranger-led. Booklets may ask you to take notes on a trail hike, create a drawing about your experience at the park, interview a ranger, or write a story in a historical setting relevant to the park.
• Culture and History: Booklets explore the park’s history, including historically significant people and events, particularly any indigenous tribes that lived — or still live — in the area.

Of course, every Junior Ranger activity book is different because each national park site is different. Some national park sites focus more on history and culture, while others are more about ecosystems and animal life. For example, the Junior Ranger activities for New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park center on the history and significance of jazz, while activities for Canaveral National Seashore focus on animals, plants, and conservation.

What We Love About the Junior Ranger Program

National parks are an incredible setting for learning, encouraging nature appreciation, historical and cultural awareness, respect for animals, and conservation. Participating in Junior Ranger programs is the best way to start learning in each park with activity booklets that cover important topics about the park and encourage activities and education.

Junior Ranger programs almost always deepen our experience with interactive learning at national park sites. For example, the Muir Woods National Monument Junior Ranger book had us sniffing yellow leaves to debate what we thought they smelled like and explained how the Coast Miwok people use those leaves to repel bugs and treat headaches and colds. We probably would have missed out on that enrichment had we just jumped right into hiking the trails.

Although we research parks ahead of our visits and use visitor guides, Junior Ranger activity books offer an additional guide for things to do and enjoy at the park. Activities in the booklet may lead us to explore parts of the park we hadn’t planned to visit but ultimately enjoy. The activity books also offer helpful reference information in a kid-friendly format, such as maps, key points within the park, and identification of plants and animals. That makes it easy for kids to follow along with a greater understanding as we journey through the park and anticipate what’s next!

The entire Junior Ranger experience is an excellent way to enhance any national park visit, but ultimately, earning a badge is a memorable experience that participants can be proud of. The swearing-in ceremony, where new Junior Rangers pledge to protect the parks, adds a ceremonial aspect to the experience, and the badges are a great souvenir to take home and remember accomplishments.

Where You Can Become a Junior Ranger

You can become a Junior Ranger at almost any National Park Service site, as most parks offer a Junior Ranger program. Junior Ranger programs aren’t limited to national parks, and you can earn Junior Ranger badges at any participating park within the 430-unit National Park System, including:

• National Battlefields, National Battlefield Parks, and National Battlefield Sites
• National Historic Sites and International Historic Sites
• National Historical Parks
• National Lakeshores
• National Memorials
• National Military Parks
• National Monuments
• National Parks
• National Parkways
• National Preserves and National Reserves
• National Scenic Trails
• National Seashores
• National Wild and Scenic Rivers

With hundreds of national park sites, including sites in every U.S. state, there are many opportunities to become a Junior Ranger as you travel — even if you’re staying close to home!

Some areas have many national park sites close to each other and offer numerous opportunities to earn Junior Ranger badges. For example, there are 12 national park sites in the port of New York City and 25 parks within Washington, D.C. Some sites have multiple Junior Ranger locations, such as the Golden Gate National Recreation Area in San Francisco, which has Junior Ranger programs that include Alcatraz Island, Fort Point National Historic Site, Muir Woods National Monument, and San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park.

It’s also possible to earn multiple Junior Ranger badges at a national park site. You can earn a badge for the site and also earn national and specialty badges on the same visit.

If you can’t make it to the parks, many Junior Ranger programs can be completed virtually or by mail. The National Park Service offers online interactive activities, and you can contact individual parks to request Junior Ranger materials. Some Junior Ranger programs are offered almost exclusively online or by mail, like the National Historic Trails badges.

Most parks with Junior Ranger programs can send you booklets by mail or offer an online download option so you can print books to work on at home. When you’re done, you can again contact the park. You might need to mail in your book or send photos by email to earn your badge, then the park can send your badge through the mail.

National and Specialty Junior Ranger Programs

Not all Junior Ranger programs are specific to a park, as there are numerous specialty and national Junior Ranger programs. National Junior Ranger programs such as Night Skies Explorer, Underwater Explorer, and Underground Railroad Explorer are relevant to multiple national park sites. These programs offer opportunities to explore larger themes such as Civil War history, geology, and astronomy.

There are also specialty badges that may be seasonal or event-specific, such as the Eclipse Explorer program my family completed at the Waco Mammoth National Monument on our way home from viewing the 2024 eclipse. The park had books and badges for the national monument but also had specialty eclipse books and badges, so we earned both.

You can ask about additional badges available at any national park site. For example, the San Antonio Missions National Historical Park — a UNESCO World Heritage site that is also a national park site — offers the San Antonio Missions World Heritage Junior Ranger program in addition to the San Antonio Missions Junior Ranger program.

As with regular Junior Ranger programs, you can complete national and specialty programs at home or by visiting a participating national park site. For example, the Underwater Explorer program can be completed at some of the national park sites known for water resources, including Channel Islands National Park and Padre Island National Seashore.

Hot Tip:

The National Park Service Junior Ranger program is robust, but you’re not limited to national park sites. Many state parks offer similar programs, too! It’s helpful to check park websites or call ahead of your visit so you know whether a program is available.

Who Can Be a Junior Ranger?

The Junior Ranger program is inclusive and open to all ages and abilities. Although it is designed for school-age kids, anyone can become a Junior Ranger. In my experience, national park rangers enthusiastically support anyone who wants to learn more about the park.

You can help school-age kids become Junior Rangers, earn badges as an adult with or without kids, or help preschoolers or infants complete the program. Want to help grandma become a Junior Ranger? I doubt you’d be turned away.

Some parks have different activity books depending on age ranges, such as a book for kids 5 to 9 and another for ages 10 and up. Usually, books indicate how many activities to complete based on the participant’s age or offer keys and on-page icons to identify which pages offer age-appropriate activities. For example, a 5-year-old might only need to complete a few pages, such as drawings and mazes, while a 10-year-old may need to complete the entire activity book.

If you need adaptations for different learning styles or abilities to complete the program, you can chat with a ranger about recommended activities and modifications. Some Junior Ranger books are available in languages other than English (most commonly in Spanish).

Some parks offer Senior Ranger programs, including Timucuan Preserve at Fort Caroline, Friendship Hill National Historic Site, Ulysses S. Grant National Historic Site, and Petroglyph National Monument. Senior Ranger programs are typically designed for teens and older visitors, offering slightly more challenging activities than the Junior Ranger activity books.

Hot Tip:

I recently started earning Junior Ranger badges alongside my kids. I decided that if I’m guiding them through the program and learning from the activities, I might as well earn my own badge! My oldest, a teen, still does the Junior Ranger program because he wants to earn a badge alongside his younger siblings, and he’s doing the activities anyway.

How To Become a Junior Ranger

Follow these steps to get started as a Junior Ranger:

• Choose a Park To Visit: Choose National Park Service sites to visit, considering your travel destination and nearby sites. Some destinations have numerous national park sites. You can complete many Junior Ranger programs at home without traveling.
• Request Materials: You can print booklets at home, contact parks to request booklets by mail, or stop by a visitor center to get Junior Ranger booklets.
• Identify Activities: Skim through the booklet to identify the activities necessary to earn a Junior Ranger badge, which usually varies by age. Most books indicate age-appropriate pages to complete or explain how many activities you must complete.
• Complete Activities: Fill out the book and complete the required activities, which may involve in-park experiences. The programs are designed to be fun and educational, encouraging exploration in the parks. You may be able to complete the book in less than an hour or work on it over a day or so. Most books can be completed quickly, but in-park activities such as hikes or ranger-led programs may add to your completion time.
• Turn In Your Book: Find a park ranger, usually at a visitor center, to turn in the booklet and discuss what you learned and explored. The ranger may have questions or corrections, so stay alert! They’ll sign off on your Junior Ranger certificate in the book once they’ve looked over your work.
• Get Sworn In: The park ranger will swear you in as a Junior Ranger, and you’ll raise your hand and make a promise to protect the park, follow park rules, and teach others about what you’ve learned. Each park may have a unique oath to repeat.
• Get Your Badge: Once you’re sworn in, you’ll receive your Junior Ranger badge and get your booklet back. Some parks offer additional prizes, such as stickers or embroidered patches, and gift shops may have additional Junior Ranger merchandise for sale.

Sometimes it makes sense to do most of the Junior Ranger booklet activities in or near the visitor center, but not always. Many books require in-park activities with exploration, which means you’ll have to get out there to fully complete the activities. 

Skim through the booklet before you head out on park adventures to see what you need to do. It may make sense to do some initial activities such as historical background pages, mazes, and word searches at the visitor center, then take the book along to make notes for activities such as scavenger hunts or nature observations.

Usually, the visitor center is where you get your Junior Ranger booklet and return to get sworn in, but not always! When we visited Channel Islands National Park, we spent the entire time on the ferry or the island, completely missing the visitor center hours. But the tour operator, Island Packers, had Junior Ranger booklets at the ferry check-in building, as well as a National Park Service naturalist on board who consulted with us and swore in Junior Rangers on the ferry ride back.

14 Junior Ranger Tips for Parents and Guardians

1. Don’t take it too seriously. You should make an effort to learn and explore with the Junior Ranger program, but understand it’s ultimately an educational outreach program, and the rangers want you to get whatever you can out of it. Don’t stress about ages, timing, or earning every badge available. It’s supposed to be fun!
2. Let kids lead the way. Some activities may be challenging for kids to complete, but resist the urge to just do Junior Ranger books for them. If they need help, offer support, but let kids put in the work and genuinely earn their badges!
3. Buy a National Park Service pass. If you plan to visit multiple national parks, an America the Beautiful annual pass can offer savings on park entrance fees. Passes are $80 for most people, but fourth graders can get a free pass through the Every Kid Outdoors program. A pass can also save you time at park entrances, as all you have to do is show your pass, photo ID, and, if applicable, a reservation. Having a pass came in handy for us when we got to skip the payment line for an early-morning sea turtle release at Padre Island National Seashore.
4. Ask for Junior Ranger books ahead of time. When I book travel and know we’ll visit a national park site, I email the park and ask the rangers to mail books to my home. I don’t always get them, but it’s great when we do. That way, we can learn about the park before our visit, know more about what we might be interested in doing, and work on some of the pages before we get there so we can spend more time on exploration activities than filling out pages. If you get books before you travel to a park, you can use the books for entertainment as you’re flying or driving, too.
5. Bring a pencil. Most national park sites offer pencils with books, but not always. Be prepared with a pencil for each Junior Ranger, and make writing utensils part of your packing list, along with water, snacks, and sunscreen.
6. Plan where you’ll get and turn in Junior Ranger books — and when. Find out where the visitor centers are located, whether they are staffed during your visit, and the hours. Make sure a visitor center is on your route as you enter or exit the park and that you’ll be there during the open hours so you can get a book and meet with a ranger.
7. Prioritize key activities. Many national park sites are vast with various experiences, and it’s not always realistic to do everything a park has to offer. Chat with kids about what’s most interesting or important to them at the park and make a plan to do those activities. Set realistic goals for activities, considering weather, crowds, ages, and abilities.
8. Talk to rangers and ask questions at the visitor center. Rangers are a fountain of knowledge about the parks and often have tips about their park and additional national park sites. Every ranger we’ve interacted with has been enthusiastic about helping us learn more and have a great experience at the park. When my family visited Muir Woods National Monument, we talked to the ranger who swore us in as Junior Rangers, discussing our plans to visit Redwood National and State Parks a few days later. She recommended hitting a newly updated trail, which was the highlight of our visit. 
9. Do your best, but don’t worry about perfection. The Junior Ranger program isn’t high-pressure — rangers just want to see that you’ve made an effort to learn about the park and done most of the required activities. If there’s anything wrong, rangers are generally happy to gently correct and educate. They certainly don’t want to discourage participants (especially kids) from enjoying the park and the program, so you can still get a badge even if you don’t turn in A+ work!
10. Don’t feel pressured to finish books at the park. Some Junior Ranger activity books are more involved than others. If you’re just visiting for a few hours, you might struggle to enjoy the park, complete the book, and get to the visitor center in time to get sworn in and earn a badge. While it’s nice to finish a book on-site and leave with a badge, don’t let it take over your park experience. It’s perfectly fine to pick up a Junior Ranger book, do what you can, finish it at home, and get a badge mailed to you later.
11. Earn multiple badges. Some national park sites have badges and booklets for multiple programs. For example, you can ask about earning the Underwater Explorer badge at national park sites with significant water resources, such as national seashores or island parks. Some badges are only offered for a limited time, and you might need to ask for them. Check with rangers about additional badges available at the site when you ask for the park’s main booklet.
12. Stamp your passport. You can get a national parks passport to keep track of the parks you’ve visited, collecting passport stamps at park visitor centers. These can get bulky with multiple kids, so we usually leave our passports at home and bring a small notebook to stamp, then add the stamped papers to our passports once we’re home. You can also put passport stamps on the back of Junior Ranger badges.
13. Plan what to do with badges. You can wear your badge around the parks, get a vest or hat where you collect badges, or make a display for your badges at home.
14. Support Junior Rangers at park gift shops: Most Junior Ranger programs are free and often supported by the park’s conservancy organization, such as the Rocky Mountain Conservancy or Yosemite Conservancy, rather than the National Park Service. These nonprofit partners often have gift shops within the park, sometimes attached to visitor centers. You can help the conservancy organizations that support Junior Rangers by making a purchase or donation at the shop.

Hot Tip:

A couple of times, rangers have given us badges before we completed the booklet, with the understanding that we’d officially earn the badges after completing the activities. You can ask for this option if you plan to complete the program but don’t think you’ll have time to do all of the activities before the visitor center closes.

More Learning Resources for Junior Rangers

You can keep national park learning going with additional learning resources:

• Books: Junior Ranger workbooks are excellent resources for learning about a specific park, but I’ve also found the park gift shops to have impressive book selections that are curated for the park. My favorites are the quick guide pamphlets that offer high-level facts about trees, wildlife, and other features of the parks and the surrounding areas. These are great for referencing during park visits — so we know it was a Steller’s jay that landed nearby, not just an unknown bird. Books are also great for keeping kids occupied while driving through parks!
• Junior Ranger Kits: Some parks have Junior Ranger kits you can borrow during your visit or items you can buy for a fee.
• Visitor Centers: Plan to spend time at park visitor centers, as many have interactive exhibits, learning opportunities, and park rangers you can talk to.
• Volunteering: Youth and young adult volunteer opportunities within the National Park Service include Girl Scout and Scouting America programs and the Community Volunteer Ambassador Program.
• Youth Conservation Corps: Teenagers 15 to 18 can work with the United States Youth Conservation Corps in national parks, forests, wildlife refuges, and fish hatcheries.
• Internships: High school students, college students, and recent graduates can explore internships to work with the National Park Service. 
• Local Conservation: Junior Rangers can take what they’ve learned at national parks home and get involved in local community conservation efforts.

Final Thoughts

The Junior Ranger program is an excellent resource for families connecting with nature, learning about history, and contributing to conservation efforts in U.S. national parks. Whether you’re visiting a national park in person or exploring from home, you can find fun and educational experiences in Junior Ranger activities. We highly recommend Junior Ranger programs to anyone wanting to explore the wonders of the National Park Service, especially families with young kids.