UTAH

Utah’s annual Prehistory Week is held the first week of May. It consists of open house events held at different museums throughout the state during which children have a chance to grind corn, throw atlatls, and participate in bid-stringing and fossil-casting. They can also take an archaeology tour of developed sites, learn rock art and study exposed dinosaurs bones, among others. To find out where you can participate in these events, visit history.utah.org.

The Junior Ranger Program at Zion National Park is a summer program for children ages 6 to12. Learn all about geology, plants, human history, animals, and more from park rangers. For more information, visit: www.nps.gov/zion/JuniorRangers.htm

The College of Eastern Utah Prehistoric Museum in Price offers summer camps for pre-kindergarten through sixth grade. Within the paleontology and archaeology exhibits, the museum has plenty of hands-on activities for children. For more information, visit www.ceu.edu, or call (435) 637-5060.

Arches National Park near Moab has a free Junior Ranger program for children ages 6 to 12. Booklets filled with fun activities are available at the visitor center. By completing five or more exercises, participants earn a Junior Ranger badge and signed certificate. At the park, children can learn the wonders of Arches as they explore the unusual rock formations and even see petroglyphs believed to be Ute images. For more information, visit: http://www.nps.gov/arch/.

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