Free Resources for Discovering Grand Canyon National Park

Published:
January 26, 2022

Sarah Shelton

Contributor:
Sarah Shelton

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Are you doing a study about Arizona or national parks? Maybe you have also wanted to visit the Grand Canyon but are unable to. Discover this beautiful park with these free resources and Grand Canyon worksheets.

free resources for discovering grand canyon national park with photo of grand canyon.

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Where is the Grand Canyon?

The Grand Canyon is located in the American Southwest in the state of Arizona. It is a chasm that is 277 miles long and 18 miles wide and 1 mile deep.

Below Yavapai Point is 2,400 feet above sea level. It is 4,500 feet below the South Rim and 5,400 feet below the North Rim.

Grand Canyon on the Bucket List

I lived in Arizona half of my life, but we lived such a long ways from the Grand Canyon. When I was a little girl I always wanted to visit there. It was just unobtainable for our family to make the drive and stay on site to visit it.

Since I always wanted to see the Grand Canyon, it was on my bucket list before I moved back to Florida where my husband was from. So, I made sure to take my own family to visit the Grand Canyon before we left the state. I really wanted to see it for myself and get to experience it with my own immediate family.

Grand Canyon National Park
Grand Canyon National Park – photo by kamchatka

Grand Canyon Family Vacation

We planned our family trip to the Grand Canyon for a full year. We took a five hour long road trip, camped overnight, then took a train straight to the Grand Canyon. When we finally arrived and stepped off the train depot it was about to storm. This meant that the entire canyon was covered in a thick cloud of fog.

Yes, you read that right. The entire vast Grand Canyon was full of fog! You could barely see your hand in front of your face. When I stepped out to the edge of the canyon, I could have cried. Actually, I did cry a little. Then it started to rain, a torrential down pour, actually.

We got soaked and ended up hiding in a restaurant and drowning our sorrows in ice cream sundaes. Once the rain let it up, the beautiful Arizona sun shone through, and the fog lifted at sunset.

We were finally able to see the canyon I had dreams of since I was a child. It was so breathtaking and almost surreal.

Grand Canyon Junior Ranger Program

Are you looking for a way to get your kids engaged in a fun activity related to national parks? The Junior Ranger Program is one of the best ways to engage your older kids in a program that helps to protect and preserve national parks. 

Students can even become a Junior Ranger from home, without the need to ever visit the Grand Canyon in person. With the use of their downloadable resources, kids can find a Junior Ranger Booklet to download that suits their interest. Many are even suitable for young children too!

Available Activity Books for Download:

  • Junior Night Sky Explorer
  • Junior Cave Scientist
  • Junior Ranger Angler
  • Junior Paleontologist
  • Junior Archeologist
  • Junior Ranger Underwater Explorer
  • Junior Ranger Spaceflight Explorer
  • Junior Ranger Railroad Explorer
  • Junior Ranger Sounds Explorer

Whether your child is interested in trains, spaceflight, cave science, archaeology, paleontology, astronomy, or the underwater world, there are many Junior Ranger activities to choose from. 

Junior Ranger Activity Books for the Grand Canyon

When you take a trip to the Grand Canyon, be sure to drop by a visitor center, or a bookstore operated by the Grand Canyon Conservancy, and grab a Grand Canyon Junior Ranger Activity Book for your kids.

  • There are different levels available:
  • South Rim Junior Rangers (Ages 4 and up)
  • North Rim Junior Rangers (Ages 5 and up)
  • Grand Canyon Explorer Junior Rangers (Explorers of All Ages)

History of the Grand Canyon

The canyon was protected in 1893 by President Benjamin Harrison who named it Grand Canyon Forest Reserve. In 1903 President Theodore Roosevelt visited the canyon, and it was named as a national monument in 1908.

In 1919, President Woodrow Wilson made Grand Canyon a national park. It took almost 20 years to become a national park because the land miners were afraid it would restrict their access. 

The United Nations declared the park a World Heritage Site in 1979. 

Fun Facts about the Grand Canyon

  • The Grand Canyon is one of the seven wonders of the world (natural wonders).
  • 277 miles of the Colorado River runs through it.
  • It is a water-carved canyon created by water erosion.
  • The Havasupai Indian Reservation lives inside the canyon. It is the most remote town in the United States and the only town that still has its mail delivered by people from a mule ride.
  • The Grand Canyon is larger than the state of Rhode Island.
  • There are many hidden caves located all over the canyon.
Sunsetting at the Grand Canyon
Sunsetting at the Grand Canyon – photo by Deerphoto

Grand Canyon Worksheets 

Hidden Words Worksheet – Learn fun facts about the park with this hidden words Grand Canyon worksheet. This is a fun and different type of word search puzzle.

Grand Canyon Reading Comprehension Worksheet – These reading passages will take your children on a journey to the Grand Canyon with comprehension questions at the end of the informational texts.

Teacher’s Guide to the Grand Canyon  – This Grand Canyon lesson plan will help you teach your students fascinating facts about the canyon, the people that live there and animals and things you can do when you visit. 

Grand Canyon True or False – This educational worksheet is geared for 4th grade – 6th grade students. Your students will read about the Grand Canyon, answer the true and false questions then write a short opinion paragraph.

Recommended Resource: National Parks Notebook – A Notebook Companion™ for National Parks of the U.S.A.

Explore the national parks of the U.S.A with our publisher-approved Notebook Companion™. Using the notebook alongside the popular book book National Parks of the U.S.A. will help you squeeze all the amazing content out of it and use it for your homeschool.

National Parks Notebook spiral bound and National Parks of the U.S.A. book

Grand Canyon Coloring Pages

Grand Canyon National Park Coloring Page – This coloring sheet also teaches the importance of preserving the environment and is geared for the 1st grade.

Fact Sheet and Coloring Page – This Grand Canyon activity will have your children learn facts about the park and color it on a world map as well as the coloring page.

Grand Canyon National Park Printables and Guides

Grand Canyon Visitor Guide – Complete visitor guide printables with brochures, site maps and extensive packing lists. It’s like visiting the Grand Canyon Visitor Center from home!

Trip Brochures for the Grand Canyon Printable trip brochures, hiking guides, bulletins and more from the national park service.

Lesson Plans – Printable lesson plans and handouts on the ecology and geology of the park.

Grand Canyon National Park Virtual Field Trips and Articles:

Grand Canyon In Depth – Video podcast series from NPS that explores the history of the park. Join park rangers, scientists, and historians as they discover the diversity of life and the extraordinary beauty of Grand Canyon National Park. There are 8 videos in all that make you feel like you are really visiting.

Immersive Virtual Tour of the Grand Canyon – Take a virtual tour of the Grand Canyon with these links and information.

Google Arts and Culture Grand Canyon National Park – View photographs and discover the park with this educational website.

Special Delivery: Mail by Mule – Read about the pack mules that deliver mail into the Grand Canyon in this article .

The Wildlife of Grand Canyon National ParkLearn about animals that habitat the park, and their importance to the ecosystem.

The Mammals of the Grand Canyon National Park – Click on each animal that can be found within the park and you will see photographs and facts on each one. 

Free Notebooking Unit

U.S. Natural Landmarks Notebooking Journal – Your students will get a chance to learn and explore 30 different natural landmarks located in the United States. Record what they have learned in their own notebooking journal. 

Explore These National Parks with This Notebooking Journal: 

Get access to the free U.S. Natural Landmarks Notebooking Journal

Explore More National Parks

Be sure to take a look at the other national parks we have covered in our Learning About the National Parks Series.