Watch an alligator catch a fish, meet a soldier from 1815, cruise the bayou in a traditional Louisiana boat, fill your ears with New Orleans music, or learn to dance Cajun-style. The six sites of Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve have something for everyone, including kids. The park's home page will take you to information about each site, and most sites have activities JUST for kids!

Special programs include

• Junior Ranger programs at every Jean Lafitte site.
• Girl Scout and Boy Scout programs at the Acadian Cultural Center in Lafayette and at the Prairie Acadian Cultural Center in Eunice.
• music and dancing workshops begin in June and September at the Prairie Acadian Cultural Center in Eunice. The workshops offer free lessons in Cajun dancing and in playing the accordion, fiddle, and guitar. For information and to register call 337-457-8499.
• La Fete d'Ecologie is presented by the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program each year at the Wetlands Acadian Cultural Center in Thibodaux. This year's free Fete happens Saturday, September 27, and features local bands, Louisiana food, folklife demonstrations and artists, and educational activities. Learn to throw a castnet, dance a Cajun waltz, and find out why Louisiana's wetlands are important to the state and the nation.
• Stone Age Technology Demonstration will share the secrets of making fire and arrowheads and demonstrating ancient technology and weapons. Try grinding corn, using a pump drill, or playing an ancient American Indian game. This free special program is set for Saturday, October 18, 10:00 a.m.-noon, at the Wetlands Acadian Cultural Center in Thibodaux.
• summer camps for kids at most of the park sites. See you in 2009!

If you can't visit the park in person....

• join the WebRangers and take a virtual trip to a real national park where you can track animals, explore dinosaur diets, or meet important---but not always famous---Americans.
• check out the brand new Junior Ranger Gazette page and learn more about the treasures the National Park Services takes care of for all Americans----including you!
• see what you can find out about Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve by visiting the History & Culture, Nature & Science, and Plan Your Visit sections of this website.
• check out the National Park Service history and culture for kids website to travel through time, solve mysteries, or find out if you could have gotten a job in Thomas Edison's laboratory.