Dear Elementary Teachers,

This section is designed to provide teachers with lesson plans, ideas, and materials for teaching about the natural and cultural history of Great Sand Dunes. These lesson plans are not designed for students to use directly on the computer. This web site also offers a large listing of photographs that you may use in the classroom. The natural and cultural history section of the main web site also has animations and additional background information.

Printable teaching materials are available within each of the six elementary subject areas. These hands-on materials and worksheets are in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format.

For those who are planning a visit to the park, be sure to review Visiting the Dunes, a guide to on-site exploration with your students, found in the Teachers' section.

All materials have been correlated to Colorado Content Standards. For a comprehensive list of all lesson plans with their standards (including middle and high school activities), visit the Lesson List and Standards, found in the Teachers' Guide. A subject cross-referencing tool is also available in the Teachers' Guide.

Sincerely,

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Christopher Robin came down from the Forest to the Bridge, feeling all sunny and careless, and just as if twice nineteen didn't matter a bit, as it didn't on such a happy afternoon, and he thought that if he stood on the bottom rail of the bridge, and leant over, and watched the river slipping slowly away beneath him, then he would suddenly know everything that there was to be known.

A.A. Milne