Group and Outreach Programs

Crowder Park prides itself on the quality environmental education programs it provides, both at the park and off-site. To best serve the community, Crowder offers several types of educational programming. In addition to scheduled programs offered each month for families and individuals, Crowder Park also accepts program requests from schools and other organizations. Scheduled programs can take place at Crowder or off-site at the school or other location. For more information regarding environmental education, including scheduling programs, contact the park office at 919-662-2850.

Public Programs

Every month, Crowder Park offers a variety of programs open to the public. Many of these programs are designed for children of varying ages and make an excellent reinforcement for public, private and home-schooled students. Public programs are announced in the Wide aWake Program Directory and can be found here.

School and Group Programs

Crowder Park offers programs for private and public groups. These programs are available upon request and may be tailored to a specific topic. Scheduled programs are popular among school groups as reinforcement to lessons covered in class. Organizers of private events such as birthday parties or company picnics may also request programs to entertain children and provide an educational aspect to their visit.

As part of Crowder District Park's environmental education agenda, Crowder Park accepts requests for specific programs from any organized group (school, Scout, 4-H, homeschool, etc.). These programs may cover any topic related to environmental education in North Carolina.

Popular Topics
Many groups seeking an educational field trip at the park request the "Peek into Ponds" lesson to take advantage of Crowder's pond habitat. For younger children, the "Alphabet Hike" is a popular program where children take a guided tour around the pond in search of natural wonders that start with different letters of the alphabet. Other topics include "Build a Beaver," "Insect Lives," "The Water Cycle," "Meet Maize, our Corn Snake," "Turtles," "Habitat Hike" and "Discovery Hike." Park staff will try to accommodate any environmental topic and can tailor a program to meet your needs.

Program Fees and Availability
The fee for a group program is $25 per program hour per staff. Larger groups (more than 15) may need to divide into smaller groups to best engage and instruct each participant and receive a quality program. A teacher or group leader may help with the program to keep the cost down. All group programs are subject to date and staff availability.

Registration
To schedule or check on the availability of a group program, contact the Director of Programs, Rebeccah Cope, at 919-856-5635 or rcope@wakegov.com. Information regarding program topic, class size and age, as well as contact information, will be required. Registration can be completed in person at the office or by phone. Payment must be received prior to the program – a due date will be provided.

Outreach

Any program conducted off park grounds is considered outreach. Outreach programming is an important way to bring the natural environment indoors. Groups or organizations having difficulty organizing a field trip may instead choose to request an outreach program. During outreach programs, staff educators may bring natural props with them to add excitement to the environmental lesson.

As part of Crowder Park's environmental education agenda, off-site programs are available by request. During these outreach programs, outdoor lessons and props can be brought to an indoor classroom environment.

Program Topics
Outreach programs are often requested to enhance lessons learned in the classroom. Program topics for outreach closely mirror those of the on-site park programs.

Program Fees and Availability
The fee for outreach programs is $40 per hour per staff person. All requested programs are subject to availability of staff educators.

Registration
To request a program, contact Rebeccah Cope, Director of Programs, at 919-856-5635. We will require information regarding program topic, class size and age, location where program is to take place, as well as contact information. Registration can be completed in the office or by phone. Payment must be received prior to the program.

Discovery Boxes

Another method of environmental education is through the use of discovery boxes. Discovery boxes are packaged lessons available to teachers and parents that can be performed without a park educator. Each box contains background information as well as instructions on how to perform the lesson. Because the lessons are pre-made, only certain topics are available. Discovery boxes must be signed out at the main office and returned the same day.

Discovery Box Topics

Who Dirtied the Water
In the process of reading a story about a lake near Eagle Rock, North Carolina, participants will dump different "pollutants" into the "lake" as the story is read, in an effort to understand where water pollution comes from and how a seemingly insignificant event can alter a body of water's health.

Crowder's Critters
Through a version of 20 questions, participants will discover the different plants and animals found at the park. Each student will have a plant or animal tagged to the back of their shirt and must ask other participants yes/no questions to discover what it is. This game also serves as an excellent ice-breaker activity.

Birds and Worms
By simulating birds in search of worms, participants will realize just how large a part camouflage plays in the game of survival. Participants will compare different methods of camouflage to see which is the most effective for a particular environment.

Bird ID Bingo
Participants will play a version of bingo where the cards list several different bird species at the park and to mark one off, they must find that bird in the park. This box teaches participants how to use field marks to easily identify animals in the wild.

Little Sprout
This discovery box introduces a participant as "Sprout" the hiker and covers many things that seeds have in common with a hiker. By comparing the hiker and the seed, participants will understand how a seed is prepared to brave the elements until it is time to grow.

Fox Hunt
Participants will discover what a carrying capacity is and what factors regulate an animal population. By "hunting" for food while exhibiting several limiting factors (i.e., feeding young), participants will understand how a population is kept from growing or shrinking out of control.