North Carolina 9-12th Grade Ranger-Led Field Trips

The following field trips are offered in the park in the spring and in the fall for students grades 9-12.

All programs are free! Bus money assistance may be available.

These programs provide curriculum-based, hands-on learning experiences in the park's cultural and natural resources, including critical issues affecting these resources.

To request a North Carolina program, contact us by email or phone [phone].

 

 

Two students take data of the lichen on a tree during a field study.

NPS Photo

Lichens

Is it moss? Is it fungi? No! It’s lichen! Learn all about the symbiotic relationship of organisms and take data on lichen in the park.

Location: Purchase Knob, Mingus Mill, Oconaluftee Visitor Center, Deep Creek
NC State Standards: LS.Bio.4, LS.Bio.10, ESS.EES.4, ESS.EES.6
Program Time: This activity takes 1 hour (NOT including lunch, introduction, and bathroom time) and usually pairs with 1-2 other activities.
Pairs Well With: Tardigrades, Phenology, or Nature Journaling
Special Notes: Bring trash bags to carry out lunch trash. (Optional: bring blankets to sit on during lunch.)

 

Students gathered together looking on the ground for salamanders.

NPS Photo

Salamanders

The Great Smoky Mountains are the salamander capital of the world! Have fun participating in this citizen science project by searching for and taking data on these amazing amphibians.

Location: Purchase Knob, Mingus Mill
NC State Standards: LS.Bio.5, LS.Bio.10, ESS.EES.4, ESS.EES.5
Program Time: This activity takes 1 hour (NOT including lunch, introduction, and bathroom time) and usually pairs with 1-2 other activities.
Pairs Well With: Snails, Terrestrial Invertebrates, Phenology, or Nature Journaling
Special Notes: Bring trash bags to carry out lunch trash. (Optional: bring blankets to sit on during lunch.)

 

An outstretched hand holding many snail shells of various colors and sizes.

NPS Photo

Snails

Snails can tell us a lot about our environment and are an important source of calcium for the ecosystem. Learn why we love them while helping us find and identify them.

Location: Purchase Knob, Mingus Mill, Deep Creek
NC State Standards: LS.Bio.4, LS.Bio.10, ESS.EES.4, ESS.EES.5
Program Time: This activity takes 1 hour (NOT including lunch, introduction, and bathroom time) and usually pairs with 1-2 other activities.
Pairs Well With: Salamanders, Terrestrial Invertebrates, Phenology, or Nature Journaling
Special Notes: Bring trash bags to carry out lunch trash. (Optional: bring blankets to sit on during lunch)

 

Three students preparing a microscope slide in a classroom lab.

NPS Photo

Tardigrades

What is a tardigrade? Find out and learn all about these nearly indestructible creatures. Students will even get the chance to search for them under a microscope.

Location: Purchase Knob, Oconaluftee Visitor Center
NC State Standards: LS.Bio.10
Program Time: This activity takes 1 hour (NOT including lunch, introduction, and bathroom time) and usually pairs with 1-2 other activities.
Pairs Well With: Lichens, Terrestrial Invertebrates, or Nature Journaling
Special Notes: Bring trash bags to carry out lunch trash. (Optional: bring blankets to sit on during lunch.)

 

A student using an eye lens to view a specimen in hand.

NPS Photo

Terrestrial Invertebrates

Learn about the life beneath our feet and collect data as part of a biological inventory.

Location: Purchase Knob, Oconaluftee Visitor Center, Deep Creek
NC State Standards: LS.Bio.4, LS.Bio.5, LS.Bio.10, ESS.EES.4
Program Time: This activity takes 1 hour (NOT including lunch, introduction, and bathroom time) and usually pairs with 1-2 other activities.
Pairs Well With: Snails, Salamanders, Phenology or Nature Journaling
Special Notes: Wear clothes you don’t mind getting dirty. Bring trash bags to carry out lunch trash. (Optional: bring blankets to sit on during lunch.)

 

Two Robbinsville High School students collect tree phenology data during a field trip.

NPS Photo

Phenology

Are we seeing climate change in the Smokies? Help collect data to track the changes in the timing of tree life cycles.

Location: Purchase Knob, Mingus Mill, Oconaluftee Visitor Center, Deep Creek
NC State Standards: LS.Bio.5, LS.Bio.10, ESS.EES.1, ESS.EES.3, ESS.EES.4, ESS.EES.5
Program Time: This activity takes 1 hour (NOT including lunch, introduction, and bathroom time) and usually pairs with 1-2 other activities.
Pairs Well With: Lichens, Snails, Salamanders, or Nature Journaling
Special Notes: Bring trash bags to carry out lunch trash. (Optional: bring blankets to sit on during lunch.)

 

Nature Journaling

What do art and science have in common? More than you’d think! Learn the skills that connect these subjects then practice by observing the site around you from multiple perspectives.

Location: Purchase Knob, Mingus Mill, Oconaluftee Visitor Center, Deep Creek
NC State Standards: B.V.2
Program Time: This activity takes 1 hour (NOT including lunch, introduction, and bathroom time) and usually pairs with 1-2 other activities.
Pairs Well With: All other activities
Special Notes: Bring trash bags to carry out lunch trash. (Optional: bring blankets to sit on during the activity and/or lunch.)