Point Reyes National Seashore Welcomes 4th Grade Students through Every Kid In a Park Initiative

Date: September 3, 2015
Contact: John Dell'Osso, 415-464-5135

New National Program Encourages Families and Classes to Visit National Parks

Point Reyes Station – Point Reyes National Seashore invites all 4th grade students and their families to visit the park as part of the White House’s new Every Kid in a Park program. Starting September 2, 4th grade students can now go to www.everykidinapark.gov to complete an activity and obtain a free annual entry pass to more than 2,000 federal recreation areas, including national parks. Educators and community leaders can access education activities, field trip options, and the ability to print passes for their classrooms. Parents visiting the new website can find additional links for more information on planning trips to Point Reyes, Muir Woods, and other public lands around the region and around the country.

"During the National Park Service's centennial celebration, we want everyone to get to know their national parks, and we’re offering a special invitation to fourth graders and their families to discover everything that national parks offer," said National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis. "We hope these free passes for fourth graders will introduce 4th graders, their classes, and families to our national treasures, places where they can run and play, explore and learn." Point Reyes National Seashore Superintendent Cicely Muldoon added, "There’s so much to discover at Point Reyes National Seashore .We’re excited to extend this special invitation to fourth graders and their families. We hope that our young visitors have fun in the great outdoors and develop a lifelong connection to our nation's land, water and wildlife."

Upcoming activities and programs at Point Reyes National Seashore, offered in partnership with the Point Reyes National Seashore Association, include a self-guided junior ranger activity; the annual Sand Sculpture Contest at Drakes Beach this coming Sunday, September 6; the annual Coastal Cleanup Day on September 19; the Fungal Foray on January 2; and the Christmas Bird Count for Kids (CBC4Kids) on January 9, 2016. Many more youth-oriented activities and programs including additional bird counts for kids and expanded science and cultural classes will be announced in the upcoming months. Check www.nps.gov/pore and www.ptreyes.org for more details.

To receive their free pass for national parks, fourth graders can visit the Every Kid in a Park website and play a game to access their special Every Kid in a Park pass. Fourth graders and their families can then use this pass for free entry national parks and other federal public lands and waters across the country from September 1, 2015, through August 31, 2016. The website also includes fun and engaging learning activities aligned to educational standards, trip planning tools, safety and packing tips and other important and helpful information for educators and parents.

The goal of the Every Kid in a Park program is to connect 4th graders with the great outdoors and inspire them to become future environmental stewards, ready to preserve and protect national parks and other public lands for years to come. The program is an important part of the National Park Service’s centennial celebration in 2016, which encourages everyone to Find Your Park.

Every Kid in a Park is an administrative-wide effort, launched by President Obama, and supported by eight federal agencies, including the National Park Service, the Army Corps of Engineers, the Bureau of Land Management, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Forest Service, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Passes are available at the Bear Valley Visitor Center. Operating hours for the Bear Valley Visitor Center are Monday–Friday, 10 am–5:30 pm; weekends and holidays, 9 am–5:30 pm.

For more information, please visit www.everykidinapark.gov, and follow the program on Twitter @everykidinapark, on Facebook, on Instagram, and on Youtube. For additional information on Point Reyes National Seashore, please visit www.nps.gov/pore.

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