Everglades National Park ROYAL PALM AND LONG PINE KEY GUIDE

Workshops

To help teachers prepare for their class visit, park rangers conduct one-day workshops at Royal Palm/Long Pine Key. A workshop helps teachers to:

• Learn about the program's logistics and their field trip responsibilities;
• Acquire a familiarity with the habitats, wildlife, and trails;
• Understand how to relate classroom activities to the field trip experience.

New teachers, and those who have not participated in the program for the past two years, must attend a workshop.

Transportation

The Dade County School Board has regularly contracted for the transportation of students to park field trips. For schools receiving this pre-paid transportation, the park will notify the contracted bus company of the reserved dates. (All other schools must arrange their own transportation.) The maximum number of people allowed on a bus is 66 (60 students and 6 adults). Field trip participants are not allowed to follow buses in private vehicles. All participants should be on the bus.

Buses paid for by Dade County are rented for six hours and must leave the park by 1:15 pm (or Wednesday, by 12:15 pm). To maximize your time in the park, please plan to depart from school as early as possible.

Scheduling

Field trip reservations are accepted by mail only. The reservation form is included in the annual School Visits to South Florida National Parks booklet mailed to teachers at the start of the school year. Trip reservations are filled on a first come, first served basis, and are finalized in early October. Reply letters are sent to all teachers who submitted reservation requests. Since there are usually more requests submitted than there are available dates, it is important to request your reservation early. Teachers who are flexible about dates increase their chances of success. A waiting list of those who did not receive a reservation is maintained in case of cancellations.

Program Evaluation

Everglades National Park staff recognize that teachers are professionals essential to the educational efforts of the Park Service. To help us do our job well, your class ranger will provide you with an evaluation form to complete. Specific suggestions and honest comments, both on what worked and what didn't, are welcome. Likewise, after your field trip, the park will mail you a short evaluation completed by your ranger. If at any time you'd like to discuss a concern about the field trip program with a supervisor, please contact the Everglades Education Office at (305)242-7753.

Ranger Program

The general plan of the field trip remains the same from year to year. However, circumstances such as high water, mosquito levels, warm or cold weather, and the program emphasis of the individual ranger, result in some variability. The rangers are responsible for communicating the expectations and plan for the day's events to the teacher. (Please see page 7 for a typical field trip schedule.)

Two park rangers will be waiting for a bus with sixty students. (If you are bringing thirty-six students or less, only one ranger will meet you.) When the bus arrives the rangers will board it and briefly review safety concerns and rules. They will also talk about the national park idea. With this business completed, the rangers will ask the teachers to lead the students off the bus. After a quick restroom break, each class will assemble separately on the lawn with their teacher, chaperons and assigned ranger. The ranger will lead a warm up activity and explain to the whole class the schedule for the morning After completing this introduction, the ranger will ask the teacher to divide the class into two groups, each having about fifteen students and at least one chaperon. The ranger leads one ofthe groups on the Anhinga Trail; the teacher leads the other. The ranger will coordinate the time that groups must be back to the bus.

After all students return, the bus will transport the classes to the lunch site at Long Pine Key. Following lunch the ranger will again lead one group, and the teacher the other, on the trail. The ranger will arrange with the teacher where to meet for a concluding activity. The ranger is also responsible for ensuring that the bus leaves the park on time.