Canada is a large country, having the second largest land mass of all the countries in the world. Much of the land mass is in the 48 National Parks and National Park Reserves. If you haven’t heard the term “national park reserve” before, you’re not alone. Essentially, national park reserves are land where the federal and Indigenous governments are still debating ownership of the land, and therefore the indigenous peoples are still able to hunt, fish, and trap on it.
Did you know?
“A national park reserve is an area that is managed like a national park but is subject to one or more Indigenous land claims.
These land claims are being negotiated between the federal and Indigenous governments.
Indigenous peoples continue to use the land for traditional hunting, fishing, and trapping.”
-parks.canada.ca
As long as you live in Canada, you are lucky to have at least one of these 48 parks in your province or territory! While I know that doesn’t mean you have one “close,” you should have one within driving distance. You can check out this interactive map to see which parks are near you! Just as there is a great deal of variety between the provinces and communities in Canada, the various parks all have their unique elements. From the mountains of British Columbia and Alberta to exploring Anne’s house in PEI, there is much to learn and experience in these national parks across our beautiful country.
What is the Xplorers Program?
Whether your preference is to enjoy the parks closest to you or to widen your travels, there are parks in every province and territory (except Nunavut) which participate in the Xplorers kids program. This is a very interesting program run by the National Parks of Canada which gives kids activities to do while visiting the parks, and then they receive a collectible souvenir marking their visit. (Psst, it’s a dog tag.)
When you arrive at a participating national park, each child will receive their OWN booklet of activities for them to complete about that specific park. These booklets are unique to that specific park and will be different at each one. These activities will help children discover the unique features of each park as well as keep kids engaged and attentive to the details of their surroundings. Most kids really enjoy collecting the dog tags as well to commemorate the parks they have visited.
That video highlighted 10 of the more popular parks in Canada, (We have the same favourite!) but remember, there are 38 others to explore as well!
Where Can I Participate?
Not every Canadian national park participates in the Xplorers program, however. Aside from Nunavut, there is at least one participating park per province. The Xplorers website tells you which parks in each province and territory participate and also allows you to click on the name of each park to learn more.
Types of Activities
Some examples of activities include a list of things you have to find, things you need to draw a picture of, building a tipi, attending a ceilidh, counting how many steps are in a certain location, or noticing a small detail like the colour of an item. There is usually a place for your child to write or draw about their experience as well.
Counting the steps at Kouchibouguac National Park
Completing a scavenger hunt to find things in Anne’s House in PEI
If you are not able to visit all these places in person, there are some at-home activities and games available on the website; however, you are not able to collect dog tag souvenirs for completing the online activities. These are colourful and engaging activities though that may supplement your science learning well!
How to Participate
To participate in person, you just check in at the desk near the gate at any participating national park. The employee there will give each child their Xplorer activity booklet. This is a FREE activity! It is wonderful that this program is available to all.
During your time spent in the park, complete the activity booklet and return it to the desk when you leave. The employee will then give your child their souvenir!
Collect souvenir dog tags from all your national park visits!
What are you waiting for? Check the map for the participating national park nearest you and get exploring!
This article has been written by homeschooling staff writers of The Canadian Schoolhouse (TCS). Enjoy more of our content from TCS contributors and staff writers by visiting our themes page that has a new theme topic added every month!
"Train up a child in the way he should go and when he is old, he will not depart from it" (Proverbs 22:6).