Dinosaur National Monument's rangers offer Virtual Field Trips to students during the winter season when in-person visitation is slow.
NPS
During our Virtual Field Trip Season (winter only), we provide free distance learning experiences for classrooms around the world to learn more about the monument! Park Rangers bring your class on a journey to the late Jurassic to learn about fossils, dinosaurs, and paleontology revealed in the Quarry Exhibit Hall. Tour one of the most famous dinosaur quarry sites in the world, where over 1,500 fossils are left in place as they were found. Students can learn about fossils, dinosaurs, geology, geologic time, earth history, adaptations, and more.
Programs can last anywhere from 15-45 minutes, which includes time for attendees to ask questions. Rangers are able to adjust the length of your program to accommodate the age and interest levels of the students or class schedule. Spaces are filled on a first-come, first-served basis. There's no limit to the number of students that can join our virtual class. You send us an invitation link to join your preferred virtual learning platform when you book your appointment. You also control who gets the invitation to join and can invite as many people as you like. We are happy to work with whichever platform you prefer. View our current Virtual Field Trip schedule. If we are offering programs, you can book your Virtual Field Trip online. Contact us if you have any questions.
Current Virtual Field Trip Schedule
Winter 2023/2024 Season
Program Dates: Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from November 7, 2023 through February 29, 2023 Program Times: 10 am and 2 pm (Mountain Time Zone)
We are only able to offer Virtual Field Trips through the winter season when in-person visitation is slower. You must make the reservation through our online webform linked below. Programs are booked on a first-come, first-served basis. If you have questions, please see the Virtual Field Trip FAQ or contact us. Please keep in mind that we don't respond to the Virtual Field Trip email outside of the schedule posted above.
Follow these steps to book your Virtual Field Trip:
Appointments must be booked at least 7 days in advance. Click the dinosaur to access our Virtual Field Trip Bookings form. Select your desired date/time from the ones available. Spots are filled on a first-come, first-served basis.
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After booking, monitor your inbox and spam folder for an email from our Virtual Field Trip Coordinator (dino_virtual_ranger@nps.gov). In the email, we will ask questions about your class so that your guide can prepare for your Virtual Field Trip. You must reply to this email at least 7 days prior to the appointment you scheduled. This is REQUIRED in order to keep your appointment.
Please have the following information gathered prior to booking your appointment...
Your name and contact information (phone number, email address).
Your school or group's name.
Number of attendees, and grade level.
Accessibility accommodations for your group that your guide should be aware of.
Specific topics, concepts, or vocabulary words you'd like your guide to touch on.
How long you would like your program to last. (Programs last 15 to 45 minutes.)
Include a link to your virtual meeting. You must create this link through Google Meet or Microsoft Teams. Currently, we cannot meet through Zoom or Skype. Without this link, we cannot meet with you. If we don't recieve a link to the meeting at least 7 days prior to your appointment, your Virtual Field Trip will be canceled.
Contact Dinosaur Virtual Rangers
Have a question? See if it's already answered in the FAQ below. If it's not, call the Quarry Visitor Center during operating hours at 435-781-7700 (ext. 0) or email dino_virtual_ranger@nps.gov. Be aware that this email is only monitored when we are within our Virtual Field Trip Season Dates. If you send an email to this inbox outside those dates, there will be no response.
Virtual Field Trips FAQ
Why was my appointment canceled?
Shortly after booking your appointment, you will receive an email from our Virtual Field Trip Coordinator, wherein we request more specific information about your class so that your guide can prepare. You must reply to this email at least 7 days prior to your appointment. We also send an automated reminder email 7 days before your appointment letting you know that you must reply within 24 hours if you haven't already. If we don't recieve a reply to either of these within the timeframes listed above, your appointment will be canceled. Our experience has been that those who don't reply to emails are much less likely to show up for their appointment. If we don't recieve correspondence, appointments are canceled so that someone else has the chance to book one. If your appointment was canceled, you can book a new appointment using our webform if times still are available.
What do you learn about in a Virtual Field Trip?
Virtual Field Trips are broadcast from the Quarry Exhibit Hall at Dinosaur National Monument, where over 1,500 dinosaur bones from the Late Jurassic Period are on display. We can cover a variety of topics related to the park, including dinosaurs, fossils, paleontology, evolution, deep time, geology, ecology, desert habitats, the National Park Service, and much more. Let us know if there are any specific topics or vocabulary words you would like us to focus on in the optional “Notes” section of the webform when booking your appointment.
What's the cost of a Virtual Field Trip?
It's FREE!
Do you still do the mystery program for students learning U.S. geography?
We sure can! When booking your appointment, just type "Mystery Program" or "Geography Program" in the optional "Notes" section of the webform. Please remind the ranger at the start of your field trip that you want the mystery/geography talk and we will not give away our location right away. Your students will guide the direction of the program with questions to guess where we are broadcasting from.
Do you only offer Virtual Field Trips to schools?
While we mainly provide Virtual Field Trips to schools and homeschoolers, we will also accept appointments from camps, community centers, senior care centers, libraries, colleges, and many others.
What language are your Virtual Field Trips in?
Currently, only English.
What ages do you teach?
Our virtual rangers are trained to make content timely, appropriate, entertaining, and understandable for each age group, from kindergartners to high schoolers and beyond.
Do you offer programs to schools/groups outside the United States?
Yes, but you still have to work with our business hours. If none of the times offered on the webform meet your needs, please contact us to see if we can accommodate you. Remember that we operate on U.S. Mountain Time (MST/MDT).
I'm trying to book an appointment within your Virtual Field Trip schedule, but it says no appointments are available for the day I want. Why?
Virtual Field Trips are booked on a first-come, first-served basis. What you see on the webform is what's available. If there aren't any appointment times on a day that we normally offer programs, all the times for that day have either been booked by someone else, or it's a holiday. We don't offer programs on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day, or New Year's Day.
I don’t see a time that works for me. Can you adjust to meet our needs?
Maybe. If you cannot work with any of the available times we offer, feel free to contact us. Please have a prepared list of several dates/times that would work for your group and we will see if we can work with your schedule. Be mindful that we operate on U.S. Mountain Time (MST/MDT).
How many classes/students can join a single Virtual Field Trip session?
There is no limit. You send the ranger a link to join your preferred platform. You also control who gets the invitation to join and can invite as many people as you like.
Can you accommodate individuals with special needs?
Of course! There is a field on the webform where you can provide more information about your group’s needs and what we can do to accommodate everyone. For example, if you have students who are blind or low-vision, let us know so we can provide verbal descriptions of what is appearing on screen. If you have need for an American Sign Language (ASL) interpreter, please contact us directly to request one at least 2 weeks in advance of your program.
I have 17 classes and each one needs a different appointment on different days at different times. Do I have to use the form and make a reservation for each one?
