Pack Themes and Contents
Click on each of the themes below to access pack content suggestions, printable handouts, and activity suggestions. If you have additional information you'd like to see added, please feel free to contact us. All files are .pdf unless otherwise noted.
Click here for general Discovery Pack resources and ideas.
Backyard Exploration/Nature Discovery
- Backyard Exploration/Nature Discovery Pack Contents (.doc)
- Make Your Own Discovery Pack
- Sensory Bingo
- Nature Scavenger Hunt
- Treasure Hunt Scrapbook
- Winneshiek County Science Scavenger Hunt: Introduction, Earth Science, Life Science
- Playing through the Seasons: Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter
- Dike 14 Nature Preserve Discovery Pack
- High Point State Park Discovery Pack
Birds
- Bird Pack Contents (.doc)
- Polk County Bird Pack (.doc)
- Polk County Bird ID Checklist (.xls)
- Bluebird House Plan
- Bald Eagles in Iowa (Iowa DNR)
- Migration Sensation (.doc)
- Bird Feeding Guides: Summer, Winter
- Coloring Pages: Bird Coloring Book (Polk County), Feathers, Teal Duck, Owl
- Activities: Bird Oddball, Bird Song Crossword, Bird Song Wordsearch, Chickadee Words, Eagle Hat, Feather Types, Feather Crossword, Feathers Wordsearch
Geology: Rocks, Fossils, & Minerals
- Geology Pack Contents (.doc)
- Polk County Geology Pack (.doc)
- Cookie Excavation
- Junior Paleontologist Booklet (National Park Service)
- Make your own Fossil (National Park Service)
- Making Fossil Prints
- Make a Fossil Print and Cast (National Park Service)
- Activities: Road to Fossilization Game, Fossil Wordsearch, Fossil Wordsearch 2
- Coloring Pages: Ammonites, Brachiopods, Crinoids, Trilobites
Insects & Spiders
- Insects & Spiders Pack Contents (.doc)
- Polk County Insect Pack (.doc)
- Jackson County Insect Pack (.doc)
- Insect Order Turtox Key
- Worm Walk
- Activities: Ant Booklet, Ant Crossword, Ant Crossword 2, Ant Wordsearch, Ant Wordsearch 2, Beetle Crossword, Beetle Wordsearch, Bug Mask, Monarch Crossword, Monarch Wordsearch, True Bugs Crossword, True Bugs Wordsearch
- Coloring Pages: Butterfly, Insect Coloring Book, Minibeasts, Monarch Life Cycle, True Bugs, Ugly Bugs
Mammals
- Mammals Pack Contents (.doc)
- Polk County Mammals Pack (.doc)
- Polk County Mammals Pack Journal (.doc)
- Activities: Fox Origami, Racoon Tracing, Squirrel Origami
- Coloring Pages: Badger, Bat, Bear, Beaver, Field Mouse, Fox, Rabbit, Squirrel
Nature Art & Writing
- Nature Art & Writing Pack Contents (.doc)
- Leaf and Flower Art Ideas (.doc)
Night & Astronomy
- Night & Astronomy Pack Contents (.doc)
- Polk County Night Pack (.doc)
- Night Finger Play and Songs (.doc)
- Bat Bones Comparison
- Make a Big Dipper
- Activities: Bats Acrostic Poem, Bat Connect the Dots, Bat Crossword, Bat Hat, Bat Mask, Bat Unscramble, Bat Wordsearch, Bat Wordsearch 2, Moon Observations, Raccoon Tracing, Solar System Wordsearch, Solar System Unscramble
- Coloring Pages: Bat, Owl
Outdoor Skills
Plants & Wildflowers
Ponds, Streams, & Wetlands
- Ponds, Streams, & Wetlands Pack Contents (.doc)
- Jackson County Pond Life Pack (.doc)
- Polk County Pond Life Pack (.doc)
- Wetland Metaphors Demonstration (.doc)
- Benthic Macroinvertebrate Key (IOWATER)
- Key to Life in the Pond (UW Extension)
- Activities: Origami Snake, Pond Life Spot the Difference, Pond Wordsearch
- Coloring Pages: Beaver, Duck, Dipping a Pond, Snake, Turtle
Prairies
- Prairie Pack Contents (.doc)
- Polk County Prairie Pack (.doc)
- Top 10 Favorite Activities at Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge
- Traditional Uses of Buffalo
- Root Systems of Prairie Plants
- Activities related to Prairie Storms
- Happy Prairie Lesson
- Prairie Math Lesson
- Prairie Mobile Lesson
- Quick Freeze Prairie Dogs Lesson
- Activities: Buffalo Brain Teasers, Prairie Wordsearch
- Coloring Pages: Bison, Bison 2, Prairie, Prairie Dog
Reptiles & Amphibians
- Reptiles & Amphibians Pack Contents(.doc)
- Activities: Frog Wordsearch, Origami Snake, Reptile Wordsearch, Snake Wordsearch
- Coloring Pages: Snake, Snake 2, Turtle
Tracks & Scat
Trees & Forests
- Trees & Forests Pack Contents (.doc)
- Polk County Tree Pack (.doc)
- Forests Forever Pack (Wisconsin DNR)
- Treasure Hunt Scrapbook
- Woodland Log Book