For the Kid in All of Us
Playing, laughing and learning, the gardens at Tohono Chul provide a wonderful place to enjoy the day with your little one. Chasing lizards and butterflies or floating your boat down our children’s stream, your children will delight at the beauty of Tohono Chul. It’s a wonderful place to learn about the Sonoran deserts unique habitat and special critters and create lasting memories.
I’ve been bringing my granddaughters to play since they were toddlers and even now that they’re teenagers they always want to come back with me – Julia Wait Bonse
Stories in the Garden
Tuesdays | 10 a.m.
Traditional and original stories about the desert and its creatures. Appropriate age range: preschool to 10:
Free with admission
Reptile Ramble
March – May & September – November | Fridays at 10 a.m.
Learn to identify resident reptiles and find the answer to the age-old question, “Why do lizards do push ups?” Be prepared to meet a few non-poisonous snakes, perhaps a lizard or even a tortoise. Free with admission
GUIDED TOURS
For Schools:
With a focus on inquiry-based learning, the Park works to facilitate the integration of environmental education and life-science concepts into a multi-disciplinary curriculum. We can customize any tour to meet the specific needs of your group. For example, if your class is in a social studies unit on Arizona history, we can focus on the role of native plants in the lives of the indigenous people of the region. If our current indoor arts and culture exhibits are of special interest to your students, arrangements can be made to include them as part of your tour.
• Number of tour participants – 5 minimum | 60 maximum
• Number of student chaperons requested – 1 adult per 10 students
• Length of tour – approximately one hour
• Subjects – adaptations, birds, Sonoran Desert ecology, ethnobotany, Riparian Habitat, Saguaro Discovery Trail, xeriscape landscaping, and others by pre-arrangement
• Pre-visit materials and Guidelines for Teachers and Chaperones
• Arizona State Standards
• Desert Pathfinders Activity Booklet — for 1st-3rd grades a multi-page booklet (printed on legal paper) with 20 different desert activities to engage students
• Cost – $2 per student, free admission for 1 chaperone for every 10 children, $2 for each additional caperone
To schedule a tour for your school group please contact Stephen Spikes at sspikes@tohonochul.org
Fun and Smart Projects for Kids
Before your next visit, why not explore one of these activity sheets, great for a rainy (or too hot) day at home! Note: activity sheets are in Adobe Acrobat PDF format (portable document format) and some are for legal-sized paper (8-1/2 × 14″). (To access these forms you need the free downloadable software, Adobe Acrobat Reader.)
• Arizona: A to Z (requires legal paper)
• Desert Pathfinders Activity Booklet (requires legal paper)
• Monsoon
• Saguaros
• Seasons of the Saguaro
• For the Birds
Tohono Chul in your Library!
Each summer we travel to the Pima County Library branches with activities that interweave the story of the Sonoran Desert with the theme of the libraries’ summer reading programs, linking valuable natural history lessons for children of all ages with the message to “read more about it.”
Not Just for Kids! – Stories in the Garden featuring The Desert Players
Stay tuned for next summer’s brand new adventure which explores the world of our desert pollinators!