Mount Rushmore National Memorial in South Dakota
This park is much more than just the faces on the mountain side. Come Explore!
Photo by Felicia Marsh © 2021
Mount Rushmore is located near the town of Keystone in the Black Hills region of Pennington County, South Dakota, United States.
Follow this link to the National Park Service (NPS) official website for the
Mount Rushmore National Memorial.
The NPS also provides
Parks as Classrooms curriculms and lesson plan materials for this park, a student guide, and links to other NPS educational services.
You can also find additional educational material in the NPS Junior Ranger program materials. The following are current and/or archived Junior ranger booklets.
Mount Rushmore National Memorial Junior Ranger (Ages 5-12)
Mount Rushmore National Memorial Rushmore Ranger (Ages 13 and Over)
Mount Rushmore Avenue of Flags
As you first walk in, through the visitor's center, the
Avenue of Flags presents an oportunity to explore symbols for each of the 50 states and U.S Districts, Commonwealths and Territories.
The flags and their pedestals are arranged in alphabetical order by state name on the avenue.
Visit each pedestal and use our
Avenue of Flags Identification Worksheet to record your observations.
For a challenge, see if you can visit the flags in the order the states were admitted to the Union.
Or play a round of our
Avenue of Flags BINGO with family or a group of friends.
Mount Rushmore Math and Science
In 2010, the National Park Service collaborated with a cultural heritage preservation non-profit organization, named
CyArk, to laser scan Mount Rushmore. The resulting data in the form of 3D models, drawings, and virtual tours, was released to the public via CyArk’s
Mount Rushmore web portal.
In the
Lesson Plans you will find several math and science lessons for all learning levels.
Get Moving at Mount Rushmore
Enjoy a short hike on the
Presidential Trail at Mount Rushmore and view the sculpture from multiple vantage points.
There are several plaques along the way highlighting the history of the mountain and the carvings.
Take along our
Historical Fact Scavenger Hunt and see how many items you can find during the hike.
Or if you prefer to nature watch as you hike, take along our
Forrest Biome Scavenger Hunt (located in the Mountain Ecosystem Scavenger Hunt worksheet set) and see what kinds of plants and critters you can spot from the path.
Just remember... stay on the trail!
Geocaching
Need more options for staying active?
Black Hills Area Firefighters Traditional Geocache (GC5P1ZC) is a nearby family friendly geocaching opportunity.
Never been geocaching? Learn how
here.
More Mount Rushmore Stories
The story of the creation of
Mount Rushmore is rich in drama and controversy.
In addition to the information on the National Park Service (NPS) website, the
Smithsonian Magazine provides an excellent telling in their article
The Making of Mount Rushmore.
Happy Trails!
