Theodore Roosevelt National Park: The American Bison Conservation Story

Dive into the wonders of Theodore Roosevelt National Park with our educational resource, 'The American Bison.' Perfect for middle and high school students, this engaging activity offers fascinating insights into the conservation of the American Bison and examines their population trends. Complete with interactive questions, it’s designed to captivate young minds and foster a deeper appreciation for wildlife.

One of the most famous conservation stories is about the Bison or American Buffalo. In the 1800s, Bison were extremely hunted and their numbers went from 60 million down to 300 within a few decades! Because of strong conservation efforts, the Bison population rose to the half a million that we have today.

Much of the comeback for the bison happened because of the efforts by our 26th president, Theodore Roosevelt who lived part of his later life in North Dakota and fell in love with the area and desired to protect it.

Today, we have Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota where you can visit and spot hundreds of bison in several different herds.

This activity teaches students about the bison conservation story and then they will plot the population numbers on a line graph from the 1500s to 2017. Finally, they will answer several questions about their graph and about what they learned.

This product includes:

1. Teacher Directions-including prep info and materials needed  

2. Teacher Procedure

3. Student Packet-Short reading, data table, student blank graph, analysis questions 

4. Student Packet Answers

5. Graph Answer

6. Teacher Tips

To do this activity, students will need:

• "Theodore Roosevelt National Park" packet (INCLUDED)

• Pencil

• Optional: Ruler or straight edge (to connect dots on line graph)

• Optional: Calculator (to do basic math for one of the questions: "about how many bison were killed each year between 1870 and 1880?").

Watch my Theodore Roosevelt National Park video on YouTube!

Also, check out my Youtube Channel for FREE informational videos about the national parks along with FREE video guides for your students!

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If you have any questions, feel free to email me at edventureswithmrsd@gmail.com.

Thank you!