Teton Science Schools recently launched the first Weekends in the Park program, welcoming 25 fifth-grade students to the Kelly Campus in Grand Teton National Park for a weekend focused on wildlife science, field research and connection to place.
Weekends in the Park was created in partnership with Grand Teton National Park to offer accessible, locally rooted opportunities for students to spend meaningful time in the Park while strengthening science literacy, curiosity and connection to place. This collaborative program was made possible by the generous support of Grand Teton National Park Foundation and the Community Foundation of Jackson Hole.
Throughout the weekend, students explored wildlife tracking, animal observation, and field science alongside educators and wildlife professionals from Grand Teton National Park and Teton Raptor Center. Participants documented animal signs, sketched tracks, compared pelts and scat from regional species, and learned how scientists study wildlife populations in and around the Park.
By the end of the weekend, students shared presentations, skits, and research reflections with their families, highlighting not only what they had learned but the excitement and confidence that had grown throughout the experience.
Most importantly, the weekend created space for students to see themselves as part of this landscape, not simply visiting it, but learning from it and caring for it. It also helped reinforce that these are their public lands, and that stewardship and science are not things to observe from afar but spaces where they belong, participate, and can make an impact.
