Sesame Street Characters Elmo and Murray Visit Our National Parks

Thanks to a new series of online videos from the folks at Sesame Street, youngsters can learn about America’s Great Outdoors from Elmo and Murray, two fun-loving Muppets, as they visit with park rangers and explore wildlife at two of America’s most popular national parks.

Elmo and Murray learn about the natural world from park rangers at Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona and Gateway National Recreation Area in New York City, who encourage Elmo, Murray, and children across the country to utilize all of their senses to investigate and observe the outdoors.

We love the intro to the series, which features Elmo and Murray in park ranger costumes, performing their national park rap: “We are park rangers, we take care of the park. We look at plants and animals and investigate tree bark!”

In addition to great interactions with real park rangers, and footage of nature and wildlife from our national parks, the site also includes great downloadable activities like a nature journal and nature scavenger hunt.

The videos teach young people about habitats, seasons, plants and animals. They learn how to conduct an animal survey, look for nests, identify migration patterns, and simply listen to the sounds of nature.

The new online series, titled Sesame Street Explores National Parks, includes six short videos and accompanying hands-on activities that introduce preschoolers to the natural world. It was unveiled today by Sesame Street, the National Park Service and the National Park Foundation.

Check out the videos and activities at sesamestreet.org/parks.

Which is your favorite?

Image source: NPS