Lesson Plans: Remote Learning in Glenwood Springs

September 29, 2020

Take the kids on a field trip to Glenwood Springs where they can learn about important school subjects all while having an action-packed mini-break in the Colorado mountains.

Zoom classrooms and remote learning are an educational reality these days. Hours spent in front of a screen may not be ideal, but one advantage of remote learning is that it can be done from just about anywhere. Check out these engaging ideas for learning on the go in family-friendly Glenwood Springs!

Glenwood Springs Core Curriculum

History.

Experience the past, don’t just read about it. In Glenwood Springs, kids can find out about President Teddy Roosevelt, Colorado’s mining days and pioneer life in the American West.

Assignments:

Discover how the teddy bear was invented and became a Hotel Colorado
Take a trip to the historic coal coking ovens in south Glenwood Springs. These ovens and the men who worked them provided an essential ingredient in the manufacture of Colorado steel.
Go for an eye-opening, self-guided historical walking tour of Glenwood Springs. Maps are available at the Glenwood Springs Historical Museum.
Register for the museum’s ghost tour, which goes virtual for the first time this year. It’s all about history, when the ghosts of Glenwood’s past tell tales of how they lived and died.

Science.

Dig into subjects like geology, physics, biology and thermal dynamics. See and experience the marvels of the natural world while exploring in Glenwood Springs.

Assignments:

Travel back in geological time with cave tours at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park. Learn how a shallow receding sea formed the labyrinth of caverns and left behind a fantastical world of cave formations. Additional educational materials about the caves are available at the General Store.
For a fun physics lesson, hop on thrill rides and attractions at the mountaintop Adventure Park and experience first-hand Newton’s Three Laws of Motion.
When it comes to biology, drive to the Glenwood Springs fish hatchery to learn about the life cycle of trout, as well as feed them.
With an abundance of hot springs, discover how Glenwood Hot Springs and Iron Mountain Hot Springs conserve natural resources by harnessing the natural thermal energy to heat sidewalks, buildings and preheat domestic water supplies.

Math.

Get your kids to crunch the numbers on a Glenwood Springs vacation; it’s an ideal time to teach your child about all kinds of mathematical concepts.

Assignments:

Glenwood Springs has a bustling dining scene. After a delicious meal, when the check comes, ask kids to mentally calculate the tip, just be sure to double-check their calculations!
Turn souvenir shopping in Glenwood Springs into an opportunity for a lesson on smart spending. For an introductory lesson in finance, give kids a vacation spending budget and teach them how to be savvy shoppers.
Give them a problem to solve. For example, using the principles of geometry draw an accurately scaled version of the exclamation-point-shaped Glenwood Hot Springs Pool.

Physical Education.

Teachers know exercise boosts cognitive ability. Get moving for another chance to learn and experience something new.

Go for a bike ride on the Rio Grande Trail along the Roaring Fork River. There’s a good chance you’ll see an abundance of wildlife including bald eagles and other birds of prey.
To learn about Glenwood’s wildfire history hike the Storm King Memorial Trail and follow in the footsteps of the 14 brave firefighters who lost their lives there.
It’s a short hike from town to Glenwood’s pioneer cemetery and Doc Holliday’s grave marker. For extra credit see if you can find Kid Curry’s grave in Linwood cemetery.