World Wildlife Investigators
4th and 5th grade
Camp Description
The game’s afoot…or a-hoof! Hot on the Denver Zoo trail, campers will conduct their own investigations to get to the bottom of these real animal mysteries. Gather evidence by observing creatures from around the globe and uncovering the connections they have with each other. Can you crack the case?
Week Overview
Daily Schedule Subject to Change
**Ask your camper the questions below to learn about their day!
Monday
- Question of the Day:
- AM: How do animals that live in cold or mountain habitats survive in the wild compared to the zoo? What adaptations allow them to live in tough terrain (survive arctic temps, climb up mountains, find food in dense forests)?
- PM: Can you discover who is “Wanted” and also learn who the mysterious riddle animal is? Can you build a solution to solve her challenge?
- Zoo Exploration: Northern Shores and Harmony Hill
- Animal Experience: Who did I meet today?
- Engineering Challenge:
- Campers design a solution for the mystery animal’s challenge (build new type of that animal’s exhibit, design new toys or furniture, figure out a fun digging challenge for that type of animal in the exhibit, etc.)
- What was the riddle? Who was the mystery animal? What did I design?
- Further Exploration: Sheep, Goats, and Eagles
Tuesday
- Question of the Day:
- AM: How can social predators use body language and signals to help the group hunt?
- PM: Can you discover who is “Wanted” and also learn who the mysterious riddle animal is? Can you design a new kind of social predator body signal to help the group hunt?
- Zoo Exploration: Predator Ridge, look for body language that Lions, Wild Dogs, Hyenas might use to hunt
- Animal Experience: Who did I meet today?
- Engineering Challenge:
- Campers design a new kind of social predator body signal to help the group hunt
- What did you design? How does this help predators hunt?
- Further Exploration: Camper’s choice – where did we go?
Wednesday
- Question of the Day:
- AM: How can animals be ecosystem engineers?
- PM: Can you discover who is “Wanted” and also learn who the mysterious riddle animal is? Can you design something that could remove trees in either the African Savanna or Asian Rainforest?
- Zoo Exploration: Toyota Elephant Passage, look for evidence about how elephants can change their landscape
- Animal Experience: Who did I meet today?
- Engineering Challenge:
- Campers design something that can remove trees from a landscape, which mimics an elephant OR, something that helps other animals make paths through a rainforest
- Which did I design? What did we learn today that helped with our design?
- Further Exploration: Pachyderms
Thursday
- Question of the Day:
- AM: What is the best kind of climbing structure for different types of primates?
- PM: Can you discover who is “Wanted” and also learn who the mysterious riddle animal is? Can you design a primate exhibit that could continue throughout the entire zoo?
- Zoo Exploration: Primate Panorama, Emerald Forest, and Gibbons, looking at climbing structures
- Animal Experience: Who did I meet today?
- Engineering Challenge:
- Campers design a new primate exhibit that continues throughout the whole zoo
- What was today’s riddle? What was the solution?
- Further Exploration: Primate Jeopardy!
**City Park Fountains!
Friday
- Question of the Day:
- AM: Where around the earth are the highest concentrations of animals located?
- PM: Can you solve the Biodiversity Mystery and complete a huge rainforest scene?
- Zoo Exploration: Tropical Discovery, look for as many species of plants and animals as you can count!
- Engineering Challenge:
- Campers put together a giant Biodiversity Mural!
- What is Biodiversity? Why is it important? What did we create?
- Further Exploration: Outdoor Bird Exhibits, look for more species! Compare your species count in TD to that at Bird Exhibits – which has more?
Taking It Home
Why is it so important to have more biodiversity? Why is solving mysteries important? How do we solve animal mysteries every day?
Reminders
- Camp runs in rain or shine. Make sure your camper is dressed for the weather.
- Campers are required to bring:
- Backpack
- Sack lunch + 2 snacks
- Face Mask (cloth or disposable)
- Water bottle
- Craft Supplies: Scissors, colors, glue
- Please note the day your child’s camp group will take a walking field trip to the City Park Fountains. While playing in the fountains, campers must keep their camp shirt and pants/shorts on – quick dry shoes and shorts are recommended on this day, but not required. Campers are welcome to bring a change of clothes, but are usually dry by the time we return to the zoo.
- Drop-off and Pick-up occurs at the Special Programs Entrance (Gate 1), according to their designated time window.
- Drop-off:
- 8:30-8:45 AM — 6-8th Grade + 4-5th Grade
- 8:45-9:00 AM – K-1st Grade
- 9:00-9:15 AM – 2-3rd Grade
- Pick-up:
- 3:45-4:00 PM — 6-8th Grade + 4-5th Grade
- 4:00-4:15 PM – K-1st Grade
- 4:15-4:30 PM – 2-3rd Grade
- Drop-off:
- You will need to bring an ID every day for pick-up.
Contact Us
If your camper liked Summer Safari, they will LOVE Fall, Winter, and Spring Safari Mini-Camps! When school is out, Safari Camp is in! These camps run from November through March. There’s a Safari for every season!
