2025 Oconee Area Junior Naturalist Program

Ready to discover the wild world around us? Join our Junior Naturalist series, where we'll explore the sounds that shape our environment. From the trickling of water and the rustling of leaves to the calls of birds and the buzz of insects, we'll dive into the secrets of water quality, rocks, wildlife, and plants. Whether you’re interested in geology, herpetology, or botany, every session will bring new adventures and fun discoveries for kids ages 8-13. Let’s tune in to nature together!

The Junior Naturalist program series is presented as a partnership between Oconee Parks, Recreation, and Tourism, and Oconee 4-H. Youth 4th - 8th grade join South Cove County Park Rangers and your local 4H agent on six Mondays from August18-September 29 (minus September 1 when Oconee schools are closed) for an hour of nature exploration. We'll learn how to respectfully catch and handle wild creatures for educational/survey purposes, discuss human/plant relationships, learn how our observations can contribute to community science, and generally have a blast listening to the world around us!

While this is a free event, REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED as space is limited. In addition to getting tickets for each day of attendance, please also fill out a participant form for each Junior Naturalist ( or ). This form only needs to be completed once for each participant.

Planned topics and locations are as follows:

• August 18: Water Ecology and Quality at Chau Ram Park
• August 25: Rocks & Geology at the Oconee Quarry
• September 1: Labor Day NO PROGRAM
• September 8: Entomology (insects & other small critters) at South Cove Park
• September 15: Herpetology (reptiles & amphibians) at Chau Ram Park
• September 22: Ornithology (birds) at South Cove Park
• September 29: Botany (plants & trees) at South Cove Park

To earn the Junior Naturalist certification, youth must attend at least five out of the six events. To secure your spot, please get a ticket for each day you intend to participate.

You are welcome, but not required to donate to support Oconee 4-H Programs.

Please reach out to Oconee County 4H agent Lil Ledford bGVkZm9yNyB8IGNsZW1zb24gISBlZHU= or Ranger Alec Merlo YW1lcmxvIHwgb2NvbmVlc2MgISBjb20= to learn more.

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Membership requirement: Current 4-H membership in is requested for participation in this program. Members who join or renew in the month of September receive a free T-shirt. Contact Lil with any questions.

Custodial Care: Please note that this event and its 4H coordinators do not assume custodial care of youth in attendance. Attendance protocol is maintained by Oconee County Parks, Tourism, and Recreation. Youth must have a signed program attendance form on file for this event, ( or ) and be signed in and signed out by a parent/guardian or designated representative.

Civil Rights Statement

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