Zoos & Wildlife
You can read all you want in a book, but there is nothing like seeing the objects of your study up-close and personal when you visit a zoo, nature preserve, aquarium, or wildlife sanctuary. Visit the animal kingdom here in Indiana, and you'll find a fun and interesting way to learn more about the natural world.
Indiana Zoos & Wildlife
Mesker Park Zoo & Botanic Garden
At Evansville's Mesker Park Zoo & Botanic Garden, you will see more than 500 animals from 200 species roaming freely in natural habitats surrounded by exotic plants, wildflowers and trees. Our beautiful 40-acre park features a Children's Enchanted Forest, paddle boats, bumper boats, a tram, and the Discovery Center, focusing on the world's vanishing rainforests and animals.
John Ball Zoological Garden
The John Ball Zoo is located on the hillside of a beautiful 140 acre park on the west side of Grand Rapids. Currently the animal collection at the Zoo includes 237 species and 1,183 individuals.
Potawatomi Zoo
The Potawatomi Zoo in South Bend has over 600 animals on 23-wooded acres. Highlights include the Australia walk-a-bout with kangaroo, wallaby, and emu. Zoo Farm includes domestic animals such as goat, sheep, alpaca, and pigs. Your safari through Africa features lions, zebras, chimpanzees, warthogs, antelope and three species of old world monkeys. Trek through Asia to view red pandas, tigers, cranes, camels, takins, and two species of leopard. Explore the Americas, home to bison, prairie dog, flamingo, giant tortoise, and alligators. The Learning Center is an indoor building that displays hundreds of animals including reptiles, amphibians, small primates, lemurs and fruit bats.
Indianapolis Zoo
The Indianapolis Zoo has approximately 3,800 specimens of 320 species of animals, including 16 endangered species, four threatened species, and 13 Species Survival (SSP) animal species. The Zoo also has more than 1,900 species of plants in its collection.
Fort Wayne Children's Zoo
The Fort Wayne Children's Zoo features 43 acres and 1,000 animal species, a train ride, animal contact area, pony ride, and the Rain Forest. Hug a goat in the popular contact area. Take a ride on a pony or the 1860 miniature train. See red pandas, sea lions, penguins, a giant tortoise, and much, much more. Relax in beautifully landscaped grounds and facilities.
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Featured Resources

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The Living Page: Keeping Notebooks with Charlotte Mason
Charlotte Mason believed that children need to be trained to see, to have their eyes opened, in order to find joy in life. This work explains the value of using the method of writing in journals or notebooks, as derived from the expansive work of Charlotte Mason. You'll find tips to help your children practice putting their knowledge, thoughts, and pictures down on paper, helping them to retain information better, create something beautiful, and strive for retention.
Beautiful Feet Books
Beautiful Feet Books publishes Rea Berg's "History Through Literature" study guides. They offer fine children's literature, including the D'Aulaire biographies and Genevieve Foster's "World" titles. This is a great resource for anyone wishing to utilize an approach that studies history through literature.
Cuisenaire Rods Multi-Pack
Grades Pre K & up. An economical way to bring rods into the classroom. Pack contains six sets of 74 rods, six trays with, and Teacher's Guide. For use with 12-18 students.
The Complete Home Learning Source Book : The Essential Resource Guide for Homeschoolers, Parents, and Educators Covering Every Subject from Arithmetic to Zoology
This ambitious reference guide lives up to its name. Practically three inches thick--and we're not talking large print here--it's packed with titles, ordering information, and Web site addresses. From where to send away for a kit to make your own Chilean rain stick to how to order a set of Elizabethan costume paper dolls, the book connects families to a world of learning possibilities. Book titles, short synopses, authors' names, publishers, and years of print make up the bulk of the guide. Clas...
Noah Webster's Reading Handbook
This is the historic text (originally called the Blue-Backed Speller) that has been updated to teach phonics/beginning reading. The blends and words in this reader are arranged to correlate with the sequence in which the special phonics sounds are taught. This reader is an invaluable teaching tool for children who need extra practice in the application of phonics rules. Find out more here.