The free Thomas Stone virtual Junior Ranger badge program offers two online history activities and a printable digital award. Thomas Stone National Historic Site provides a virtual Junior Ranger activity experience based on eighteenth-century history. Scouting with Colonel Stone asks participants to imagine preparing for service in the First Maryland Regiment under Captain John Hoskins Stone in 1776. Riddle Me This presents animal riddles inspired by popular historical entertainment.
Offer at a glance
Affiliate disclosure: We may earn a commission or referral reward when you use qualifying links, at no extra cost to you. This helps support our work finding and sharing freebies.
What the Junior Ranger Program Includes
The virtual option differs from the visitor-center booklet. A physical badge from the in-person booklet is reviewed by a ranger, while the virtual activities offer an image file for families to download.
Explore the Two Virtual Challenges
Scouting with Colonel Stone: The park places the participant in 1776 as a member of the First Maryland Regiment. Colonel John Hoskins Stone assigns a reconnaissance mission, meaning a search for potential dangers. The child names a horse and chooses ten things to carry from a list mixing historically useful items with objects that did not exist in that period. The activity invites a closer look at the practical needs of a mounted messenger or scout.
Items to consider include a compass, map, paper and pencil, telescope, food, water supplies, and riding equipment. The exercise asks learners to think about weight, usefulness, and historical timing rather than choosing the largest number of items. Answers and explanations are available on the park’s activity page.
Riddle Me This: The other activity explores animal riddles as a pastime in the eighteenth century. Together, the two activities offer different types of learning: imaginative historical decision-making and word-based puzzles.
Digital Badge Versus Visitor-Center Badge
The park has a separate traditional Junior Ranger program. Visitors can pick up a free activity book at the visitor center, complete an age-based number of activities, and review the work with a ranger. That process includes a certificate, pledge, and a physical badge. The virtual activities instead lead to an image that can be saved and printed at home. The park also gives an address for returning completed physical booklets, but that procedure should not be mistaken for automatic mailed fulfillment of the virtual badge.
How to Take Part
- Open the Junior Ranger page and locate the Virtual Junior Ranger heading.
- Complete Scouting with Colonel Stone and Riddle Me This, using the linked activities.
- Save the virtual ranger badge image and print it if you would like a paper copy.
Badge Type, Requirements and Important Details
The downloadable virtual badge is not a mailed physical badge. Printing requires your own supplies. Families seeking an in-person badge should follow the separate park visitor-center instructions.
Check the park’s own instructions before submitting work or downloading any award, because activity pages and fulfillment procedures can change. This I Love Freebies listing distinguishes digital and mailed rewards so families know what the particular program actually offers.
