Myrtle Beach State Park
4401 South Kings Hwy
Myrtle Beach, SC 29575
843.238.5325

We invite you and your students to visit our park and participate in an educational program. Located in the heart of the Grand Strand, Myrtle Beach State Park is one of the most popular public beaches along the South Carolina coast. This 312-acre oceanfront park plays a major role in preserving and maintaining a portion of the natural heritage of South Carolina’s coastline. This traditional state park was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s and has the distinction of being the first state park open to the public in South Carolina. The park includes a campground, cabins, nearly a mile of beach, picnic areas, a fishing pier and nature center. In addition, a nature trail provides a rare opportunity to see one of the last stands of maritime forest on the northern coast of South Carolina. Because of this distinction, the forest has been declared a Heritage Trust Site.

Park Interpreter Led Programs:

Plants Matter!

Program Activities (7.9MB file)

Through an active seed exploration of Myrtle Beach State Park’s maritime forest and beach, students will learn how plants and their seeds have different characteristics and seed dispersal methods in order to survive in a diversity of habitats. Students will also compare and contrast the difference in the maritime forest and beach habitats using a thermometer, wind meter and observation.

This 1.5 hour program is offered October through early December.
The maximum amount of students for this program is 25.
This program can accommodate two groups of 25 in one day.

Grade Level: 1
Length of Time: 1.5 hours
Standards: 1-1.1, 1-1.2, 1-1.3, 1-2.1, 1-2.2, 1-2.3, 1-2.4, 1-2.5 and 1-2.6
Setting: coastal park

Terrific Turtles!

Program Activities  (11MB file)

Learn about the different turtles that live at Myrtle Beach State Park and how they are adapted to their particular habitat. Students will learn about Myrtle Beach State Park’s diverse turtles through photos, replicas, skulls and life sized drawings. There will be a special emphasis on loggerhead sea turtles. With the power of their imaginations, students will simulate, on the beach, the nesting process that sea turtles go through each summer on our beaches and what habitat requirements they need.

This two-hour program is offered September - early November and March - May.
The maximum amount of students for this program is 25.
This program can accommodate two groups of 25 in one day.

Grade Level: 2
Length of Time: 2 hours
Standards: 2-2.2, 2-2.3 and 2-2.5
Setting: coastal park

Through hands on activities and visuals, students will learn how the beach environment is constantly forming and changing. While on the beach, students will learn, simulate and observe the major processes that occur along the coast: erosion, deposition, wave action, rip currents, longshore currents, tides, and storms. They will also learn how the natural processes of coastal ecosystems change as development along the coast increases.

This 1.5 hour program is offered September, October, April and May.
The maximum amount of students for this program is 25.
This program can accommodate two groups of 25 in one day.

Grade Level: 5
Length of Time: 1.5 hours
Standards: 5-3.1, 5-3.4, 5-3.5 and 5-3.6
Setting: coastal park

Students will learn how South Carolina State Parks have a positive impact on sea turtles through education, management, and habitat conservation. Students, through simulated hands on activities, will learn: what habitat needs are for sea turtles, how trained and permitted personnel protect and relocate sea turtle nests (if in inappropriate habitat), how and why nest inventories collect data, and what information can be gained from the South Carolina Sea Turtle Stranding Network.

This 1.5 hour program is offered September, October, March, April and May.
The maximum amount of students for this program is 25.
This program can accommodate two groups of 25 in one day.
A teacher led activity is provided for the time frame when a class is not with the Interpretive Ranger.