One of the first schools in Highlands Ranch (before it was the community of Highlands Ranch) was the Dry Creek School or Welte School. See the photo and information below on that early one-room schoolhouse.

Now that Highlands Ranch has a population of more than 100,000, there are MANY schools here – public, charter, and private!

Above photo of the Welte School, 1931, which was located near/along present day Colorado Blvd in Highlands Ranch, about one-half mile south of present-day County Line Road. The dresses of the girls and the teacher are all at or above the knee.   The building is a wooden frame structure with siding.  L to R: Grace Dell Bates, Matilda Dietrich, Elizabeth Renner, Florence Carolson (teacher), Elwood Jewell. Courtesy of Douglas County Schools District Library Media Center.

The Highlands Ranch Historical Society is available to visit Second- Grade Classes for an In-House Field Trip covering local history with your students.  This program meets some of the requirements for the second grade history curriculum.

The interactive program covers primary and secondary sources of information and includes historical artifacts for discovery.

The program overviews the history of the Highlands Ranch community from dinosaurs to modern day. Hands-on time with old-fashioned implements, such as the butter churn here, is a fun activity.

Students in the second grade class are given an Activity Book and a cute dinosaur-inspired ruler!

Second-grade teachers are complimentary of the program.  Here is what teacher Kim said about a recent 2025 school visit:

Read the Tidbit  HERE   for more about past presentations at local HR Elementary and specialty schools.

Read a program overview (content and methodology), below:

Our mission is to encourage an appreciation for history with a focus on preserving and sharing Highlands Ranch history. One way we do that is by visiting Highlands Ranch Elementary Schools and talking with second-grade students about the history of our community. This program is free and scheduled on request by emailing schoolvisits@thehrhs.org.

PROGRAM LENGTH: One Hour

PROGRAM DESCRIPTION:
Speaker(s) from the Highlands Ranch Historical Society share the story of Highlands Ranch from the dinosaurs to today through a series of poster boards and discussion. The students then form five table groups to handle and identify five different artifacts from early home life in the area. Handouts are given for written notes as they complete the rotation. Each group moves through all five artifacts/tables to identify: What is this item? What was it used for? Was it made or bought? Students reconvene to go over the old (artifacts) vs. new (what we do today). Teachers are provided with dinosaur rulers and Activity Books to be given to the students after the program.

WHAT TO EXPECT:
Twenty-five minutes of interactive discussion covering the timeline in the Highlands Ranch area with visuals. Twenty minutes of discovery and interaction on the five artifacts brought for investigation. Fifteen minutes of now vs. then debrief on the artifacts.

SETUP:
Typically, the students sit on the floor for the discussion and debrief. Five small tables are useful for displaying the artifacts and promoting interaction for the hands-on section. The Highlands Ranch Historical Society provides the handouts. Students should have a pencil or pen for taking notes.

VOCABULARY AND CONCEPTS COVERED
Fossils       Triceratops           Torosaurus                Paleo-Indians       Megafauna        Utes       Pioneers   Churn      Lantern      Switchboard         Homestead Act         Indigenous            Metro Districts   Native    Rural         Suburban
Urban         Primary Sources  Secondary Sources  Master-Planned Community

To schedule a visit at your school, please contact us at schoolvisits@theHRHS.org  

For those who have just had the HRHS visit and In-School Field Trip, complete the HRHS School Program Survey here ›