1. art and entertainment
2. shows and events
3. classical concert

®
J U N I O R C O N D U C TO R
®
You’ve done a superb job
of performing your duties as
an Amtrak Junior Conductor.
As a thank-you, we’d like to provide
you with a cool badge certifying
you as a Junior Conductor.
Your friends will be totally jealous.
Please send my child’s
junior conductor
certificate & badge
Parent’s Name
Address
City
State
Zip
Email
kids’ 50% discount
Did you know that kids (ages 2–15)
travel on Amtrak for half off?
Is that cool or what?
Children aged 2 through 15 receive a 50% discount on most Amtrak rail fares anywhere
in the U.S. when accompanied by at least one person paying a regular full adult rail fare.
Up to two children’s discounts are permitted in conjunction with each adult traveler.
Sleeping car, Business class and First class upgrades are permitted upon payment of
full accommodation charges. The child discount is not acceptable for travel on certain
Amtrak Thruway connecting services. The discount is available on Acela Express ®
trains on weekends only. Amtrak and Acela Express are registered service marks of
the National Railroad Passenger Corporation.
Thank you.
Yes! I’d like to receive email updates from Amtrak with
information about promotions and specials.
02-5261 100MM 4/2011
Fill in the blank spaces by choosing the correct words from the Word Bank.
Then go to the inside back cover to see the real Junior Conductor’s Pledge.
I, (first and last name), hereby join the Amtrak Junior ________________________ . I promise
to be nice to other ________________________ and keep my ________________________ out of the aisles.
I’ll learn about different ________________________ around the country, how to travel
safely and the different kinds of ________________________ on the train. Most of all, I’ll
keep my ________________________ open for any pesky ________________________ !
Amtrak® Junior Conductors, welcome aboard! The activities in this handbook will help you
learn your duties as a JC (junior conductor), like the pledge and handshake, some routes where
Amtrak travels, the things you’ll see and the people you’ll meet, the different parts of the train
and how to travel safely. Let’s go!
1-800-USA-RAIL
WO RD BAN K
peanut butter sandwiches, raccoons, sneakers, passengers, underpants,
baseballs, routes, safety, igloos, feet, equipment, eyes, Conductors
Amtrak.com
Junior Conductors greet each other with JC Secret Handshakes.
Each one has a different meaning. Can you crack the secret code below?
hat: a conductor’s
hat is round at the
top and has the
Amtrak logo in front
Amtrak conductors are in charge of the train, the crew and the
passengers. They wear a special uniform and use tools to help
them do their job. Draw your own JC uniform and equipment.
are
engine
miss
a(n)
radio: the
conductor
needs to
be able to
communicate
with the crew
at all times
punch: the conductor
uses this to punch a hole
in every ticket and keep
count of passengers
you
train
conductor
raccoon
don’t
badge: every conductor
flashlight:
a flashlight comes
in handy for
nighttime when it’s
dark in the train
wears a gold badge with
the title “Conductor” on it
keys: conductors
carry lots of keys — to
the various rail cars,
lockers and switches
the
Each car is different from the others, but they’re all
connected to form the train. Create comics that explain what the
people are doing and saying. (Maybe they’re talking about the stowaway raccoons.)
the coach car is where passengers sit and relax
as they travel to their destinations.
the sleeping car is where passengers can spend the night
in private rooms with beds and bunks.
the dining car is where passengers enjoy delicious meals
for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
the sightseer lounge is where passengers have a great
view of the scenery and can sit at a table to play games.
Most people, even adults, have never “looked under the hood”
of a locomotive. Each part has a job to do and they all work together.
ENGINE — 4,250
horsepower. Your car
only has about 200.
HORNS — Lets everyone
know the train is coming.
VENTILATION — Keeps
the equipment cool.
FIRE EXTINGUISHER —
Safety is always first.
Alternator — Produces 480 volts of energy
that propels, heats, cools and lights the train.
CAB — This is
where the engineer
operates the train.
Use this space to design your own special train. Would it be the world’s fastest?
Would it run underwater, or fly? Would it include a roller skating rink or video
arcade? How about colors? Use your imagination!
A conductor is one of the many people it takes to run a railroad. Can you find and circle some other
Amtrak workers and their junior counterparts? Check the legend to see what they look like.
ticket agent
sells tickets
amtrak police officer
keeps everyone safe
red cap
carries your luggage
engineer
drives the train
jr. ticket agent
jr. officer
jr. red cap
jr. engineer
When people leave items on the train by mistake, they go to the Lost & Found.
Choose an item and create a story about the owner, their trip and their destination.
This passenger needs your help to find the items that
fell out of her suitcase. Check the word list, then find and
circle them. Words can appear up or down, backwards
or forwards, or diagonally. Good luck!
book
pants
camera
shampoo
R F B K X G V F X S O C K S V A
L T
J
L B C C P H B L
Y S O S
I
A D Y K
I
S E W N T
E R Q M D G
X W U T S M Y O
I
L R E D C V G
M E R R K E H O
I
G S K N H D Q
W A N
J
T C A C K O N
I
I
R G P
U T A H N A A M N J
T E N U F A
computer
V E L
Z R H W L P P H
I
R W S D D R L
sneakers
E G A O L O A S
I
G J
flipflops
O S K Y T D Q D S R F
dvd
S Y F R A B W T N W N V F
B V P F
L D P L O T O O T H B R U S H P
K O O B Y J
P F
I
I
I
L M A F
Q P A N T S A X L
B S X M E O T F A E U Y O
R E T S A P H T O O T F U S
shirts
I
soap
hoodie
socks
journal
toothbrush
toothpaste
sweater
laptop
F P
L A P T O P K C O M P U T E R S
film
Amtrak serves over 500 destinations all over the United States.
Use your finger to trace the routes from place to place. (Feel
free to say “choo-choo!” while you do.)
How many routes go through Chicago? Which ones don’t? Which routes go near water?
Desert? Mountains? National Parks? Start in your hometown and trace the routes that will
take you to places that interest you.
Every passenger on a train has a reason to ride the train. Show where these passengers are going and
what they’re going to do while they are there. (You can check the map on the previous page for ideas.)
Conductors use words and expressions that are specific to train travel. Here are
some of those words and their meanings, so you can become fluent in train talk.
gandy dancer: A name for workers who maintained the tracks in the
early railroad days. They used a five-foot rod, or gandy, to push the tracks
back into a straight line.
all aboard: The Conductor yells, “All aboard!” to tell passengers on the
platform to get on the train because it’s about to leave the station.
no trespassing: Tracks are for trains, not for kids! So when you see
announcement: Whenever the train stops or starts, the Conductor
a No Trespassing sign, it’s there to protect you and remind you to stay
off and away from the railroad tracks.
announces it over the train’s speakers. For example, “Attention, passengers.
This is Chicago Union Station. Exit on the left.”
ticket: This is a printed document that shows you’ve paid for your trip. The
Conductor will check it to make sure passengers have boarded the correct train.
code raccoon: A phrase that Junior Conductors can use to let each other know
that they’ve encountered a stowaway raccoon.
track-laying machine: It takes special training to operate this machine, which
Amtrak workers use to lift, transport and install heavy railroad tracks and ties.
cowcatcher: A cowcatcher is a large, V-shaped wedge that is attached to
the front of the train. It’s designed to lift and clear stray objects (even cows!)
from the track. A modern cowcatcher is smaller and called a pilot.
crossbuck: A crossbuck is a flashing sign in the shape of an X
that lets you know where railroad tracks cross a road. For safety,
do not cross the road until the train has gone by and the crossbuck
stops blinking.
trainster: Anyone who loves trains and travels on Amtrak regularly.
yard: A rail yard is a complex system of tracks where trains are sorted, stored, loaded and
reloaded. Bigger yards have a tower where many trains can be seen and moved safely.
Your job as Junior Conductor is to collect the
passengers’ tickets. Can you draw a path through
the open space to each passenger, going
between the luggage, and give the boy
his teddy bear at the end?
This girl wants something to do. Draw some cool things for her
to look at through the window, like a forest, a waterfall, dinosaur fossils,
a farm or a skyscraper being built. Be creative!
A journal is a collection of written thoughts about a particular experience, such as a trip
on Amtrak. On these pages, write a journal about the things, places and people you’ve
seen and met at the station and on the train.
Here are some questions to help you remember:
What kinds of things have you seen out the window?
Have you met any other kids on the train? Did you play with them?
What was it like at the station?
What did you eat for breakfast, lunch or dinner?
Was it exciting to step onto the train? Was it how you imagined it would be?
Did you read or play games? What kind?
What is the name of your train?
Who are you traveling with?
Where else would you like to go by train?
As Amtrak Junior Conductors, you know that it’s never safe to play on railroad tracks.
Trains come from either direction and can be quieter and faster than you think!
Draw some safe places to play away from the tracks instead. Here are some ideas:
a park, your backyard, an igloo, the beach, outer space.
1.
What does the Conductor use to talk to a crewmember in a different part of the train?
2.
What are the four different types of cars you might find on an Amtrak train?
3.
What is the phrase that the Conductor yells to let people know the train is leaving?
4.
What is the title of the Amtrak person who drives the train?
5.
Name three things that the Conductor carries.
6.
What are two parts that are in the train’s locomotive?
7.
Name the pesky critter that you might find on the train.
Kali Ciesemier is an illustrator
living in Baltimore, Maryland.
In 2008 she graduated from
the Maryland Institute College
of Art where she now teaches.
When Kali isn’t drawing, she
can probably be found eating
cookies, reading Sci-Fi, or
playing with her cat, Ripley.
Junior Conductor’s pledge
You’re almost at the end of the Junior Conductor’s Guidebook. Let’s see how well
you remember what you’ve learned! You can find every answer on this quiz within the
pages of the handbook. Good luck!
I promise to be nice to other
passengers & keep my feet out of
the aisles. I’ll learn about different
routes around the country, how to
travel safely & the different kinds
of equipment on the train.
Most of all, I’ll keep my eyes
open for any pesky
raccoons.
About the Artist
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
PLEASE CONTACT THE US POSTAL SERVICE
REPRESENTATIVE BELOW:
Calling all Junior Conductors!
We have more cool stuff to share with you,
like a JC Certificate and a durable JC Badge
you can wear on your jacket. To receive them,
ask your parents to fill out the postcard and
mail it to us. We’ll send them information
about booking a trip on Amtrak.
ALIGN
WITH
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NECESSARY RIGHT
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CORNER
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
IN THE
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PLEASE CONTACT THE US POSTAL SERVICE
UNITED STATES
WITH
REPRESENTATIVE BELOW:
TO BE USED ONLY WITH FIM - C (Business Reply Mail)
UPPER
AND ZIP CODE:
60143-9974 CK=7
RIGHT
CORNER
BUSINESS
REPLY
MAIL
TO BE USED ONLY WITH FIM - C (Business Reply Mail)
CAUTION:
FIRST-CLASS MAIL ANDPERMIT
NO. 293
ZIP CODE:
ITASCA IL
60143-9974 CK=7
USEBE
ONLY
FOR
ADDRESS BEARING THE ZIP+4 CODE
POSTAGE WILL
PAID BY
ADDRESSEE
ABOVE. SEE PUBLICATION 25 FOR PRINTING
REQUIREMENTS.
AMTRAK
CAUTION:
PO BOX 7717
USE ONLY FOR ADDRESS BEARING THE ZIP+4 CODE
ITASCA IL 60143-9974
ABOVE. SEE PUBLICATION 25 FOR PRINTING
REQUIREMENTS.
THIS POSITIVE PREPARED FOR:
BUSINESS REPLY MAIL POSTCARD
PERMIT NO 293 ITASCA IL
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