My "place project" had me look at a familiar place in my community in a new way. It also got me to spend more time outside, which is always a good thing. It's easy to view nature as separate from us, as "other". But we are part of the cycle of life and it's important to notice how we humans impact the world around us. It's also exciting to notice how much wildlife activity goes on in what, at first glance, appears to be an underutilized spot.
If I did this project with students, I would make a point of visiting our spot at least once during each season, to notice the changes. It would be easy, I think, to integrate it with other curriculum areas. Art projects could be done with natural materials from the place, such as leaves, pinecones. Learning to make technical drawings of things such as insects found in the site would enhance their observation skills. A lesson on types of clouds could be included. Having the students create maps of the place would incorporate math and measurement. To include technology, I could have students use Google Earth to locate our place, and use iPads or other digital cameras to take photos and make field guides using an application such as
Pic Collage. Classifying trees and other plants, insects, birds and perhaps animals in the area could be done using field guides. Learning to use field guides and having students create their own is one way to incorporate English Language Arts into this project. New vocabulary words would be introduced, as well.
Thank you to Susan Erickson, Science and Social Studies Curriculum Specialist at the Weston Public Schools, and Laurie Link, K-5 Math Curriculum Specialist at Concord Public Schools, for a great semester at
Regis College with
Natural Science in the Classroom II.
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