Throughout this yearlong, comprehensive project, young children will develop the skills needed to become future stewards for the winged creatures. Within its rich, broad curriculum students will experience the crucial learning of stewardship: powerful opportunities for the observation of birds and bird habitats the exploration of the interdependence of birds within their natural habitats technological applications of birding research how to become a bird advocate and ambassador.
Maggie Castillo-Cockrum
West Sedona School
Sedona, AZWard Cockrum, Ph.D.
Northern Arizona University
Flagstaff, AZView Video:
» Beaks
» Feathers
» Nests
» Owl Pellets
Review of an out-of-the classroom, interdisciplinary, "real-life" course involving all sciences, research, communications, history and anthropology. The focus of the course was for the students to research historical expeditions in Maine and decide which one they wanted to recreate. They were in charge of all research, logistics, equipment and transportation, scientific experiments, journaling, photography and camcording, food, medical supplies, fitness training and fundraising. A video documentary of the expedition was produced. This module includes a classroom curricula prepared by the students in the class.
Donna Young, Astronomy/Physics
Wright Center for Science Education
Tufts University
Medford, MA
An Exploration of How Water Moves
This document reflects the topic of the movement of water. This curriculum will provide not only some ideas about working with water, but more importantly a framework and catalyst for the development of teachers' own unique ideas and reflections on children's scientific inquiry.
Caryn Drons
Heidi Given
Tufts University, Department of Child Development
Medford, MAView Video:
» Water Table
Integrating Shakespeare and the Sciences
This ten-day unit is comprised of a general section across several disciplines and four four-day options with specific activities depended on the selected play. The four plays that will be addressed will be Julius Caesar, Macbeth, A Midsummer Night's Dream, and Romeo and Juliet. After a general introduction, activities are presented for each of the four plays followed by a variety of literary options and interdisciplinary links with a final dramatic performance.
Jerri Cupero, Science
Bradley Guth, English
Port Sulphur High School
Port Sulphur, LA
The Magic in the Mud: A Workbook
The Magic In The Mud is not only a teacher's guide for stretching exploration, but a student journal for logging their discoveries. Each module in our series is thus founded on a children's book to offer a launching point for looking a bit differently at the world and to provide a situation that may encourage exploration, Our activities include a teacher page with background information and students pages, often one for readers and one for non-readers, to allow students to complete activities independently.
Cathleen Banister-Marx
Gerald Crawford, Art
Wright Center for Science Education
Tufts University
Medford, MA
This primary science kit on the four seasons includes the study of sensory awareness of nature, the environment, describing and sorting matter, and plants and animals. Many of the activities in this kit are suggested to capitalize on the connection between literature and science. Furthermore, in the classroom we appreciate speaking and writing as art forms. Meaningful art experience helps students develop skills related to creativity and problem solving which are essential to true scientific study.
Barbara Blancard
Maryann De Angelio
Ann Marie O'Connor
Winter Hill Community School
Somerville, MA
The purpose of this manual is to provide a complete set of lesson plans and supporting handouts for the development of educational science displays for students to be created by students. The first Science Gym™ was built at Brookwood School in 2001. This space was designed as a place where students can exercise their minds by conducting inquiry-based experiments.
Polly Chandler, General Science
Doug Fodeman, Technology
Brookwood School
Manchester, MA
This activity has several objectives: The students will understand the development of the town, how it makes a transition from one era to the next. Students will also understand in the way many disciplines such as geology, human social structures, and the biology of an area affect what the area is like. In this module students examine the influence of the dry land around the bodies of water on the health of the wetlands and body of water and its ability to provide the services
Susan Miller, Special Education
Alan Harris, Science
Middleborough High School
Middleborough, MAView Video:
» Trickle Down Town
The Underground Plows: Earthworms
It is our hope that by creating a nature backpack full of scientific materials, tools and curriculum ideas for children's outside exploration teachers will successfully extend children's interests back into the classroom for further inquiry and emergent curriculum development. In the classroom, real opportunities to further observe examine, classify and compare and document are provided. Children will begin to understand the importance of the scientific process and develop sensitivity and respect for their natural world and the importance of being responsible for their part in taking care of the environment.
Karen Tully
Susan Costas
Bigelow Cooperative Day Care
Cambridge, MA