Boston School Forest - Backyard Habitat Investigation
| Teaching Context: Time frame: School year 2020-2021 Audience: Elementary/middle school teachers, pre-service teachers, families | Abstract: The Boston School Forest is a field trip destination for 6,000 students each year providing high quality outdoor environmental education programs that expand and authenticate classroom learning. Science education in our district is transitioning to provide greater opportunity for inquiry, and teachers are now searching for resources that can be used in either face-to-face or e-learning formats. The Backyard Habitat Series focuses on connecting kids to an outdoor place through use of sensory observation, exploring the natural features and animals, and engaging in the improvement of habitat for neighborhood wildlife species. Classroom teachers, pre-service teachers, and families will discover straightforward instructions, few materials or background knowledge required, and a format that is easily adaptable to the e-learning environment. |
| Institution: Boston School Forest - Stevens Point Area Public School District | Author(s): Karla Lockman klockman@pointschools.net |
| Current Status of Environmental Literacy and Sustainability Preparation: The Boston School Forest (BSF) is a leader in outdoor environmental education and serves 6,000 students annually in grades 4K-10th. The BSF curriculum was written in 2002 and revised in 2011. Lessons are aligned to the old Wisconsin Academic Standards for Environmental Education. Although the central purpose of BSF is elementary and secondary students, there is also much support for pre-service teachers. BSF serves as site where undergraduate students observe a day of outdoor environmental education, interns gain experience with students or natural resources disciplines, and environmental education majors work with instructors on projects specific to the goals of the coursework. | |
| Evidence of Need: The evidence of need for this plan is three-fold in SPAPSD which includes standards, “now” normal learning environment, and location. 1) Standards: The district’s science curriculum committee has just adopted NGSS which will be a huge shift in pedagogy from teachers delivering content to facilitating student inquiry. The ELS present multiple opportunities for engaging students in the process of inquiry and support science education. 2) “Now” normal learning environment: The reopening plan for the 2020-2021 school year includes a traditional classroom model with modifications and an e-learning model. There is a need for science education materials that exhibit flexibility so that implementation can be successful in face-to-face and virtual classroom environments. | Evidence of Success: Success of this action plan will result if there are significant gains towards the previous needs. These might include the following:1) Standards: The Backyard Habitat Series focuses on connecting kids to an outdoor place through use of sensory observation, exploring the natural features and animals, and engaging in the improvement of habitat for neighborhood wildlife species. Specific NGSS and ELS standards will be identified for this lesson series. 2) “Now” normal learning environment: This activity series is written in a way to be successful in both the traditional school format an e-learning scenarios which includes straightforward instructions, minimal background knowledge, few required materials, flexible for both time and place, and easily shareable to multiple platforms (print, SeeSaw, Schoology, and others). |
| Action plan to revise, improve, or integrate inquiry-based environmental education: The Backyard Habitat Investigation is a series of lessons that are meant for easy implementation on various learning platforms including face-to-face and e-learning. This link includes open access to this shareable resource and is a tool to integrate inquiry based environmental education. https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1ZJHhy673n6DsQR4M4LWHnWjiwxKaG1GIWCre1l0DwwE/edit?usp=sharing | |
| In what ways will you address Wisconsin Standards for Environmental Literacy and Sustainability Standards Addressed? Environmental Literacy & Sustainability Standards C1.B Sense of Place: Students develop and connect with their sense of place and well-being through observation, exploration, and questioning. ELS.EX.5.B: Natural Systems Emphasis: Students investigate and analyze how change and adaptation impact natural and cultural systems. ELS.EN7A: Inquiry and Investigation and ELS.EN7.B: Design and Implementation: Students engage in experiences to develop stewardship for the sustainability of natural and cultural systems. Next Generation Science Standards Science & Engineering Practices Planning and Carrying Out Investigations - Planning and carrying out investigations to answer questions or test solutions to problems in K–2 builds on prior experiences and progresses to simple investigations, based on fair tests, which provide data to support explanations or design solutions.
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