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How Our Arctic-Themed Art Contest Honors Young People’s Calls to Action

National Geographic Explorer Dr. Jennie Warmouth wrote this post. When I traveled to the Arctic Circle as a Grosvenor Teacher Fellow in 2019, my students at Spruce Elementary School followed along as I posted photos and stories from the field. For most, these daily snapshots provided a first glimpse into the Arctic’s pristine beauty and magnificent wildlife. My students responded with awe and wonder followed … Continue reading How Our Arctic-Themed Art Contest Honors Young People’s Calls to Action

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Why Abi Henneberry Takes Her Class Outside Each Day

“We have delighted in discovering slugs underneath oak leaves, muskrats surfacing in local ponds and swimming to shore, and migrating geese establishing nesting grounds,” kindergarten educator Abi Henneberry told me. “Once, we discovered very active, fearless voles in the green space surrounding a local storm pond. They had created holes and tunnels in the grasses we had passed many times, and they were jumping everywhere. This was a tremendous opportunity for children to appreciate their place as visitors in another species’ world.” Continue reading Why Abi Henneberry Takes Her Class Outside Each Day

Educator Spotlight: Examining the Impact of Keystone Species

Wendy Threatt’s fourth-grade class learned about keystone species extinction by conducting research, hosting a guest speaker, and watching a video about a wildlife photographer. Students demonstrated their learning by creating keystone arches to identify connections between animals in an ecosystem. Continue reading Educator Spotlight: Examining the Impact of Keystone Species

Educator Spotlight: A Student-Led Exploration of Local Species

Andrea Sayler fostered her students’ curiosity of the natural world by holding a BioBlitz in the nature preserve near their school. A BioBlitz is an event that brings together community members to find and identify as many species as possible in a specific area over a short period of time. Andrea’s students used the data they gathered to develop research projects on flora or fauna that interested them. They shared their findings with their school community. Continue reading Educator Spotlight: A Student-Led Exploration of Local Species

Educator Spotlight: Taking Action to Bolster the Bee Population

Kim Heckart integrated science and literacy in an inquiry unit investigating the declining bee population. Her third-graders used nonfiction texts to research the reasons behind the decline. They also communicated the problem to their school community and created bee “hotels” to help provide habitat for bees. Continue reading Educator Spotlight: Taking Action to Bolster the Bee Population