We had our first summer session on Saturday, July 1st, from 9:00 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. at the Crow's Nest Research Center. Beth Wiesner and Carla Waller from Rockledge Elementary School, Prince William County, Amtulnoor Grosser from Garrisonville Elementary in Stafford County, and Michelle Midkiff from Fredericksburg Academy in Fredericksburg attended.
We looked at some new materials and resources and discussed projects. Beth and Carla are collaborating on an insect survey project. They'll have students collecting, identifying, and describing the insects they collect using sweep nets. They also want to develop a journal that students will use during the survey. Amtulnoor will extend her aquaponics project. She is looking at different approaches to teaching her students about this topic, possibly working with a hydroponics unit first, then introducing the idea of plant nutrients supplied by the fish. Michelle is planning a set of learning centers that would be linked to her classes kayak trips to the quarry. There might be a birding station, a nature journaling stations, and a water quality station. We also talked about the possibility of sampling the water for microplastics.
The session was very productive in terms of asking questions and discussing ideas. It was also a beautiful day for sitting outside and talking about the projects.
Related Links:
How to Collect Insects with a Sweep Net: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=grpgFICyod4
Babylegs for Microplastic sampling: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J5oMwgXNq8s
How to make Babylegs samplers: https://www.core77.com/projects/89327/BabyLegs-a-DIY-Research-Trawl-That-Allows-Citizens-to-Monitor-Ocean-Plastic
Additional Resources from Michelle Midkiff:
"In case anyone is interested, this is the gardening/hydroponics grant I applied for. They are accepting applications through July 21. You need a letter from your principal, so make sure to factor that into your time frame."
"Also, I thought Beth and Carla might be interested in this: https://naturalsciences.org/exhibits/special-exhibitions/exquisite-creatures
And this, where you can zoom in on insects, which is breathtakingly beautiful: http://microsculpture.net/microsculpture.html#:~:text=Levon%20Biss%20explains%20his%20photographic,in%20front%20of%20the%20lens."
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