Coastal Peru Virtual Field Trip

Take your students to Peru for free (live on youtube on March 16th at Noon Eastern)! Your class will investigate the amazing biodiversity of a coastal ecosystem as they explore the Humboldt Current! On the trip students will also see sea birds, penguins and flamingos!

Along with fisheries scientist Matias Caillaux, they will travel by boat to an island that has more than 30,000 sea lions at a time! They will discover how the Humboldt Current pushes vital nutrients toward the surface and forms the "basis of a unique and abundant ecosystem." They will also learn the importance of protecting an ecosystem so its inhabitants and the region's fishing industry remain thriving.

This trip is a great opportunity to cover science and geography standards through problem-based learning. They will get to view one of the most productive ocean ecosystems in action!

Field Trip Information

How Nature Works in Coastal Peru: The Amazing Biodiversity of a Coastal Ecosystem

Subject focus: Science and Geography

Age Range: 3-8 (all viewers are welcomed!)

Date: Wednesday, March 16, 2016

Time: 12:00 noon Eastern Time

Length of Virtual event: 45 minutes

Link to register: https://www.natureworkseverywhere.org/#events/56b8d3c4c6435b2294b92fb0

Can't Watch the Virtual Field Trip on March 16th?

You can still attend the field trip by receiving the official YouTube viewing link, which you can use to watch anytime after the live event has concluded. The virtual field trip will also be optimized and posted at a later date on Vimeo. Once the Vimeo version is ready, you will receive the link in another newsletter and then you'll be able to watch the virutal field trip anytime on Vimeo or YouTube!

Interactive websites for the classroom with background:

Fishing for Tomorrow: The Artisanal Fishers of Ancón Story Map (pictured below)

Link to The Artisanal Fishers of Ancón Story Map: https://tnc.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapJournal/?appid=0e99d43e82304b00bf30d2f47478a4b3

The Humboldt Current Ecosystem: How Earth Systems Influence Ocean Productivity and Biodiversity Story Map (pictured below)

Link to The Humboldt Current Ecosystem: https://tnc.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapJournal/?appid=fd508c644a5b4cd3b4d2758a1ac07e91

Accompanying lesson with the virtual field trip: Fishing for a Future:

https://www.natureworkseverywhere.org/resources/fishing-for-a-future/

In this lesson students investigate sustainable fishing through a specific case study in Peru. 
Provided: 

1. Interactive story maps that explore the Humboldt Current, El Nino, and artisanal fishing

2. Fisheries management activity using data

3. Socratic Seminar that explores the challenges of open access fishing areas

Includes downloads for the classroom

·      Teacher Lesson Plan: Fishing for a Future (PDF & Word)

·      Student Handout on Fisheries Management (PDF & Word)

·      Student Handout on the Humboldt Current (PDF & Word)

·      Student Handout: Anchoveta Socratic Seminar (PDF & Word)

Virtual Field Trip

This friday (December 4) is the live and free virtual field trip to China's Great Forests from Nature Works on youtube! The event is at 12pm eastern. If your class can't attend, you can still signup and watch the video at a later time on youtube.

You can signup here to take your class to China!
Click here for more information about how to tie this trip into your curriculum.

Nature Works Virtual Field Trip

Live on youtube Friday, December 4th at 12:00 pm (Eastern Time, 40 minutes), your class can explore China's Great Forests! Students (grades 3-8) investigate what the giant panda and earth's climate have in common as they learn about the carbon cycle and compare/contrast reforestation and deforestation. 

RSVP here to participate for FREE!: http://ow.ly/UfnrV 

If you cannot "attend" the event live, you can sign up for the virtual field and will be notified as soon as the video is available. Then you can show your students when ever convenient for your lesson plans and school schedules! 

This field trip fits in with a unit on adaptations, ecosystems, natural resources and geography. Students view live footage of 2 provinces in China—Sichuan and Yunnan, traveling up "towering mountains, majestic forests and other iconic landscapes."

While examining the geography of these provinces, students learn about the other animal species that share the same ecosystem as the giant panda: golden snub-nosed monkeys, and the elusive and odd-looking takin. They find out that in a particular habitat some organisms can survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all.

They also get to see how scientists work with local communities to protect nature and create new wilderness. 

They discover the benefits of reforestation and how it can decrease carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, minimizing climate change and improving air quality. You can challenge your class to evaluate competing design solutions for maintaining biodiversity in an ecosystem!

Students also explore the pros and cons of deforestation after they investigate reforestation. Example below:

Conservationists: Forests are home to many species of plants and animals.

Logger: My job is to cut down trees and without this job I cannot provide for my family. 

Pharmacist: Many medicines come from our forests and many are yet to be discovered.

Farmer: I clear away land by burning a few acres of trees to grow crops for my family to eat.

Environmentalist: Forests help moderate climate change by taking in carbon dioxide during the day.  Too much carbon dioxide leads to an increase in greenhouse gases, which causes changes in our climate.

Restaurant owner: I need paper and meat products to meet my customers’ demands.

• Information about how this event relates to curriculum per grade: http://ow.ly/UfpXN

• Reforestation video that is a great pre-event lesson to share with students (featured above): http://ow.ly/Ufofb 

• Reforestation lesson plan that relates to the video + the Dec. 4th live event: http://ow.ly/Ufq97

Learning at the Zoo and Aquarium

Bring your science journal! Kids transform into mini zoologists and marine biologists! Scavenger Hunt - Find, talk about, and record the items that are in bold below:

1. Practice map reading skills with your zoo / aquarium map.
2. Talk about biodiversity as you enter different sections of the zoo / aquarium, compare habitats. Describe the different habitats you encounter in your science journal. At the aquarium you'll see different species in the same tank, talk about ecosystems and how different species keep an ecosystem thriving. Example: clownfish and an anemone. List species that share the same enclosure. 
3. Are some of the animals hard to find (camouflage)? Write down animals you had trouble finding. Why do animals blend in with their habitats? Why are some creatures brightly colored? How does this protect them? Example - poison dart frog. Did you see any vibrant creatures with unique patterns? Write down the names of the creatures with the most unique colors and patterns that you see. Draw the pattern next to the name.
4. Distinguish birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, insects, and fish. Write down a couple of your favorite under each category. What animals are warm blooded? Which ones are cold blooded? How do you know? Create a page with two columns and list a few under each category. Talk about nocturnal animals. Were they in a special area at the zoo? Why? List a couple of nocturnal animals on a page.

5. Predators and prey: Which animals are herbivores, carnivores, or omnivores? Create three columns on a page and list animals underneath each category.
6. At the nursery, compare baby animals to their parents. Do they look the same? Are there any animals that don't look like their parents? Record your findings in your notebook.
7. Did you see any zoo keepers feeding the animals? What did they eat? Write down the time they ate.

At home:
1. When you get home, make a food chain. Use your notebook for a reference.

2. Create a mini zoo / aquarium out of blocks, pans of water, and figurines. Collect items from nature and create your own elements to add to your zoo / aquarium to create a suitable habitat for your animals. Try to remember what the animal enclosures at the zoo included.

3. Come up with a cuisine for your favorite animal, draw it!

4. Use a globe or world map to find the locations of the animals you saw.
5. Map out the actual size of the animals on your driveway with sidewalk chalk. Look up their dimensions online. 

6. Get creative - become a cartographer and make your own zoo / aquarium map! Kids choose what animals they want to include, design suitable habitat enclosures for their animals, draw recreational items for the animals (keep them entertained), and include restaurants, bathrooms, and food stands for the public. Click here for details!
7. Check out the book Life Size Zoo. Animal heads are life sized and photographs are amazing. Kids, as well as adults, will be in awe of staring at the animals face to face! In the back of the book there is a mini cartoon zoo map (shown in the image below). The map helps kids out in the design process for their zoo.
8. Design a zoo poster or signage.

Zoo Maps - Have kids think about what sorts of animals they want in their zoo, their habitat, pathways, food stations, etc. They will have lots of fun designing their zoo (the appearance, entrance gate, and play equipment for the animals).