Winter Adventures to Come

Another blog entry by our Outdoor Education Intern, Hannah George, about the many winter activities available across Ohio.  Enjoy!

                Well, it is officially the first day of winter and, since the world hasn’t come to an end, it is time to start thinking about what fun things you can do now that the weather has turned a bit cooler. While the normal happenings of winter consist of mostly indoor activities, there are still many opportunities to enjoy nature and all it has to offer.



Bobcat

One of my favorite things to do during the winter is to go for a hike at one of Ohio’s many wonderful state parks. There are so many great things to see during the winter, especially when there is snow on the ground. Animal tracks are much easier to spot, as is wildlife in general… well, the ones that aren’t hibernating anyway. I  think the snow-covered trees and shrubs are some of the prettiest sights to see, and they photograph very well. Waterfalls, which are great places to visit during the summer months, can also be amazing destinations during the winter. Some will even freeze solid, which is an impressive sight! Just make sure you dress for the weather with plenty of layers and wear a warm coat, hat, boots and gloves. You can always take off layers if you get too warm.

Northern cardinal

 

If wildlife is what you’re interested in, I would suggest visiting a park with a water source, like a lake or large river, that is not frozen over. These locations are magnets for birds, including waterfowl, as well as mammals. During the winter, water is often harder to find then food, especially for birds. (This is also a helpful hint for attracting birds to your own backyard during the winter. Try a heated bird bath this year and see the difference it makes.)

            If you are looking for some fun, free events for your kids, I would strongly suggest the Kids Christmas Bird Count on January 12^th at Magee Marsh in Northwest Ohio. This is a great opportunity for kids aged 8-12 to get outside and look for birds with an experienced birder. A lunch is provided, but make sure you pre-register.

           Another fun activity just for kids is the Kids in the Snow event at the Great Blue Heron Lodge in Northeast Ohio on January 13^th. This is a free event for kids where they will build Wood duck nest boxes to be placed in the preserved wetland areas. After building the nest boxes, the kids go on a hike to learn how to track different animals in the woods. Cookies and hot chocolate will be provided at the end to wrap up a very fun day.

          For additional information about the above listed events and for a full list of outdoor-related events, visit the ODNR Division of Wildlife web page and click on the “Calendar of Events” link at the bottom of the page.  To see a list of additional events at specific parks in Ohio, visit the ODNR Parks web page and click on the “What’s Going On” link on the right-hand side of the page.         

         Hopefully you have a few fun ideas for outdoor winter activities this year and, if you don’t find something that interests you here, there are plenty of other activities to be found on either the Parks or Wildlife web pages. Lastly, I just want to wish you all safe, Happy Holidays this year! Have a great time with family and friends and enjoy the beautiful outdoors!

Best Wishes!
Hannah

NAAEE 2012--Friday

Friday of the 2012 NAAEE conference were spent mostly learning about outdoor classrooms.

The most helpful sessions were put on by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.  They have, or are involved in two excellent habitat education programs.

The first is the Pacific Region's Schoolyard Habitat Project Guide.  You can download a copy of the guide here.  This fantastic guide lays out the following 9 steps to a successful habitat project:

Step 1--Form a Team.  This is a critical first step that, if skipped, can really jeopardize the future of your site.  Many of these projects are championed by one enthusiastic teacher, typically the science teacher in the school.  But, if there is no formal committee or team to delegate projects and responsibilities to, to keep informed, to keep momentum, what happens when that teacher leaves the building or retires?  The project falls by the wayside.  I've seen this happen dozens of times and it's quite frustrating.  So, if you are interested in starting a habitat improvement project at your school, form a team or committee FIRST!

Step 2--Develop a Master Plan.  This can also make or break your plans.  I always like to say "Think BIG, Start small."  Having a Master Plan doesn't mean that once a project or idea is in the plan, you can't take it out or alter it.  Master Plans just help you stay focused and thoughtful in your efforts so that you're not wasting your time or energy going after "the next big idea."  Try to draft everything in a thoughtful, timeline oriented plan at the beginning.  You can always modify the plan as needed, but this way you'll have set goals and it won't be so overwhelming to you and your team.

Step 3--Assess Your Project Site.  You don't know where you can go until you know where you are.  This is also a great way to involve your students from the beginning.  You need to know what you have already, how you can use what you have already, then start planning on any modifications, additions, changes, etc.  Conduct soil testing, runoff calculations, plant and animal inventories, temperature variations from various parts of the site, sunlight exposure, water sources, accessibility issues, conflicts in use, and more.  You really need to get to know your site.  This can almost be done before your Master Plan, depending on what you're hoping to do.  At the very least, you can conduct your site assessment at the same time as your developing your Master Plan.

Step 4--Design Your Project.  This is the meat of the plan.  Create a map of your site, based on your site assessments of course.  Once you're map is done, start laying out the first few parts of your Master Plan.  Where are you going to put a butterfly garden?  Where can you put the frog pond? Do you need a foot bridge over that seasonal wet area behind the soccer field in order to get to the woods? Add it to the map!

Step 5--Decide Your Money Matters.  How much is it going to cost to do this?  This part can be overwhelming to your team.  But don't forget, Think BIG, Start small.  Break your plan into manageable, fundable parts.  Don't try to complete it all in one year.  You'll burn yourself out for sure.  Or worse, you'll burn out your team.  Settle on what parts of the plan you want to start with and find funding for those first.

Step 6--Install Project.  Do what you said you wanted to do! Have the students help as much as possible with this part too.  The more you involve your students, the more they will take ownership of the projects and the less likely you'll have vandalism issues, etc.  And it allows them to see the fruits of their labor.

Step 7--Create a Maintenance Plan.  One thing that is critical is to involve your maintenance staff as early in the process as possible.  If your maintenance staff doesn't know what's going on, or worse, doesn't approve or care about your project, it's going to be hard to keep your project maintained.  You and your students can only do so much.  Make sure you involve your maintenance crew in decisions about project placement as well as maintenance schedules.

Step 8--Use the Project.  Get outside with those students and use these wonderful sites! And their not just for science.  Art, writing, history, phys ed can all be taught using outdoor habitats.  Get creative, don't think of it as an extra thing you have to do with your students.  Just think of it as a different way of teaching. 

Step 9--Share Your Story.  For goodness sakes, show off your hard work!!  Tell people what you're doing, the benefits, the fun, the excitement of new and creative opportunities that you're creating for your students.  Have the students tell what their learning!  Create press releases, newspaper articles, conduct dedications of the site, make signs, invite the community to participate, toot your own horn!

These are all critical steps to a successful schoolyard habitat project.  The Schoolyard Habitat Project Guide provides helpful tips and tricks for conducting surveys of the schoolyard, field notes from experienced planners, and suggestions for projects on both urban and more rural sites that can utilize woodland, wetlands and meadows.  This guide is an invaluable tool for anyone planning an outdoor learning area.

The Ohio Division of Wildlife has a program called WILD School Sites that follows these same philosophies about outdoor areas, just a different name.  If you'd like to be involved in Ohio's program, contact us at 1-800-WILDLIFE or outdoor.education@dnr.state.oh.us  You can find more on our website at www.ohioprojectwild.org 



The second program I sat in on was a program called Nature Explore, which was actually developed by the National Arbor Day Foundation and has been championed by the USFWS in the form of several certified Nature Explore preschools at their facilities.  We heard about one at fish hatchery in Montana and the newest site at the National Conservation Training Center in West Virginia. 

These Nature Explore classrooms are fantastic for providing outdoor learning space for little ones.  They contain areas where kids can build things with natural materials, play in the dirt and mud, look at leaves, climb and explore logs and rocks, and generally enjoy themselves in unstructured play outside. 

If you're interested in learning more on how to become a certified Nature Explore classroom, check out their website at www.natureexplore.org

More on the local sites tomorrow.  Enjoy!

NAAEE 2012 EE--Certfication presentations

The primary reason for my attendance at this conference was to help present about Ohio's Environmental Education Certification program.  I was fortunate to be a part of the development of this program from the beginning and Jen Bucheit and I came out to sit in on two panel discussions to help other states that are interested in starting their own EE Certification program. They were called EE Certification 101 and 102.

If you're not familiar with the EE Certification program, it is a professional certification process that is guided and accredited by NAAEE across the country.  NAAEE provides the guidelines, standards, and general policies for an EE Certification program and it's the state affiliates' job to follow those guidelines and standards as they develop their programs in order to gain that accreditation. 

Ohio's program has been in development since 2006.  Our first pilot year was 2009 and we actually conducted two pilot years.  Our first full year was 2011 and we've just began our 2nd full year this past month.

The premise of the EE Certification program is to provide a professional certification to those working in the EE field.  Most professions have some sort of certification that provides consistency, best practices, and a general base knowledge that helps ensure that those in the field are all on the same page.  It lends credibility to the profession and it looks good on a resume'. 

Jen and I basically gave this information in our two sessions. We had fellow panel members from Kentucky, Utah, Maryland, Colorado and Pennsylvania to help with the presentation. There were a few states that had some questions, either because their state's programs were in disrepair or they didn't have a program at all. There were a lot of good discussions and it's always interesting to see how other states run their programs. Ours is fairly young and we "stole" ideas from several states, especially Kentucky. Collaboration is a great thing!

If you are someone who is new to the field of EE, would like to increase your own knowledge, boost your resume', are in need of professional development or graduate credit, and want to give yourself a competitive edge in the field, you can check out Ohio's EE Certification Program online at www.eeco-online.org   The fee is $500 and that includes your meals, lodging and materials for three in-person meetings with instructors and your cohort throughout the school year.  The syllabus and application are on the website.

NAAEE 2012-Wednesday

I had to catch up on some sleep, having been up since 4:45 EST the day before.  So after sleeping in a bit, till 9:30 EST :-), I joined the Phenology Monitoring and Citizen Science Workshop.  This all day workshop focused on the science of phenology. 

If you have never heard this term before, phenology is the study of recurring plant and animal life cycle stages.  These stages are also called phenophases.  These phenophases are usually looked at on an annual basis and they are phenomenon that have an onset, duration and end stage.  Some examples might include the study of the blooming periods of spring wildflowers, or the timing of foliage color change, or the migration patterns of songbirds and waterfowl.

This science is not by any means a new field or practice.  Native Americans used phenology to determine prime hunting and gathering periods based on the emergence of buds, flowers and berries for centuries.  For example, tribes on the Canadian east coast would not fish for shad until the "shadbush," or serviceberry as we call it in Ohio, bloomed.  They learned to associate the timing of the emergence of the bush's blooms with the time of when these fish were at their peak for eating.  In the U.S., the Department of Agriculture was using phenology in as early as the 1920's to help determine growing seasons for crops.

Basically, phenology is about paying attention to the physical cues that plants and animals exhibit to determine changes in the environment.  These physical cues can be used to track climate change, including temperature and precipitation changes, and overall environmental changes that occur over time. 

Why would we want track these changes? Phenological changes have biological and economical importance. 

A biological example is found in Europe with the relationship between the English oak, the Winter moth, and the Dutch Pied flycatcher. Both et. al. Nature 2006.  Basically, this study showed that as the English oak begins to leaf out earlier and earlier each year, the caterpillar of the Winter moth begins to emerge earlier as well.  However, the Pied flycatcher continues to return at the same time each year from its migration, finding less and less of its favorite food available as the caterpillars have already entered the pupae stage, making them unavailable to the birds.  The bird's populations have declined as much as 90% in the last two decades because of this "mistiming" of phenological events.

One simpler and more familiar economic example is the annual National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington D.C.  This festival is centered around the blooming of the thousands of cherry trees in the nation's capital that are an annual gift from Japan.  The timing of peak blooms vary to some degree each year, as much as a 10 days, depending on local weather conditions.  However, you can see that in the last twenty years, the trend as crept earlier and earlier from early April to now mid-March.  This impacts when events will be held each year, which impacts the local economy to the tune of over $120 million annually. A mistiming of this event could be critical to local hotels, restaurants, tour guides, and more. 

There is a relatively new national organization called the USA National Phenology Network, or NPN. This network is hoping to become the clearinghouse for any and all national, regional and local data related to phenology of plants and animals.  It already contains information on 630 plant species and 230 animal species across the country.  They work with many partners across the country to develop collection protocols, best practices, and education about phenology, as well as data collection.  This is where you come in.

If you're interested in learning more about conducting a phenology study in your area, and how to contribute data, please check out the NPN website at www.usanpn.org  They have a ton of valuable information on conducting research, engaging students and adults, submitting data, using archived data for comparison studies, and more.  It is a very user-friendly, intuitive website. 

My hope is that we, as an agency, can eventually provide training in phenology for schools that have high quality outdoor classrooms as part of our WILD School Sites program.  I believe that phenology can be used in not only science, but math, language arts, and social studies as well.  And, as the new Ohio Academic Content Standards move towards more project or process-based learning, phenological studies fit very well within these frameworks for learning.

At a minimum, I hope that you all start to pay attention to the natural world around you.  Phenology can help you reconnect with the nature that is right in your neighborhood and backyard.  Keep a journal for your property or local park.  You can submit that data to NPN as well.  Get reconnected to nature through the science of phenology.

We took a field trip to the Golden Gate Bridge National Recreation Area to see how to conduct a phenology study.  The field trip was hosted by the educators of NatureBridge, a non-profit organization that works in partnership with western national parks and recreation areas to bring students to these areas for environmental educational experiences.  Many of their programs include the collection of phenological data.  Here are some pictures from the day.  Enjoy!

A bus view of the Bay from the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge.

Red Rock Island.

Group members having a great discussion.

Checking out one of the plant species that this site monitors.

Nature Bridge monitors three plant species at this particular site. 
This is called Coyote Bush, or Baccharis pilularis

An upclose view of the leaves and flowers of the Coyote Bush.

Another plant that is monitored is the cow parsnip, or Heracleum maximum 

The third monitored plant is the Sticky Monkey plant, or Mimulus aurantiacus.

Just so that you won't think I made up that name. :-)



One of the many spectacular views from the Golden Gate Bridge National Recreation Area.



A tanker steaming into the Bay.  Another great view from the Recreation Area.

One of the few shots I was able to get from the bus of the actual Golden Gate Bridge.

North American Association for Environmental Education Conference, Oakland, CA 2012

As the wildlife education coordinator, I have the privilege of travelling to a lot of great places in the U.S.  This week I am in Oakland, CA for the North American Association for Environmental Education Conference, or NAAEE for short.  This is an annual conference and, as conferences go, it's pretty huge.  Attendance usually gets to around 900 or so each year.  I just heard this year's was closer to 1000!

It's been several years since I've been as this conference is also pretty pricey.  But, I always learn a ton of things while I'm here.  This year is no exception.  So, the next few posts will be all about what I've seen and learned at the NAAEE Conference.  I hope you enjoy it and I hope it inspires you to attend future NAAEE conferences and even become a member.  You can find more information about that online at www.naaee.net

You've got to love a good view from your hotel room.

That's San Francisco across the Bay.

The second bridge in the back is the famous Golden Gate bridge.  You could see the orange color with binoculars.

Also beautiful at night.

OK, enough of the room views.   I am staying at the Marriott and it's attached to the Oakland Convention Center.  Everyone has been super friendly and very accommodating.  And downtown Oakland is very nice.  Very clean and foot traffic friendly.  And, as could be expected in California, very environmentally conscious.  Lots of opportunities to recycle, reuse, and conserve.

I got in Tuesday afternoon and got to have lunch at the Pacific Coast Brewing Company.  Very good food and micro brews, if you're into that.  I then met up with the affiliates group for dinner.  Most states have a state affiliate organization of NAAEE.  Ohio's is EECO or the Environmental Education Council of Ohio.  I happen to be the ODNR Advisor to their executive board.  Each year, NAAEE hosts an Affiliates workshop and they all went out to dinner together at Miss Pearl's Restaurant in the Jack London Square, which is Oakland's waterfront district.  Good food and good conversation with people from the D.C., Hawaii, Maryland, Vermont and more.  This is another benefit of these conferences, you get to meet a lot of cool people from all over the country.  The networking is tremendous!

More to come!

Internship Advice from an Intern

As the education coordinator, I've had interns off and on for the last 10 years.  Some are paid, the early ones were not.  These talented individuals become a valuable part of our organization in their year with us.  So I thought a post about internships from our current intern, Hannah George, would be worthwhile.  If you are a college student, have children in college, or are in a position to hire an intern, here's a perspective that may interest you.  Enjoy!

This year I have the enormous privilege of working for the ODNR Division of Wildlife as the education intern. This is the second internship I have had during my college career and I just wanted to share how important I feel internships are in preparing students for the real world and finding a job after college. Enjoy and please pass along to anyone you think could benefit.

 Getting an internship is a very important part of anyone’s college education. In my opinion, grades are secondary to training and work experience, especially in science-based fields. While grades are significant, they are not the only factors that contribute to success after college. Classes give us the basic knowledge and fundamental tools to be successful in whatever field we choose. But making connections and gaining first hand experience is what really makes the difference when it comes to finding a job once the cap and gown has been hung back up. Internships also help us decide if we even like the field we have chosen, or if we need to look elsewhere for something that better suits our passions and interests. Although internships are very important, it does not make it OK to slack off in classes. A slacker in the classroom is often a slacker on the job, and to make an impression or even find an internship, good grades are a must.

Internships are great tools for expanding experience. Whether it’s in the field, in a lab, or in an office, experience in each of these places and more is something that cannot always be learned from a classroom. The one-on-one instruction that goes along with internships is what makes them so great.  And once you’ve got the hang of the basics, you have the opportunity to improve in what you do by practicing everyday and applying what you’ve learned in the classroom to your tasks. A single internship can also offer very diverse experiences. Each day can offer something completely different from the last and use skills developed not only from your major classes, but even from classes you never thought you’d use. **Cough** GEC’s.  

 Internships are also a great way to decide if you are even in the right field. If you get an internship while you are still in school and decide that it is not the right place for you, you still have time to make the proper adjustments to your major or better understand what kind of job you want after college. Do you like an office setting, or do you prefer to work in the field? Do you even like anything about what you are doing? If not, it may be time to reevaluate your major and pick something that you think you will enjoy more. Once college is over, there is not much you can do to switch fields completely without going back to school. So try out as many options as you can and figure out what works best for you, preferably before graduation.

 Another reason internships are so important when it comes to job hunting is because of networking. The more people who know who you are or even just recognize your name, the better chance you have of finding a job. It is important now more than ever to meet the right people and make the right impressions. In many cases, who you know can become just as important, if not more, than what you know. Getting your foot in the door is the first step when looking for a job and already knowing someone on the inside can make a huge difference.

 Contrary to popular belief and reality TV, most people have to work hard and make sacrifices to land that dream job. Your social life and extra-curricular activities may have to take a hit in order for you to ultimately get what you want, but it is completely up to you what sacrifices and trade offs you are willing to make.

             As I’ve said before, grades are important, but the life lessons and experiences to be learned on the job during an internship are what really pave the way to success as well as happiness. So get out there, work hard, and APPLY, APPLY, APPLY to all kinds of internships!

Hannah George is a senior at the Ohio State University in Fisheries and Wildlife Management.  She will graduate this spring.  We'll be  very sad to see her go.

In Support of Nature Education...Naturally

I have the good fortune in my position to oversee a grant program that helps support the state park naturalist positions in our ODNR-Division of Parks and Recreation.  In exchange for this funding, the naturalists have to devote half of their programming to wildlife and wildlife-related topics.  Seems like a no-brainer, right?

I attended the All-State Naturalist meeting last week and was very glad to see a lot of folks I hadn't seen in several years, and a lot of new faces.  Due to budget constraints, this all-naturalist meeting had been reduced in size and scope the last couple of years.  I was very glad to see it brought back.  I think these folks need some dedicated time to network and interact with each other.  They were able to bounce ideas off of each other on topics like starting up a geocaching program, dealing with various ages of kids at their programs, drumming up attendance, and interactions with their local community.  I can say, without reservation, that this is a dedicated, passionate and fairly under appreciated group of people.  They are often the face of that park, the go-to person for issues, complaints, suggestions and more from the park patrons and the surrounding community. 

So, why would the ODNR-Division of Wildlife support naturalist in their sister agency?  Because it's a good investment for the Division of Wildlife.  These naturalists probably number around 50 across the state, but compared to the 8 full time education staff in our agency, they reach thousands more people per year than we ever could.  Many years, they reach well over 200,000 park attendees with wildlife-related programs each year.

Why is this a good investment?  With today's public spending less and less time outdoors and growing more and more disconnected to wildlife, park naturalists have a natural opportunity to help their patrons learn more about the nature around them.  A camper, while likely an outdoor enthusiast already, may not have a good base of knowledge about the wildlife and the quality habitat that is around their campgrounds, homes, and parks.  And, whether it's the roaming naturalist with an owl or snake that talks to the campers, or the naturalist that conducts the regular Saturday evening night hike, or the naturalist that helps the community do an annual creek clean-up, these small, intimate contacts with nature are often the ones that spark the enthusiasm, interest and desire in children and adults to participate in nature even more.  Whether it's simply wanting to learn more about what they are seeing on the trails, or wanting to learn how to take a fish off of a hook, park naturalists are in a unique position to have a real impact on creating a positive experience in nature.

So, the next time you visit an Ohio State Park, seek out the naturalist and thank them for their passion, time and effort.  And tell them I said hi and thanks too!

National Poetry Month...with a wildlife twist

April is National Poetry Month! From the Poets.org website: "Inaugurated by the Academy of American Poets in 1996, National Poetry Month is now held every April, when publishers, booksellers, literary organizations, libraries, schools and poets around the country band together to celebrate poetry and its vital place in American culture. Thousands of businesses and non-profit organizations participate through readings, festivals, book displays, workshops, and other events."


Poetry has held a place in many cultures for thousands of years.  The Japanese consider it an art, European authors have expressed political and cultural messages and feeling though poetry for centuries.  And, in America, many naturalists have used peotry to convey the beauty of the American landscape for generations.  Some examples include:

Low-Anchored Cloud

Low-anchored cloud,

Newfoundland air,

Fountain-head and source of rivers,

Dew-cloth, dream-drapery,

And napkin spread by fays;

Drifting meadow of the air,

Where bloom the daisied banks and violets,

And in whose fenny labyrinth

The bittern booms and heron wades;

Spirit of lakes and seas and rivers,

Bear only perfumes and the scent

Of healing herbs to just men's fields!

by Henry David Thoreau

The Dalliance of the Eagles

Skirting the river road, (my forenoon walk, my rest,)

Skyward in air a sudden muffled sound, the dalliance of the eagles,

The rushing amorous contact high in space together,

The clinching interlocking claws, a living, fierce, gyrating wheel,

Four beating wings, two beaks, a swirling mass tight grappling,

In tumbling turning clustering loops, straight downward falling

Till o'er the river pois'd, the twain yet one, a moment's lull,

A motionless still balance in the air, then parting, talons loosing,

Upward again on slow-firm pinions slanting, their separate diverse flight,

She hers, he his, pursuing.

by Walt Whitman

Writing and poetry are fantastic ways to help kids learn more about nature and wildlife.  And, as you can see in the above examples, poetry allows for beauty and expressiveness that can often be left out of regular narrative writing. 

One exercise that we've often done with students and adults is the Project WILD activity Animal Poetry.   The objective of this activity is to help students recognize and experience the inspirational value of wildlife through poetry.  The students spend time outside and imagine themselves as animals, then write poems about that experience. 

Some suggested poem formats include Haiku, which is a Japanese lyric verse form that has three unryhmed lines that have 5, 7 and 5 syllables.  Haiku traditionally and ideally presents a pair of contrasting images: one suggestive of time and place, the other a vivid but fleeting observation.  When they work together, the poem evokes mood and emotion.  An example follows:

The hawk soared over

Spirit bird in my living

Guide to harmony



Any guesses on what species of hawk this is?

 Another suggested format is Cinquain.  This is an American derived format that is comprised of five unrhyming lines of, respectively, two, four, six, eight and two syllables or words.  Each line has a purpose and number of syllables or words as follows: line 1 is a title of two syllables (words), line 2 is a description of the title in 4 syllables (words), line 3 is a descriptive action in 6 syllables (words), line 4 is a description of a feeling in 8 syllables (words) , and line 5 is another word for the title in two syllables or words.  An example follows:

Bobcat

Vital, quiet

Moving swiftly to live

Endangered by human patterns

Near lost

And finally, Diamante is a poem that can be used with students.  It is a poem shaped in the form of a diamond.  It can be used to show that words are related through shades of meaning from one extreme to an opposite extreme, following a pattern of parts of speech like this:

noun

adjective  adjective

participle  participle  participle

noun  noun  noun  noun

participle  participle  participle

adjective  adjective

noun

If you are having trouble remembering what a participle is, it is word that functions as a verb, but ends in ing or ed.  So you might be "carrying" something, carrying is a participle.  An example of a Diamante follows:

egg

light bright

living stretching growing

bird beak wing flight

soaring seeing seeking

feathered fluid

crow

Students can take their completed poems and type them or print them neatly and then display them with their focus animal, either illustrated or with a photograph.  Some follow-up questions to ask the students after their lesson could be a discussion on why some people say they would not want to live in a world without animals, would they want to live in a world without animals, what kinds of wildlife would they want to see regularly, and why.

So, enjoy April as National Poetry Month. And take your kids outside to find all that nature has to offer for inspiration.  There is no shortage no matter where you are.  You just have to look for it!

Invisible Ink-a guest blog by Herb Broda



Photo from the Appalachian Mountain Club's Web Site

 I will often reference other blogs that are relevent to the topic of outdoor, environmental and/or wildlife education here.  It's my pleasure today to reference one of my favorite people, Herb Broda with Ashland University, and his recent post on the Children and Nature Network's Blog.  Herb looks at how changes in children's literature are unfortunately a reflection of the decline in time spent outdoors by today's youth.  Enjoy!

Invisible Ink: Is the Natural World Disappearing from Children's Books and Education?


Herbert W. Broda is a professor of education at Ashland University in Ohio. He is the author of "Schoolyard-Enhanced Learning: Using the Outdoors as an Instructional Tool" and "Moving the Classroom Outdoors: Schoolyard-Enhanced Learning in Action." He is also a leader of the Children & Nature Network's Natural Teachers Initiative.

March Madness Has Gone Wild!

My husband and I are big NCAA basketball fans, him more so than me.  He keeps track of all the teams, fills out his brackets, and is at one of the tournament games as I write this.  I get to go with him on Sunday and I'm very excited. 

I didn't get a chance to fill out a bracket this year, but as we were discussing some of the match ups and potential match ups for Sunday, I noticed a theme.  There are a huge number of teams in the tournament this year that have wildlife-related mascots.  Now, I realize that if you're not a wildlife geek like me, you may not have picked up on this. But I did and, after some investigating today, here's what I found.  Out of the 64 teams in the tournament, almost half (30) have a wildlife-related mascot.  Here's a more specific breakdown of those 30*:

• 9 are characterized as some type of non-domesticated feline, aka Wildcats (3), Cougars, Bobcats, Tigers (2), or Catamounts. And throw in the Bearcats too if you want, I'm not sure where to put them.
• 5 are characterized as some type of raptor, aka Golden Eagles (2), Mountain Hawks, Owls, and if you want, you can put the Jayhawks in there too.
• 3 are characterized as some type of bear, aka Bruins, Grizzlies and, uh, Bears.
• 3 are characterized as some type of songbird, aka Cardinals, Blackbirds, and Bluejays.
• 2 are characterized as some type of wolf, aka Lobos (Spanish for wolf) and Wolfpack.
• 2 are the Rams with mascots that look like Big Horn Sheep.
• 2 are in the Mustelid Family with the Wolverines and the Badgers (as a Buckeye graduate, that was really hard to type.)
• Finally, there are 1 of each of the following wild critters to cheer for: Jackrabbits, Gators, and Buffalos.

Why would I take the time to add all of this up?  It's because I think, culturally speaking, it shows the value and the esteem with which we, as a society, hold these animals.  Now, don't get me wrong, I don't think that the Kentucky Wildcats are going to go the whole nine yards simply because of their name.  But, if you're going to pick something to be a mascot, what kinds of characteristics do you want your mascot to embody?  Strength, fearlessness, beauty, courage, etc.  We tend to apply these anthropomorphic characteristics to wild animals because as we learn about their habits, we learn to respect them and maybe even fear them a little bit.  But, regardless of how you feel about an animal, picking it as a mascot can be a sign of respect and admiration. 

By the way, if you're sitting there wondering what is so powerful and intimidating about a cardinal, ask the caterpillar that it was trying to eat this morning.  Or ask the wildlife rehabilitator that is nursing a bite from its powerful beak.

As we move forward in the tournament, there have been some match ups that mimic real life, and some that do not.  For example, a Badger could never defeat a Grizzly in real life.  And a Golden Eagle probably couldn't whip a Couger.  However, a Bear could definitely take it to a Jackrabbit and a Golden Eagle would have its talons full with trying to take down a Wildcat.  So here's to the excitement and drama that is wildlife both on the court and out in the field.  And may the best critter win! 

Personally, tonight I'm hoping that the Memphis Tigers beat up the St. Louis University Billikens because WHAT THE HECK IS A BILLIKEN? Look it up! I did, and no offense to any of you Billikens out there, but if your mascot requires a full page definition, you might want to think about picking a new mascot.

Have fun everyone and Go Bucks!

(*If you're doing the math and you find I've only counted 29, that's because I threw in the Buckeyes because they can take out anything as a poisonous nut. ;-p)