Wachstumshormone

Feb

25

Q and A: Michael Becker Talks About Hood River Middle School Outdoor Classroom

Filed Under Climate change, Interviews, Outdoor education, Place-based Education, Programs | 2 Comments

Anne Marie Untalan, Michael Becker, and Ashley Sprouse, developers of the HRMS Outdoor Classroom Project.

Anne Marie Untalan, Michael Becker, and Ashley Sprouse, developers of the HRMS Outdoor Classroom Project.

CLEARING: What have been the most difficult issues in getting this project started?
Michael Becker: One of the Permaculture Design Method principles is to start small, and I highly advocate for starting with small projects that you can have initial success with. Trying to get space is often a hurdle, and if you can show that you have managed a small space efficiently and generated student interest and outcomes you’re more likely to be able to expand. It’s important to have a sense of where you’d like to go in the future but be focused on what you can do today. Read more

Feb

25

Engaging Students in their Community: Hood River Middle School Outdoor Classroom Project

Filed Under Climate change, Energy Alternatives, Energy Conservation, Outdoor education, Place-based Education, Programs, Schoolyard Classroom, Science, Social studies | 1 Comment


arboretum 2Hood River Middle School Outdoor Classroom Project

The Outdoor Classroom Project is a work in progress where students are the researchers, engineers, designers, architects, builders, and users of a multidisciplinary, multi-sensory learning experience.

What you see when you approach the schoolgrounds at Hood River Middle School is nothing short of remarkable. From solar panels on the roof to a working greenhouse in the back, Hood River Middle School exhibits the markings of a unique and visionary school of the future.

As more and more schools around the country are beginning to organize their curriculum to include concepts of ecology, community, and sustainability, some programs, through innovation, vision and determination, move forward in meshing those concepts into a cohesive, integrated and successful program and serve as a model for others to follow. The Hood River Middle School Outdoor Classroom Project has become an exemplary program that began small and grew to encompass an ecological framework that gives students a unique blend of science, technology and permaculture that connects them to real world issues within their community.

Since 1998, science teacher Michael Becker has guided a program that offers students a higher level of connectivity between school and community. Using a hands-on approach to solving real-life problems, students at HRMS accelerate through the basic skills and concepts outlined in the Oregon Academic Benchmarks. The Outdoor Classroom Project is a work in progress where students are the researchers, engineers, designers, architects, builders, and users of a multidisciplinary, multi-sensory learning experience. The Outdoor Classroom Project connects students to key concepts in sustainability through a field based, experience-driven curriculum. Key themes of the project include Diversity, Water, Food, Energy, and Waste.

The Outdoor Classroom Project is divided into three separate strands. Read more

Feb

24

Connecting students and salmon in their watershed

Filed Under Biological Diversity, Marine/Aquatic Education, Place-based Education, Programs | 1 Comment

salmon3bHow rearing salmon in an elementary classroom can foster powerful teaching and learning in the content areas, environmental awareness, and good stewardship of the Earth

By Daniel S. King, PhD

My transition in January of last year to a new position teaching science, math, and technology to 5th graders at STARBASE ATLANTIS on Navy Base Kitsap has caused me to reflect on my 11 years as an elementary school teacher.

There is no doubt that my work as a public school teacher was rewarding in countless ways; however, the most profound, meaningful, and enjoyable experience for me during my years as an elementary school teacher was participating in a Salmon in the Classroom Project. Likewise, I believe the project has had a positive and enduring impact on the hundreds of students that participated along with me.

For 10 years my students and I raised salmon in the classroom and then released them into Clear Creek in Silverdale, Washington which is located on the Kitsap Peninsula.
Read more

Feb

24

Wolverines, Wonder and Wilderness

Filed Under Programs | Leave a Comment

Why the Wolverine Matters to a Kid Who Has Never Seen a Raccoon

Photo by Benjamin Drummond, NCI

by Megan McGinty

IT IS APRIL AND I AM SITTING UNCOMFORTABLY on the cobbles of a gravel bar on the Skagit River in the North Cascades National Park with a group of local fifth graders, talking about the special rocks we just found. Ranger Paula arrives and greets us, asking the kids about their day and if they’ve seen any wildlife on their hike this afternoon. Excited, they all talk at once, clamoring to describe the chipmunk that ran across the trail and the robin they tried to take pictures of as it flew into the canopy. Paula begins to talk about the wildlife research being conducted in the park by scientists and asks the children”What animal would you most like to see while you are here?”

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Megan McGinty lives in Bellingham, WA and is an Environmental Educator with North Cascades Institute. Photo by Benjamin Drummond.

LaMotte-CLEARING 4C

Feb

22

Beach Hoppers: Inquiry-based learning while having fun!

Filed Under Art and EE, Marine/Aquatic Education, Programs | Leave a Comment

beach_hoppers11

Field trips are exciting. Field trips incorporating inquiry-based learning and live animals are even better.

by Stephanie Schroeder

This second grade unit focuses on beach hoppers, tiny amphipods found on most sandy beaches. The first three lessons focus on learning beach hopper characteristics in the classroom and teaching students how to do scientific fieldwork. Once the students are beach hopper experts, they take a field trip to the sandy beach to conduct experiments on beach hoppers.

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