INTRODUCING.YOUR FOREST

Virginia’s forests are one of the most diverse and complex ecosystems on Earth. This introduction to Virginia’s piedmont or mountain forests can include such concepts as succession, layers, and interdependence. Students may be introduced to some of the flora and fauna in their bioregion, how the forest has effected peoples’ lifestyles, and the significant changes humans have caused in it.
grade: pre K – 12
length:1½ - 3 hrs                                             
location: woods
SOLs: Science K.4, 1.7(a, b), 1.8, 2.5, 2.7, 2.8, 3.5 – .7, 3.10, 4.4, 4.5, 4.8, LS.7 - .12, LS.14,
                        BIO.8(b, c); BIO.9
          History 1.6

EXPLORING WITH ALL THE SENSES

A sensory exploration hike. There are so many more ways to experience nature than by simply looking. “Multisensory experiences in nature help to build the cognitive constructs necessary for sustained intellectual development.”* (They’re fun too!)
*Moore and Hong, “Natural Learning: Creating Environments for Rediscovering Nature’s Way of Teaching”  Berkeley, CA, MIG Communications, 1997.
grade: pre K – 12
length: 1 hour
location: woods, or lawn and woods
SOLS: Science K.2, K.4

LIFE CYCLES AND CIRCLES

Students will investigate the dynamic character of nature through the food web, life cycles, the seasons, migrations, and more. From egg to insect, and from soil to tree and back to soil… As the Earth is round, and the objects in the solar system rotate and circle round the sun, so does all life on Earth move in cycles.
grade: K – 9    
length: 1½ hours
location: both lawn and woods
SOLs: Science 1.7, 2.4, 3.8, 4.5(c, e), LS.11

CONNECTIONS

When we exhale, the forest inhales. When a species of frog becomes extinct in the rainforest, it effects the desert. In this program on diversity and interdependence participants may observe the three types of symbiotic relationships, discuss the flow of energy in ecosystems, and record the amazing diversity of life forms within two square feet of space.
grades: K - 12
length: 1½ - 3 hours
location: both lawn and woods
SOLs: Science 2.5(a), 3.5, 3.6, 4.5, LS.7, LS.9, LS.12, BIO.7, BIO.9

AQUATIC ECOLOGY AND THE WATER CYCLE

This program can include a wide variety of subjects depending on the age of the students and your interests. You may focus on an introduction to the water cycle and its processes, an investigation of riparian areas as a distinct habitat, or on monitoring stream health (refer also to citizen science projects). And remember that the best way to learn about water is to get your feet wet. (At least!)
grades: K - 12
length: 1½ - 3 hours
location: stream or pond
SOLs: Science K.5, 2.5, 3.5, 3.6(a, c), 3.9, 3.10, 6.5, 6.7, LS.7, LS.9 - .12, ES.9(d – f), BIO.9

THE GREEN-BEINGS

Everything you ever wanted to know about botany but were afraid to ask. Is turning sunshine into food magic? Why are most spring wildflowers white while autumn wildflowers are varied colors? Why doesn’t lettuce grow in the forest (or does it…?) We’ll learn about the parts and processes of these organisms that are at the base of the food chain, and we’ll do it in their natural environment.
grades: K - 12
length: 1½ - 3 hours
location: woods, or lawn and woods
SOLs: Science 1.4, 1.7(a), 2.4(b), 2.7, 2.8, 3.6, 3.7, 3.10, 4.4, 4.5, LS.4(a), LS.6, LS.7,LS.8(a), LS.9

TREES AND FORESTRY

View a sample lesson plan for this program!
As trees comprise the predominant habitat of the eastern U.S., any understanding of our ecosystem must include knowledge of these silent standing ones. Participants may learn about the jobs of the different parts of a tree by portraying one as a group; study trees’ relationships with soil organisms by getting their hands dirty; and learn about some of the useful products they give us.
grades: K – 12
length: 1½ - 3 hours
location: woods
SOLs: Science 1.4, 1.7(a), 2.4(b), 2.5, 2.8, 3.7, 3.10, 4.4, LS.4(a), LS.6, LS.7, LS.8(a), LS.9

CREEPY-CRAWLY FRIENDS

Following an introduction to the phylum arthropoda (which includes insects, spiders, and millipedes), we’ll conduct a down-and-dirty search for arthropods in their own habitats and participate in activities to help us better understand their lives and life cycles. Students will come away with a better appreciation for these critters that are too often feared.
grades: K – 6
length: 1½ - 3 hours
location: both lawn and woods (preferably with downed wood and stones)
SOLs: Science 1.5, 2.4(a), 2.5(a), 3.4, 3.5, 4.5

HABITAT IS WHERE THE HEART IS

Space, food, shelter, and water all together are habitat. All life needs these four things in varying relationships. We’ll learn how types of habitats differ from the forest canopy to beneath the leaf litter, participate in activities that demonstrate how habitat is a limiting factor in determining population density, and search for some of the diversity of wildlife homes.
grades: K – 12
length: 1½ - 3 hours
location: both lawn and woods
SOLs: Science 1.4(a), 1.5(a), 2.5, 3.6, 3.7(a, d), 4.5(b, d), LS.4, LS.9 - .11, BIO.9
          History 1.6, VS2(e) 

HUMAN FOOTPRINTS

People effect the planet… and that effect can be positive or negative. We’ll participate in activities that demonstrate ways we change the environment and spend time in the field studying some effects humans have had. Specific topics we may investigate include pre-colonial environmental manipulation, consumerism and waste, and conservation and resource renewal.
grades: K – 12
length: 1½ - 3 hours
location: lawn and woods, disturbed and undisturbed areas
SOLs: Science K.10, 1.8, 3.10, 4.5(f), 6.9, LS.11, LS.12, BIO.9(c, d)

WHERE ARE WE? MAPS AND NAVIGATION

This course covers principles of navigation: Deciphering the four cardinal directions without the use of a compass, day or night; finding your way through a wilderness by observing and following the lay of the land; interpreting and using maps, as well as creating your own; and using a compass. Older students can receive an introduction to orienteering with a compass and topographic map.
grades: K – 12
length: 1½ hours
location: lawn and/or woods
SOLs: Science ES.3(a, c, d)
       History 1.5

THE FOOD WEB

All life is part of an interconnected web of energy, consuming and being consumed. Students will learn about sunshine, soil, air, and water as the bases for life; then they’ll explore the flow of energy in the food web through photosynthesis, predators, prey, decomposers, and everything in between.
grades: K – 9
length: 1½ - 3 hours
location: both lawn and woods
SOLs: Science 3.5, 4.5(c), LS.6, LS.7, LS.9(a, b)

ADAPT OR DIE

In order to survive, all species have undergone physical and behavioral adaptations to their
environment. Adaptation through natural selection is the foundation of evolution. We’ll look for specific animal and plant adaptation responses to variables such as seasonal change, predation, and finding food; and compare them to adaptations humans make to some of the same factors.
grades: 1 - 12
length: 1½ - 3 hours
location: lawn and/or woods
SOLs: Science 1.7, 2.7(a), 3.4, 3.10, 4.4, 4.5(a), LS.4, LS.9, LS.10(c), LS.11, LS.14(a,c), BIO.8(c – e)
          History 1.6, VS.2(e)

THE HAIRY ONES: MAMMALS AND ANIMAL TRACKING

Bears, dolphins, and humans too—all are mammals. Participants will learn the distinguishing characteristics of mammals and some of their generalized habits in the eastern forest. Then we will spend time looking for both the hairy ones themselves and their signs—like tracks, scat, and homes. Students are guaranteed to spot live mammals (at least humans!)
grades: 1 – 12
length: 1½ - 3 hours
location: both lawn and woods
SOLs: Science 1.5, 1.7(b), 2.5, 2.7(a), 3.4, 3.6, 4.5, LS.4, LS.8, LS.9, LS.10(c), LS.11

HERP SEARCH

Snakes, salamanders, lizards, frogs...  After an introduction to types of reptiles and amphibians in the area, we’ll learn how to safely turn over rocks and logs and try to catch some. We’ll discuss their life cycles, habits and habitats, and why these creatures are an important part of the ecosystem.
grades: 1 – 12
length: 1½ - 3 hours    
location: woods, preferably with stream or pond
SOLs: Science 1.5, 1.7(b), 2.4(a), 2.5(a), 2.7(a), 3.4, 3.5, 4.5, LS.9(a, b), LS.10(c), LS.11

TREE, WILDFLOWER, OR MUSHROOM IDENTIFICATION

You may choose which one of these three to focus on. Students will learn the structures of plants or fungi and how similarities determine taxonomic grouping. They will also learn to use dichotomous keys to identify specimens in the field. Tree ID can be learned year round. Wildflower ID is best scheduled for April or May, though summer and autumn programs are also possible. Fungus ID is best scheduled for a moist autumn, though weather may permit this program at other times of year.
grades: tree and wildflower- 3 – 12; fungi- 7 – 12  
length: 1½  - 3 hours
location: woods, or lawn and woods
SOLs: Science 3.1(b, e), 3.6, 4.4(a, b), 4.5, 5.1(a), 6.1(a, b), LS.5, LS.9(c – e), LS.10(c),                          LS.14(c), BIO.7(a, e), BIO.8(c, d), BIO.9(e)

NIGHT HIKE

We’ll leave our flashlights off for most of this exploration of a world so few of us ever meet on its own terms. Students will leave the neighborhood’s lights and explore the hours when the majority of animals are most active. They’re also sure to leave behind some fears and come away with a new appreciation for this other half of the day.
grades: 3 – 12
length: 1½  hours
location: trail in dark area
SOLs: Science 3.4, 3.5, 3.6(b, d), 4.5, LS.4, LS.7 - .12, LS.14(a, c), BIO.8(b, c), BIO.9

LIFE ON THE EDGE: ECOTONES

Where two different ecosystems overlap is called an ecotone, or edge habitat, and it is a particularly diverse area. Where a forest meets a lawn is edge habitat on a small scale; where the Blue Ridge mountains meet the Piedmont, as in central Virginia, is another much larger one. Participants in this program will compare diversity in different ecosystems to diversity in an ecotone.
grades: 4 – 12
length: 1½ hours
location: both woods and lawn
SOLs: 4.5(b, d), LS.5, LS.10,  BIO.9, PH.1(a – e)

CITIZEN SCIENCE PROJECTS

Participating in citizen science projects in partnership with environmental organizations is an effective way to offer students educational field experiences in the gathering and interpretation of scientific data. These projects also may enable them to implement positive change in their region. Sylvan’s Youth Education Service can help your institution develop such projects in coordination with established organizations like the Appalachian Trail Council and the Izaak Walton League, and also lead these projects in the field.
Projects can be developed for many age ranges and levels of time commitment. Contact Sylvan’s YES to discuss specific possibilities for your group and field of interest. The following are two common examples:

NATURE MAPPING
Join part of a nationwide project inventorying animal life to learn what’s there, where, and when. It’s a simple way to learn to identify wildlife, types of habitat, and record reliable scientific data that will be then be submitted to a national database. Nature Mapping is most appropriate as one element within other YES programs.
grades: 1 – 12
SOLs: Science 2.5, 3.6, 4.5(a, b, d), 6.1(b, c, k), LS.10, PH.1(a, c)

STREAM MONITORING
"Citizen monitors are the first and sometimes the only line of defense for our waterways. There's often nobody else there looking," --Scott Dye, director of the Sierra Club's Water Sentinels Program

Get your students both educated and involved by surveying the health of a nearby stream. Choose from two different approaches, a Stream Habitat Assessment or a Streamside Biosurvey.
            Stream Habitat Assessment-This is an effective way to introduce kids to a relatively easy, yet scientifically relevant, environmental science project. It uses a simple protocol to assess the quality of a stream’s habitat. Students will observe and qualitatively evaluate the elements of the stream’s habitat, then record their observations on a data sheet. It can also include an introductory macroinvertabrate survey. It’s a great way to learn about habitat, stream ecosystems, and environmental stewardship-- all in one program.
grades: 4 – 12
length: 1½ - 3 hours
SOLs: 4.5, 4.8(a), 6.7(a,f,g), 6.9, LS.4, LS.7, LS.9, LS.10, LS.11(b,c), LS.12, ES.9, BIO.9,   PH.1

        Streamside Biosurvey- In this more scientifically rigorous monitoring method students check stream health by sampling, identifying, and tabulating data on its macroinvertebrates. As Sylvan Willig is certified as a monitor by Virginia Save Our Streams, the students’ findings will be accepted by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality, and can lead to restorative action if the stream is determined to be impaired. Single monitoring sessions are possible, but student groups can make a real difference if they adopt a stream in coordination with VA SOS or your local water quality organization by monitoring it 2 – 4 times throughout the year under the direction of a certified monitor.
grades: 6 – 12
length: 3½ - 4 hours
SOLs: Science 6.7(a, f, g), LS.4(b, c), LS.9, LS.10(c), LS.11(b, c), LS.12, BIO.9, PH.1

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Virginia Standards of Learning