Profile of Excellence in Environmental Education

What does Excellence Look Like? 

Francis Parker Charter School Teacher, Judy Gibson was recognized at the Massachusetts State House this week for Excellence in Environmental Education. 

Judy Gibson is not the kind of person who draws attention to herself in the usual ways. She comes off as quiet and reserved.  She may appear to be sitting back, as she lets others take center stage. Throughout it all, she is carefully observing, listening and researching.  She then takes the information and opportunities she has gathered up, and works step by step at crafting meaningful experiences for her students.  Judy’s students are given the foundation from which they can become citizens who care about our earth and water; Citizens who know about our earth and water from direct experiences in their Middle School years, thanks to one teacher’s thoughtful approach to education.  This is the kind of experience I hope all students can receive in order to best prepare them to make wise choices about our natural resources as they mature into responsible citizens.




Judy has dedicated many years to providing Middle School students opportunities to delve deeply in exploring, researching and touching aquatic and terrestrial natural systems within reach of their school.  Judy is a key part of the middle school science team at Parker. She is one of three teachers, who do a great deal of collaboration in designing the natural science units.  Judy has engaged students in field research projects in their local environment, beginning with vernal pools in walking distance from their school, for well over 7 years.  In 2009, Judy added to the work she set up for her students to include a scientific protocol looking at hydrology of vernal pools in cooperation with  Harvard Forest Ecologist, Betsy Colburn. Judy not only succeeded in getting students to collect pool diameters, and depths, etc. at her own school, but she became a mentor for teachers at a network of other schools involved in this work as well.  Judy regularly presented the innovative curriculum and learning methods she developed at the Parker Charter School with teachers from a wide range of schools at teacher workshops, so that more students could benefit from this work.

Who Eats Who? 

In 2013, Judy led a group of teachers from the Parker Charter School in taking on an investigation of forest dynamics as a team.  She and her 2 colleagues teamed up with more ecologists at Harvard Forest. They led their students in setting up and monitoring a series of forested study plots in their schoolyards.  Their students have collected tree species and diameter data, observed sign of wildlife, invasive species and pests, and many other field site characteristics as part of this study in the past 3 years.  In contributing to this study Judy and her colleagues provide data that can be compared region wide to tell a story of land use change over time.  With this combined information, we can begin to get a better picture of how forests are changing throughout New England.

 Judy’s efforts have led to 20-150 students each year participating in authentic environmental field studies, as well as the broader reach of presenting and sharing materials and data with a network of over 100 teachers.  These students are getting the opportunity to be real scientists and to connect and learn about the water and earth around them.  Judy takes the extra time and effort needed to organize and manage working outdoors both during the school day and in after school group.  It is this kind of in depth dedicated work over the long term that makes Judy’s work stand out.  I am thrilled that she has been honored by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and the Environment for her outstanding work.

 

To learn more, go to the following links:

            

See Powerpoint slide presentations that Judy Gibson has shared with Schoolyard Ecology teachers: 

2015.Life in a Wicked Big Puddle-VP.pdf

2015.Starting The Our Changing Forests Projects-Year 1.pdf

.2014.Shepley Hill Vernal Pool.pdf

Find the Parker Charter School location on our interactive map and explore project data:

google.com.Schoolyard maps

More about the Our Changing Forests project:

http://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/Our_Changing_Forests

More about the Vernal Pool project:

http://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/water-landscape-vernal-pools

More about the Excellence in Environmental Education Awards:

.mass.gov.energy-and-environmental-awards

Trees are Greening Up as I write this....

Take a look outside in most of  our region and you will see that the trees are beginning to leaf out...one by one....

You know what that means, Buds, Leaves and Global Warming Teachers!

If you haven't already, get your students outside as soon as possible to track leaf emergence on your study trees.

We are excitedly collecting spring data on our trees. We had a surprise last week, pictured in these attachments. A beaver felled the crab apple tree #18. The study leaves were out so the team measured them and recorded on the data sheet but I guess this will be the last year for that tree! We have not seen the beaver but the tree was standing the week before. 

Photo and comments from Jane Lucia, Williston Northampton School 

Here is what the Phenocams are showing:

From the Northeast (Reading, Ma.)

What phenological changes can you see on any of these trees between
March 8th and April 26th?

Southwestern Massachusetts (Springfield)

Mid Atlantic Region (25 miles from Washington DC): 

North Carolina:

What are things looking like near your school???

Please send us photos and notes from your field site and/or school location so we can better see where buds are bursting and leaves are emerging.

Email photos and comments to Pamela Snow at psnow@fas.harvard.edu

To search for canopy images from throughout North America: 

Go to the Phenocam website at:https://phenocam.sr.unh.edu/webcam

For more about tracking Budburst through The Harvard Forest Schoolyard Ecology program:

Go to:  http://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/buds-leaves-global-warming

Teachers Steal the Show at Spring Workshop

Schoolyard Ecology Teachers Took Center Stage at Our Spring Workshop for Teachers on March 31st at Harvard Forest

Beginning with introductions, teachers had so much to contribute and update on...we ran over well over the time I had allocated in the agenda.  I could have cut folks off sooner, but it was clear that the entire learning community of classroom teachers, environmental educators and scientists was all ears to hear what each teacher had to share.

Hemlock and Buds groups each met in breakout groups before heading outside.

Into the Woods

Teachers actively contributed to field discussions as well.  Scientists allowed the teachers to lead the focus of the discussion with their many questions and comments about field protocols, seasonal changes, physiology, etc.

   

Teacher Presentations

The afternoon was highlighted  by teachers and naturalists formally presenting the way they are engaging children in field ecology projects.

J.R. Briggs Elementary teacher, Katherine Bennett, and Austin Preparatory School teacher, Maria Blewitt each shared the ways they are deepening students' understanding of the science of Phenology.  Both teachers have contributed to the Buds, Leaves and Global Warming study over several years. Both also host web cameras called "Phenocams" on the roofs of their schools to track the greenup and green down of the tree canopy near their schools.  Kate shared some of the impressive array of educational resources that she has helped develop for the Project Budburst webpages. 

 Kate shared some of the impressive array of educational resources that
she helped to develop for the Project
BudBurst webpages.

Kate collaborated with Phenocam scientist, Andrew Richardson, along with Project Budburst coordinator, Sandra Henderson and team to develop these in depth, colorful activities and lesson plans that help students to understand the science of Phenology.





Maria Blewitt shared the step by step process she used in graphing the Phenocam data provided by the Phenocam at her school in Reading, Ma.    

Mass Audubon Educators, Sally Farrow and Erin Pitkin, then updated us on how they are helping students of all abilities engage in both the Vernal Pool and Phenology studies at Drumlin Farm and Lowell schools.  Sally showed us a variety of graphs she is sharing with students that tell the story of the hydrology of the vernal pools and ponds at Drumlin farm where over 5,000 students have participated in the the Harvard Forest Schoolyard vernal pool  study over 8 years.

 






Erin Pitkin, in her first year working with the Schoolyard Vernal Pool and phenology studies, shared a set of visual resources she developed to allow a diverse range of learners to access the scientific protocol.

A number of schools provide student "Eco Monitors" who regularly collect data for Harvard Forest Schoolyard Ecology projects sited at Drumlin Farm in Lincoln, Ma.  Erin showed how she is adapting and creating tools for students of diverse abilities to participate in this work.


Holyoke Catholic High School Teacher, Lise Letellier lead the charge with her impressive and comprehensive telling of her 5 year journey through Schoolyard Ecology.  See my previous blog entry for more on that presentation along with the related links below.

Survey Comments from Workshop Participants: 

• All of the presentations were well done! I am excited to take the great ideas and implement them into our program.

• all of the teacher presentations were excellent.

• teacher talk time was sooo helpful! Great discussion about what else to keep track of since yearly change is not significant enough to graph. So great to learn about phenology and phenocam resources,

•  All the presentations helpful and presented new information and inspiration which will benefit our programs.

• Kernals of gold nugget in each and all of them!

• Lise gives me hope that I, too, can have my students tackle data!

• The opportunity to meet and speak with the other teachers and hear the presentations gives me hope and inspiration and definitely renews my passion.
• both the walk and the teacher presentations definitely renewed my passion.  I hope to eventually get to the point where I can contribute to the discussions and presentation.

• Today's presentations were mostly applicable to all protocol and made new resources accessible and offered ways they can help us teach the standards. 

To see teacher presentation slides and hear audio on Adobe Connect, go to: 

http://harvardforest.adobeconnect.com/p99mf5gzwfg/

To access PDF documents of teacher presentations, go to:

Bennett,K.Taking Phenology Education to the Next Level.pdf

Blewitt,M.Using the Phenocam Website with Your Students.pdf

Letellier, L. Five Years of Data Presentation.pdf

Farrow,Pitkin. Eco. Monitoring for All Learners.pdf

To access the complete Survey Monkey Spring workshop evaluation, go to:

Spring Wksp surveymonkey.results

To follow up on any questions or comments about this Blog post or Harvard Forest Schoolyard Ecology, email:

 Pamela Snow


Or add your comment on this blog below... 

Give this Woman a Presidential Award Please!

 Holyoke Catholic High School Teacher, Lise Letellier wowed us with her 5 year journey with the Buds, Leaves, and Global Warming study at the Spring Workshop for Teachers last week! 

 Lise took us through her experience engaging High School students at all levels in collecting field data, representing and understanding  project data.  She showed what she was able to do with students , year by year for her first 5 years of leading this project.  

 Throughout this presentation, we could see the importance and relevance of Lise's educational goals for her students, and recognized the complexities of school life and ecological studies that provided challenges along the way to fully reaching those goals.  

Lise -We celebrate your success this year even more now that you laid out the 5 year process for us! 

Comments from other Schoolyard teachers included: 

• The introduction of more teacher presentations and especially Lise's presentation was informative, useful, and totally motivating. 

• Lise gives me hope that I, too, can have my students tackle data! 

Lise has passed the state level screening for a Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST)

Awaiting word at the national level...

To see Lise's slides and audio from her Spring Workshop presentation, go to the 1st presentation at:

http://harvardforest.adobeconnect.com/p99mf5gzwfg/

To see samples of student work and associated overview, directions, and rubric  related to this presentation,find these 9 documents under Buds, Leaves and Global Warming heading beginning with Letellier. 2016.

http://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/schoolyard/lesson-plans

Related Blog Post:  student graphs blog

To see Lise's  lesson plan on the national LTER Digital Library, go to:  

http://educationlibrary.lternet.edu/node/13

Lamb or Lion? What is in store for trees, salamanders and us in this unusual season?

Will this "early spring" weather last through the season???  

  

Red Maple Buds from Hollis High School, New Hampshire.  Photo by Maryanne Rotelli

Schoolyard Ecology teacher, Maryanne Rotelli, commented,

Got the kids out before the nor'easter forecasted for Monday. Here are a couple of pictures of one of our red maples with flower buds. The other two red maples in our study are smaller and a little more sheltered and though they show signs of bud formation they aren't as far along as this tree. 

Harvard Forest Researcher, John O'Keefe is predicting "it should be quite an early spring but we'll see. We might have a 1/4 foot of snow on the ground early next week and we'll see what happens". Overall though he  expects that tree buds will "burst" early this year.  

Come to the Spring Workshop for Teachers at Harvard Forest on March 31st  to learn more about tracking this "early spring".  Email Pamela Snow at:  psnow@fas.harvard.edu to register.  

How do  you and your students think this cold weather will impact our trees?  

Speaking of Maples,  Harvard Forest Bullard Fellow Josh Rapp has been all over the news for his sugar maple research.  

Photos of Maple Syrup collection bags (left) and Maple Researcher, Joshua Rapp (right) are from the Worcester Telegram  and Gazette.



Up until now this has been a story about a remarkably early Maple Sugaring season. It might be worthwhile to share the following  great articles and videos with your students to get them thinking about erratic nature of our climate as evidenced in this crazy early spring we've been having.

While most of us think of March as the beginning of Maple Season in Massachusetts, this year, Joshua Rapp began collecting sap at Harvard Forest on Feb. 1st.  This is about a month and a half earlier than last year, which was a relatively late sugaring season.

Recent weather has been warm enough to stop the sap flow. Maple sap flows best when night time temperatures go below freezing and day time temps are above freezing.  Researcher  Rapp expects temperatures to fall back to more spring-like levels, allowing the flow to start again. Stay tuned to see if he's right!


Access the recent  article and video in the Worcester Telegram  news clips (Chicago Tribune, NY times, etc.)  as well as Dr. Rapp's website and photo gallery in the HF homepage highlight put together by Clarisse Hart. in the link below.

HF homepage highlight

Lots of salamanders, spring peepers and wood frogs have been on the move according to the Vernal Pool Listserv reports flooding my email inbox since early March.   

So far Salamander migration this year has looked like this....

Will some late migrants be having travel across this? 

Photos from The Vernal Pool Association

To get a sense of how the amphibian migration is playing out across New England, here are some excerpts I have compiled:

Female Wood Frog with Eggs

Migration begins in  Southeastern Massachusetts and Connecticut  on February 24th!!

Last night, my open-window olfactory survey was ineffective, as the high winds, heavy rains, and volume of freshly crushed tree limbs disguised the road surface and the masked the smell of the carnage.  This morning, after the sun rose while the roads were still wet, some of that carnage remained and it’s apparent that Spotted Salamanders and Wood Frogs moved in large numbers, last night in Moosup, CT.

..............................................................................................................................................................

February 24:  Saw two spotted salamanders and three wood frogs in S. Easton, MA, tonight. We might see a big push if it rains in the next couple of weeks!

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March 9th:  

hi folks!  Just reporting a cacophony of wood frogs vocalizing in Wheaton's vernal pools this afternoon

From the north shore of Boston:

I checked a vernal pool in Lynn Woods on 3/11/16 and saw LOTS of spotted salamander spermatophores. I heard one lonely wood frog calling but no chorus or eggs yet. I imagine it's happened since all the rain we had this week, but haven't been back up to check yet. 

..............................................................................................................................................................

There were some peepers calling in Reading today. Pools were really low here, and I'm seeing that condition across a lot of NE Mass. Expecting some action tonight north of Boston.

From Metro-West of Boston:  

From Lexington, MA on March 11th :   

(A) BIG NIGHT at Minuteman Tech in Lexington MA !!  4 or more spotted salamander congresses at at one of Minuteman's upper twin pools, maybe 80-100 total.  Already spermatophores, but we did find some active "parties." Saw fairy shrimp in the other upper pool, but only one salamander.  Usually there are more.  Lower pond near power station had around 20 salamanders that seemed to just gathering for a congress with a few newly deposited spermatophores.   Also wood frogs breeding (plus saw some green frogs and bullfrogs and heard peepers).  Water level is unusually low.  This is one of the 3 earliest "Big Nights" in the 27 years I've been going out (Other years = March 9, 1998, 2001)  Happy Spring!!  Fran Ludwig

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From our HF Schoolyard Vernal Pool project leader, in Lincoln, Ma., Sally Farrow on March 12, 2016:  

At Drumlin Farm in Lincoln MA yellow spotted salamanders were seen in Ice pond and the Old Deer pen vernal pool. Wood Frogs were found in 4 ponds. We have fairy shrimp in 3 vernal pools. No egg masses or migrating salamanders were seen. We will keep checking. Our ponds are lower this year and we continue to follow the hydrology of our 8 ponds as part of the Harvard Forest Schoolyard LTER program.

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From Maynard, Mass.on March 11:  

In a little survey this weekend of vernal pools I found 7 in Maynard dry to almost no water. One location that has 5 together within 200 yards two of the pools I have never in 26 years seen dry till this year.  In Stow two Vp I checked one was 70 percent smaller and only 4 inches of water. The other had typical amount of water about the same as last year. This pool had spermataphores but both had no calling wood frogs or peepers. In Littleton one pool was mostly a puddle and another had a couple feet of water albeit 4 feet lower than last year.

From  Concord Area of New Hampshire: 

 March 12: 

Heard wood frogs chorus today for the first time this year in Jefferson 

(01522), at the pool across the road. Some at least must have crossed 

Thursday or early Friday, since fresh frog corpses on the road today. 

The pool is at least 12"lower than usual, and greatly contracted. Eggs 

next week?

From Central Massachusetts:

Montague and Amherst Ma. on March 11:

Light rain in the 50s this evening (3/11). Enormous wood frog numbers and two Jefferson-type salamanders crossing road in Montague, MA around 8:30pm, with peepers and wood frogs chorusing. Around 11, there were 6 more jeffs at that site, one spotted there and a couple spotteds elsewhere in Montague. In Amherst around 9, there was a slow but steady flow of male and female spotted salamanders to the Henry street site, a few peepers and wood frogs and lots more people.

From Western Massachusetts:

Whately, Franklin County on March 17:   

Arrived home from work about 9pm through hard rain, and found lots of Spotted Salamanders, Wood Frogs, and peepers on the roads--many more than were evident during 3/10 rains last week.  Lots of calling peepers and Wood Frogs in the pools, too, though that has been the case all this past week.  We headed over to our Williamsburg site and found one Jefferson salamander in the pool, along with one Painted Turtle suspended in the water column--our first reptile of the year--and many, many Fairy Shrimp, leeches, and Red-spotted Newts.  Every Spotted Salamander we picked up, whether at the house, in Williamsburg, or in between, was a male.

I"ve noticed some themes in the entries above:  

1.  Most folks seeing early migration of amphibians to vernal pools.

2. Many folks noticing lower than normal water levels in pools.

When have you and your students found evidence of amphibian migration near you this season??? 

To see a brief video produced this Month in Smithfield, RI. as part of a series by Jonathan Twining called, Vernal Pool Chronicles , go to YouTube page (youtube.com/vernalpoolchronicles).  

Jonathan suggests, If you are looking for tools to capture good underwater video of amphibians in vernal pools, I highly recommend using GoPro cameras with LumeCube lighting (lumecube.com).  The Lume Cubes are waterproof and can be used for both video lights and flashes for photography.  They work very well.

In case you want to get MANY more updates on vernal pools throughout the region you can sign up for this free listserv described below, or look for the Vernal Pool Association's website and Facebook page.  

The Vernal Pool Listserv provides a forum to discuss topics relating to vernal pools and vernal pool ecology. This group is unmoderated, but is monitored by Vernal Pool Association (www.vernalpool.org). Discussion is encouraged about scientific research, on-going vernal pool education projects at the elementary through graduate school levels, and about the first spotted salamander sightings of spring, among other things.

http://www.vernalpool.org/listserv.html

What does your Spring look like????

Please send us photos of your field site before and/or after the predicted cold spell to help us tell how this story plays out!