Pre-Activity:
Our Nature Communities

Summary

This activity is optional. :)

Submit student contributions as soon as possible so that they might be highlighted in the live broadcast!

On Earth Day we will examine how youth in coral hotspots across the globe are stewards for biodiversity in their local communities. This activity gives your students the opportunity to practice connecting with their own local biodiversity. Their observations will help them to better understand, protect, and care for nature communities and be visible as part of a big picture record of North American biodiversity.

The activity has two parts. 

• Part A, to be completed by students, is an exploration with the senses, paper, and pencil.

• Part B is an optional extension to be completed by teachers, where you will compile your class data using the program iNaturalist rather than, or in addition to, submitting student work on the Padlet. By using iNaturalist, not only will you and your class contribute to a record of local biodiversity to inspire youth on Earth Day; you will also learn about an exciting tool for teaching science. If you plan to use iNaturalist, we recommend creating an account in advance of going outside to photograph or record organisms. 

Part A: Observe and document (students, 30–60 min)

Location: primarily, the school environment. Off-campus observation locations are welcomed for teachers who have the time.

1. Find a spot outdoors to sit and spend 5 minutes doing a quiet observation of the nature around you. What do you see and hear?

2. Next, explore the outdoor area for up to 15 minutes. You might zoom in on something(s) you noticed earlier or look closely at new discoveries. The goal is to find 2 living things to document.

• One life form you would like to understand better

• One life form you would like to protect or care for.

Any category – plants, mammals, birds, insects, fungi – is great, though we discourage pets.

3. Document your 2 living subjects with notes (e.g. location, interesting details, questions) and/or scientific sketches (labels are encouraged!). Then for each, describe why you want to understand, protect, and care for the subjects; and how you might go about doing so. EXAMPLES

4. Upload your work (e.g. notes, sketches, explanations, etc.) to this Padlet!

Part B: Compile observations in iNaturalist  (teachers, 60+ min)

This guide describes how to use iNaturalist to compile your class's observations in our Earth Day 2023 iNaturalist project.  If you plan to complete Part B, we recommend creating an account before heading outdoors with your students.

THE "SIGNING UP AND JOINING THE PROJECT" PART ONLY TAKES 2 MINUTES.