4th, 5th and 6th Grade Lesson(s):
- Here’s some great resources for some lessons and activities to use in conjunction with your trip to the nearby wetlands: http://digitallibrary.utah.gov/awweb/awarchive?type=file&item=40709
- This one is for the Salt Lake Conservancy, but it is awesome as well! Check it out here: https://www.nature.org/en-us/about-us/where-we-work/united-states/utah/wings-and-water/
- I highly recommend the following from the Utah’s Wonderful Wetlands document (just a few suggestions; there are lots more, so take a look!):
- Pre-Field Trip Activities:
- Mystery Topic (p. 20): Gives students a chance to learn about their upcoming trip!
- Wetlands: Wetting YourImagination (pp 21-22): This activity allows students to describe their impressions of wetlands before learning more about them.
- Wetlands: Worth a Thousand Words (pp 26-27): Students can list words related to wetlands and then create poetry / stories based on initial knowledge of wetlands.
- Do You Dig Wetland Soil? (Pre- and field site activity) (pp 37-40): For this activity, students will make a wetland soils color chart using Crayola crayons, then during the field study they will dig a hole to examine the characteristics of wetland soil.
- What’s this Plant? (pp 41-45): Students will use guides to identify wetland plants
- Field Trip Activities:
- Sensing a Wetland: There’s Nothing Like the Real Thing (pp 74-75): This is a very Waldorfian experiential assignment, which asks the students to use their senses to explore the wetland.
- What Went on at the Wetland? (pp 76-81): This, and the following activity (I see a Bird! pp 82-84) ask students to look for animals and birds (or their remnants, such as tracks, scat, etc.) and report on what they discovered!
- Flatten Your Plant! (pp 89-91): This activity requires the students to collect plant leaves and identify them later.
- Treasure Hunt! (pp 92-93): Look for a variety of items at the wetlands! The bingo board (found on actual page 173 of the PDF will help)
- Post Field Trip Activities:
- Wetland Guide (pp 97-98): An activity to create a guide for a local wetland area (i.e. directions to the wetland, what type of wetland it is, living species found there, map of the area, etc.)
- The Choice is Yours (pp 99-103): This activity requires students to use their own values to make decisions about their actions related to the environment.