Posted by Donald MacIver (146.243.230.240) on March 27, 2000 at 11:16:26:
In Reply to: Local Schools and Biodiversity Days posted by Donald MacIver on March 27, 2000 at 11:12:22:
Massachusetts Biodiversity Days, June 9-11, 2000
<< School Organizer Information Document >>
Dear Potential School Organizer,
Bob Durand, Secretary of Environmental Affairs (EOEA), with the assistance of a number of
nature oriented non-profit and education organizations, is sponsoring the nations first
Citizen's Biodiversity Days, June 9-11, 2000.
We are hoping to involve 2000 plus school children and 2000 plus adult citizens in focusing
on finding, recording and learning about the component species of flora and fauna in our
hometowns.
At this time we are seeking an individual in each school who will volunteer to serve as
School Organizer. This person may be an administrator or teacher already involved in
implementing environmental programs in classrooms, or someone who has an interest in some
facet of nature and would like to take the lead for a school.
We are challenging each class to see or hear at least 100 species, each town to
cooperatively find at least 200 species. It is very realistic for schools and towns to
locate over 500 species during this weekend. We ask that you compile the data for your
school, and give it to your Town Organizer, who will establish a Local Species and Habitat
Registry with your local conservation commission.
The Town Organizer will be the main contact person for teachers, students and parents who
wish to participate in this three-day event. Each School Organizer can lead students and
their families, if interested in a walk on school grounds, or assist others in doing so.
These walks can take place on Friday or on Saturday, or Sunday. School Organizers' contact
information will be listed on our upcoming Biodiversity website, and in town and regional
newspaper articles before the event.
The Executive Office of Environmental Affairs will provide a couple of tools to assist
school organizers: (1) A guidebook on how to conduct an inventory of species and habitats,
called A Citizen's Guide to Protecting Biodiversity and Ecosystems, (2) a checklist of
visible (one mm in size- the size of a period or greater) flora and fauna of Massachusetts
and nearshore coastal waters. Both the guidebook and checklist will be available in paper
and electronic formats. A short-form checklist of the more easily identified organisms will
also be provided. This checklist can be photocopied for participants, and will be useful
for younger grades, and (3) we will also be holding Biodiversity Days training's in various
sites across the Southeast area in April. These training sessions are designed to answer
questions and assist town and school organizers with their plans and coordination of this
event.
This is a fantastic opportunity to get student's outdoors to discover the wonders of their
local environment. There is no better way for children to learn than through experiential
learning. It is something that will stay with them for a lifetime, and will reconnect them
with the natural world. The exploration will help them discover biodiversity, participate
in the study of natural ecosystems, and examine human influence on nature. They will be able
to construct a food web from their observations of the different ecosystems, observe how
dead plants and animals are broken down by other living organisms, and study basic
classification of animals and plants. All of the above correlates directly to the Science
and Technology/Engineering Curriculum Frameworks. In addition to Science, this experience
will fit into Art, Social Studies, Literature, English and other subjects. You can fit
nature into any discipline.
I hope you will join us in this exciting endeavor. It is a wonderful opportunity for all to
learn and have fun!
If you are interested in participating in Biodiversity Days as a School Organizer, please
complete the information sheet on the next page and send to Melissa Griffiths. She will
send you a starter packet.
Thank You! ...and
Please send to:
Melissa Griffiths
Director of Environmental Education
Executive Office of Environmental Affairs
100 Cambridge Street, 20th Floor
Boston, MA 02202
Phone: 617-626-1114
Fax: 617-626-1181
Email: melissa.griffiths@state.ma.us
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Name(s):________________________________________________________________
School:_________________________________________________________________
Street:__________________________________________________________________
Town:__________________________________________________________________
Telephone:_______________________________________________________________
Email:__________________________________________________________________