Week Four: Learning How to Teach Locally

Hello all!

I was able to watch different teaching styles this week, as I shadowed both Forest Ranger Steven and Cassandra in the 6th grade Alpine Leadership Academy. They were going over different material, but it was interesting to observe the similarities and differences in their teaching styles. Most importantly, I watched them both focus on local places and issues around Flagstaff. I felt that the students could make connections to these places more easily because (1) students had visited them (2) the issues taught had real-life implications for these places--and therefore the students as well.

For example, in the past, students have taken field trips to Deadman's Wash in Wupatki National Monument. Deadman's Wash is a very interesting place; I've did conservation work there when I worked for Arizona Conservation Corps. We partnered with NAU to plant native species in the wash, and we also removed the Tamarisk that had taken over the area. 

Satellite View of Deadman's Wash
  The red outline is the area where
  Tamarisk has been removed. The kid's
calculated the number of native species here.

Number of Plants in Individual Squares

             

Alpine students had the opportunity to travel there and test the salinity levels in the soil there (tamarisk create very high salinity levels in the soil which makes life difficult for the native species). Ranger Steven had created a lesson asking students an important question: How do we know that our conservation efforts (planting native species) actually work? 

Well, to determine this, we need to figure out if the plants are actually surviving, and if so, is the number that do significant. Scientists could go into the field and count the plants, but this is both  tedious and expensive. Instead, they use a satellite photograph of the area and create a grid. Next, they count the number in each grid to take a random sample of the area. Then they take the average number of plants per each 100 square foot square and calculate the amount of plants in the large area.

Deadman's Wash (The green is Tamarisk)

The lesson was essentially a math lesson; however, I felt it was important because it showed the 6th graders real-world applications of their algebra skills. Students were also engaged because they had visited this place.

The San Francisco Peaks from Deadman's Wash

Cassandra worked with another class to prepare them for a field trip to Picture Canyon we will be taking later in March. Students learned the differences between pictographs and petroglyphs, and learned about the social issues surrounding Picture Canyon.

Picture Canyon used to be a literal dump. Trash, mattresses, and old vehicles littered the area, until a group of individuals decided to clean it all up. A crane was used to remove chunks of concrete and the vehicles. Finally in April of 2008, Picture Canyon was dedicated as a National Historic Site and became protected under Federal Law. If you ever want a cool place to hike, consider Picture Canyon. There are over 150 petroglyphs, pottery sherds, a few pit houses, and a small waterfall. 

This month, my outside advisor Cassandra will be traveling to her home in New Zealand. So, I will be developing my survey and classroom presentation over the next couple of weeks. I'm looking forward to actually delving into the centerpiece of my project.

Josh's AZCC Crew

Here's a picture of my AZCC crew in 2013. It was only a million degrees at Deadman's Wash in July.