Taking Your Students Outside

Now is the Time to Take Your Students Outside

As a former teacher, I know how busy this time of year is for you. Amidst all of the tests here in April, try to carve some time to take your students outside. You don’t need a big lesson planned. Just have them simply sit with their journal and observe.

By facilitating these opportunities, you instill the importance of truly observing their surroundings. You never know what you may see… as I took a short break from working on this blog to stare out my window, I saw a speck of orange flutter by my window. Was it a monarch? I quickly walked outside and into Monarch Waystation #1. Sure enough a female monarch was searching for milkweed on which to lay her eggs. I excitedly watched her search for a few minutes until she flew out of sight.

If I had not been taking a minute away from the computer screen simply stare into the outside world, I may have missed seeing the first monarch of the 2017 migration here at the Monarch Watch office. We all miss so much when we are plugged into technology, inside, too busy, multi-tasking, or simply not truly mindful of what our eyes may witness.

Taking your students outside to simply observe nature can truly bring about an awareness that a book, classroom activity, nor internet image can ever provide. It may take some guidance and practice, but providing your students with repeated opportunities to simply sit and observe nature, can truly open their eyes to a new way of seeing their world.

Late Winter/Early Spring Tasks for your School Pollinator Garden

Are you and your students anxious to turn out your classroom lights, shut the door and head outside to your garden?

Learn about a few key tasks before dashing outside, so that your excitement leads to positive-not detrimental- garden outcomes!

Depending on your location, you may or may not have begun working in your gardens yet. I have received lots of questions about the first garden tasks of the spring. Below is a general list of common tasks completed in late winter/early spring. Since the Monarch Waystation Network supports educators all over the country, the timing of the tasks varies depending on your location, and depending on the given year’s weather patterns. This list was compiled from numerous resources. If you have other tips or tasks that you feel should be added to this list, please email me. I would love to make this a more substantial list, with your input. One last note, is the tasks here are listed in no particular order.

  • Repair structures, such as raised beds, fences, paths, water sources, native bee houses, retaining walls, seating areas, trellises, etc.
  • Clear drainage ditches so spring rains have adequate runoff (consider planting a “rain garden” in the future…more details soon).
  • Sharpen and oil your garden tools.
  • If your soil is too wet or still frozen, wait until it dries out some before walking around on it. This will prevent the soil from becoming compact, which can result in poor drainage and aeriation for the rest of season.
  • Have your soil’s ph level tested. Milkweeds and most native plants prefer soils as close to neutral as possible. Most local cooperative extension offices provide soil tests for free or a nominal fee.
  • Prune back dead stalks, stems, bushes, grasses, etc. to remove biomass and allow space for new growth.
  • Be easy with digging and scraping in the soil. Roots begin growing long before new shoots emerge, so you don’t want to damage the roots.
  • Once shoots emerge, add compost around the shoots.
  • If you choose to add fertilizer, now is the time. Most perennials only need to be fertilized in early spring, and no other time of the year. Choose an organic, slow-release fertilizer that is either balanced (10-10-10) or one with a higher Phosphorous level for root growth (5-10-5). If you can't find a good, organic fertilizer with a higher ratio of Phosphorous, you can add a little bone meal or rock phosphate. 
  • If you want to divide plants before fertilizing, do so once shoots emerge, but are less than 4 inches high.

 

 

Phenology and the “Start of Spring”

Coming Soon...Spring!?

Here it is mid-February, and my office window has been open this whole week. These unseasonably warm days do not seem "normal" to me. However, since I have not been documenting these "first signs of spring" as part of the National Phenology Network's incredible phenology tracking project, I cannot use data to back up my claim that spring is arriving early!

In actuality, I would not document and report when I first open my office window each year. However, most of us do make general observations regarding spring's arrival- when the first crocus blooms, the first monarch sighting, when we first hear bullfrogs, when apple trees or lilacs bloom, or even when allergy season starts. So, why not take a few minutes to report what you and your students observe in your garden each spring, and contribute to an extremely important scientific database? If you need more of a focus, USA-NPN has a specific campaign- Nectar Connectors- to obtain data on pollinator plants. Knowing when and where nectar sources are available for monarchs and other important pollinators across the country is vital in driving conservation-related policy.

The USA National Phenology Network serves science and society by promoting broad understanding of plant and animal phenology and its relationship with environmental change.Nature's Notebook is the USA-PNP project to connect people with nature to benefit our changing planet. Teachers, students, researchers, and volunteers collect and report standardized ground observations of phenology. To participate in this important scientific research, click on the link above. Setting up an account is super easy, as is reporting your data. There's even an app for quick reporting while in the field! And don't forget to share your experiences in our forum, the backbone of this Monarch Waystation Network!

Looking Back at 2016 and Ahead to 2017

Monarch Waystation Network: Looking Back at 2016 and Ahead to 2017

Since I began working as the Education Coordinator for Monarch Watch in April, I have had the pleasure of working with, getting to know, and supporting many incredible educators, students and community members! The past nine months have been filled with exciting moments, learning moments and inspirational moments. I want to personally thank each and every one of you who has been a part of this journey. I am honored to support you along the way. Below is a summary of this time, along with some image and quote collages. We have accomplished a lot in a short amount of time, and I am looking forward to accomplishing even more in 2017! Remember, I am here to support you and your students. What this looks like is an evolving process, so let’s all be creative and reach even more students this year!

I know you are busy, so below are just some of the many highlights from 2016 to ponder as we head into a new year together!

Development:

-Needs assessment sent to 315 educators asking for your input in developing the MWN

-64% response rate showed overwhelming need for support, and provided areas to emphasize

-Based on your neeeds, the MWN was officially launched in August, and consists of four primary components: a website, a forum, a newsletter, and email correspondence

-Since beginning the Free Milkweed for Schools and Nonprofits program in 2014, Monarch Watch has delivered a free flat of 32 milkweed plants to 560 different recipients. Of these recipients, 303 were schools and 257 were nonprofits. In addition to these 303 schools, I also reached out to the schools that already had certified Monarch Waystation gardens before our free milkweeds program began in 2014. In all, there are currently around 1,500 documented schools receiving support through the Monarch Waystation Network!

Website:

-forum

-curricula

-student challenge questions

-garden-related resources

-insect-related resources

-blog

- images you have submitted to me grace the website’s pages and evoke a personal connection to this project

-and much more

Forum:

The forum truly creates the foundation of this project, and sets it apart from other monarch-focused education programs. The forum is a place for schools, educators and students to connect, share ideas or lessons, ask questions, post pictures and gain inspiration. There are currently 164 teachers and students registered on the forum. The forum has the potential to be a very special and unique form of support for you, so I hope 2017 brings more activity and engagement. Please let me know how I can improve this to make you want to participate more.

Newsletter:

-Currently, the mailing list consists of 1,454 recipients

-The goals of the newsletter are to provide quick tips, small bits of information, highlight inspirational stories, and basically to regularly remind you that I am here to support you and your students with this project.

Email Support:

-Correspondence with anywhere between 5-25 educators and/or students per week

Additional Outreach:

-Article for the Green Schools National Network Newsletter, to be published this month

-Poster presentation at the National Association of Biology Teachers Conference.

-Partnership with a local high school, providing consultation support for their project of restoring an old football field into a native prairie

-Numerous individualized projects developed by educators, students and community members all over North America

Ideas/Goals for 2017:

- “Featured Waystation”

-contests

-“Ask a Biologist”

-webinars

-Skype

-increased social media presence

-Solicit more feedback and suggestions from you, because the more ownership you have of the Monarch Waystation Network, the more successful and sustainable it will be.

-In December, Monarch Watch was awarded funding to extend the Free Milkweed for Schools and Nonprofits program another year, which will add an additional 160 schools to the MWN!

 

Monarch Waystation Network Links:

Website: www.monarchwatch.org/waystationnetwork

Forum: www.monarchwatch.org/waystationnetwork/forum

Newsletters: www.monarchwatch.org/waystationnetwork/outreach/newsletters

Email: matt.tucker@ku.edu

 

Appendices:

Enjoy a few collages, tiny examples of the impact monarchs and pollinators are having on students everywhere! Join the fun in 2017:)

Elementary Pictures

Middle/High School Pictures

Educator Quotes

Student Quotes

 

 

 

Introducing our “Student Challenges”

INTRODUCING OUR "STUDENT CHALLENGES"

Not sure how to get started incorporating your Waystation Gardens into your curriculum? Our "Student Challenges" will be a great place for ideas! This forum category will be updated on a regular basis, providing questions to spark discussion and lesson ideas. You can also locate these challenges on the Challenge Questions page or in our newsletters. The challenges may be modified and expanded for all grade levels, so put on your 'creative teacher hats' to mold it to your students' needs:)