2016 Student Research Symposium - Description of Focus Group Activities

Transcription

1 2016 Student Research Symposium - Description of Focus Group Activities A menu of focus group activities is presented below. The nature of the activity dictates the maximum number and age of participants. We have assigned each school "tickets" to a variety of activities (but not all), hopefully providing enough variety to give students options that interest them. Teachers should determine who will go to which activity in advance of the symposium using whatever method you want. Provide the students with the enclosed tickets at a time when they will not lose them - the morning of symposium perhaps. Students need the ticket to get into the activity. Our goal is to mix students from different schools and grade levels within each activity. It is our hope that after the symposium, students can share and compare with each other what they learned as participants in the different activities. Amphibians In Decline: We will discuss environmental impacts that affect amphibian populations. Explore habitat preservation and construction and the benefits to amphibian populations. We will attempt to collect some species and discuss their role in the environment as integral parts of the food chain, bio-indicators, and scientific resources. Location: OUTSIDE, please dress for the weather Facilitator: Allegheny County Park Rangers Aquaponics for a Hungry World: Learn about how aquaponics can address water quality and food issues in a growing world. + Facilitator: Seed Aquaponics Activity Capacity: 12 Chemistry for Good: You ve been in the Creek Connections program all year long. Have you considered a career that uses chemistry? How do you use your love for the environment to do great things in chemistry? Location: Rec Hall near screen and projector Facilitator: PPG Activity Capacity: 12

2 Communications and Technology: In this workshop students will use go-pro and brinno and panorama cameras to document the environment at Camp Kon-O-Kwee and then use digital platforms to annotate and share the images for communication with broader audiences. + (please send your most advanced students) Location: Dining Hall & OUTSIDE, please dress for the weather Facilitator: Carnegie Museum of Natural History Fire!: Prescribed Burns for Ecological Benefit Students will participate in a simulated ecological study of plant cover and learn to use real wildland fire equipment, while discovering why and how fire can play a role in preserving and maintaining unique ecosystems, such as the prairie at Jennings EE Center. + (please send your most advanced students) Location: Rec Hall Porch OUTSIDE, please dress for the weather Facilitator: Jennings Environmental Education Center staff, PA State Parks Activity Capacity: 25 Go Fish!: Our streams and ponds are filled with some fascinating fish. In this activity you will have the opportunity to learn more about the types of fish found in our region, requirements for fish to be happy and healthy in our waterways, and some of the threats to our underwater friends. Grade Level: Any Location: Zivic Lake (OUTSIDE please dress for the weather!) Facilitators: Allegheny County Conservation District Habitat Investigation: students construct a hospitable habitat using natural materials. Then we will explore a habitat matching activity. Students will illustrate their personal habitat. Wear appropriate clothing for the outdoors! Facilitator: Pittsburgh Botanic Garden Activity Capacity: 10

3 Herpa-palooza: Get up close and personal with reptiles and amphibians. Learn how to differentiate a reptile from an amphibian. Discover how reptiles and amphibians are specifically adapted to the environment. Meet some native salamanders (and other species if we are lucky!). Explore and search the Camp Kon-O-Kwee habitat and identify any herps we find. Wear appropriate clothing for the outdoors! Location: Dining Hall Main Room near their display and OUTSIDE, please dress for the weather Facilitator: Seneca Valley Senior High School Students Incredible Journey: Where does water come from, and where does it go? The earth s water is constantly being used and reused through the water cycle in an endless movement of water around the planet s earth systems. Powered by the sun and the force of gravity, water as a liquid, gas or solid travels over, under, above and on the surface of the earth in an incredible journey called the water cycle! Facilitator: Butler County Conservation District Liking Lichens: Let s look for lichens! We ll talk about them, what they look like, why they're important, and how to find them. Wear appropriate clothing for the outdoors! Location: OUTSIDE, please dress for the weather Facilitator: GASP Oh Deer!: Think you know everything there is to know about white tail deer? Test your knowledge at this hands-on activity. Please dress for the weather and wear old shoes that you don't mind getting muddy. Location: Start at Dining Hall (OUTSIDE dress for the weather!) Facilitators: PA Game Commission Activity Capacity: 40

4 ph Explorations: Learning the ph scale can be tricky! See if you can guess where some liquids fall on the scale then conduct ph tests to determine the values. Finally, learn why all this is so important! Location: Rec Hall, inside but on side near porch Facilitator: ALCOSAN Staff Pond Life: Check out what s living in the vernal ponds at Camp Kon-O-Kwee! You never know what you ll find! Location: Zivic Lake (OUTSIDE - Dress for the weather) Facilitator: University of Pittsburgh Pymatuning Laboratory of Ecology Sustainable Communities: Together we will explore all the necessary components of a sustainable community and which indicators make it sustainable after all! After discovering how these indicators affect all stakeholders, we will work as engineers and architects to build our own sustainable communities using creative building materials. Location: CC Upstairs, Tile Facilitators: Chatham University Eden Hall Campus Test Your Skulls: Do you think you can identify area animals? What if you have only the skull to look at? Take a stab at identifying a collection of different critter skulls. You ll learn some techniques to discover the truth in the skulls. Location: Harbison Lodge Facilitators: Kaitlynn O Brien, former Creeker

5 Water Reporter Mobile App: Become familiar with a new app for reporting water quality data. This app is currently only for Saw Mill Run, but could be expanded for other waterways! Location: Dining Hall Facilitators: Economic Development South/Saw Mill Run Activity Capacity: 10 Watershed and Green Infrastructure Exploration: Land use affects waterways in so many ways! Learn about the things you and your community can do to lessen the impacts humans have on the watershed and water quality. Location: Conference Center Upstairs Carpeted room Facilitator: Nine Mile Run Activity Capacity: 8 Water Testing: Dive deeper into the water chemistry testing of stream water. Expand on the knowledge you learned in the Creek Connections program all year. Location: Conference Center Downstairs Facilitators: Beaver County Conservation District