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Harvard Forest Symposium Abstract 2015

  • Title: Harvard Forest Schoolyard Ecology 2015
  • Primary Author: Pamela Snow (Harvard Forest)
  • Additional Authors: Emery Boose (Harvard Forest); Betsy Colburn (Harvard Forest); Edward Faison (Highstead, Inc.); Clarisse Hart (Harvard Forest); John O'Keefe (Harvard Forest); David Orwig (Harvard Forest)
  • Abstract:

    Harvard Forest Schoolyard Ecology; Education and Outreach to Students in Grades K-12




    Harvard Forest ecologists, data manager, and education staff support Elementary, Middle School and High School teachers and their students engaging in field investigations just outside of their schools. Teachers choose one of the following field projects to lead at their school based on how each project fits into their curriculum goals and the available natural landscape outside their school.

    Projects include:


    Our Changing Forests; how do Forests Grow and Change over Time?


    How do forests grow and change over time in response to different environments and land use? How will forest composition and growth respond to future natural and human-caused disturbances?


    Buds, Leaves and Global-Warming


    How long is the growing season in our schoolyard? How is the length of the growing season related to climate?


    The Woolly Bully; the Invasive Pest, the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid


    Will the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (HWA) destroy our hemlock trees forever? How will our forest change if the hemlock disappears?


    Water in the Landscape; Vernal Pools


    What seasonal changes take place in vernal pools? What do these changes tell us?


    Harvard Forest Schoolyard Ecology Team:


    Forest Ecologists include: David Orwig, John O’Keefe, Betsy Colburn, Edward Faison. Other HF staff support include Data Manager, Emery Boose and Education and Outreach staff, Pamela Snow and Clarisse Hart.Schoolyard Teachers and Students can be found on our online database under the heading "schools".


    How it works:


    Over 3,000 students in schools in Massachusetts and New Hampshire are contributing to our studies this year. Students collect data at their schoolyard field sites from September through May, and submit data on an online database twice a year. Project data are available for sharing with other participating schools, and the public. Students may compare the data from their local woodlands to those of other participating schools in different locations. Each summer, a new cohort of teachers is introduced to the program at the Harvard Forest Schoolyard Ecology Summer Institute for Teachers.


    See our webpages for more information: http://harvardforest.fas.harvard.edu/schoolyard-lter-program


  • Research Category: Biodiversity Studies
    Group Projects
    Invasive Plants, Pests & Pathogens
    Physiological Ecology, Population Dynamics, and Species Interactions

  • Figures:
  • Schoolyard 1.JPG
    Schoolyard slide 2.JPG
    Schoolyard Slide3.JPG
    Schoolyard 4.JPG
    Schoolyard 5.JPG
    Schoolyard Map-Buds-Leaves-15.jpg