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Harvard Forest Symposium Abstract 2019

  • Title: Harvard Forest Schoolyard Ecology
  • Primary Author: Pamela Snow (Harvard Forest)
  • Abstract:

    Harvard Forest Schoolyard Ecology; Education and Outreach to Students in Grades K-12
    Abstract:
    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.
    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: David Orwig, John O’Keefe, Audrey Barker Plotkin, Jonathan Thompson, Betsy Colburn, Edward Faison
    Data Manager: Emery Boose
    Education and Outreach: Pamela Snow, Clarisse Hart
    Schoolyard Teachers and Students: http://harvardforest2.fas.harvard.edu/asp/hf/php/admin/k12/k12_schools_list.php
    How it works: Over 3,500 students in schools in MA, NH, VT, CT and NY 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 See our Blog for updates on Schoolyard Ecology projects: http://hfnaturestudents.blogspot.com/

  • Research Category: Watershed Ecology
    Physiological Ecology, Population Dynamics, and Species Interactions
    Invasive Plants, Pests & Pathogens
    Historical and Retrospective Studies
    Group Projects
    Forest-Atmosphere Exchange
    Conservation and Management
    Biodiversity Studies