What's Up at the Rim?
OBJECTIVE | TIME & LOCATION | PREPARATION | PROCEDURE | EVALUATION | MATERIALS
"What's Up at the Rim" is a lesson plan created by 2000 HOST Teacher Deanna Smith-Turnage.
 | To sharpen observation skills |
| Learn to identify certain plants and animals |
| To hone their abilities to find different elements in nature |
| To keep an observation journal |
This lesson is designed to provide students with an opportunity to get outside, take a closer look at nature, and discover the world around them.
LOCATION: Motte Rimrock Reserve
TIME REQUIRED: Approximately 3 to 4 hours
TEACHER PREPARATION:
Before the project, spend some class time talking about different natural areas. What are the characteristics of a coastal sage area? A riparian area? A grasslands area?
- Class is divided into small groups of two or three students.
- Each student receives a scavenger list.
- Describe for the students the physical outdoor boundaries of this activity.
- Students are to find as many of the listed items as possible.
- Each student in the group must see the item before it counts.
- For each of the following items listed, write down what it was, record where it was found, and draw a picture of it. ITEMS MAY ONLY BE COLLECTED AND/OR MOVED IF PERMISSION IS GRANTED BY THE RESERVE MANAGER.
Scavenger List
| leaves with hairy surfaces |
| leaves with waxy surfaces |
| leaves that smell |
| evidence of leaf texture differences on the same plant (why the difference) |
| Describe/or draw invertebrate sightings (e.g. butterflies) |
| Describe/or drawing reptile sightings (e.g. snakes, lizards) |
| Describe bird sightings (e.g. ravens, hawks, turkey vultures) |
| Describe mammal sightings (cottontail bunny, jackrabbit, squirrel, mouse). |
| Draw footprints from a wild animal |
| Animal burrow = find a blue hectare post (write post number), count 5 paces, then walk in a circular pattern counting all burrows) |
| Count sightings of bird nest |
| Find an ant colony and count trails leading to it. |
| Find evidence of a sun adapted leaf |
| Find evidence of a shade adapted leaf |
| Draw a plant with thorns |
| Describe three sounds |
| Describe three smells (compare these to something familiar) |
| Find animal droppings - coyote, rabbit, krat (black rice) |
| Find a leaf with evidence of insect bites |
| Make a large scale drawing of an area, include boulders and plant location |
| Find the following examples of coastal sage scrub: a. find Brittlebush (Encelia farinosa) b. find California buckwheat (Eriogorium fasciculatum) c. find Black Sage (Salvia mellifera) d. find White Sage (Savia apiana) e. find California Sagebrush (Artemisia californica) |
| Sketch a coastal sage area |
| Find a slender sunflower (Helianthus gracilentus) |
| Find examples of trees growing by underground streams a. find a willow (Salix laevigata) b. find an elderberry (Sambucus mexicana) |
| Sketch a riparian area |
| Find an example of tree tobacco (Nicotiana glauca) |
| Find examples of grasses a. Find Rancher's Fireweed (Amsinckia menziesii) b. Find Avena barbata (Slender Wild Oat) c. Find Giant Wild Rye (Leymus condensatus) |
| Sketch a grassland area |
| Find an draw green lichen. Describe its location |
| Describe three interactions |
- Students will present their sketches and drawings.
- Students will note their observations in their journal.
TEACHER MATERIALS:
| pen or pencil |
| magnifying glass |
| journal or notepad |
| 1-large plastic bag |
| Binoculars (optional) |
| 3-small plastic bags |