Classroom Outreach

The Secret Life of Seeds | 1st – 2nd Grade

 

AZ Science Standards: 1.L1U1.6 1.L2U1.8 2.L2U1.9 2.L2U1.10

Learn how plants grow and what plants need to survive. This S.T.E.A.M. workshop will have students using their creativity and plant knowledge to germinate seeds before playing a game.

Activities Breakdown:

• Activity 1: The Parts of a Plant
  • Students will learn about plant structures before studying live plants to apply their new knowledge.

• Activity 2: What Do Plants Need to Grow?
  • Students will conduct a scientific investigation and grow their own seeds in order to discover what plants need to grow before playing a game of Plant Needs Jenga!

Time Needed: 1 hour

Max. Number of Students: 32 per class

Cost: $150 per class, FREE for schools within the Copper Corridor

Amazing Adaptations of the Sonoran Desert | 3rd – 4th Grade

 

AZ Science Standards: 3.L1U1.5, 3.L2U1.8, 4.L4U1.11, 4.E1U3.9

Students will act as junior biologists as they discover how different species are adapted to survive in the Sonoran Desert by studying real native plants and animal biofacts.

Activities Breakdown:

• Activity 1: Desert Plant Adaptations
  • Students will study live plants and determine how well they are adapted to the Sonoran Desert before designing their own desert plant.

• Activity 2: Desert Animal Adaptations
  • Students will study animal biofacts and learn about different species in order to determine how well they are adapted to the Sonoran Desert. They will then put their knowledge to the test with a game of Adaptations Bingo!

Time Needed: 1 hour

Max. Number of Students: 32 per class

Cost: $150 per class, FREE for schools within the Copper Corridor

Make a Pollinator Paradise | 1st – 3rd Grade

 *Only available to Copper Corridor Schools

AZ Science Standards: 1.L2U2.7, 1.L2U1.8, 2.L2U1.9, 2.L2U1.10, 3.L1U1.5, 3.L2U1.8

In this S.T.E.A.M. lesson, students will let out their inner gardeners by designing and creating their dream school garden! This hands-on workshop will get classrooms started with an above-ground planter that can be used later on for classroom investigations. Classes will also receive supplies for a follow up activity once their garden has had some time to grow.

Activities Breakdown:

• Activity 1: How are Plants Pollinated?
  • Students will create their own fuzzy bee to model pollination before playing a pollinator/ plant matching game.

• Activity 2: Let’s Get Planting!
  • Students will help to design their garden before filling the planter with soil, putting in seeds, planting plants, and putting in different habitat elements for pollinators.

• Activity 3 (Post-activity): Who is Visiting Our Garden?
  • Students will keep track of the pollinator species that they see visiting their garden.

Time Needed: 1.5 – 2 hours

Max. Number of Students: 32 per class

Cost: FREE for schools within the Copper Corridor

Make a Pollinator Paradise | 4th – 6th Grade

  *Only available to Copper Corridor Schools

AZ Science Standards: 4.L4U1.11, 4.E1U3.9, 5.L4U3.11, 6.L2U1.13, 6.L2U1.14

In this S.T.E.A.M. lesson, students will let out their inner gardeners by designing and creating their dream school garden! This hands-on workshop will get classrooms started with an above-ground planter that can be used later on for classroom investigations. Classes will also receive supplies for a follow up activity once their garden has had some time to grow.

Activities Breakdown:

• Activity 1: How are Plants Pollinated?
  • Students will play a pollinator/ plant matching game before creating their own flower craft complete with adaptions for one of the Arizona pollinator species.

• Activity 2: Let’s Get Planting!
  • Students will help to design their garden before filling the planter with soil, putting in seeds, planting plants, and putting in different habitat elements for pollinators.

• Activity 3 (Post-activity): Who is Visiting Our Garden?
  • Students will keep track of the pollinator species that they see visiting their garden.

Time Needed: 1.5 – 2 hours

Max. Number of Students: 32 per class

Cost: FREE for schools within the Copper Corridor

Humans and Habitats | 5th – 6th Grade

AZ Science Standards: 5.P2U1.3, 5.L4U3.11, 6.L2U3.11, 6.L2U1.13, 6.L2U1.14

This S.T.E.A.M. lesson will have students exploring the interconnectedness of ecosystems before examining how human activities might impact those systems and the species within them.

Activities Breakdown:

• Activity 1: Ecosystem Connections
  • Students will explore how the abiotic and biotic factors of an ecosystem are connected.

• Activity 2: Human Impacts
  • Students will study various threatened Sonoran Desert species to determine why they are threatened and how we might protect them. They will then play a game of Habitat Battleship to discover how human activities might impact other species’ chances of survival.

Time Needed: 1 hour

Max. Number of Students: 32 per class

Cost: $150 per class, FREE for schools within the Copper Corridor