Schoolyard Discovery

Need help exploring your schoolyard while still connecting to your curriculum? The Leslie Science & Nature Center's Schoolyard Discovery has activities and equipment designed to help you and your students enjoy the outdoors and stay focused on science. Teachers choose a topic; LSNC will create a program that will get your students exploring and lead the activities. Programs will begin in the classroom and will need an outdoor space for exploration, even a patch of grass will suffice. Teachers receive a two week rental of LSNC’s Discovery Backpack filled with guidebooks, activities and lessons, and scientific tools for continued exploration.

What you need to know:

• Duration: 1.5 hours
• Group size: up to 30 students
• Cost: Based upon the distance from Ann Arbor and number of programs. Please note: To receive the discounted pricing for multiple programs, all programs must be completed on the same day.
  

  	1 PROGRAM	2 PROGRAMS
  Within 20 miles from LSNC	$180	$280
  21-30 miles	$200	$300
  31-40 miles	$220	$320

Plan your Schoolyard Discovery program.

To sign up, call (734) 997-1553 8:30am - 4 pm or fill out this form. Please have the following information: teacher name, school name, address, and contact phone number, program choices, ideal dates/times and class size.

Programs

Habitats: As a class, students will draw and identify the key elements and important resources of a chosen animal’s habitat. Students will also have the opportunity to either build a diorama or draw a habitat of their own. Students will play outdoor games to enhance their understanding of carrying capacity and resource identification. Students will also explore migration, habitat loss and the complicated relationship between predators and their prey while playing our educational games. 

Life Cycles: Students will discuss the life cycle of either a meal worm or silk worm and then learn to correctly order the life cycle of an animal. The class will play games (inside and outside) to practice and act out life cycles of both plants and animals. The class will take a nature hike to search for young animals and adults and discuss how each needs different environments to complete their life cycles.

Amazing Adaptations: Students will discuss what adaptations are and how they help an animal survive in a specific environment. Students will identify adaptations on two different live animals and discuss how each animal is adapted to its lifestyle and habitat. Students will play games where they act out animals and their adaptations; Magic Spots, Camouflage, Insect Mix-Up and Musk Ox Maneuvers are some of the favorites! 

Plants, Roots and Shoots: Students will use video microscopes to investigate celery slivers or the stems of colored carnations. They will also practice plant identification, identify plant parts, and explore plant life cycles. The students will participate in active games that demonstrate plant growth and plant anatomy such as Build-A-Tree and Maple Seed Mix-Up. 

Soil Adventures: Students will start off with “Soil Made My Lunch,” an introduction to soil and its uses. Students will then explore different types of soil, discuss how soil is made and destroyed, and identify what types of animals live in the soil. Students will then venture outside to take a soil sample and determine what type of soil can be found in their schoolyard. Students will also play games that demonstrate the importance of healthy soil, such as “What Goes into Compost” and “Soil Maker.”

Birds: Through a live bird presentation or bird specimens, students will discuss the parts of a bird and how each part differs among species. The class will go outside with binoculars to look for birds and signs of birds. The class will also experience the life of a bird through games such as Migration Headache and Nest Building.

Water Everywhere: Dive into a comprehensive water study! Students will discover how much water is really available for us to use on earth. The class will perform hands-on experiments to learn about the properties of water. Students will also explore the water cycle and the factors that might affect our drinking water. Outside, the students will experience water from a plant's point of view, and travel through the water cycle as a water molecule.