Philly Nature Kids shows STEM results
Though these programs are on hold this spring, we want to share this story that takes a look back at students’ experiences last academic year.
Ask fourth grade students at southwest Philadelphia’s John M. Patterson Elementary and Penrose schools, “Have you ever been to a national wildlife refuge?” and you’ll get an enthusiastic “yes!” from all 150 students who have participated in the Philly Nature Kids program — an environmental education partnership led by the John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge that provides classroom lessons and on-site programs.
Environmental Education Supervisor Brianna Amingwa and Environmental Education Specialist Kelly Kemmerle ensure that every activity in the yearlong program meets Penssylvania’s state education standards, with topics varying from habitats to the water cycle, to adaptations and soils. In addition, each participating class receives $400 for students to design and facilitate an environmental stewardship project. Classes have chosen projects like native plant giveaways, activity booklets to educate other students about nature, marsh clean ups, and community litter clean ups.
Since 2014, staff have continuously evaluated the program and its progress. Results from survey responses by the students show a 56-percent increase in their ability to describe a national wildlife refuge at the end of the school year. The program also prompted more students — 15-percent — to visit the refuge with family and friends independent of the Philly Nature Kids program, and an 11-percent increase in students making positive word associations related to being in the woods.
For fourth grade teacher Douglas Gardner, the positive effects of the Philly Nature Kids program are clear. “The students have an excitement for science and are thinking more deeply about their learning. There’s an increased comfort level with science proficiency testing, proven by the increase in scores,” he says. The Pennsylvania System of School Assessment scores evaluate students working knowledge of science concepts.
Nine-percent of Penrose Elementary’s fourth grade class moved from the lowest proficiency to the upper three tiers in last year’s testing. Gardner believes the hands-on outdoor learning through Philly Nature Kids has contributed to their knowledge of science concepts.
“This is the type of response we are shooting for in our Philly Nature Kids program,” states Refuge Manager Lamar Gore. “Environmental education programs are expensive, but they are also the single best long term investment that we can make in planning for the future. This conservation tool prepares future minds for knowing their world, and making more informed conservation minded decisions in their future careers, whether they be developers or conservationists”.
To empower teachers to lead environmental lessons independently in their classrooms and outdoors, Kelly and Brianna also host an annual, full day “Outside is IN!” teacher workshop. The 16 teachers who participate receive a ranger-led classroom lesson at their school and bus funding for a field trip to the refuge, where they co-teach with refuge staff throughout the day. At the conclusion of the workshop, teachers choose two sets of resources to take back to their classroom, such as owl pellets, hand lenses, bug boxes, thermometers, wind gauges, or nature journaling kits.
During the workshop, Kelly, Brianna, and participating teachers break down both perceived and real challenges about teaching students outdoors in a city, discuss how to incorporate the Compass to Nature into ongoing school curriculum, and review classroom management techniques and best practices for teaching outdoors.
Teachers are able to work through four example lesson plans designed for urban schools based on Pennsylvania’s Academic Standards for Science and Technology led by Amingwa and Kemmerle. Lessons include flower dissection, bird investigation, a creative writing activity “sense of wonder,” and a schoolyard habitat survey “what lives in my lot?” designed for city school yards. The workshop has been running for three years now, and 48 teachers have completed the workshop to date.
“Many of our teachers come back year after year with their students!” Kemmerle excitedly explains — a true testament to the success of the program.
To keep kids engaged in the summer months when school is out, students in the Philly Nature Kids program are all invited to a free, transportation-provided summer camp in June. The 20–30 participating youth get to explore a variety of wildlife-dependent recreational activities during the week-long camp, including kayaking, fishing, archery, arts and crafts, orienteering, hikes, and nature photography.
Fourth grader Zarah sums up the urban refuge experience best, saying, “I think being a Philly Nature Kid is a really awesome opportunity…I feel like everybody that gets to be a Philly Nature Kid is really special, because not everybody gets that chance, and we are really lucky to get that chance.”
To learn more about the Urban Wildlife Conservation Program, visit https://www.fws.gov/urban/
