Au Sable Prairie Field Trip

Objectives

1. Familiarize students with Whidbey Island ecosystems.
2. Increase awareness of human alterations of local landscapes.
3. Increase student understanding of land use by aboriginal peoples.
4. Introduce students to native and introduced plant and animal species.
5. Introduce plant surveying methods.
6. Increase process skills of observation and description.

Procedure

1. Pre-field trip readings in prairies and land use history.
2. A short introductory meeting will be held in the Auditorium Barn.
   1. students and facilitators will be introduced.
   2. prairie etiquette reviewed.
   3. student deliverables reviewed.
   4. groups of four to six students formed.
3. A group accompanies a facilitator to a work site.
4. Groups (and facilitator?) rotate to next work site.
5. Groups meet in Auditorium Barn for wrap-up.
6. Post-field trip student critique.

Work Sites

1. Small transect circle - ID plants and % cover. Record in journal.
2. Large transect circle - ID plants and insects (journal).
3. Reflective writing (journal).
4. Landscape drawing (journal).
5. Auditorium Barn (wrap-up), create species list (journal).

Materials

1. Prairie information.
2. 'Journal'.
3. Hand lens.
4. Plant reference (on-the-spot herbarium?)
5. Bird references.