Our Survival Skills Project has flown by! It's been an exciting learning adventure! We have explored topics related to sustainability and global environmental change as well as wilderness survival skills. We have begun drafts of our survival guide pamphlets, which will be completed by the end of next week.
We have been so lucky to learn about all of the survival-related topics that have sparked our curiosity. This week, we had a fascinating tour in and around the TVCS campus with botanical expert and TSS board member Jean Jorgensen. We learned about several common and delicious edible plants, including the ubiquitous dandelion! We have been so enthralled with the primitive and wilderness survival skills we have learned this spring. I won't give anything away, but our Extravaganza skit centers on essential wilderness skills. We are excited to share what we have learned in such a fun way!
To gear up for more in-depth research, we conducted an “e-treasure hunt” to practice finding reliable sources on the web and documenting those sources with a simple citation. In small groups, students explored the impact of major rivers and waterways on three powerful civilizations in ancient history to finish the treasure hunt.
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We continued to explore energy resources as well water resources. We were lucky to be invited to the Klausmann’s marsh to try our hand at fly-fishing. We also learned about our local watershed, particularly groundwater resources, with the help of Anna Dwinnell with Friends of the Teton River. Although we didn’t catch any fish, the wind, clouds, and chilly spring weather taught us all the importance of layers in “surviving” our local environment.
We also played creatively with a small solar panel, motor and wires to build fans and to spool yarn. It was great to see how the students pushed the limits of what they could achieve with the panels by maximizing solar radiation and minimizing drag on the motor.
We are charting the insights we gain from various investigations and research, summarizing our learning and applying what we learned to our survival guides. Next week, we jump fully into researching and writing our survival guides. Stay tuned!
In science class, we linked a hands-on physics investigation to our new project. We experimented with creating electrical circuits with saltwater. We learned that this has real-world applications in the desalination of saltwater. Desalination is just one way that humans are coping with the impacts of climate change: "survival skills" in the modern world!
We also read and discussed a newspaper article, detailing a nine-year old boy's survival in the woods of Alaska several years ago. It was a great starting point for a discussion about wilderness survival skills and the importance of creativity and problem-solving when dealing with real-world challenges. We also discussed how weather and local environment play a central role in wilderness survival.
This week, we narrowed the focus of our project in important ways. Within the larger theme of "Survival Skills", we have decided to create survival guides in small groups that address surviving and thriving in the context of three environmental challenges:
We are identifying guiding questions that will orient us through the rest of the spring. We will use local and regional experts, field trips, research and group discussions to help us understand what survival means in these various scenarios. This week, we explored various skills and strategies linked to our reliance of ENERGY and how we might use innovation and creativity to survive our challenges. I challenged the Toros to melt butter using only materials we had in the yurt. Luckily, we had a sunny day to help us out as we used black paper, aluminum foil, mirrors and plastic wrap to create unique "solar ovens". Our hard work paid off and we had butter for our popcorn as we enjoy segments of "Chemistry Countdown". We also explored new technologies that allow us to overcome dependance on fossil fuels for energy. We visited Snowdrift Farm to learn how sun and wind power daily energy needs on the farm. We also learned the tradeoffs involved in using these "green" technologies and the importance of community collaboration for the highest environmental payoff.
We began the week by reflecting on our experience with the amazing Molecular Gastronomy project. We filmed up until the last day of school before break, so it was great to take a deep breath and discuss the experience. We all learned a lot about the chemistry of cooking as well as the importance of time management, personal organization, and self-confidence! We also jumped into brainstorming a new project based on our interests and what we can contribute to others. Our new project will center on "Survival Skills". We are inspired to explore wilderness survival skills while also understanding global environmental change to think in terms of "21st Century" survival skills. Subtopics that arose are freshwater resources, renewable energy sources, local food resources, sustainable engineering, and adapting to climate change. With the help of guest teachers this week, we were inspired to look closer at the impact of humans on our global climate (and how it affects survival), and sustainable engineering and building (again, linked to our survival and reliance on resources). We will narrow our focus next week. Stay tuned!
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