Teachable Moments: Teaching Science Out of Scope and Sequence and Looking at Migration
How many times have we been told as Texas Educators to “stick to the scope and sequence” “stay in your lane” "make sure you pack it all in BEFORE the test?" But as a Science teacher, changes on the earth and phenomena that we can take part in, notice or observe is not bound by a scope and sequence of what we should teach, but rather opportunities that spring up because it’s that time of year to see them.
Case in point, I went to a really great presentation (workshop per say) at the Keystone Heritage Park on Doniphan in El Paso. It was about Migration and looking out for the bird migrations happening around this time of year because, of course, birds are traveling south for the winter. Now most people think of our birds traveling south, leaving to Mexico or South America, but what it also means is that Arctic and Northern birds such as egrets, Canadian geese and many species of ducks and wetland birds of the north are coming down to our areas and marshes to roost for the winter season because they think our cold weather is rather warm. All I can say is that the cold weather that is typical of where they come from must be pretty inhospitable to chase hundreds of thousands of birds to the southern states.
So I will venture to tell you what I learned from this wonderful presentation put on by John Kiseda from the El Paso Zoo as part of the Science Cafe Series, as well as steer you to a few websites, give you some ideas about animal observations, and show you how to prep your administration for a veer off course of curriculum because if you don’ keep your eyes open, you’ll miss it, and you don’t want to miss it! Before you start you had better have a good reason to go off course of the scope. I like to site my standards as the reason and if you know them well enough you can always apply what is there to what you see outside. The following is a justification for teaching migration before you hit life science in your scope, if this part bores you, jump down to the part that says “Back to the Science”
Migration: Is a behavior of movement from one location to another that animals may exhibit in order to adapt to their environments for their basic needs. In the TEKS we see this idea mentioned and taught in the following standards:
- First Grade: 1.10A The student will investigate how the external characteristics of an animal are related to where it lives, how it moves and what it eats.
- Second Grade: 2.9B The student will identify factors in the environment, including temperature and precipitation that affect growth and behavior such as migration, hibernation and dormancy of living things
- Third Grade:3.9B The student will describe environmental changes such as floods and droughts where some organisms thrive and others perish or moveto new locations.
- Even though 4th and 5th grade standards don’t mention migration, they allude to this idea because anytime you are talking about changes to an environment, the by product will be that some species of animal will either have to adapt, die or leave.
- Seventh Grade: 7.11 B The student will explain variation within a population or species by comparing external features, behaviors, or physology of organisms thaten hance their survival such as migration, hibernation or storage of food in a bulb
- Eighth Grade: 8.11 C The student will explore how short- and long-term environmental changes affect organisms and traits in subsequent populations (readiness standard)
(Although this part was rather long, we as teachers need to have justification to teach our lessons and this gives us the ammunition to veer off the beaten path)
Back to the Science:
I admit that I am a generalist in education at heart and haven’t done much bird watching in my lifetime, in fact when I was a kid it seemed something that old folks did so I have to tell you that I am looking at all of this with new eyes. Here is what I learned about this area and the topic of migration (these facts courtesy of John Kiseda of the El Paso Zoo)
- Most animals have the ability to migrate depending on their needs (it could be because of temperature changes, but could also be for food resources, breeding, harsh changes in the environment, etc.)
- Animals don’t just migrate across land areas (latitudinally) they can also migrate vertically (example highland or mountains to lowland and vice versa)
- Our Mexican Freetail Bats (native to Carlsbad Caverns and, our attics and roof tops) migrate to Mexico in the winter (thus the name Mexican Freetail…)
- When we think of ocean fish migrating, we often think of Salmon migrating to freshwater rivers to spawn and then return to the sea, but actually fish are constantly migrating to areas to find food. They can also migrate vertically from deep sea to upper ocean depths.
Birds and how they migrate
- Sometimes birds fly in group formation and follow leaders
- Being in a group throws off predators because they don’t know which one to go for because between erratic movements and groupings they can make a predator dizzy.
- Small birds tend to migrate in evening hours usually because the wind dies down and temperatures are cooler
- Larger birds use air currents caused by heat changes to their advantage by traveling with a current and therefore exerting less energy during migration. They also like to travel by day so that they may hunt during good viewing times.
- Some birds do not stop flying at all until they reach their destination (they eat a lot before they leave so that they can make the trek)
- Some birds use airlift along mountains to help with travel (especially large birds) this saves energy and helps with movement.
- 21000 feet is the highest recorded migration movement (from a mallard duck that flew into airline airspace.)
- Larger birds travel higher and smaller birds travel lower.
- Migratory birds use prevailing winds. There are 4 major flyways in the United States that have been identified.
- Birds usually follow coastlines, mountain ranges and rivers when they are migrating
- Bird brains contain magnetite which may allow them to navigate through Earth’s magnetic field
- Some birds may have to “teach” their offspring how to migrate, which means that for some it may be a learned behavior.
- Hormonal changes in birds may also trigger migrations (such as El Paso’s spring and summer bird populations that come for nesting and breeding.
- Birds are constantly migrating (when some are leaving others are coming in)
- Coastal birds often migrate inland (which is why we sometimes see gulls and pelicans in the El Paso area)
Did you know: that bird migrations were used by African slaves to track optimal times for escape and to help discover paths to travel north? Migratory birds (displayed in groups heading north) were also depicted in quilt designs and hung outside of friendly farms and homes that aided slaves in their quest for freedom.
So why look for birds this time of year?
Actually, even though the El Paso area is not part of any of the four major flyways, you can actually view over 400 species of birds here in El Paso throughout the year. This is a great time to look for birds because of the temperature changes and migrations (birds leaving and coming in.) South American species of birds are heading home with their young after their breeding time ends here in El Paso. Northern birds such as Snowy Egrets, Canadian Geese, Mallards, and American Coots are now flying in looking for wetlands and farms to feed and roost during our winter months.
What do I take?
I would take some binoculars (starter field binoculars can be found at Wal-Mart or Target in the camping or toy sections) I would also take a field guide (I buy some when I visit national or state parks, but you can also find them at Barnes and Noble or even order them online.) There are also phone apps and iPad apps that will help you identify birds and wildlife (if you are in range of internet access) some are free. I love the Peterson Guides, Audubon Society Guides and pocket naturalist guides (they look more like brochures and are light weight )If you take a class of students, you might want to have your class make their own guides before they go.
When you use binoculars:
- Close your right eye and find what you are looking for with one eye only.
- Now open your right eye and close your left eye so that you can focus in on what was spotted.
- It is better to look through binoculars in cool weather, the hotter it gets, the harder it is to focus the binoculars
Where and when do we look?
Birds are coming in from everywhere, but some great sites to go bird watching in El Paso are:
- Mornings and dusk seem to be the best viewing times but birds can be seen throughout the day.
- Keystone Heritage Park: A great desert garden and protected wetland area, we spotted Green Winged Teals, Mexican Mallards, American Coots, Wood ducks, Sandpipers and one Snowy Egret just during our 11 am watch
- Memorial Park: home to many migratory birds, this is a great mid-town place to look
- Arroyo Park: in West El Paso, many migratory birds seem to find their way here.
- Sunland Park Racetrack: because of the man-made lake next to the track, this is agreat place to find water fowl.
- Franklin Mountains: Remember that large birds take advantage of lift along the mountain ranges, great place to spot hawks, eagles and other raptor like birds
- Rio Bosque Wetlands: located near Socorro along the Rio Grande, this wetland is protected and home to many birds both native and migratory.
- Along the Rio Grande and canals: Water sources are great places for birds to hang out
THE BOSQUE DEL APACHE in Socorro New Mexico!
If you ever have a chance, every science teacher in this area should visit this place at least once. This national nature preserve is spectacular. Right outside of Albuquerque, this beautiful wetland and farming area is a result of the Trilateral Treaty between Canada, U.S. and Mexico to protect migratory birds. Land managers at the bosque regulate food and water for the migratory birds in spectacular displays of populations. When I was visiting (two years ago) there were 32,000 Canadian geese as well as thousands of sand hill cranes, Snowy Egrets and Canadian duck species (and even a few bald eagles). During the Festival of the Cranes (held every November) you can not only see the fantastic movement of the birds from the wetland to feeding grounds (which are cornfields grown just for the birds in that area) you can also take part in lectures, activities and the local museum all dedicated to the Bosque Del Apache. We got there at 5 am to see the birds fly in huge flocks from the wetland to the fields and could get close enough to touch them (but didnt because the sand hill cranes are huge and will bat you if yo u get too close!) See the picture of me next to the lifesize picture of a crane. Scary!
I highly recommend taking a trip out there during the winter months!Websites and Resources:
The following are websites and resources I have used on this topic:
- MigrationBasics from the National Park Service:Categorizes the different types of migrations that happen within environments and animal species http://www.nps.gov/akso/parkwise/students/referencelibrary/general/migrationbasics.htm
- Keystone Heritage Park: http://www.keystoneheritagepark.org/ClubPortal/ClubStatic.cfm?clubID=409&pubmenuoptID=27444
- El Paso/Trans Pecos Audubon Society: Great place to seek information, guest speakers, and meetings in case you get serious about this: http://www.trans-pecos-audubon.org/
- Birds of the Southwest Desert:http://edsnatureimages.com/Collections/Southwest-Desert-Birds/index.html
- Make your own field guide for kids:http://www.goexplorenature.com/2010/06/fun-friday-backyard-field-guide-getting.html
- BosqueDel Apache National Wildlife Refuge:http://www.fws.gov/southwest/refuges/newmex/bosque/
Ipad and Iphone APPS:
- Free:Peterson Feeder Bird Guide of North America and Ibird lite,
- Peterson Birds of North America: 4.99
- IBird Pro:14.99
Binoculars:
Delta Education has Geo Safari Binoculars for 9.99 each (post if you find cheap prices on binoculars from other vendors)
Feel free to add your two cents to my blog/forum entry, I have to go and get ready for Thanksgiving Dinner, I could go on, but I think its Forest Gump time…
“That’s all I have to say about that. “-Lora (techscichick)