Wellfleet Bay Wildlife Sanctuary News

Alternative Energy Field Trip at the Sanctuary

Ever since we've opened our green building school groups have been interested in learning more about the practical uses and applications of alternative energy. They especially like that they can bring their students here to see, touch and learn more about the various materials and systems we use at the sanctuary.

We had 18 fifth graders from the Wellfleet Elementary School. Amy Ferriera and Mary Richmond put together the curriculum for the day and it included a scavenger hunt of the building to find the various green points and materials. For this each child had a list of 17 elements they had to find and in the end we all discussed our findings. The kids loved this approach as did their teachers. Instead of being passive listeners they had to go out and look and feel and figure things out.

The students worked in small groups to build their own solar cookers. Unfortunately the rain kept us from cooking our own s'mores but we sent home the ingredients so they could make them on a sunny day at school.

We used pizza boxes, tin foil, plastic wrap, black paper and masking tape to make our cookers. It's a simple project that makes its point pretty directly and easily.

Our third project of the day was a challenge to build an invention that utilized alternative energy to make it run. The students worked in pairs or by themselves and had access to all the same materials. They were given a half hour to complete their projects and as you can see, they were fully engaged.

The results were awesome. Most used solar and wind power and many were quite creative and inventive.

The project shown here with the three balloons used the wind power of deflating balloons to turn its turbines!

We had invited the class to a waste free lunch challenge. This meant their lunch had to be packed in reusable containers, including their drinks. Cloth instead of paper napkins and washable silverware instead of plastic. Half the class scored a perfect 5 on the challenge with the rest falling somewhere between going half way or not at all. Interestingly, even those with the greenest of lunchboxes didn't pack a green snack...... All in all it was a really great day. One kid was heard exclaiming, "This was the best field trip ever!" as he left.

Vacation Camp at Wellfleet Bay

All week long the sanctuary has been alive with the sounds of children. "Vacation Adventures" has been a series of daily programs designed for young children and on most days we have been able to get them outside for exploration around the sanctuary.

On this day we were talking about "Creepy, Crawly Slimy Things" and everyone wanted to go to the swamp, even though most of the creepy, crawly slimy things that live there were still deep into their long winter naps. The swamp was covered with a skim of ice and our young explorers spent a lot of time and energy trying to find the thinnest spots where they could break a stick all the way through.

Once back inside we decided to make some of our own slippery stuff and we began with a big vat of home made play doh. A little flour, salt, oil and water colored with some blue coloring and sprinkled with silver glitter and tada! Instant modeling clay.

This sting ray was made by one of the boys. Other animals included snakes and worms, little pigs and even a big salamander.

After a little chat about amphibians and their slimy skin we decided to make some slime of our own. We used a little borax and water mixed with some glue and water and food color and stirred it all up with a spoon and got some very satisfying slime.

We had all sorts of fun stretching and playing with our slime before packing it up in baggies for the kids to take home. Refrigerated it will last a month or so, as will the play doh.

Recipes for slime of all kinds can easily be found on kids craft sites on-line.

Other activities throughout the week included a day focused on Mammals and Tracking, Water Explorations, Birds and Whales. Our young birders logged 24 species of birds on the sanctuary in one morning, by the way.

Don't forget new sessions of After School Nature Club begin next week!

Back to School We Go

The holidays are over and although things are quiet here at the sanctuary compared to the busy summer season there is still plenty going on. Our education department is back in the classrooms of Cape Cod with classes in Chatham, Harwich and Brewster schools just last week. Classes included topics such as Animal Adaptations, Owls, Whales and How Animals Prepare for Winter.

Amy Ferreira recently taught 4 different lessons for 4 different classes on the same day at Holy Trinity School in Harwich. She has this to say about her lessons. The pictures shown here were also taken by her.

" The pre-schoolers learned what nocturnal means and what senses nocturnal animals
use to survive. Owls, coyotes, and skunks were the examples as they tried
seeing, listening, and smelling like they did.

In first grade the students discovered that everything that lives in a field was
important in the food chain. They sang a food chain song, watched a puppet show,
and learned the difference between a predator and prey.

Second graders were able to get face to face with a great-horned owl and screech
owl by observing owl mounts. They dissected owl pellets, felt owl wings and held
owl talons.

  Students in third grade created their own dunes by mimicking wind and blowing on
sand. They made observations on the formations that were created. We also
discussed the glacial origin of Cape Cod and played a game about coastal
erosion.

In the Schools This Week

This week we had three naturalists in three different schools doing lessons. Leah Dower was at Chatham Middle School teaching about owls. Mary Richmond was at the K.C. Coombs School in Mashpee working with second graders on a lesson about sea turtles and sea turtle rescues. Amy Ferreira was at the Chatham Elementary School on Monday and at the Eddy School in Brewster on Tuesday. The following piece was written by Amy and all the photos of her lesson were taken by her as well.

4^th graders at Chatham Elementary learned about an important topic today (Mon., Dec. 17) –invasive species. Most of the students had not heard of these species before, so we spent time discussing what this means, where these species are coming from, how & why they get here, and what issues arise because of their presence. We looked at Asian Shore Crabs, codium seaweed, hydrilla, asian bittersweet, and more. Students left with a better understanding of this growing threat to our habitats.

 

Squid! The name often provokes thoughts of calamari or bait for fishing, but for the 3^rd graders at Eddy Elementary in Brewster it brings thoughts of amazing adaptations and behavior. On Tuesday, Dec. 18, 4 classes of 3^rd graders dissected a squid. Prior to dissecting it students learned about its adaptations, such as chromatophores, large eyes, arms & tentacles, & beak. After examining the external anatomy the students were able to dissect it. The students were amazed to see their thin esophagus connected to the “mouth” of the squid.

They were surprised to see how small the ink sac was. And all were curious to find out if theirs was a male or female. At the end each student pulled the “pen” out of the squid, punctured the ink sac, and wrote their names in squid ink on their paper. It was quite an experience –messy, smelly, and a whole lot of fun!

Have you ever thought about going to camp in the winter? If so, why don’t you come to Wellfleet Bay after the holidays? On Thursday and Friday, December 27 & 28 we’ll have “vacation adventures” for kids from 9am-12:30pm. Kids will explore the Sanctuary trails, look for signs of winter wildlife, make crafts, play games, and have fun with some new friends. If you’re interested please call the Sanctuary at 508-349-2615 to register.