Curricular Connections: Topic A: Creating Colour; Topic B: Seasonal Changes; Topic D: Senses; Topic E: Needs of Animals and Plants
Grade 2 – Exploring Small Animals and the Environment/Winter Wonders: Spring and Fall participants take part in a pond study and/or bug hunt exploring small animals and their environment. Winter Wonders’ participants experience the environment from the perspective of a small animal and its adaptations to winter. Recommended half day field trip.
Curricular Connections: Topic A: Exploring Liquids; Topic B: Buoyancy and Boats; Topic D: Hot and Cold Temperatures; Topic E: Small Crawling and Flying Animals
Learn a little bit about identifying animals track before attending our Winter Wonders program
Grade 3 – Animal Life Cycles: Life cycles and adaptations of several animals that occur in the Weaselhead are investigated including birds, mammals, aquatic invertebrates and insect galls. Offered as a half day or full day program with pond study in spring or fall.
Curricular Connections: Topic D: Hearing and Sound; Topic E: Animal Life Cycles
Grade 4 – Plants in a Natural Community & Natures Waste: Participants compare different plant life in a natural environment, examining vegetation in different ecosystems including wetlands, meadows and forests. Students learn how nature deals with its own waste and with human waste and pollution. Recommended full day spring or fall field trip.
Curricular Connections: Topic A: Waste and Our World; Topic E: Plant Growth and Changes
Grade 5 – Wetlands: Important to a Healthy Environment: This program gives students an opportunity to study a variety of wetlands in the same field trip. They will conduct pond studies to examine the different aquatic invertebrates that live in the different types of wetlands. Recommended full day spring or fall field trip.
Curricular Connections: Topic D: Weather Watch; Topic E: Wetland Ecosystems
- Grade 5 Teachers Guide
- Grade 5 Student Worksheets
- Additional Resources: Wetland Web of Life Tags; Weaselhead Wetland Rummy
Sneak peak of what you might find during our wetland studies:
Grade 6 – Trees & Forest Diversity: This trip focuses on three different native trees in the Weaselhead and their characteristics. Students study the structure of woody plants and explore the difference between trees and shrubs. Recommended full day field trip. (An optional activity ‘Take a Stand’, can be combined with this field-trip. This activity asks students to debate the pros and cons of building a ring road from various stakeholders’ views, combining the social studies unit with the tree science unit. Please email education@theweaselhead.com for details.)
Curricular Connections: Topic C: Sky Science; Topic D: Evidence and Investigation; Topic E: Trees and Forests Social Studies: 6.1 Citizens Participating in Decision Making
- Grade 6 Teachers Guide
- Grade 6 Student Worksheets
- Additional resources: ‘Take a Stand’ activity (by arrangement during field-trip); Tree/shrub guide for short walk round school or neighbourhood, for teachers to do with their class.
Grade 7 – Ecosystems : Students study 5 of the 6 distinct local ecosystems/vegetation communities found in the Weaselhead (riverine forest, spruce forest, tall shrubs, human-modified grassland, wetlands, aspen stand). Depending on which ecosystems are visited activities include; a small survey to compare native grass with non-native plants, learning to identify some common native plants, and investigating energy flow, biodiversity, succession, and disturbance in ecosystems. Recommended full day field trip.
Curricular Connections: Unit A: Interactions and Ecosystems; Unit B: Plants for Food and Fiber
Grade 8 – Freshwater Ecosystems: Students will be exposed to the important role water plays in this particular area. They will explore the impact of water on climate and land formation and research the adaptations of the fresh water species in the area. They will also perform a water quality test and pond dip. Recommended full day field trip.
Curricular Connections: Unit E: Freshwater and Saltwater Ecosystems
Grade 9 – Biodiversity: Students will learn about biodiversity, what it means and the importance of it to healthy ecosystems. Activities include basic water quality tests, a pond dip to learn about aquatic invertebrates and exploration to find different examples of symbiosis in the park.
Curricular Connections: Unit A: Biological Diversity & Unit C: Environmental Chemistry
Recreational Impacts Grade 4-9: this program has strong cross curriculum links from grade 4-9 and is adapted and customized to suit the grade visiting. This field trip offers hands-on, inquiry-based activities that help to build environmental literacy and responsible stewardship. Students conduct experiments to study the impacts of different recreational activities and develop mitigation strategies for preserving plants, wildlife, water and soil.
Curricular Connections: Grade 4 – Topic E: Plant Growth and Changes; Grade 5 – Topic E: Wetland Ecosystems; Grade 6 – Topic E: Trees and Forests & Social Studies: 6.1 Citizens Participating in Decision Making; Grade 7 – Unit A: Interactions and Ecosystem & Unit B: Plants for Food and Fibre; Grade 8 – Unit E: Freshwater and Saltwater Ecosystems; Grade 9 – Unit A: Biological Diversity & Unit C: Environmental Chemistry
- Recreational Impacts on Natural Areas Program Package
- Recreational Impacts on Natural Areas Student Worksheets
- Program developed with the generous support of Alberta Ecotrust
(Details of costs here and how to book available here…)