Grades K-12
At the Cary Institute we believe every place is an ecosystem. This program allows students to explore and investigate an ecosystem that means a lot to them – their schoolyard!
Cary educators visit your classroom to introduce and set up an inquiry-based project that compliments your curriculum, individual schoolyard, and time constraints. Students take on the role of field scientists as they generate and investigate hypotheses about their schoolyard ecosystem based on their own place-based knowledge. Recent questions we've studied with students have included:
To find out more information about scheduling and customizing a program that fits your needs, contact Ashley Alred at alreda@caryinstitute.org.
Grades 3-12
When we think about the water cycle, most of us think of a diagram with arrows moving from alpine peaks into the big, blue ocean. Unless we live in such a place, this idealized diagram does not teach us where our water comes from, or what happens to rain that falls on our neighborhoods. In this program, the local water cycle goes beyond evaporation and condensation to become local and significant as students participate in mini water investigations in their schoolyard that illustrate the many pathways of water in your local neighborhood.
1 class (45 minutes)
1 class (90 minutes)
If these costs are prohibitive for your school, please consider contacting us about working together to apply for a science program grant.
Receive updates on professional development opportunities, curriculum materials, field trips, environmental literacy news and more...