Elisabeth

While we may not be necessarily be creating projects in the traditional classroom/educational sense, if we do get to the point of doing some assessments on inquiry-based projects, the use of a well developed rubric will be key! It allows for a bit of wiggle room on interpretation but still provides a base line for the children on exactly what will be expected, and reminds us while overlooking the project what we are expecting too, helps focus in on that. I can see incorporating rubrics in a few things we do.

Leading an inquiry-based activity is something we haven't done at this point, formally. In presenting community programs, I think one of the main challenges would be introducing the inquiry style itself, as it can take time for children (or adults) to adapt to this style of learning. Since we aren't yet doing any citizen science projects, attendees at our programs come expecting to be given facts and information, not necessarily to be active learners/participants. A way we could tackle this would be to present that the program will be interactive to begin with, as they will know the content (what the program is about) ahead of time and they could even begin to think of questions they may have or answers to questions they think we may have for them, this could be beneficial as those who attend our programs generally are doing so because they already have some sort of interest already in the topic.

I researched project eMammal, it's described as a cyber-tool, a data management system and archive (at the Smithsonian) for camera trap research projects, it is a collection of projects under one roof so to speak. The database is actually accessible to anyone, and you don't have to have participated in the project itself, which is nice, so yes, students could access the data/information, allows you sort by region which is also helpful. I chose a project within the database in Virginia, evaluating factors that promote colonization of developed areas by predators and the ecological implications of that. I think students could certainly use this any of the projects data easily, some charts are available as well, there is a wealth of well organized information. I feel it could also spark local questions and thoughts for cz projects here.

Many times just helping them relate to the topic is enough to get them inspired- we have found that having them -be- the animal we have questions about helps. For instance  if we are discussing an opossum we might tell them "you have a long, hairless tail, what might you use that for?' It seems to connect them with the animal & encourages more questions that we could then turn into an observational study depending on the questions posed.

I participate annually in the Audubon Christmas Bird Count. As far as challenges, weather was an issue, and can be in this region that time of year. Learning outcomes would be bird id, habitat preferences, song id, migratory birds?- we could decide how best to find answers, whether via references (field guides), looking at existing data (past bird count info), observing (what birds are where) and could try experimentation (what birds will respond to noise to call them in)

One way we can be catalysts for students to observe and wonder, I think, is by making learning a "we" process. Like I mentioned in an earlier reply, the idea of being a co-learner fosters children's confidence, their willingness to participate. Open-ended questions go hand in hand with acting as a co-learner, and providing space for interpretation, not just simple yes or no answers that can create boredom or children not participating for fear of not having the -right- answer.

The most impactful thing for me was closing my eyes while creating it. Doing so draws the attention to sound by eliminating the distraction of sight. Also, by eliminating sight I noticed scents that directed me to hear what I might be smelling, in my case the freshly cut grass, I then noticed the faint sound of the lawnmower. I could definitely use this technique with children, encouraging them to use their senses to detect things they may not otherwise notice and incorporate that into how animals use their senses to locate food.

The Monarch project is a great way to connect local and global work with migration, they are recognizable and relatable for many children and when the children have the opportunity up close and personal to learn what resources the Monarchs need for survival, I think it helps connect the idea that need these resources where they migrate to as well.

Distance learning is something I really hadn't thought of, but really is a perfect way to connect & foster relationships with those we don't or can't see on a regular basis. It would work well particularly for us since at this time we don't have an onsite learning facility/area.

Great idea! Making the question more open ended I think would be very useful in what we do also to advance the inquiry level to more of a guided inquiry. We could use a question maybe like- how does this animal survive in the wild? And that would begin their journey on the investigation allowing them begin to create their procedures and methods.