Approach To School Site Development (1967)

[Music] someday these children will be adult members of our community and perhaps of your community as Citizens and voters no matter what their occupations might be they will make decisions affecting not only the community in which they live but also their country they will make decisions about recreation park ways beautification water needs and air and water pollution control since their decisions will affect the total environment in which we live we must help them obtain the experiences and the knowledge necessary for making wise decisions [Music] with proper planning we can develop School sites which will Aid teachers to enrich the curriculum and to help our students increase their interest in and understanding of our natural resources if one believes that we can teach certain social and scientific understandings better outside of a school building then educational specifications should be developed both for the site and the school building this is the case study of the an arbor High School site in an Arbor Michigan the unique natural features are important criteria in School site selection our School site planning committee was composed of a school board member the school architect the school principal teachers representing various areas of curriculum and students after the land for the site was acquired the School site planning committee established the educational specifications for the total site the plans took advantage of some unique natural features such as a forest a stream uneven terrain and unusual specimen trees or shrubs joint planning among administrators teachers and students enhances the use of the school site discourages vandalism provides green islands and perpetuates their use and value to the community the school architect plans traffic patterns on the site to help preserve natural features having departmental Representatives on the School site committee is helpful in determining the location of classrooms in relation to natural features the school building is designed so as to take advantage of uneven topography uneven terrain also influences the location of Roads the layout of athletic fields and the placement of parking facilities the site committee also obtains technical assistance from the district soil conservationist game manager and Forester few school systems take advantage of the free services rendered by these federal and state employees the site committee also set aside an area as an outdoor laboratory During the period when heavy equipment is on the site Special Care is taken to carry out the committee's recommendations so that operators of the equipment are well oriented to the site plan and to the features that are to be preserved it is advisable to place markers around trees or habitats that are to remain undisturbed as the school is being constructed the Landscaping phase of the site plan is developed this plan is well conceived to blend Beauty and utility on the section of the school site reserved as an outdoor laboratory walking trails are laid out to take advantage of unusual points of interest classic room students play a prominent role in the development of the site these high school students are planting a row of Evergreens on the west side of the school to serve as a shelter belt against noise and Wind Elementary children are establishing an ever green Plantation plantings that provide food and cover will attract animals that might otherwise not be seen around the school building children involved in the development of the school site take the opportunity to serve their Community as well as their school planting a tree on the School site and watching it develop and grow through the years gives the child a sense of Pride and pleasure that cannot be duplicated within the the four walls of any school building youth groups also are encouraged to play a role in the development of school sites involving neighborhood children helps to discourage vandalism on the School site and perpetuates its use and value to the community to add diversity to a small wooded area on the site several students are planting a few native trees a neighborhood youth group is volunteering its services to prepare a steep bank for plantings which will prevent erosion on the site here biology students are planting sections of the bank with different types of seed to determine what plants will grow best under the prevailing conditions once the seeds have been sewn straw is placed on the bank by fellow students to provide the proper Mulch on another section of the bank seedlings that were germinated in the school Greenhouse are carefully planted on the slope neighborhood children constructed this birdhouse and are placing it in the outdoor laboratory of the school site in an effort to encourage bluebirds to nest on the property squirrel nesting boxes are placed in the Woods by industrial art students in the outdoor laboratory students from the science club lay out a nature trail and place labels along it while construction was commencing on the School site an earth mover was utilized to construct this shallow Pond neighborhood children and classroom groups helped to landscape the edge of the pond they introduce aquatic plants by attaching nails to Aquatic seedlings and casting them into the water this student has removed young Cattails from a nearby Pond and is planting them around the school Pond shrubs to landscape the pond were donated by local citizens and youth groups once the pond is constructed animal life will be attracted crayfish holes appear along its Edge almost immediately dragon flies are also attracted to the pond it's not long before we see painted turtles sunning on the floating logs teachers soon recognize that the School site can generate excitement and stimulate learning however few teachers are trained to use the natural environment to enhance instruction for this reason an inservice training program is developed the most effective type of inservice training is conducted in the natural environment throughout the year various groups of elementary junior high and high school teachers participate in outdoor training sessions here Elementary School teachers examine the plumage of a red-winged blackbird obtaining information which they can use in their Science teaching during this inservice training session an owl pellet was found these pellets are indigestible remains regurgitated from the stomach of the owl by teasing the pellet apart the teachers can identify the skulls of the animals the owl has eaten other bones such as these arm bones are removed and identified a stream is used to discuss many social geological physical and biological Concepts before taking children on a field trip it is important to give them a brief orientation during this period the purpose of the field trip is discussed and the children are told what to look for on this particular trip the children are going by school bus to an outdoor laboratory where they will plant trees commemorating Arbor day upon arriving at the school site the class is divided into smaller groups to plant Evergreens according to the school site committee's plan this conservation outdoor laboratory is dedicated to the purpose of helping both Youth and adults increase their awareness interest and understanding concerning the characteristics and Inter relationships of our natural resources youth groups as well as elementary junior high and high school students make good use of this school site here a group of Upper Elementary children are introduced to one of the most beneficial animals on the School site the leader is discussing the feeding habits body processes and value to the Natural community of this garter snake the snake prior to being caught had just consumed a field mouse the group also has the opportunity to study the mechanism by which snakes move here a group of junior high school students is using a soil borer made by the industrial arts department to sample the soil in different parts of the school site the soil samples are collected and arranged on sheets of paper in order to compare them to these in the forest regarding color texture organic matter and moisture elsewhere a group of high school students is setting out traps that will capture small mammals alive and thus teach students what kinds of common mammals live in the various habitats of the outdoor laboratory one of the high school biology teachers is a licensed bird Bender during a class period concerned with a unit on birds he sets up Mist Nets in the outdoor laboratory to capture birds for the purpose of placing a lightweight aluminum band on the leg this this project trains students to carry out long range research on the School site the birds are very gently removed from the net banded and released occasionally a male ruby-throated hummingbird is caught in the Mist net experiences of this nature are difficult to duplicate in the school building mathematic skills are applied by these students using a built Mor stick to estimate the volume of marketable Timber in the woods here high school students are collecting basic physical chemical and biological data from this 1acre Pond these biology students are analyzing the water and bottom ciments from plant and animal life determining information on water volume and depth Contours students utilize mapping skills acquired in math classes to make a hydrographic map of the pond chemistry students collect chemical data regarding the dissolved oxygen carbon dioxide and alkalinity of the water students enrolled in conservation classes are presently compiling the data and developing a fish planting program a pond on the the High School site enables teachers to collect material for laboratory use this science teacher is collecting a concentrated supply of Plankton by straining pond water through a plankton net the Plankton is then brought into the classroom and by use of a microscope or a micro projector the pupils have an opportunity to study live Plankton like these dnia or water fleas note the appendages that are used for movement pulsating gills on the underside and the contractions of the heart which is located behind the head art classes also frequently use the School site for sketching purposes a senior art student is trying to capture the shape of a distant Oak with brush and ink once an outdoor laboratory is created on a School site it will be used throughout the year not only by school groups but by Family groups youth groups and other interested individuals a self-guiding nature trail enhances the use of the area but what makes the site so valuable is the beauty and naturalness of the land itself youth groups throughout the community enjoy enjoy walking the nature trail and seeing demonstrations dealing with Wildlife practices such as this underground retreat during the summer months the recreation department hires a naturalist to conduct a formal science program for late Elementary and Junior High School students outdoor laboratories on school sites serve as passive Recreation areas for young adults and family groups who enjoy walk on self-guiding nature trails a well-developed nature trail on a School site helps to develop better citizens by making people more understanding custodians of our natural resources properly developed land around any school is a vital extension of the school building and serves as a Green Island for Community use the existence of a well-developed School site serves to attract people to live nearby this in increases the tax base and the increased tax revenues over a reasonable period of time will pay for the cost of the Green Island itself if our children are to have the experiences that bring them into harmony with their biophysical environment the school must provide on school sites the means by which young people are able to develop their values about natural resources School sites can be developed for educational and Community use if people have the will to make them possible [Music]