Half-Day, Small Group Lessons

Creative Expressions (3 Hours)

Earthquest (3 Hours)

SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS: Do not schedule this lesson with Creative Expressions.
SUBJECT AREAS: Ecology, Art, Language Arts.
CONCEPTS AND SKILLS:
* Everything we use comes from the earth
* Through simple observation, we can learn much about our earth
* We can use all our senses to get to know and understand our natural surroundings
TYPE OF LESSON: Active/observational leading to calm/reflective.
OBJECTIVE: to use the senses to become more aware of and reinforce our connection to the natural world
METHODS: Students will participate in sensory awareness activities that emphasize people's place in nature, employ drawing & writing skills, and culminate in an outdoor solo experience.
DESCRIPTION OF LESSON: The Earthquest lesson covers a mile long trail. The group stops at various locations to perform "quests," activities focusing on sensory awareness. Since the focus of the unit is to see how people interact with nature, the activities create a journey of the spirit and mind, as well as of the body. Quest of Touch- Students explore touch sensations, collecting items that match an adjective (smooth, prickly). Quest of Sound- An active game of stalking a blindfolded "rabbit." Develops cooperative hunting, listening, sensory deprivation understanding. Quest of Smell-The Students hear a story and have the chance to make their own natural "perfume". By this point the group is on top of the ridge, ready to take part in an Earth Wheel and Solo Sit activity. The children are placed a short distance from each other along the ridge for a 25 minute quiet sit. They use their senses to silently observe the forest. Gathered back on the trail, the students create in pictures a wheel that illustrates their solo experiences and their views of natural elements. The completion of the "journey" is signified with face paint for each person, in the Sharing Quest. Children are encouraged to discuss how their experience and new knowledge bring a responsibility to care for the world.

Exploration (3 Hours)

Forest in Winter (3 Hours)

SUBJECT AREAS: Science, Language Arts, Drama, Social Studies.
CONCEPTS AND SKILLS:.
* Even in winter, the forest is a living and active ecosystem
* Animals and plants must adapt physically and behaviorally to the changes in seasons
* Winter is a time to notice things that are hidden or overlooked in other seasons
TYPE OF LESSON: Active/Observational.
OBJECTIVE: to gain an appreciation for and understanding of the winter season and its characteristics
METHODS: Students will participate in sensory awareness activities and games in order to more fully experience and understand the forest in winter.
DESCRIPTION OF LESSON: The Forest in Winter emphasizes the season as a time of active transition for plants and animals. The lesson uses sensory awareness, role playing and discovery activities to focus in on plant and animal lives, adaptations and survival strategies. The Forest in Winter was designed for use on the Dorsey Branch Trail, but is easily adaptable to any of the trails in the Tremont area. Trees in Winter - Students individually select a tree to learn about. Through a questioning style approach students look for characteristics which make their tree unique. Twig Detectives - Students learn to use a twig identification chart to help key out and recognize various types of trees during the winter. M.A.S.H. Card Game - This game uses flash cards of animals native to the Smokies. As the leader reveals each card in turn students attempt to identify the animal and tell about its winter survival techniques. Tracks and Traces - A detective hike that focuses on signs of animal activity and homes. Winter Whereabouts- A role playing game where students act out different animals and what they do to survive the winter. Migration Headache- An active game that illustrates to the students that migrating birds face many hardships and dangers as they travel. Create Your Own Winter- A creative writing activity that challenges the students to write about the winter season using words thought up by the rest of the group.

Geology Walk To The Falls (3 Hours)

Keying Into Plants (3 Hours)

SUBJECT AREAS: Science, Art, Math.
CONCEPTS AND SKILLS:
* Plants provide food and shelter necessary for other forms of life
* Plants, like animals, form communities and have specific habitats
* Plants can be identified through the use of keys
TYPE OF LESSON: Active/observational.
OBJECTIVE: to understand the important role of plants in ecosystems and learn methods of identification
METHODS: Students will examine different types and levels of vegetation and explore their values in the overall natural community. Students will develop and use keys to aid in identification of natural vegetation.
DESCRIPTION OF LESSON: This lesson allows students to classify, explore, discover, and develop their attitudes toward the vegetation of our earth. Pyramids actively illustrates how green plants are the base for all food chains on this planet. Boot Keys and Vegetation Keys introduces, allows for practice, and then reviews the usage of "keys" (similar to those found in field guides.) This will aid the students in identifying vegetation throughout the lesson.
To Pick or Not to Pick is an activity that encourages the students to identify their attitudes toward living vegetation. Rubbings offers an opportunity for artistic creativity, while Camouflage is an active game that shows how animals use plants to blend in with their surroundings. Community Graphs introduces the mathematical topic of graphing to show the percent of ground cover in a certain area. Several other activities, including Wilderness Exploration, Scavenger Hunt, Rubbings, Community Graphs, and Community Creations, involve students in artistic activities, games, and scientific investigations of the plant world.

To learn more about identifying trees, try out our on-line Smoky Mountain Tree Key.

Life in the Forest (3 Hours)

SUBJECT AREAS: Science, Drama.
CONCEPTS AND SKILLS:
* Forests change through the process of succession, moving toward a climax community
* Forests are diverse communities of plants and animals in which each member plays a role
* Changes that affect one part of a forest affect the entire community
TYPE OF LESSON: Active/observational.
OBJECTIVE: to develop an affinity for and understanding of the forest community
METHODS: Students will participate in activities that illustrate life cycles in the forest, and the importance of the forest resources.
DESCRIPTION OF LESSON: Not much hiking is involved in this lesson since most of the activities are time-consuming and leave little time for hiking. The lesson starts with an investigation of Forest Succession, with students learning about the stages in the formation of forest communities, from lichens on rocks to changes in an old field and finally to a mature forest. Life of a Tree introduces the life cycle concept and addresses the issue of death as a beginning rather than an ending. Along the trail, students play Show Me to gather examples of birth, life and death in the woodland. The students get a chance to show off their acting talent through the Plant Personification activity. Observation and tracking skills are emphasized next as the group searches for animals and animal signs in the forest. Continuing the idea of a forest community, in Community Find, students are asked to brainstorm a list of important places or services needed within their community and then try to find evidence of their counter parts in the forest community. Examples of such services might be: apartments, stores, or garbage collectors. This idea of a community hopefully fosters a better understanding of the environment and the interdependence of all its components. Concepts of energy flow are explored through an activity called and Earthworms, Shrews and Owls involving food chains and interdependence. The lesson is concluded with the reading of the Dr. Seuss book, The Lorax. This activity (the students can act out the story impromptu) can aid in discussion of forest issues.

Little Creatures (3 Hours)

SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS: This lesson should not be scheduled in the same week with Wildlife.
SUBJECT AREAS: Art, Dramatics, Science.
CONCEPTS AND SKILLS:
* Little creatures play important roles in living communities
* Little creatures occupy specialized micro-habitats within ecosystems
* All ecosystems have a large variety of little creatures, each with its own niche
TYPE OF LESSON: Active/observational
OBJECTIVE: to encourage appreciation for the small animals of the Smokies
METHODS: Students become Nature Detectives to explore a field, a forest, and a wetland habitat observing and collecting information about small animals, their behaviors, habitats in which they live, and how they use their senses to survive.
DESCRIPTION OF LESSON: The lesson begins with a series of activities designed to teach the students how to carefully collect and observe small creatures. They recite a "Nature Detective Code of Ethics". In Meet a Creature and On the Move, students begin to develop their observational skills in searching for animals. Field Exploration, Forest Exploration, and Wetland Exploration,the Nature Detectives examine different habitats and levels to find animals. They share what they have discovered about these different places. Students participate in Individual Animal Dramatics to act out the lives of creatures so that the rest of the group can guess who they are. Bat and Moth is an active game about a predator and its prey. Scent-Sations allows the students to use their noses to find partners in order to understand how animals find their ways in the wild. Who Lives Here is a running game about exotic species.

Mini-All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory (1.5-3 hours)

SUBJECT AREAS: Science
CONCEPTS AND SKILLS:
* The All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory is a long-term project to identify all of the different kinds of species in the Smokies.
* Biodiversity is the variety of plants, animals, and other organisms in a given area.
* Scientific inquiry is a good tool for learning more about nature.
TYPE OF LESSON: Active, observation, student-directed inquiry
OBJECTIVE: Students will attempt to determine the comparative taxa diversity of several different types of habitat while learning about inventory methodology and design, hypothesis testing, use of scientific field equipment, and the diversity of life forms that live around them.
METHODS: Students will be conducting a miniature All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory. They will compare the diversity of species in small plots located in different habitats.
DESCRIPTION OF LESSON:
The lesson lead students through the entire scientific inquiry process, from the initial research question to drawing conclusions based on data. The lesson begins by discussing why the Smoky Mountains have such high biological diversity. The students are presented with the question, "How does habitat affect biodiversity?" Students develop hypotheses and predictions about how biodiversity might differ among different habitats. With input from the students, methods are developed to test their predictions. This activity can be as inquiry-based (by having the students design their own hypotheses and methods), very directed (by giving students most of the methods), or a combination of directed and inquiry-based. The students work in teams and measure out study plots in two or more habitat types (such as forest and field). They locate and name as many species as possible in the study plots and categorize the species into different types of life (plant, insect, etc.). When the teams meet back together, they share their data and discuss whether the data support their predictions. An optional activity is to have the students swap habitats and compare their findings with their previous results. The lesson wraps up by sharing the goals and findings of the real All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory (ATBI) in the Smokies with the students. At times, there may be real ATBI research projects the students can contribute to as part of this lesson.

Orienteering (3 Hours)

SUBJECT AREAS: Geography, Physical Education, Social Studies.
CONCEPTS AND SKILLS:
* Orienteering is the art of finding your way with a map and compass
* Topographic maps can give us a three-dimensional image of land contours
* As orienteering skills grow, so does the freedom to explore
TYPE OF LESSON: Generally active; initially more instructional.
OBJECTIVE: to learn to navigate using a topographic map and observation of the landscape
METHODS: Students will learn to understand the basics of topographic maps. They will participate in orienteering games.
DESCRIPTION OF LESSON: Children begin by discussing how maps and compasses are useful tools in many jobs, and are used for fun, too. Students will discover what orienteering means and learn about map features such as contour lines. Using maps of the area they participate in several activities that involve finding their way in the woods. Compass Introduction - Students learn to orient the map by using the compass. Orienteering Fun Course- In four stations, students learn about topographic features and other map symbols. Two groups rotate through the stations which include :Steep Hillside, Depression and Knoll, Valley/Stream, and Flat Area locations. Topo Symbols Game - Everyone reviews the land features by playing a game with topographic symbol cards. The game is set up as a relay match-up. Next they calculate vertical and horizontal distances to the next activity location. The Woods Course - The finale of Orienteering! Students work with partners and use map and compass to travel around a course. Each check point has part of a quotation that the groups will collect and then assemble to show they made it to every station. Not a race, the course is a test of understanding geography and following directions. The Shadow - This concluding activity uses the outlines of the students' shadows, made earlier, to help them understand directions. Additional discussion covers further uses of map and compass knowledge and the skills of Orienteering.

Stream Ecology (3 Hours)

Trees are Tremendous (3 Hours)

SUBJECT AREAS: Language Arts, Science, Dramatics.
CONCEPTS:
* Trees are living, active, growing beings with different body parts
* Trees are vital for humans and for natural systems
* Trees can show diversity through species, age, and size
TYPE OF LESSON: Calm/reflective, active/observational.
OBJECTIVE: to develop an affinity for trees and forests in the Smokies
METHODS: Students will examine trees closely, actively "build" a tree to learn tree parts and functions. They will use a key to identify trees, play an active game to learn of growth needs, and participate in creative writing activities.
DESCRIPTION: This lesson emphasizes the individuality of each tree of the forest, but also includes some forest ecology, values, and attitude clarification. This lesson was designed for use on any available trail at or near Tremont.
A short introduction begins the lesson by orienting the students to tree parts through a flash card game including characteristics such as: bark, leaves, flowers, fruits or seeds, etc. Tree Parts Riddles - Through riddles, the students explore the role of tree characteristics. Identifying Trees with a Key - Assists students in tree identification. and helps them understand keying out trees and plants with field guides. Students will play a game, Tree Needs, to explore the vital needs of trees. Build a Tree is an active game in which each student becomes a part of a tree. This gives the students an idea of what function each tree part has. Meet a Tree challenges students to identify a tree using their sense of touch and smell. Adopt a Tree allows each student to find their own special tree and to get to know it through a series of questions and observations. Until now the students have been viewing trees only from the outside, John Muir: Nature's Visionary is an excerpt from John Muir's writings that offers the students a different perspective toward tree appreciation. The lesson concludes with the students writing a story or poem about trees.

To learn more about identifying trees, try out our on-line Smoky Mountain Tree Key.

Wildlife (3 Hours)