Awarded another grant...for $10,000!

Check out what we are doing with our $10,000 Toyota TAPESTRY grant awarded for the 2011 - 2012 school year on our Barrett Elementary School Wildlife Refuges and Nature blog http://tinyurl.com/BarrettNature

Keep up to date with our project via Facebook http://tinyurl.com/BarrettNatureFacebook

Follow the project on Twitter @BarrettNature

Watch our videos www.YouTube.com/BarrettNature

Big Whoop Part 6

Happy Birthday, Whooping Cranes!

We have watched the Class of 2008 grow from chicks, to juveniles, to young adult whooping cranes. We had a little birthday party for the cranes to celebrate all they have learned to do in one year:

•Learned to feed themselves
•Learned to fly
•Grown five feet tall
•Got adult voices and colors
•Flown over 1,200 miles learning their migration route
•Migrated home again with no human help

Sadly, two of the whooping cranes died in April. The researchers believe crane #803 was eaten by a bobcat. Researchers are not sure how crane #826 was injured (broken leg) and later died. He may have flown into a powerline.

To celebrate all that the cranes have accomplished in one year, the students made paper birthday cakes and ate blue crabs (blue tortilla chips).

Hanging out in Wisconsin

The whooping cranes that we have been following all year finished their migration back to Wisconsin. What are they doing now? We read a slideshow book by Journey North to find out. Then we acted out parts of the story. You can see the whooping cranes (children) roosting in our pretend wetlands and flying away from predators. You can also see the whooping cranes eating snakes, snails, and blue crabs. We watched a videoclip of the cranes dancing and some of our whooping crane children tried the dance moves.

Yummy blue crabs, snails, and snakes

Roosting in the water. Watch out for that predator!

This whooping crane child is roosting as one way to stay safe from predators. Some of the predators are coyotes, wolves, and bobcats.

Our new superintendent, Dr. Murphy, visited the Discovery Lab. The children told Dr. Murphy about the endangered whooping crane.

Whooping cranes will eat just about anything, including snakes.


Can you see the snake in the whooping crane's beak?

Whooping Word Wall

The Whooping Word Wall has been an ongoing project all year. As a culmination to our Whooping Crane project and a method for reviewing all that we have learned, small groups of children had a chance to interact with the words. Students used the crane puppet to read the words. Students used the words in sentences, talked about their favorite words, and drew pictures for some of the words. In case you are wondering about the X word, Xylophone, children played the xylophone in our Whooping Crane Musical.

a quickr pickr post

What are the Whooping Cranes doing Now?

The whooping cranes that we have been following all year finished their migration back to Wisconsin. What are they doing now? Read this slideshow book to find out.

Follow the Whooping Cranes Musical, Performance #2

Follow the Whooping Cranes!

A Musical Performed by Barrett Kindergarten Classes
Directed by Mrs. Klontz

Whoopie!! A Successful Spring Migration Journey North

Whoopie!!!! All 14 of the ultralight-led whooping cranes from the Class of 2008 have migrated from their winter home in Florida to their summer home in Wisconsin! There are now 86 cranes in the Eastern Flock.

Big Whoop Part 5

Whooping Crane Habitats in Florida

The whooping cranes are settling into their new habitats in Florida. Half of the whooping cranes will be spending the winter at “Chass” Wildlife Refuge and half will be at St. Marks Wildlife Refuge. A refuge is a protected area where the whooping cranes will be safe.

a quickr pickr post

Let's Celebrate!

Today was a special day. The kindergarten classes celebrated the successful migration of the whooping cranes to Florida. The whooping cranes are settling into their new habitats. The students saw photos of the habitats (saltwater marshes) and learned what the cranes are eating in their habitats. They love blue crabs, and also eat insects, crane chow, corn, mice, snakes, fish, and more. Mrs. Sullivan said she brought some fish to share with the students as part of the celebration. The students didn't look too thrilled until they learned that the fish they would be eating were goldfish crackers. Then each student made a model of the habitat to take home. Due to the two hour snow delay, Mrs. Golden and Mrs. Rente's classes had to postpone the celebration until next Thursday and Friday. So, there will be another celebration next week...not that we mind :)

Blue Crabs - The Favorite Food of the Whooping Cranes

Creating Salt Water Marsh Habitats

Let's Celebrate a Successful Migration

Song for the Whooping Crane

Check out this Habitat!

Want some fish?

A Very Nice Habitat

Here is a Habitat made for Whooping Cranes

Lots of Mud in the Wetlands

a quickr pickr post

Whooping Cranes in Alabama

The photo below was taken by Heather Ray yesterday in Alabama. She emailed us photos earlier in the year and I have been emailing information to her about our Kindergarten whooping crane activities at Barrett. Ms. Ray has been following the whooping crane migration since they started in October 2008 (although she and the cranes took a break over winter vacation). When do you think the whooping cranes will reach Florida? Follow the migration daily on the JOURNEY NORTH website.


All RIGHT! They added another 52 miles today as all 14 birds took off behind Joe Duff's ultralight for the flight to Pike County, Alabama. They got off to a late start (8:10 am) because they waited for the fog to go away. The migration is one stop closer to the goal, and tomorrow's weather forecast looks good for a flight. How many total miles have they gone?

Barrett Students Visit Whooping Crane Display

After school this week, two Barrett families went to see the ultralight aircraft and whooping crane display at the Udvar-Hazy National Air and Space Museum.  The students impressed one of the museum guards with all their knowledge about the whooping cranes and the ultralight. If you would like to visit the museum,  please check out my previous blog entry for directions and hours of operation.

a quickr pickr post

Big Whoop Part 4

Do you know how the whooping crane migrates? Watch this episode and learn!

Taylor's Birthday Present - Flying with the Cranes

In the Discovery Lab this week we learned about Father Goose (see previous blog entry), we checked on the current migration of "our" whooping cranes, we made models of ultralights and whooping cranes flying in the sky, read books about migration, and watched a video clip of a journalist flying with the cranes.

We read the online story of Taylor's 10th birthday present of flying with the whooping cranes!  Then each student put a photo of himself/herself in an ultralight glider and we went on a pretend migration around the school.  I'd love to fly with the whooping cranes for real on my next birthday!

Following the Migration on the Map

Migrating from Wisconsin to Florida (Actually from the Discovery Lab to the Classroom, taking the long route around the School)

Video clip of Journalist Flying with the Cranes

Kindergarteners pretend to Fly with the Cranes in an Ultralight

Reading about Migration

Learning about the Migration Experiment of Father Goose

 

Reading about Whooping Cranes

 

Placing the Whooping Cranes in the Sky

Taylor's 10th Birthday Present was to Fly with the Cranes

Ready for our Migration

a quickr pickr post