Headwater Forests of the Passaic River

The group spent the day at NJ Audubon’s Scherman Hoffman Wildlife Sanctuary in Bernardsville.   It was a gorgeous day with low humidity.  Perfect for exploring the woods and stream!   During the morning we explored the “Habitat Health trail and collected data related to spicebush – a native species that grows in Sugar Maple hardwood forests.

Site 1 outside exclosure

Our study plots were outside the deer exclosure and at two spots within the exclosure.  WHAT A DIFFERENCE!  Outside the exclosure where the deer

have access to the plants, they have browsed all the lower leaves and none of the new growth is over 10-12 inches tall.  Inside the exclosure we found lower leaves on the shrubs because they hadn’t been browsed in a long time and lots of new seedlings and ground cover.  We also saw that in the area where the deer hadn’t been for about 10 years, you could barely see Brian through the shrub layer…now that is a healthy forest for this region.

In addition to collecting the data, we also learned about the importance of standardizing our measurements, methodology and descriptions so that it made it easier to compare and contrast.  By discussing the data and looking at what it showed us…we also came up with additional questions and it was these questions that really got the inquiry process going.

Site 2 inside exclosure

Site 3 inside "old" deer exclosure

Inquiry and Investigations

A small, but dedicated group of Honeywell Institute graduates (from 2010) joined Brian and I at the Essex County Environmental Center.  We spent the day at this center…creating a common definition of inquiry, learning how to create a dichotomous key using leaves and conducting an invasive species “early detection survey.”  Our primary invasive plant species was Japanese Knotweed.  After identifying where patches of this invasive was along the trail, we estimated the patch size.    This information was shared with the staff at the center and although they have tried controlling some of this plant, there are still places (where it hasn’t taken hold) that could be controlled.

Looking for Japanese Knotweed

Japanese Knotweed

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We also conducted a visual assessment of the Passaic River…in addition to estimating the width of the river at this point in Roseland, we also measured the temperature (24 degrees celsius) and determined that the river flows north at this point.

Throughout the day we reinforced the process of inquiry learning and of the learning loop – experience, reflection, creating relevance and applying what we learned.

Tomorrow we head to NJ Audubon’s Scherman Hoffman Sanctuary in Bernardsville for more investigations and explorations!

Honeywell Institute – Refresher Course (June 28, 29 & 30, 2011)

Hi there – well, Brian and I are poised for the refresher course starting tomorrow.  We have eight graduates from past institutes joining us for three days to reconnect with each other.  Over the next few days we will review some of what we learned last year, but take that all to a different level by learning how to build a “problem-based” project and unit.  With luck we will get though the days without rain and with little blood-letting to mosquitoes.    On Tuesday we are at the Essex County Environmental Center in Roseland, NJ and then we go to NJ Audubon’s Hoffman Center for Conservation and Environmental Education in Bernardsville.  Check back for our experiences and photos!  – Dale

Check out our 2010 Video

Click here for the video link

Dates set for the 2011 Institute!

Honeywell Institute for Ecosystems Education – August 15 – 19, 2011

REGISTRATION deadline extend to June 10, 2011

For:  Middle and High School teachers in Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Passaic and Morris Counties

 How can you make science and social studies more relevant to your students, meet core standards and strengthen your students’ STEM knowledge and skills? Join us for “Field Studies in the Hackensack Watershed” a weeklong experience that combines outdoor explorations with inquiry-based learning.  Earn professional development credit this summer…inspire your students in the fall.

Learn new content that supports the N.J. Core Curriculum Content Standards – especially in Science and Social Studies. 
Investigate the forested regions of the New Jersey Highlands and the freshwater and tidal regions of the Hackensack Watershed.
Spend 50% or more of each day outdoors in a variety of habitats and weather conditions.
Share ideas and discuss environmental issues of the region with professionals.
Receive free New Jersey-specific curricular materials and other supplemental information and resources, valued at $350, for use in future classroom activities.
Earn 30 professional development hours.
Receive a weekly stipend for participation.

Limited to 28 participants. Participants must apply by June 4, 2011. For information on the program or to apply, visit http://www.njaudubon.org/Education/Summerinstitute.html.   Please share this information with your colleagues. 

If you have questions, please contact NJAS directly at (609) 861-1608 ext.13 or via email education@njaudubon.org.

Graduating Class of 2010

Graduating Class of 2010

Tying it all Together

Day 5 – Relating the week to what we teach

We are back at the Secaucus Library today to reflect on our experiences during the week.  Now comes the time to tie things together and work on mastering the art of questioning and tying concepts, skills and the process of inquiry to the curricula.

We looked at the questions raised during our time at Tenafly Nature Center and determined where it fell in Bloom’s Taxonomy…was it a knowledge question, comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis or evaluation?  What actual scientific concepts could be wrapped around the question as it was asked?  How could we take the question and perhaps deepen its intent so as to not only create more robust questions to ask our students, but also to encourage our students to ask more robust questions themselves.

In addition we worked through the process used to put the week together – this process is similar to creating an inquiry-based learning unit to support individual curricula.  Essential pieces to this are looking at the overall theme of the learning experience, tying that to concepts and skills that need to be mastered by the students, understanding what tasks or deliverables would need to be assessed and then structuring experiences for the students to be engaged in their learning that achieves the outcomes desired.

We spent time looking at individual curricula and began planning our school year.  Plans began to solidify; thoughts aligned and intentions for following through gelling as teachers worked individually and in small groups with newly found friends.

We were also pleased to have Senator Cunningham join us for some time.  Her words to us were inspiring and we were thrilled to hear of her support.  Teachers were awarded their graduation certificates from Honeywell’s John Morris – lots of clapping and smiles and we ended a wonderful week by assembling topographic maps to get a bird’s eye view of the Passaic/Hackensack Watershed.  It was a fitting end to the week…a great week…with a wonderful group of teachers who arrived as individuals and left as a group…willing to and looking forward to supporting each other in their quest to engage the next generation of scientists, innovators, engineers, and other creative thinkers!!!!

Thank you all – it was a wonderful week.  So…what’s next????????

- Dale and Brian

Human Interactions within the Watershed

Day 4 – Storm Drains and Sewage Treatment….And, Beauty Abounds

A friend of mine says that great things happen when a group is full of “pure thoughts.”  Well this group must have lots of pure thoughts about teaching because the day dawned to clear blue skies when all week it had been predicted to rain.

We met the group under the shadow of Snake Hill for the last time during the week.  Our bus driver, Nick, was ready for our last excursion – this morning off to the Passaic Valley Sewage Treatment Facility in Newark and then on a boat ride with the Hackensack Riverkeeper.  We arrived at the facility, checked through security and met the assistant plant superintendent, who provided the tour for us in the morning.

Refuse collected from storm drains

Inside the treatment plant

Lab equipment

Capt. Bill Sheehan and Capt. Hugh Carola met the group at the treatment plant’s dock right at the confluence of the Passaic and Hackensack Rivers.  Although representing distinctly different watersheds, these two mighty NJ rivers meet to form Newark Bay and are often considered the Passaic/Hackensack drainage basin.  WHAT a PERSPECTIVE!  Usually we only see the rivers from land side and only at high speeds driving along highways.  But this afternoon we were treated to stories of degradation and comeback, of environmental abuse and environmental mitigation.  We were able to get up close and personal with the magnificient salt marsh associated with the Hackensack – and even though human-created debris was extremely evident, we could overlook that to see:  the birds…diamondback terrapin…spartina grass….and hear not only the traffic and planes, but ……. quiet, birds calling and the wind blowing through the salt marsh grasses.  It was truly a great experience.

Heading up the Passaic River

Saw Mill Creek spartina and phragmites

Look for more pictures on our Flickr page!

Visiting the “headwaters” of the Watershed

Day 3 - Tenafly Nature Center

Although we were forecast for a rainy day…the teacher’s energy and enthusiasm blew those clouds away and we had a beautiful day at the nature center.  Why did we pick Tenafly Nature Center?  Well….there is this little brook and if we trace it on a map or were adventurous enough to follow the brook for several miles…it would lead into a tributary of the Hackensack River.

Kelly Reed from Honeywell Hometown Solutions joined the group this morning to talk with the teachers about Honeywell’s involvement in the program and commitment to the educational process of inspiring our next generation of innovators, scientists and creative thinkers.  It was great to hear about Honeywell’s commitment to the program.

After that  we had some quiet time in the forest.  Brian led the group on Tenafly’s yellow trail.  Evenly spaced along the trail, he dropped each teacher off in their own special spot.  Their task?  To not move for 10 minutes…to observe..listen…look…smell.  And then to spend 5 minutes writing in their journal.  At our sharing circle several things came out:

• this was great; I didn’t want to stop
• this was difficult, being quiet for that long
• I saw a chipmunk only inches away from me and we stared at each other
• it was wonderful to take a deep breath and stop for some moments

and the list went on.  So how what does this mean for our students?  How can this type of experience help them?

In the afternoon, we spend some time by the pond.  Although Brian and I had several things planned, our time was taken by frog catching, macroinvertebrate identification and general fun-in-learning.  Several teachers immediately took to the nets; others waded into the pond; others began doing chemical analysis of the water and still others started to identify species that we found as a result of dip netting.  Learning happened on so many levels.  Sharing expertise, asking questions of each other, interpreting maps and field guides; using a dichotomous key and using comparison charts for the chemical tests.  All in all it was a fabulous afternoon and we are certainly looking forward to tomorrow’s experiences.

Frog on a lily pad

Do you think we are excited about seeing a frog on a lily pad????

Teachers testing for dissolved oxygen

Singh and Robin search for frogs as well.

The Geology of the Watershed

Day 2 – Geology Day!

The group met at Hudson County Park – Laurel Hill (aka Snake Hill) right on the Hackensack River.  After introductions to our NJ Audubon geologist, Michael Pollock we headed over to the foot of Snake Hill – a volcanic outcrop in the middle of the watershed.  We asked teachers to take some time observing – what did they see, what did they feel and what did they hear as they stood by themselves for 10 minutes.  This experienced quieted minds and stimulated minds at the same time.  We got poetry (thanks Patrick), we got questions…so why are some of the cliff faces white?…we got comments…”oh, so this is what is on the other side of the turnpike!”  Our observations led to more questions and we talked about how these questions lead to student-driven investigations and research.

Ravi makes note of her observations

Western face of Snake Hill

Michael showed us how to use the rock hammer safely and many samples were collected for future use in the classroom.

Getting rock sampes

Our next stop was at the Alpine Overlook on top of the Palisades.  Here we did more observations, but this time we used multiple types of local rocks.  Our task was to write down our observations of the rock and then switch papers with another group who then had to find the rock that we had described.  Although some found this very easy, others found it difficult and as we talked through the process of the the experience, we determined some of the challenges had to do with standardizing terms, making note of similar things (like size and shape)  and providing as many details as possible to help with the identification.

A walk to the edge of the cliffs culminated the morning and we spend lunch at the Alpine Boat Basin at the base of the Palisades.  The question posed was:  why is the Palisades so important to the Hackensack Watershed?