It was a busy week for our Kids in Nature (KIN) program! The KIN mission is to promote the aspirations of young students by providing quality environmental science education, assisted by our passionate KIN staff (Andy Lanes and Janet Myers) as well as UCSB undergraduates enrolled in the EEMB189/ES191 course. During the Winter quarter, KIN visits both Coal Oil Point Reserve and the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, as well as conducting classroom visits and working in the established native plant gardens on the elementary school campuses. This week saw KIN at both locations due to a previous rain cancellation, with everyone enjoying the sun and new environmental knowledge.
These students from the Peabody Charter School are at Coil Oil Point Reserve learning about the diversity of life present in various coastal habitats. During field trips, students are rotated through stations focusing on different aspects of the environment. Students from left to right above are observing beach hoppers belonging to the Orchestoidea genus, learning about the leaf adaptations of Beach Saltbush (Atriplex leucophylla), and discovering the role of marine algae in the beach environment. Over the entire year, we estimate that each KIN student experiences 100 hours of small group environmental science education.
The Santa Barbara Botanic Garden provided these Isla Vista Elementary School fifth graders with a stunning array of California habitats and a very informative morning. Students above are learning about Chumash Ethnobotany, the Redwood Forest, and Lichen. The ethnobotany group learned about the how the Chumash used native plants for everything from art to weaponry and importance of acorns from Oak trees (Quercus spp.) as a food source. In the cooler understory of the Coastal Redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens), EEMB189/ES191 undergraduates educated on the difference between evergreen and deciduous as well as on the importance of protecting this disappearing old-growth ecosystem. Students on the rock are observing the three main types of lichen (foliose, crustose, fruticose) and learning about how this slow growing symbiotic organism is sensitive to air pollution.
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