Nature ‘House’ Calls

Available Nature ‘House’ Calls

Choose from the currently available activities (many of the below activities will work for younger and older grades also). Looking for something different? Contact us at bluemarblelearningscene@gmail.com, we probably have what you want!

Primary Nature Visits (K to Gr 3)

• Dreaming Octopus - Yes octopuses dream, but even more exciting is how they change colour during their dreams. This adaption of colour changing leads to an exploration of other adaptations in the natural world. Learners will pick their favourite adaptations to create their own creatures.

• Gaggle of Geese and More - Why is a group of geese called a gaggle?  Why are a group of elephants a parade?  This experience will provide the opportunity to learn the names of groups of animals, plus the reason why.  Learners will then have the opportunity to challenge their memory and have fun creating their own group of original animals.

• Grade 2 and 3 science strand SPECIAL series - We’ve created 5 unique activities that touch on all grade 2 and 3 strands of science. This unique nature ‘house’ call series is designed to build a relationship with your learners as we return for multiple visits. Of course, you can pick and choose, booking one or more of these activities. Perfect for grade 2, grade 3 or grade 2/3 classes. 1) Worms Everywhere - investigate soils while exploring the earth worm and how they ‘eat dirt’. 2) Water Magic and Towers - focus on the properties of water with the exploration of magic tricks and water tower construction. 3) Pull Pull Pulley - learners are challenged to lift then move Eggy using a pulley system (all pulley materials provided). 4) Magnetic Challenge Game - learn about magnets in order to create your own game based on the needs of living things. 5) Flying Seeds - as a plant you will learn about then design your own seed to help you reproduce.

Junior Nature Visits (Gr 4-6)

• Rockin’ History - Geology and the rock record can help us to understand the history of the Earth and how the world has changed. Together, exploring different rocks and how they form, we will investigate how a rock/geologic record can tell us the different environments that came before. Was there an ocean, volcano, or river here before? Let's find out!

• Egyptians vs Ants - The Egyptians challenge the Ants to a game of Senet. In this experience, learners will learn, explore, and compare the world of Ancient Egypt to the world of Ants. At first mention, you might not think there are any similarities but just wait. Answer questions to win a turn and advance in the Egyptian game of Senet.

• Maple Math - Being a maple syrup farmer requires math in order to know how many taps a tree can take, how much sap they need to make 1L of syrup. Using their new maple knowledge, learners will determine how much maple syrup their maple trees can produce.

Intermediate Nature Visits (Gr 7-8)

• Water Filtration - The City of Naturetown needs to find a solution for a drainage issue. In a new residential subdivision water has been accumulating in the ditches in front of the houses, along the road. Learners have been hired by the City to determine what materials should be used to solve the drainage problem. Through testing, learners will determine which materials drains best and propose a solution. *Special video instructions included. *Good for special education / alternative classes

• Maple Math and Maple Business - Being a maple syrup farmer requires math and business in order to know how many taps a tree can take, how much sap they need , and how much to sell their products for. Now it’s your turn! Using their own knowledge, learners will try to succeed at being a maple syrup farmer. This activity is offered as a two visit activity with the first visit being about math and the optional second visit about business. Each visit is 60 min and is priced individually.

High School Nature Visits (Gr 9-12)

• Protecting Drinking Water - In this experience learners will examine the Walkerton Tragedy and attempt to learn from this historical drinking water contamination to try and protect drinking water in a new town. Learners will investigate policies for protecting our water, how humans impact drinking water, and how land use planning can help ensure our water stays safe.

• Fishy Physics - Rivers, fish, math, physics, what more could you ask for. This experience uses real world questions asked by fluvial geomorphologists when designing river restoration projects to ensure they are appropriate for fish passage. Learners will learn about rivers and fish while solving math and physics problems to determine if in-stream barriers will prevent fish from moving up stream.