VIDEO

VIDEO

Exploring Ponds and Vernal Pools

Exploring Ponds and Vernal Pools

Watch this brief, video picture of practice that captures everyday classroom life and provides real-life examples of how students learn and think about freshwater topics.

Grades

3 - 8

Subjects

Earth Science

Getting students into nature to explore the environment firsthand can be a logistical challenge for teachers but can also be a rewarding experience for students. Students learn a great deal about our environment through text, pictures, and videos, but firsthand experience interacting with nature itself can bring scientific concepts to life more so than words or images on a page. Studying aquatic habitats, such as vernal pools or ponds and streams, allows students to connect with plants and animals living in those environments, making the wildlife even more real to students. This interaction, and the opportunity to connect with the environment, may motivate students to want to conserve and protect special places in their local community.

Watch this video of 3rd grade students in Auburn, California—an inland community. The purpose of this in-the-field video is to observe students' exploration and ideas about life in aquatic habitats.

Media Credits

The audio, illustrations, photos, and videos are credited beneath the media asset, except for promotional images, which generally link to another page that contains the media credit. The Rights Holder for media is the person or group credited.

Writers
Ari J. Posner, M.S. Urban Planning
Beth A. Covitt, Ph.D. Environmental Education and Conservation Psychology
Tania T. Hinojosa, M.Ed. Educational Technology
Jose Marcos-Iga, Ph.D. Natural Resources
Marcia S. Matz, M.A. Design
Tara G. Treiber, B.A. Natural Sciences: Ecology
Sandra Postel, National Geographic Fellow
Abraham Miller-Rushing, Ph.D. Biology
Anica Miller-Rushing, M.Ed. Curriculum and Instruction
Lindsey Mohan, Ph.D. Educational Psychology and Technology
Designer
Cindy Olson
Editors
Kristen Dell, National Geographic Society
Lindsey Mohan, Ph.D.
Chelsea Zillmer
Educator Reviewers
Catie Boarts, Heal the Bay
Beth A. Covitt, University of Montana
Jenny D. Ingber
Meghan E. Marrero, New York State Marine Education
Marcia S. Matz
Sandra Postel, National Geographic Fellow
other
Last Updated

October 19, 2023

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