Education activities review: April 16 – 20

Community monitoring programs

This week Catie has been training Jess and Carmen to manage the harmful algae bloom, tunicate, and European green crab monitoring programs when she is on leave during coming months/years. This will ensure that monitoring efforts with staff and volunteers continues seamlessly year-round.

Pre-K – 12th grade coastal science education

We hosted 120 K – 12th grade students from Homer and Kenai this week for Our Landscape Over Time Discovery Lab programs. We are so thankful for having had volunteer educator Carole Demers helping us with these student programs this month!

We offered the year’s 1st Estuary Ecology Hike to 27 fifth grade students from Homer this week. A newly arrived pair of Sandhill Cranes were especially cooperative – the kids got super close to them and had binoculars to see details on the birds.

Education staff met with middle school teacher Margi Blanding and high school teacher Vicki Lowe this week to brainstorm coastal science education programming for their students in the 2012-13 school year. We will also meet with middle school science teacher Jen Booz in May to discuss student programming for her students.

Public events

Jess and Carmen will be at the Paul Banks Elementary Math & Science Night combined with the Summer Activities Fair tonight to share KBRR’s summer education programs, as well as spring/summer Nature Rocks Homer outdoor activities for families.

Tomorrow – Saturday, April 21st from 10am – 2pm – is the Homer Kids Fishing Fair at Homer Middle School. Carmen will be helping ADF&G biologist Mike Booz provide fishing education activities at this event.

Next Thursday, April 26th, Carmen will be leading a Let’s G.O.! (Get Outside) Family Bird Walk from 9:30 – 10:30 am. Families are invited to join Carmen for a morning hike through Beluga Slough to find spring birds. The group will likely see Sandhill Cranes, a variety of ducks and geese, and perhaps shorebirds that have just arrived from far-off locales. Meet in the AK Islands & Ocean Visitor Center lobby. This free event is also a Week of the Young Child event.

Carmen participated in the final Shorebird Festival Committee meeting before next month’s 20th anniversary event. If you haven’t already registered for festival activities, you can do this at the Homer Chamber of Commerce or on the Chamber registration webpage.