Ecology - Wetlands Scavenger Hunt

As a child in later public elementary school, I hated science. All I can remember about it was textbook reading. I do recall that sometimes there were colorful, intriguing pictures in the book, and some of the things we read about sounded like they might be interesting, if only...  if only I could see and do and feel and explore instead of just read about it. Instead, we were all supposed to follow along and read a paragraph when it came to be our turn, at the end of the day, when all we really wanted was for the bell to ring so we could go home.

So, I want my kids to do more than just read about science. As we learn about biomes, ecosystems, and habitats, I want things to be as real as possible. Thus, the wetlands scavenger hunt was born. 

I created a 4-page worksheet packet for my kids to take along to help with focus and observation as we visited a wetland area. (To start, I used "The Top 75 Wetland Plants" from Among the Stately Trees as a guide, clicking on the USDA links for the map to make sure the plants I put on our list were actually found in our area, as well as the Wikipedia links for the photos.) If you'd like to use the packet I created, you can access it here:  Wetlands Scavenger Hunt Worksheets. Just remember that I created it for my state (Utah) so if you live elsewhere, some of these things will be the same and you may have other native plants and animals in your area that should be searched for. Also, my packet was by no means all inclusive, it was a starting point.  And we carried bird identification books with us. My plan is to visit several different wetland areas on different days, using a new set of these worksheets at each location.

Here are a few of my favorite photos from our first wetlands scavenger hunt.

American White Pelican

Northern Leopard Frog

Juvenile, female Wilson's Warbler

Family of Canadian Geese

Red-winged Blackbird

American White Pelican Couple