"Bugs, Birds" and Biodiversity" Manasquan Reservoir Field Trip

Our third grade science unit, "Living Things and Their Environments", came to life when we participated in Manasquan Reservoir's "Bugs, Birds, and Biodiversity" program. The field trip began with a live animal presentation, including meeting a catfish and bass, painted turtle and box turtle, a variety of frogs and toads, and a corn snake that some students were brave enough to touch!

 (catfish and bass)

(toad)

 (top-box turtle, bottom-painted turtle)

(corn snake)

Next, students completed an animal adaption lab activity by rotating through 3 hands-on stations that included re-enacting how animals gather food and matching animals to the food they eat.

We then went on a nature walk that including visiting a butterfly garden and the reservoir. Some students even spotted a gopher peeping out of its burrow! 

The unit came alive in class as well. One of the hands-on activity we did was working in small teams to create 4 link food chains that began with a producer and ended with a consumer...

      
   Happy learning!