NSTA SC-12:

Explore Local Biodiversity with

Encyclopedia of Life and OBIS

Tracy Barbaro

Erica Beck Spencer

Joanna Snyder

● Introductions

● Experience OBIS & EOL

○ Observations and Natural History

○ Winter Survival

○ Adaptations and Diversity

● BioBlitz & OBIS Activities

● Bring it together, next steps

Agenda

● In and out travel

● Staying warm outdoors

● We will take a break

● Mix and mingle

● Use your journal

● This is only the beginning

Considerations

● Who are we?

● Who are you?

○ Your name, your work

○ Where you are from

○ Personal goal from our day

● Handouts / Journal

Introductions

Participants will:

● Be introduced to OBIS and EOL and the available

resources.

● Engage in OBIS activities and explore connections to the

EOL project/resource.

● Gain a better understanding of their target site and how

to explore it further during different seasons.

Short Course Goals

What tools and activities can we use to learn about local biodiversity?

How can EOL and OBIS help stimulate curiosity about the natural world?

Guiding Questions

NRC Framework:Scientific & Engineering

Practices

1. Asking Questions / Defining Problems

2. Developing and Using Models

3. Planning and Carrying Out Investigations

4. Analyzing and Interpreting Data

5. Using Math and Computational Thinking

6. Constructing explanations / Designing Solutions

7. Engaging in Argument

8. Evaluating and Communicating Information

What is the OBIS?● Outdoor Biology Instructional Strategies

● 97 Outdoor Activities

Originally designed in late 1970s

What is the OBIS?● Outdoor Biology Instructional Strategies

● 97 Outdoor Activities

Originally designed in late 1970s ...

● to explore ecology concepts

● in a local environment (typically urban)

● with kids ages 10-14

● using inexpensive (homemade) equipment

● for leaders with limited science or teaching experience

Bugs, Worms and Others→ What can you observe about a population of organisms

that will give information about its natural history?

What is the Encyclopedia of Life?

● A free resource for information about life on Earth - plants,

animals, fungi, micro-organisms.

● Taxon Pages, ranging from kingdom all the way down to the

species level.

● Natural history information, data, multimedia.

● Tools and resources to support learning about biodiversity.

Where does the information on EOL come from?

Species information on EOL comes from authoritative content partners, individuals scientists, citizen scientists, students and the general public.

..and many more

EOL Resources to Support “Bugs, Worms & Others”

Animal Natural History Stories Collection

A collection is your own personalized

collection of species pages (or images)

that are interesting to you. You can add

notes and share your collection. Each

item links to an EOL taxon page.

Anyone can make a collection. You can

use the collection to make games, field

guides and species cards.

Podcasts

Over 70 podcasts about species

with interesting natural history

stories.

Podcasts include scientist

interviews, multimedia and related

educational materials.

http://podcast.eol.org/podcast

Animal Antifreeze→ What aspects of the environment provide protection

from the cold?

EOL Resources to Support “Animal Antifreeze”

Surviving Winter EOL Collection

Make Your Own Collection

Surviving Winter EOL Memory Game

Make Your Own EOL Memory Game

1.Locate the collection ID number ( i.e. eol.org/collections/9465)

2.Go to http://fieldguides.eol.org/memory/# and login.

3.Click on the “+” to add a new game. Enter the collection ID number. Choose if

you want to make the game public.

● Average child ages 8 – 18 spends 7.5 hours each day

using entertainment media. (Rideout et. al., 2011)

● While organized sports have dramatically increased

since 1960, so has childhood obesity.

● Average distance today’s parents let their children roam

from home is 100 feet

What the Research Says

⇧ engagement

⇧ attention

⇧ achievement

⇧ sense of belonging

⇧ personal connection

➔ stewardship

Richard Louv

● Lack of outdoor play + focus on negative =

Ecophobia

● Keep it positive and tangible

● Keep it local

David Sobel: Beyond Ecophobia

Science

The goal of scientific process is

the construction of theories

that provide explanatory

accounts of the material world.

Engineering

The goal of engineering design

is a systematic solution to

problems that is based on

scientific knowledge and

models of the material world.

NRC Framework:Scientific & Engineering Practices

Science vs. Engineering

NRC Framework:Scientific & Engineering

Practices

1. Asking Questions / Defining Problems

2. Developing and Using Models

3. Planning and Carrying Out Investigations

4. Analyzing and Interpreting Data

5. Using Math and Computational Thinking

6. Constructing explanations / Designing Solutions

7. Engaging in Argument

8. Evaluating and Communicating Information

NRC Framework:Scientific & Engineering Practices

Practices vs. Inquiry

Ready, Set, Science! Putting research into work in K-8 classroom (Michaels, 2008)

Science practice refers to:

● doing something repeatedly in order to become proficient (practicing the trumpet).

● learning something so thoroughly that it becomes second nature (practicing thrift).

● using one’s knowledge to meet an objective(practicing law or practicing teaching).

Invent an Animal → What features of camouflage best help animals blend

into a habitat?

EOL Resources to Support

“Invent an Animal”

Species Videos

An Octopus changing its appearance, color and body structure (Video)

A Pygmy Seahorse as it blends in with its coral host (Video)

A cuttlefish hides among rock reefs and seaweed (Video)

A canyon treefrog in the Santa Catalina Mountains, Arizona, USA. (Video)

Creating Species Cards and Field Guides

Create species fact cards or field guides from any EOL Collection, by using the collection url (i.e)

http://eol.org/collections/113361

Create cards at:

www.education.eol.org/cards

Create field guides at:

www.inaturalist.org/guides

A BioBlitz - or species inventory - is a fun activity that brings together non-scientists with scientists to help create a list of species for a specific location. A typical BioBlitz takes place over 24 hours, but they can also be organized as shorter or longer term events. Some last a few hours and some last a week or more.

BioBlitz Resources

EOL can support your BioBlitz in a number of ways:

- Use EOL to learn more about species you may find.

- Create a collection/checklist of local species on EOL, share the

link with others.

- Create species cards, a field guide or a game to support

learning during or after the BioBlitz event.

Terrestrial

● Bean Bugs

● Out of Control

● Shake It!

● Sticklers

The Old White Sheet Trick

OBIS: Exploring Biodiversity

Aquatic

● Habitats of the Pond

● How Many Organisms Live

Here?

● Water Holes to Mini-Ponds

BioBlitz

● Animal Diversity

● Animals in the Grassland

● Plant Hunt

OBIS Online

OBIS Activity Search by…

Activity Type

- Experiments (12)

- Collections (27)

Content

- Animal Behavior (25)

- Biodiversity

- Field Study (29)

- Plants (25)

Study Sites

- Backyard (46)

- Deserts (9)

- Neighborhood Woods (46)

- Schoolyard

OBIS Revision

● Considering the needs of modern educators and kids

● Current research (pedagogy, standards, behavior)

OBIS will still ...

● explore ecology concepts in a local environments

● with kids ages 10-14 (with younger options)

● use inexpensive equipment (some still homemade)

● for all sorts of educators (informal and classroom).

EOL Next Steps

• Improving accessibility of using the EOL website

• Adding data that can be downloaded

• Testing tools with educational groups both in and out of

the classroom.

What tools and activities can we use to learn about local biodiversity?

How can EOL and OBIS help stimulate curiosity about the natural world?

Revisit the Guiding Questions