What's a shark?

True story - when I went into blogger to create this, I discovered that I once started a blog, long before I started the GFP, about using inquiry to answer questions of my 3-year-old (sniff, now almost 8-year-old). Apparently life got in the way because we never got beyond "Where is Mercury?" and "Where does water go?" I sure wish I had kept that going... I think what influenced me the most and really shaped my final master plan was learning about the Wildlife Clubs in Guyana. The moment I tell people about most often was teaching the kids the "Shark" song only to realize at the end that many of them had no idea what a shark is. I use this moment to stress the importance of place-based education and helping students to understand what is in their own backyard. I know that there are children in my own community who could identify animals from rain forests thousands of miles from home, but couldn't identify a lake sturgeon, a critical species right here in the Great Lakes. I think that if we expect children to grow up as stewards of the planet, they must first learn about the ecology of their own place and how it fits in to the global ecosystem. This will help them to understand how the choices they make set off a ripple effect (whether positive or negative) around the globe. Working with the kids in the Wildlife Club inspired me to explore the possibility of starting a similar program in my own community. The kids in Guyana displayed not only amazing ecological knowledge, they also possessed inquiry and problem solving skills along with top-notch communication skills. The youth in my community and the community itself could benefit both socially and economically from stewardship program that encourages students to not only learn about our unique ecosystem but also to share that knowledge with visitors and local residents.