| Curriculum Notebook - Grades 2-Up | ||||||||||||||||
Interpretive Stops
1. Along Aptos Creek
Additional Information |
Quick Things To Do with Children at the Forest Grades 2-Up If you're a busy teacher or parent looking for some quick suggestions for things to do with your kids while at the forest, you might consider the following:
1. Take a spray water bottle (fill it with water from the creek if you want) and spray the needles of a redwood. Watch the water accumulate and then eventually drip down. This simulates the fog that rolls into the area at different times throughout the year. Tell your kids that fog is important to the coast redwood trees since much of their water is derived from fog. Researchers have even suggested that fog is the reason that the redwoods get so tall! 2. Read the story to your child about how "Douglas Fir Keeps His Seed Cones" and then walk the trail counting as many douglas-fir seed cones as you can. (The story gives you clues for recognizing Douglas-fir seed cones). Remember to tell your children that these seed cones are an important food source for forest animals and as potential Douglas-fir seedlings. Remind them that they should not remove seed cones from the forest. 3. Measure the height of a tree. Use Interpretive Stop No. 12 to find a tree to measure. Take a few minutes to read the instructions for measuring a tree found on Measuring Tree Height. OR - A simpler and faster method for measuring tree height is found in Method 2 at this website page: Following Fall. 4. Count the rings of a Douglas-fir. To get background information, go to the educational pages of the dendrochronology website and read about Douglas-fir tree-rings. (For more detailed information, read all educational pages of the dendrochronology website from the beginning). Then head to the forest and up Old-Growth Loop. When you get to Stop No. 7, look for the several douglas-fir logs that sit next to the trail. You'll be able to recognize douglas-fir tree logs by looking for their zig-zagged, fissured bark (See Redwoods and Associates) and their noticeable, concentric tree-rings. Help your child count the rings and discuss what each tree-ring represents (one year's growth). The Douglas-firs at this spot were about 80 years old when they blew over. The trees were eventually cut into logs by state park personnel in order to clear the area. 5. Read the teacher's lesson on "Meet a Tree." This is a fun game exploring nature. Interpretive Stop No. 12, with plenty of second-growth redwoods, is a good place to find your tree. |
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Suggestions
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